24 Hour Zine Thing: WIN!!

I did it! Although at times I thought about giving up, and I could have really used some of the 4.5 hours I spent sleeping, I finished the 24 HOUR ZINE THING challenge!

SYNDICATE PRODUCT 16 / GOLDEN STATE

And this is the introduction:

"It is now 8:10AM on July 17, 2010, and there are 50 minutes left in my personal 24 HOUR ZINE PROJECT THING (see www.24hourzines.com), which started July 16 at 9AM EDT. This entire issue was conceived, written, collaged, and laid out in 24 hours. The essay “Golden State” is just under 3000 words. Completing the 24 HOUR ZINE PROJECT was a hell of a lot more difficult than I thought it would be, and after I print out one copy, I’m not going to touch a computer for at least 24 more hours.

As I struggle to finish up (there are still two blank pages as I write this intro), I’m cursing myself for taking those 4.5 hours to sleep between 1AM and 5:30AM, as that time would really be useful now.

But part of this challenge, for me personally, was to try to be less tightassed about my zine production process. There are for certain typographic errors in here, possibly many of them. And after I finish this little intro, I still have to do something with those blank pages.

On the cover is an extremely boring postcard depicting the lobby of the Pomona First Federal Savings and Loan Association in Pomona, California. This postcard came in a lot from eBay, and it was used by someone living in Baldwin Park, CA and sent to Vincennes, Indiana. The postmark is 1959, and in the message they say “My the quake in the mont. must have been terrible. Hope all are well.” I’ve collaged it with a map of the state to remind myself that yes, the banal, ordinary, and everyday still exists in California.

The back cover was created by running the essay through Wordle (www.wordle.net).

This 24 hour zine is dedicated to the memory of Harvey Pekar (an Ohioan, certainly not a Californian, until the end), who died on July 12, 2010. His work is very inspiring to me. Harvey once said: “Comics are words and pictures. You can do anything with words and pictures.”

Well, here’s some of mine."

* * * * * * * *

It is now just about 25 hours since I started this project, and I really don't want to touch the computer for at least another 24 hours. I'm also hungry, my room is a mess, and I don't smell so good.

A shower, breakfast sandwich, and about 12 hours of television are in order.

Do Not Disturb: 24 Hour Zine Thing in Progress

The 24 Hour Zine Thing project is an unaffiliated project inspired by the annual 24 Hour Comics Day. Created in 2006, 24 Hour Zine Thing does not have an assigned day, like 24HCD, but takes place during the entire month of July - zine publishers can create a 24 hour zine during any day.

The philosophy of 24 Hour Zine Thing, from their FAQ is as follows:

The 24 Hour Zine Challenge asks zinesters to create a 24-page zine from conception to final product in 24 hours straight. Zines should be of suitable size and technical difficulty so that this truly is a challenge for individual zinesters.

Ideally, there should be no planning of the zine content before starting the 24 hour clock. Yes, you can get supplies together, but are discouraged from using any material you might have been working on already, or have in reserve from previous projects. The zine is supposed to be completely created in those 24 hours.

It’s really difficult to NOT think about what you want to do for the zine. Full disclosure: I have a two word topic idea, and some of the thoughts I want to get down on paper have been knocking around the lobes for a while. However, I have nothing written, and no artwork completed.

Hey, I’m a writer, which means that I’m constantly observing and pondering... stuff. If it’s between doing a 24 Hour Zine from some fleeting ideas I have versus trying to come up with something from nothing, getting frustrated, and giving up, I’d rather “cheat” a little bit. It’s still going to be a huge amount of work.

Personal goals for the 24 Hour Zine Thing are:

+ Entirely self written (because I generally curate compilation zines)
+ Less computer-dependent for layout (do some collages)
+ A unique size: 3.5 x 8.5 (1/4 legal, if you took a legal sized sheet and folded it in quarters)
+ Realize that errors may slip through, and learn to live with “good enough”

The plan is to begin tomorrow morning with a deadline of Saturday morning. Look for progress reports on Twitter.

"Ordinary life is pretty complex stuff."

Harvey Pekar, 1939-2010.



(Paul Giamatti as Harvey Pekar in 2003's movie American Splendor, directed by Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini.)

Tales of Stupid Shipping*

My parents recently ordered small bottles of touch-up paint for their Westinghouse range, a company which is now owned by Electrolux.

They ordered three small bottles (0.6 oz. each), but the company sent them four.

Here is a photo of the small bottles of paint, with a quarter for comparison size:



Here are the boxes they were shipped in, with the bottles of paint in front for comparison. One box contained two bottles, the remaining boxes contained one bottle each:



And HERE on the right is the box that those three individual smaller boxes were packed in:



Also in these boxes were several yards worth of blank newsprint used for packing materials.

This was the most insane use of overpackaging I've seen in a very long time. Here's all four bottles packed together in one of the individual baggies (which held only one bottle). They could have easily put these into a FedEx padded envelope and had them arrive safely:



I suppose there is some truth to what my Dad said after opening all the boxes: "Well, at least a box this size wouldn't get lost. And I'll save the big box to ship something else."

* The title of this post comes from the blog The Consumerist, which has a regular feature called "Stupid Shipping Gang".

"I've liked you for a thousand years."

In preparation for the release of Bryan Lee O'Malley's Volume 6: SCOTT PILGRIM'S FINEST HOUR on 7/20, I'm re-reading the first five volumes in the series. And yes, I am such a dork that I have them parceled out for half a book a day until 7/20.

Of course, there's always the movie coming 8/13. Still not entirely convinced of Michael Cera as Scott Pilgrim, but I'm keeping an open mind.



And if you want to play around with some marketing goodies, you can create your own Scott Pilgrim avatar over at the official movie site. Here's me:



Or, just listen to the song by Plumtree that inspired the comic.

Are you telling me you built a time machine out of a Delorean?

Twenty-five years ago today, July 3, 1985:



(Wow. Remember verbose, expository trailers?)

I’m about to commit geek heresy, but I’ll say it anyway: I love Back to the Future more than the Original Trilogy, more than Raiders, more than the core John Hughes canon.

I saw Back to the Future three times during the summer of ‘85, the last at a drive-in on a double feature with Real Genius (another eternal favorite of mine), with my sister making out with her current boyfriend in the back seat the entire time, while I sat outside on a lawn chair. Even 25 years ago, I was impressed by the continuity and cleverness of the film, all the little details, such as “Twin Pines Mall” vs. “Lone Pines Mall” (Marty crashed into one of the pines in 1955, changing the name of the mall), the wordplay and references. It just seemed smarter than a lot of other films out that summer. At fifteen, I was starting to discern crap from not-crap in my media diet.

Back to the Future Part II was interesting, and Part III was largely unnecessary, but it was a big deal at the time that they were filming the sequels back-to-back (!!), something that hadn’t been done before. However, it’s the original movie that is iconic, oft parodied and quoted, even seemingly throwaway scenes, such as “Your cousin, Marvin Berry!”:



I am so going to watch the hell out of all three movies this weekend. And fuck yeah, if I had a chance to buy a Delorean, I’d do it.