A Tad Late Album Of This Year's Visit To The San Diego Comic-Con International

   I attended the San Diego Comic-Con International this year, the first time I've attended since the 1987 San Diego Comic-Con. 

   In 1987 it was still known simply as the San Diego Comic-Con, and it was much, much smaller, though it did use two different venues, the (old) S.D. Convention Center and the Embarcadero Holiday Inn, to host the dealer's room and all the panels and events.

   We (RLT, EA, & BA and myself) went to breakfast at a place in the Gaslamp Quarter two hours before the doors would be open, and there were quite a few people already milling about. By the time we finished breakfast, the initial crowd had probably quadrupled. 

   Even though I was with old friends who had attended the past thirty or so cons and they had pretty much prepared me for the mass of humanity that would be there, I was still unprepared for the number of people who had begun to line up hours before the doors opened. The best comparison I can make is to major sporting events such as the World Series or Superbowl, or maybe the Great American Beer Fest in it's heyday. 

   It was a whole lotta people. 

    Me, EA, RLT, & BA at the 2025 San Diego Comic-Con International, just shy of fifty years after RLT & I attended our first SDCC together when it was held at the El Cortez

   The sign above was posted prominently on all entrances to the Con, which made me a bit sad for the kids. I wasn't yet 12 when I attended my first Con, all by my lonesome. Took the bus to Harbor Island and spent the afternoon wandering through what I thought of as heaven, bothering nobody (I think) and nobody bothering me. Times (and levels of paranoia) have changed since then.

                                       Literally, just twenty minutes after the doors opened.

   The diversity of the crowd was wonderful, especially the number of families that were in attendance. Impossible for me to imagine the parents of any children attending the Con back in the day - it just wasn't much of a family affair. Very happy to see it has become so.

    About two hours after doors open and the upstairs lounge has become a crowded refuge...from the crowds.

These pics are just the tip of the proverbial ice berg. I'll throw up a lot more pics on a few more posts that show what compelled all these people to spend at least one day in downtown San Diego.

Swayze Jackson's Long Drive Home

   The only thing that had any worth to him was his car. A beat up, held together with duct tape and baling wire, missing the passenger-side rearview mirror, big hole in the dash where the stereo used to be, slathered with bondo 1979 Chevrolet Monza Spyder, direct descendent of the unsafe at any speed Corvair. 

   A POS, but still more reliable than any member of his family or any of his so called friends.

   It had been years since the last time he had actual contact with a family member. As he drove east along the 40 he mentally adjusted the mileage from the distance given to Knoxville into minutes. He fidgeted in his seat as he looked at his cell for the time and figured it would be at least 45 minutes before the Sunsphere lights would come into view.

   For awhile he fought off the memory of the last fight, but to no avail.

   His brother's fist driving into the drywall, his sister screaming for both of them to stop, his mother crying in the kitchen. Good ol' home sweet home.

   The fear in his sisters face seemed to intensify with each recollection. Her screams still pierced his ears. He never actually heard his mother's crying, but he sure as hell felt every punch his brother landed. 

   His brother, the meth-addicted scumbag, regarded as a hero for defending the family honor.

   Honor among scum, what a joke. The fact that their father had been known as the Bastard of Beaumont and never took responsibility for any of his actions (or lack of action in regards to supporting his family) hadn't dulled the regard his mother and older siblings inexplicably held him in.

   Remembering his father was not painful, as the only memories he had of the man was the day he met him at the service station on North Central, and his funeral.

   The fact that his father had named him after an actor who starred in a cheesy ass 1980's action film didn't bother him much. After all, it was a decent ice breaker in certain dating circles.

   Remembering the ceaseless adulation for the man that his mother and siblings had for him was painful though, specifically because he was keenly aware of how much his father had abused the hell out of each of them.

   What was wrong with all of them? Stockholm syndrome or something like it? It was incomprehensible.

   The minutes and miles passed as he drove on. A few more miles he would be crossing over the Clinch. 

   That was the demarcation line. That point right there was when he began to regard himself as being back home, and it had been almost two decades since he last had that thought.

   Long enough to almost get a college degree, get married, have a couple of kids, get divorced, lose everything, and work like mad to get back on his feet and keep up the child support payments.

   At least he wasn't following the family tradition of simply abandoning his children and forgetting he even knew they existed.

   Yeah, he had that...at least.

There's A New Kid In Town

Her name is Arkie...Arkie the Destroyer, for obvious reasons

Little Things People Reveal After Knocking Back A Few

 "So, if you don't mind me asking, what were you convicted of?"

 "Practicing while impaired."

 "Practicing while impaired? But you're a Dentist."

 "Yeah. I...was a Dentist."

The Prairie Dog Days Of Summer

Moments That Alter One's Plans

   There was no agreeable premonition or serendipitous wrong turn that caused him to end up at the small restaurant that afternoon. He had just been driving through town in order to find the cheapest gas station and, being a little hungry, decided to check out what looked to be a well-trafficked, busy little diner located right next to the gas station he'd pulled into.

   His philosophy regarding unknown dining establishments had always been to look for signs that the place was busy, and a parking lot full of cars, especially in the late afternoon when a lunchtime rush or dinner crowd couldn't be the explanation, was always a good indicator that people liked what was on offer.

   Walking through the front door and hearing the low hum of several conversations and the clinking of utensils on plates sealed the deal. He waited patiently at a small podium where a "Please wait to be seated" sign was posted.

   The woman who strode over carrying a plastic tumbler of ice water in one hand and a menu in the other was smiling broadly at him. She introduced herself as Michelle and asked, "Is there just one of you today?" in that exquisite small-town pleasant tone that he had grown to love over the last few months of his travels. So much more welcoming than the tone one was greeted with in the larger cities up north.

   "Yup, just me, I'm Daniel" Escaped his lips as more of a reaction than an answer. 

   "Would you like a seat at the counter? We don't have any open tables inside at the moment, but there are a couple outside on the back patio if you want to eat in the sunshine."

   He considered his options for a short moment then replied in what he hoped was not a tired-as-he-actually-was voice, "You know Michelle, dining al fresco would be great. The back patio it is." 

   "Follow me," she said as she turned toward a small aisle that separated the booths directly behind her. They made their way past the happy chatting and eating customers and walked through a back door to the large patio that was covered with a vine-wrapped pergola.

   "Here you go Daniel, a comfy spot in the shade," she said as she placed the cup of water and the menu on the table and then pulled out a chair for him. He slid into the seat and she said, "Mindy will be out to take your order after you have had a few minutes to look over the menu - is there anything else you'd like to drink? We have four beers on tap - Molsons, Coors Light, Blue Moon & Leinie's Summer Shandy."

   "Do you have iced tea?"

   "We have the best iced tea - Pink, Lemon, Raspberry or our own Summertime Sweet Tea?" She answered, then added, "The Summertime Sweet Tea is unforgettable."

   "Well then, I will have the unforgettable Summertime Sweet tea."

    The woman smiled broadly again and walked back into the restaurant while he took up the menu. The name of the place and a motto was printed boldly on the front, "Jake and Jen's Gourmand Retreat, Food For Folks That Like To Eat."

   That's when he heard what sounded like shots from a small caliber handgun, and a scream that was muffled almost instantly.

    As quickly and quietly as he could he got up from his seat and made his way toward the railing that bordered the patio on the side to the left of the door. He crouched behind a table and with both hands grabbed the back of one of the chairs. Slowly he stood up and hoisted the chair in front of him. Anyone coming through the door wouldn't see him until they turned to look behind the door, and that would give him at least a couple seconds to bring the chair down on them.

   

   

Wheat Ridge Carnation Festival 2025

   August in Colorado can be hot, dry, and dusty, but it's also when a whole bunch of county and community fairs are held. A prime example of such is the Wheat Ridge Carnation Festival, staged at Anderson Park located along West 44th street in the heart of Wheat Ridge. 

 

   Wheat Ridge, though now more a bedroom community of Denver, was once a very agrarian place with quite a few large and small farms, and was home to more than thirty carnation growing operations for most of the last half of the 20th century. 

   Even though the farms are now gone and the last of the carnation greenhouses closed their doors in 2008, the carnation remains a symbol of the city, and the all-volunteer operated celebration has been going on for more than fifty years.

   The festival is fairly typical of small town USA festivals, featuring live music, a community art show, a carnival midway, and plenty of food and drink.

   The musical acts featured were generally cover bands, many of which were actually quite good - heck, the bands alone were more than enough reason to spend at least Friday or Saturday at the three-day event (Sunday is reserved for the classic car show). 

   Added bonus: No admission charge.

 

And finally, some real carnations at the Carnation Festival.