But, masters, remember that I am an ass; though it be not written down, yet forget not that I am an ass.

-Wm. Shakespeare, Much Ado About Nothing, Act 4, Scene 2

It’s out there, it’s acknowledged, so now it can be dealt with.

Recently, it was brought to my attention again that I am an insufferable ass. It’s not a point of pride, just a facet of my personality, just as intolerance of cruelty towards others is a facet of my personality. I am much less of an asshole than I used to be. I work hard at being a better person, and emphasizing those parts of my personality that I’d much rather be seen by people than just my being an ass.

Perhaps being an ass is not a facet of my personality so much as a product of the things that make up my personality. Could it be that an ass is not as accurate description of one’s personality as much a convenient and brief descriptor of the various aspects of a personality? Lend me, if you will, a few moments to explore the issue.

I am curious about the world around me. It’s not the type of curiosity you exhibited by small children, where everything is something to be explored and tested.  I pay attention to the news, to politics, and things that catch that generally catch my eye. I’ve been that way for so long, I cannot understand how anyone can cease being curious. Problems may initially seem to big to understand, but experience has taught me that there is not a problem too large for a human being to understand.

I am an intelligent person. I’m not bragging. I have been told by people that I am knowledgeable about a great many things and I have tested well whenever the circumstances have arisen that my intelligence has come into question. I retain knowledge well, and have enough sense that when confronted with a problem that I do not immediately recall the answer to, I can generally find the answer in a limited amount of time.  I do not claim to be a fountain of knowledge, but I do get constantly amazed whenever I see a lack of knowledge in others.

I think this brings up the aspect that may make me an ass. I cannot fathom people not being curious or feeling proud of ignorance. In this week’s episode of Real Time, Bill Maher went on about the statistics of belief that Americans held. These are baffling to me, and yes, if you respond to me commenting on my cold by recommending Zicam, yes, I will probably correct you on the ineffectiveness and the potential harm of overdosing on Zinc. If you want to espouse on how man didn’t evolve because it disagres with a literal interpretation of the Bible, I may just dismiss you. If you try to dismiss intellectuals as not having common sense, I may remind you that without those intellectuals you might have already died from smallpox, influenza, polio, or the measles. If you tell me that Obama was born in Kenya, I may just ask you for proof.

Yes, I guess I should probably just let people live in their ignorance, but ignorant adults raise ignorant children into more ignorant adults. Ignorant people gather together and reinforce each other’s pride in their ignorance. Ignorant people are ready to believe things blindly and that leads us into witch hunts, unjust wars, and death. I cannot tolerate prideful ignorance, and perhaps that is what makes me an ass.

The quote is from Dogberry, a character that Shakespeare used to poke fun at citizenry given power that they are unqualified for. It was written before the days of American law where we would like to think that those with power are qualified, yet that all are equal. We all have access to the same knowledge, especially in the age of the Internet. However, if I respond to ignorance with overpowering correction, I can appear to be arrogant, and yes, let it be written down that I am an ass.

So, in the effort to not be an ass, I believe that I need to try a different response to ignorance, even willful ignorance needs to be an approach that encourages curiosity. Where did the Moon come from? Well, where would you go to find that out? I need to be less confrontational, and more encouraging of exploration. I need to lead them to the truth, not prove that they’re wrong. I’ve been going about it the wrong way for years. It’s not just about me being right.

So yes, I am ass. But I’m trying hard not to be.

Over the next few weekends, I’m going to plan on doing some travelling. There’s some method to the madness, but I can’t tell too much at this time. Nevertheless, I am travelling and some point I’m going to be back in NC to visit family, but hopefully, I can touch base with some old friends up there in the old stomping grounds while I’m at it.

I’m also going to try to see friends in Athens. Unfortunately, it’ll overlap with the beginning of UGA’s year, meaning some insanity up there, but I need to take the time to visit at least Drew and Eleanor in person.

I’ll also be going down to Orlando and see friends there, but I definitely won’t be setting out to fit everthing in. These quick trips are going to wear my ass out, but it’s something I need to do over these next few weeks.

So if any of you friends on facebook want to hook up for lunch or something, yell my way!

The time has finally come for me to reveal what I’ve been a little mystrious about for the past few weeks. There’s been a big change in my life lately and it’s not all for the better.

I’m getting divorced.

It wasn’t my choice and I did everything I could to keep my marriage together, but you can’t force someone to stay married to you. So, that decided, I resolved to move on and make my way. I’m moving to Orlando, where a good friend that I’ve made through comics needs a roommate, and another good friend that I’ve known for two decades lives. Orlando has a great community of artists, and a burgeoning community of skeptics. I’m really looking forward to the move. A recent trip to arrange some things showed just how much support is down there, and how good it probably is for me to move down there around friends.

Do I regret the past 17 years? No, My wife shaped me into a much better man. I’d like to think that I had some positive effect on her, but if I never get to know that, I’ll be okay. I do love her, and wish I could be around to help her through whatever he future holds for her, but since she wants to go forward alone, the least I can do is get out of her way. We’re parting very civilly, so all should be cordial up until the day I load my share of stuff into a truck and head south.

I’m looking forward now, and hopefully the next few weeks will go smoothly. If anyone wants to help, I’ll happily do commission drawings so you can support my move and not feel like you’re giving me a hand out. Contact me. I’m making a trip to Athens this weekend, and one to western NC a couple of weekends later, to see friends and family. There may be a short jaunt to Orlando if someone wants to interview me, but I look to be moved completely down by the middle of October. If anyone wants to meet up, I’d be happy to do so as long our schedules can sync up.

That all said, there’s a list of about twenty separate steps to take before I move. That means that the updates will be few and far between for the comic. After I settle in, I’ll be drawing a lot more regularly and hopefully updating like mad. Keep your fingers crossed for me!

Oh, and keep your fingers crossed for Penny, too.

If you do a Google search for “Jerry Stanford” you’ll get this web site, most likely as your first hit. Unfortunately, near the top of the list is a court case in Davidson County, North Carolina against someone with the same name as me for rape. and indecent liberties with a minor.

First and foremost, I need to make clear that I AM NOT THAT JERRY STANFORD. When this case was going on, I was living in Savannah, GA, and at no point in my life have I lived anywhere near Davidson county in North Carolina. I was raised in Western North Carolina, but as anyone from North Carolina can tell you, It’s a long way from western North Carolina and  Davidson County.

Now this mistaken aspect of a Google search may have cost me jobs, especially since the court documents don’t give his middle initial.  A study of the case reveals that the incident in question occurred in March, 1987 when I was still in High School in Western North Carolina. Also, the other Jerry Stanford served in the military and I have never served because I have a problem with people shooting at me and I’m adverse to shooting at them. There is a big part of the court documents that are a giveaway that he and I are not the same person:

Mr. Stanford testified in his own defense.  At the time of trial he was 57 years of age and living in Lexington.  He joined the Air Force in 1963 and retired as a Master Sergeant, after 22 years of service.

Is everyone satisfied that I am not a convicted felon, now? Now, remember when doing Google searches, you need to click on more than the first link. Research requires a little digging.

There’s also a Jerry Stanford listed on IMDB as a sound editor on many films in the 1980s, but he died in 2001 and I don’t think anyone would confuse us.

I’m making the Original Art for several strips available within the next 24 Hours. Initially, I was going to make them available on the store page, but finally decided that the best way to offer them is in that bit of text that goes with every comic posted. So look for that button you see at the top of this post and own a strip that you like. Some artwork will cost more than others, but the price for most artwork will be $25.00.

Why are am I doing this, you ask? Well, I need money, yes, but as long as I have it scanned and backed up on multiple disks, I don’t need the original art at all. Also I do need the cash, which I’d rather earn from something I drew than going out there with my hat in hand and begging. This also brings me to the next bit I wanted to talk about this evening.

I really can’t go into too much detail, but suffice it to say that I want to feel comfortable talking about my life. That being said, I am going to be on the serious hunt for a permanent, full-time day job, so I can pay my bills, put some away and afford to pursue other interests. Mainly, it’s these other interests that I’m a little fixated on at this particular moment, but in the hierarchy of values, I need to first feel good about myself and in how I can present myself to others.

Tonight I’m going to prep tomorrow’s strip for posting, and post the button on the appropriate strips so people can buy them. Tomorrow morning, I’m going to ride my bike. Then I’m going to shower, e-mail some resumes, and look into some fresh starts and call about some money owed to me. Any time left will be spent cleaning up my room and making my space a lot more of what I want and less of what will do for the time being.

Okay, I’m feeling pretty good. So, how are you?

I was recently talking with someone about the path that led me to Orlando. During that conversation, my comics work came to be described as my passion. I’ve never used that term before; I prefer to use the phrase “my love of comics.” In the past hours following this conversation, I’ve warmed up more and more to the concept of comics as my passion.

I remember the pivotal comics in my life, and I’ve even framed copies of them on my wall. The first is the first comic that I remember buying on my own, Superman #305, and it features some great storytelling tricks by artist Curt Swan. The splash page features some great directional multiple images that mislead the reader. There’s a great murder scene midway through the book as well. Elementals #2 was the first “mature” book I read. By an independent publisher and deftly written by Bill Willingham, it was my introduction to comics that weren’t written with the underestimation of the reader’s intelligence.

Back to the subject of passion. I will most likely create comics until the day I die. Even if I never reach anything resembling a level of success at it. That’s a passion. I could move to the middle of nowhere, with no access to a comics shop, and I’d still seek out comics to enjoy and create comics of my own. That’s a passion. When I’m not drawing I feel like I owe it to myself. That’s a passion.

SO, even if things going down right now don’t go as planned, I will still create comics. If things do go the way that I’m hoping, then I’ll still be creating comics, and if things go in a completely unexpected direction, I will still be creating comics.

Hi, everyone. This month, I had to replace my car, and that came with some out of pocket expenses, which has put me in a bind. However, I am not one to beg for you to give me money, when I have valuable commodities right here at my fingertips, literally.  There are four ways that you can help me out, and get something in return.

1. Buy something from the store. I’ll do a quick sketch in the book and send it right off.
2. Bookmark my Etsy account. I’ll be posting original art not from strips there this week for sale and likewise, will send it right off once its paid for.
3. Buy Original Art. Original Art for many of the strips are available. On the page for that particular strip you’ll see the button for “Buy the Original Art” and you’ll be able to buy that artwork. It adds it to your PayPal shopping cart, so you can see if it’s a a normal $25.00 strip or a little more. The no words strip with Jet-Pack Jenny flying through the city is one of those that’s a little more.
4. Commissions. Want some original art? Got a character that you love? Need a unique gift for someone? I’ll do commissioned drawings. These will not be sketches, but fully rendered drawings, detail depending on the subject you request. All drawings will be on 8 1/2″ x 11″ card stock, making them easy to find a frame for. Depending on the subject matter, the medium will be charcoal or ink. Either way, you’ll have a nice darkly rendered drawing to show off. The price for a drawing is $25, as long as you’re not asking for more than three people in it. Go the link just below the header for more info.

Well, I’m off to work on next Monday’s strip. The plan is to get on weekly updates, as long as quality doesn’t suffer.

I just went back and re-read this, as I’m prone to do. It’s from last October (and has been since changed to private status) and it still applies, so I’m re-posting it now.

Is it bleak and dark? Yes, at times. Now, for a spiritual person, this is the time that they fall back on their faith. However, I am not a spiritual person. True believers that do not understand the atheist mindset would say that someone in a hypothetical situation like mine as having no reason to continue. So why do I just not end the suffering now? After all, it’ll probably be bad for some time. However, I know that this is all the life I get. It’s more precious to me than it was when I was clinging to faith. I will not throw it away in the hope of something less painful waiting after death. I have this one life and when it’s done, there’s nothing left. I will not throw it away.

For the record, I have been an utter asshole during my life, especially to my ex-wife. I have many character flaws and much of my life has been a continuous effort to repair them. However, I have always been devoted to my friends and willing to drop everything if they needed me. Whenever someone has called me in tears, I’ve been willing to spend hours on the phone with them. If they told me that they needed someone with them, I would be there. If you’re one of my friends, I want you to know that, because I don’t think I’ve said it often enough.

More delays in the comic. On Tuesday I had the displeasure of dozing off behind the wheel and scraping a guardrail. I’m all right and uninjured, but got the wake-up call that given how much I drive, I have to be sleeping more than four hours a night. With the engagement, a new job hunt is underway in the Charlotte area. I do work on the comic but time is a little more restrictive right now, and my readers deserve quality, not quantity. Please bear with me, and I’ll get updates done as quickly as I can. The story is in its final stages and will be finished by the end of the year, EASILY.