034 - It's time to come together

 

 

 “All the best parts of art come from pain turned to celebration.” 

- Natalia Kills

Song of the Blog:
"It's time to come together
It's up to you, what's your pleasure?
Everyone around the world, come on"
- Kool & The Gang

On Facebook I saw that one of my favourite comic book artists, Eric Heuvel, turned 61 today - I still have seven years to go before I reach that 'milestone'... We used to send cards to people we knew for their birthdays, now it's a quick message on Facebook. Times have changed and it's amazing how fast time has gone and how there are so many things we look back on. 

Today, the 25th of May, was the day my dad was cremated back in 1999. I went back to Holland that year and stayed several months. I even worked for a design agency in Zoetermeer for a while before going back to New Zealand. I used the building of the place I worked for the one my comic book character works from. A comic that I have been working on for too many years now and really need to finalise. I am hoping this might be the year.

Also today in New Zealand the tv show Shortland Street is 29 today! Which means this year it has also been that long since I arrived in this country. Big celebration next year, as it will then mark 30 years. I have lived longer in NZ then I have in Holland.

Plus it was 44 years ago today that Star Wars was first released! I still remember being 10 or maybe 11 and being blown away by the first movie.
The orginal toys are still in my collection - most of them, as I somehow lost the original R2D2 and my Obi-wan-Kenobi.

 

So many celebrations today, as we finish of with 'Towel Day' -- this  is celebrated every May 25 as a tribute by fans of the late author Douglas Adams. I celebrated it by folding the towels!

What are you celebrating today?

033 - Back to the Blogging

 

 “I knew I was alone in a way
that no earthling has ever been before.” 

- Michael Collins

Song of the Blog:
"Take a look at me now, cause there's just an empty space.
And you coming back to me is against all odds
and that's what I've got to face."
- Phil Collins

Okay - I know... It sure has been a while...
I guess the last few years have been quite surreal. To be honest I have been thinking of getting back to blogging for a long time - I have been looking at that empty space when I opened my blogger tab that was still open on the top of my browser. It's not that I haven't been busy.. I have finished writing a trilogy, illustrated two children's books, put together some poetry books and worked on several other publications (QUBE, NZO, COMIQ and CRISP) - There are still some other projects that I hope to finish this year (secret stuff) that I will be blogging about in times to come. The month of June is coming up and that's always been a challenge for me to blog EVERY day. LET'S DO THIS !!!

The other thing that I have been enjoying is posting EPPO magazine related posts, I have started doing it a while ago and have been getting some nice reactions. They are on the 'DE JAREN EPPO' Facebook group, run by Ger Apeldoorn. To be fair, I almost stopped posting stuff on 'Fakebook', but its comic (and Stephen King) groups have actually still remained a source of fun reading on a daily basis.

For the EPPO FB group I normally find out what is celebrated on that particular day and then find any related images in the pages of EPPO - For those unfamiliar with the name, it's a Dutch comic magazine that has been around since 1975. I read them all till about 1987. There was a break for several years, but it came back in full glory in 2009. With all the familiar comic stories and a range of new talent as well. Just looking through the pages brings me joy and it is fun to be able to put a smile on other people's faces who come across these posts and hopefully it makes them remember the great times they had reading these comics.

 

We all need more joy in life - and by the way - MAIL brings me JOY - why don't people embrace the old letters and parcels again? Feel free to send me some mail (you are most welcome to add books and or other surprises) to:

eRiQ,
PO Box 60,
Hawera 4640
New Zealand