Bike to Work Week!

This is the fourth year I have been riding my bike to work and I still look forward to setting out every morning.  May is National Bike Month, and this year Bike to Work Week is May 16-20 and Bike to Work Day is Friday, May 20.  Ride on!

Perspective

As Ari has gotten older, I find myself enjoying the comics including Calvin's dad more and more.  When I was younger, I remember not being that interested in them because I didn't really appreciate the humor.  Well, that has certainly changed now.  I don't know if it is because I am a lot like Calvin's dad, or whether Ari is a lot like Calvin.  If it's the latter, I'm in trouble.

Picky Eater

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A scene all too common at our dinner table.  When Ari asks, "what's for dinner?", if I don't answer with pasta, hot dogs, chicken nuggets or eggs, the answer is inevitably, "I don't like that."  But, I guess that's to be expected from a five-year-old, and Emilie follows suit.  I'm sure he'll grow out of it, but that's not going to stop me from serving him new foods until he does!

I got my wish...

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On November 7, 1993 this Calvin and Hobbes comic was in our Sunday paper.  I was thirteen at the time, and looking through the funny pages to read a new Calvin and Hobbes was such a joy.  This one in particular stands out because my mom loved it.  I don't remember who did it, but it ended up taped on the wall in the living room, right by the kitchen door.

A couple years later, we moved out of that house on Elm Street.  I remember leaving that comic up on the wall, no one wanted to take it down.  It was the only thing left on the walls in an otherwise empty house.  My grandparents ended up buying that house from us, and that comic is still on the wall, in the very same spot.  Whenever I see it, it always brings a smile to my face.

Calvin and Hobbes T-Shirts!

I have turned one of my dreams into reality.  I am the proud owner of some Calvin and Hobbes t-shirts.  Unofficial, mind you, but still Calvin and Hobbes t-shirts nonetheless.  Oh, iron-on transfer paper, where have you been all my life?!  I figured if I could make a Calvin and Hobbes t-shirt for Ari, why not make one for myself?  Plus, after seeing how the iron-on transfers holds up through the wear and tear of a four-year-old, they should hold up for me.

Once I decided to make myself some shirts, the hard part was deciding which images to use.  My Calvin and Hobbes Complete Collection books have a nice array of images besides those seen in the comics.  So, I flipped through the books, and as I found an image I thought I might want to use, I scanned it into the computer.  I decided to start off with two shirts, so I narrowed down my choices and got to printing and ironing.

I couldn't be more happy with the way they tuned out.  I especially like the Stupendous Man t-shirt since the comics with Stupendous Man have always been some of my favorites.  Already, and not surprising, Ari has already placed an order for a Stupendous Man shirt of his own.  I'm glad I bought the larger package of transfer paper.  What fun!

Calvin and Hobbes Stamp

Mark your calendars!  This July, the United States Postal Service will be issuing a Calvin and Hobbes stamp as part of its 2010 Stamp Program.  The stamp will be part of a set honoring Sunday Funnies including Archie, Beetle Bailey, Dennis the Menace, and Garfield.  Though I would have preferred a solely Calvin and Hobbes stamp set featuring the above picture, Stupendous Man, Spaceman Spiff, Tracer Bullet, and a wagon scene, I am still elated to see this stamp.

Calvin and Hobbes painting

Check out this 24"x20" Acrylic on wood board painting I stumbled upon on the internet.  It was painted by Jim, who goes by StrangelyDrawn on the website artbreak.com.  I encourage you to check out his work as he has done a lot of paintings of other pop culture icons from my childhood.  I was excited to see paintings of Super Grover and Fraggle Rock among his work.  But it was his painting of a 'real' Calvin and Hobbes that really grabbed me.

I've seen other drawings and renditions of 'real' Calvin and Hobbes, but this one captures the essence and spirit of the comic strip like no other.  The way Calvin is portrayed is done exceptionally well.  He is truly a six-year-old boy playing with a real tiger without a care in the world; and there is nothing else he would rather be doing.  I am enamored by the tenderness and love portrayed in such an otherwise dangerous situation.  This is Calvin's world.  I know the word is overused, but this painting really is awesome.

Workin' on the weekend

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I'm working this Saturday to help install new computers at the office.  I got a good chuckle reading this comic the other day, especially since I knew I would soon be working on a weekend.  I realized I would rather be drenched with a water balloon thrown by a mud covered boy with an angry mom in the house than be at work on a Saturday.  Looks like the makings of an epic water balloon fight!

Spring Cleaning

Ahhh...it's time to dust off the ol' bicycle, pump up the tires and hit the streets! It's still a bit brisk out, but not enough to confine me to the car any longer. Hallelujah!

It's only a matter of time...

Yes, I know it's only a matter of time before my son poses this very same question to me. I can't really blame him if he does. But hey, at least now I will have a witty response.

I know this blog has had a very heavy dose of Super Mario lately, but I assure you, it has run it's course. Thank you all for your patience. I don't know if some of you were planning an intervention, but it is not necessary. Now, back to variety!

Merchandise materialized

I've previously mentioned my affinity for Calvin and Hobbes. Truly one of the greatest comic strips to ever grace the newspaper funny pages. Bill Watterson, creator of Calvin and Hobbes, held tight in his stance not to merchandise his creation. That meant, no Calvin and Hobbes action figures, stuffed animals, TV shows, or clothing. No Calvin and Hobbes puzzles, cutlery, mugs, board games, stickers, nothing but the comic strip itself, and the book collections. By the way, those urinating Calvin stickers on vehicles are a complete rip off.

As a ten-year-old kid loving Calvin and Hobbes, it was especially hard to understand why I couldn't buy a Calvin and Hobbes toy. I remember scouring the toy aisles looking for anything to do with Calvin and Hobbes, only to leave empty handed. I could just imagine how much fun I would have with my own stuffed Hobbes. The thought of having a little Calvin figurine was so exciting to me.

Alas, the Calvin and Hobbes toys never materialized, and I later learned such toys never existed and probably would never exist. I moved on, still loving Calvin and Hobbes and rediscovering the brilliance of the comics by reading them to Ari before bed. He received a stuffed tiger for Christmas one year that we call Hobbes, due to the fleeting resemblance to character. But, that's the closest we have come to bringing the world of Calvin and Hobbes off of the pages and into our home. Until...

I recently came across some iron-on sheets at Jo-Ann Fabrics. I wanted to get Emilie a Fresh Beat Band shirt for Christmas, but could only find a "craft" to make my own with the iron-on sheets. Skeptical, I bought a package and went home to make the shirt for her. It turned out really well, even after making a minor misstep. I began thinking of what other shirts I could make for the kids, and immediately Calvin and Hobbes came to mind.

So, I made Ari his own Calvin and Hobbes shirt; in fact, I made a couple. He has received a lot of compliments on it and the iron on is holding up quite well to the abuse that little four-year-old can dish out. I think he may be the only kid with a Calvin and Hobbes shirt, and I don't know if that makes me happy or sad. I do know one thing for certain, he sure is happy about it.

The Joy of Riding

I remember reading this comic with Ari last year and thinking, "What an exaggeration! There is nothing that bad about riding a bike;" and "Ha! None of that stuff has ever happened to me!" You see, I just got my bike last year and began riding consistently; so everything was hunky dory. My bike rode like a well oiled machine, nothing could stop me! It's funny how much difference a year makes. After a recent series of events, this comic popped back into my head, and I saw there was actually a lot of truth to it.

So far this year, I have had a flat tire, my chain came off, and I had my first wreck on my bike. The chain incident and the wreck were within a couple days of each other, and to add insult to injury, both happened on my lunch break. When my chain came off, my hands were too covered in grease for me to eat my lunch; and after I figured out how to put the chain back on, it had a kink in it that made riding less than enjoyable. I then spent the evening trying to work out the kink. Thankfully, I was successful. As for my wreck, I lost control of my bike while riding on some wet pavement and scraped my arm up pretty bad. I was in the park at the time, and used all my water to wash the dirt out of the scrape on my arm. I don't think the chain incident or my accident would have seemed as bad had I not been on my lunch break.

Even with these minor setbacks, I still love to ride; and I still ride to work and during my lunch whenever I can. The comic rings true now, though, and I could even add a situation not depicted there. Maybe something like riding five miles while pulling a couple of screaming children in a bike trailer. Yeah, that got old real quick.

All in all, it's been an excellent year for riding, and I have been doing plenty of it. The weather has been cooler and not as humid as we're used to here in Indiana, and we have had very little rain. I got a bike rack for my car, so we have been able to drive to some of the paved trails around the state. Even with the missteps, it's been a lot of fun so far and I look forward to the adventures and challenges ahead.

The Superhero one

Every night that I read Calvin & Hobbes to Ari before bed, he inevitably wants me to finish with "the superhero one". It is his favorite Calvin and Hobbes by far and he absolutely loves it. Every time he sees it, he looks at it as if he has never seen it before and he is elated.

Out of the thousands of Calvin and Hobbes comics that he's seen, he picks this one as his favorite. Of course he would choose the one where the parents can't really be that boring and must be living secret lives as superheroes. I'm starting to get a complex.

Calvin and Hobbes

This really struck a cord with me the other night when Ari and I were reading Calvin and Hobbes before bed. This strip was published in August 1992. Do you think Bill Watterson was onto something or what? And you really don't want to get me started on McDonald's!

Summertime

Some see Memorial Day as the unofficial beginning of summer, so I thought I'd do a summertime post. The way I feel about summer could not be better represented than in the above Calvin and Hobbes comic. Many of the activities that Calvin and Hobbes are shown doing are the same that I did growing up with my best friends. Digging holes, climbing trees, taking silly pictures, looking under rocks, gazing at the clouds, inventing games, lemonade stands, and catching lightning bugs are some of my most cherished summer memories of my childhood.

Calvin and Hobbes also hold a very special place in my heart. I remember as a child in elementary school, I would anxiously await the arrival of the Bookmobile. Whenever it came to my school I would always take a Calvin and Hobbes collection to look at. My parents started buying me the collections because I enjoyed them so much and I ended up owning every Calvin and Hobbes book. Being a kid, I didn't keep very good care of them, and some of them became damaged from frequent use and general carelessness. A few years ago, my dad bought me The Complete Calvin and Hobbes which is a hardback three-volume set containing all the strips. I was elated.

Since then I have enjoyed reading Calvin and Hobbes even more than when I was young. Rediscovering the strips and reading them as an adult further capture my imagination and make me appreciate the times I had when I was young. Ari really enjoys looking at the strips as well, as we often look at them when I put him to bed. I don't really read them to him, but just explain to him what's going on in a particular strip. I remember the first time I stumbled upon the above strip while reading to Ari; as I was explaining it to him, I kind of got choked up, it was so powerful for some reason.

Calvin and Hobbes encapsulate the best parts of summer. Playing outside, discovering, imagining, creating, exploring, and never letting a moment go to waste.