The first time I saw Mecca Normal and I felt a little less alone.
Music! (Day Seven)
Music! (Day Six)
The best part of being a music snob is judging people for their bad taste in music.
Music! (Day Five)
Sometimes Elliott Smith rises up from the grave and helps you make different choices.
Music! (Day Four)
Not exactly the soundtrack I expected for a bowl of Pho.
Music! (Day Three)
That time Jesse decided to learn about hip hop.
Music (Day Two)
I miss Jimmy Mak’s.
Music!
This week, I thought we’d look back on some of my favorite comics I’ve done about music. Here’s one about seeing Paws for the second of the four shows they’ve done in Portland so far.
The fact that I saw them again on Saturday might have something to do with why I’m thinking back on this particular comic.
I first saw Paws in Austin at SXSW in 2013. I fell in love pretty instantly and managed to see them 5 or 6 times while I was there. Since then, I’ve caught them in Chicago and 4 times here in Portland. I’m mildly obsessed.
I think the reason why is that they write and perform with absolute sincerity. There’s no artifice, no games, just music and connection.
Another reason they’ll always be special to me: Seeing Phillip Taylor (ignore the spelling above) sing about losing his mother to cancer made me reflect on how close I’d come to losing my own Mom and was part of the reason I worked to have a better relationship with her over what turned out to be the last 4 years of her life. We’d always been close, but I put effort into making it better than it had been and now that she’s gone I’ll be thankful for that time I had with her for the rest of my days.
Memories
When I start publishing February’s comics, you’ll notice that there’s a week (not continuous, but spread out over the course of the month) where my grief and stress completely made me lose those days. This is a mix of my memories being blank and the days themselves being blank.
Instead, you’ll find memories of my mother, Janice in those days. Memories of good times and bad, memories that struck me as important.
Here are a few others I have loved.
My mother and I’s relationship was many things, just as she was many things. I only wish I had captured more of who she was in the work I made while she was alive.
I miss you, Mom.
Year Four
Today makes four years since I made my inaugural post to this website. They’ve been the weirdest, hardest, best years of my life and I just want to thank everyone who has been here for the ride.
After a rough few months, I’ve been working hard to get caught up on the daily content. I’ve published all of January, 2017 and will start uploading February within the next few days. My goal is to be caught up by April 22nd as that will make four years since I started making daily comics, but we’ll see if I manage to get there or not.
I have a few things I want to kick off in 2017, including some expansions I’ve been thinking about since the first year of the comic.
Here’s to seeing what happens next:
Sure, I laid the groundwork before that (reading the book that became the basis of my initial changes, beginning divorce proceedings, reclaiming my old house as my own), but that was the day that my diet officially began.
To celebrate the difference I made in my life two years ago, I decided that today would be the day that I secured my domain and set up a launch page for the autobiographical webcomic I’ve been working on, “Life and How to Life It.”
This isn’t the official launch (which will include an update schedule and a revamp to make things personal and professional), but this is my promise of things to come.
I hope you’ll join me in this new adventure.
Sincere Love,
Jesse
January 31st, 2017
Movement brings clarity.