MoCCA 2009 is This Weekend!
Tom Spurgeon, who I only know and love online, has a list of 25 Things I'd Do at MoCCA.

It's a shame that he won't be at the show, but I really enjoyed his list this morning, particularly this one:

5. I'd walk to the show one morning
You have to be careful with this one because you'll be on your feet a lot at the show, but there's nothing better than taking a long walk through one of the great cities of the world knowing comics is your final destination.

I couldn't agree more, Tom. One thing for me about New York, is that it makes you slow down a bit and want to walk. If it's a beautiful day, I couldn't imagine taking the bus or the subway if you are just going a few miles. Hell, Kate and I have walked from our place all the way up to 23rd Street. Of course that was with the promise of a Shake Shack Shroom Burger (Crisp-fried portobello filled with melted muenster and cheddar cheese, topped with lettuce, tomato and Shack sauce) and fries at the end of our destination.

I'm excited about MoCCA this year, mostly because I haven't been for a few years. But I'm also looking forward to meeting a lot of the folks that I've reviewed and emailed with over the past few years. I'll be at the show on Saturday, but probably not Sunday unless I stop by for the Gary Panter/Frank Santoro discussion Sunday afternoon.

I'm not that familiar with the area up there yet, but I enjoyed local expert Heidi's guide to eats close to the show. Maybe this will give me the chance to try Baoguette.

Channeling Tom Spurgeon Again

If I was in Brooklyn, I'd go to this. From the wonderfully talented Matthew Thurber:

"Hi, a great night of music, art, + animation by some crazy multitaskers is coming up, presented by PictureBox. April 18th at the Issue Project Room in Brooklyn: Gary Panter/Devin Flynn musical performance. An Ambergris (Matthew Thurber, Hiroshi Kimura, Rebecca Bird, scroll, light show by Roi Bannow????) Amy Lockhart film screening

Come rock and roll with us! In a round room!

8 P.M.
400 Carroll Street
Between Bond and Nevins
Rrooklyn, NY 11231
718-330-0313

Here is a more elaborate description:

Wednesday, April 18
A PictureBox night at Issue Project Room

PictureBox is a Grammy-Award winning publisher and visual culture studio based in Brooklyn, New York. Led by art director and editor Dan Nadel, PictureBox specializes in bringing artists' visions to print in startling and unexpected ways. Nadel art directs and oversees all PictureBox projects, from CDs to posters to books.

Amy Lockhart is a Vancouver-based filmmaker, animator and painter. She'll be screening some of her short films collected under the moniker Walk For Walk.

Matthew Thurber is a Brooklyn-based cartoonist and musician who creates 19th century versions of multi-media performances with masks, scrolls, and a small guitar.

Gary Panter is the legendary artist behind Jimbo and the designer of Pee Wee's Playhouse. His paintings, comics, and graphics have influenced generations of artists. He will be performing vocal and guitar songs for the first time in over three decades. Appearing with Panter will be Devin Flynn.

Devin Flynn is part of the bands Plate Tectonics and Gangstahs Wit Gats and has a cartoon show on Adult Swim's website."

RISD Wunderground Pictures
For the New Year, here are more pictures from the Wunderground exhibit. This set is from Gil Roth via Tom at Comics Reporter.

On a similar note, my Ninja book should be arriving today or tomorrow. Unless we don’t get mail today…

That crazy Tom Spurgeon.
He's got the line-up for the SPX 2005 Anthology up at The Comics Reporter.