Fun fact: I started typing this email nearly 2 weeks ago, back when I was still pretending I wasn’t dog tired and didn’t need a break after the whirlwind that was New York Comic Con. I crashed into a sleep coma the Tuesday after NYCC and left this message sitting in the drafts.

In the week since, I’ve had a major auto repair, a surprise flat tire on my way to vote the next day, and had to put down my mom's family dog. And that was all AFTER the splitting headache that knocked me out last Wednesday. They say if you don’t carve out time to rest, your body will do it for you. Lesson learned.

Exhaustion headache aside, I have to say the NYCC experience was well worth it. I’d tell you about it here, but why do that when you can just watch the video?

Amid all my juggling, I did end up missing the release date for Episode 51 of The Podcast. Let's just call it a bye week.

An Insane Development

Right after NYCC, I got a surprise email from an agency claiming to represent DC Comics. Turns out it wasn’t a scam after all, and I got to be part of a pool of ‘influencers’ helping to roll out the all new DC Finest line. I couldn’t use this verbiage in the video, but it’s basically DC’s answer to Marvel’s very successful line of Epic Collections. By some stroke of luck, my video was the first in the pool to be approved, so I get to say I was the first on YouTube to display them! Checking out the solicits, DC is publishing at least one of these collections every week with no end in sight. So for those planning to collect them all, Godspeed lol.
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So far, this feels like a one time thing. But to say I’ve worked with both Marvel and DC in an official capacity this year is something I still don’t have the words to articulate my feelings about. I’m just grateful.

Supporting The Pals

Last week, I joined The Comics Pals to talk about Greg Capullo’s unfortunate series of tweets disparaging a former collaborator. Ultimately, it was a great conversation about the lengths we should expect creators to go through to deliver great product monthly. Even if we didn’t really solve anything, I had a great time as usual.

In Case You Needed Permission

As I'm finishing this e-mail, it's Election Day. Which makes it fitting that I opened the message talking about extreme fatigue. I'm sure that like me, you've gotten tons of junk mail and unsolicited text messages. You may have even seen one, two, or a dozen social media posts making you question the sanity of your friends and family. Elections seem to bring the worst out of us. Tensions are high, and things seem to get more vitriolic every 4 years. I'll give you the same advice my body gave me last week.

It's okay to rest. Take a break. Unplug. Sure, you have responsibilities. If you haven't voted yet, I encourage you to exercise your right to do so. But once you're done, turn the tv off. Get away from Cable News. Get some sleep, or, you know...

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Read Something Dope Today.

BJ KICKS