8/1/2001:

Quick note: the movie that my apartmentmates and I made is still available at this link (movie removed at some higher ups request). Second quick note, we're at 60 strips today! Wow.

This comic comes from a comment that a friend made that any girl who really gets me is going to have to be just as crazy nutty about relationships as I am. Someone who is as addicted to the feeling of having a crush and someone who carries out the same sort of irrational thought processes. Because if said girl does not... she just won't care as much as I do. Of course, I think that in the height of my hypocrisy, I could find her and think, "Gosh, what a freak."

The writing is back! I've been cranking strips out left and right. What's the inspiration? A female. At the risk of commenting on my life before I live it fully, I'll just say that I am in an angst mode right now (although this weekend was terrible).

So on Sunday, depressed as I was, I headed into San Jose to have some alone time with Love In the Time of Cholera (the bible of unrequited love, or so the back of the books would have me believe). I ate lunch and then tried to find this coffeeshop that Christian and I had been to a couple weeks ago. Couldn't find it. So I settled on a Starbucks.

I was drinking coffee and reading when this older guy came in. He came over to get a newspaper and then asked, "Is that required reading?" I told him I was reading it for fun and he said, "I read something else by him (Gabriel Garcia Marquez) and wasn't too impressed." "Well well well," I thought, "Have you written better?"

He sat down and I kept reading, but I couldfeel he was still looking at me. Looked up, yep, still looking. The lady next to me left and he moved on over.

This guy was about 50, maybe 55. He was wearing a white golf cap and had a gnarled wood cane. I felt bad for him, so I put down my book and started talking to him. I got out my sketchbook and starteed doodling strips down, since I wanted to take advantage of my angst and he asked what I was doing. I told him about the comic and we discussed writing. I found out that he's lived in San Jose since the 70's and I asked him about the changes that the city's been through. He was a nice, opiniated guy. Did a little writing himself ("I'm right now gathering material for a collection of wit and observations. Right now it's mostly Polish jokes."). He told me that I must have great family support, since I carried myself with self worth and confidence. He also told me that I was very well rounded culturally (I was wearing a Titanic Players shirt). And that I should keep reading well because you need to see other people's great ideas before you can have your own.

I don't tell you this to stroke my ego further, but to note that it's funny. I mean, I can impress an old guy in a coffeeshop but what does it matter when I can't think of anything to say to this one girl (let's call her Sparky).

I left the Starbucks and so did he and as he walked away, I felt this pang, like it would be me one day, sitting lonely, waiting to talk to someone about my life, my ideas, and my as yet unpublished book of wit and observation.

Lots of strips coming, inspired this weekend. And the thing is nothing happened this weekend. Except in my head.

-kip