This is two mornings in a row now that I’ve been awake before 3am.

…but given the way the news cycle works in 2026, 50% of the populace missed it, 25% thought it was AI, and 25% immediately turned it into a claim of “fake news” and blamed either the Right or the Left depending on which sports team they’ve chosen.

But yes, given the location in the title, and some other hints (like the sound of a waterfall nearby) one might assume this is taking place in the same locale as the Overlook Hotel. And one would be right to do so…

and there’s some sort of new automatic error (anyone who uses Amazon for indie publishing can tell you all about the random automatic errors that pop up all the time). This is one I’ve never encountered before —

Well, David is right. There is a storm coming. It’s a storm we old timers have seen before. Not time to start lashing yourself to the mast, but it may be time to load up your life raft so you can whether the weather.

And before anybody takes issue with that, I like both cats and dogs, and I think anyone who buys into that “Cats vs Dogs” bullshit is the same type of mental defective who buys into “Marvel vs DC”, “Coke vs Pepsi”, “McDonalds vs Burger King”, “Zuckerberg vs Musk”, or any of the other bullshit bogus matchups they foist on us so that we continue to be distracted while they carve up this world a little bit more for themselves.

I’ve meant what I said about unplugging from social media. You’ve no doubt noticed I’m using it less and less. That will continue going forward. What would you rather have from me — a post that you may or may not see depending on the whims of the algorithm, or a

I had Wile E. Young test it for me, by texting and then calling. Neither got through. But then I felt guilty so I added Wile to the Safe List, as well.

I don’t like doing that, because what if a family member has an emergency? But there never seem to be family emergencies. Just the emergencies of my peers and other people in this business.

As always, the universe could decide to blow this schedule up at any time.

That’s the thing about such periods of history. Nobody realizes they’re in it until it’s already begun, and the start is written in history books years after it has ended.

Today is Mary’s official birthday. I say official, because we’ve been celebrating for a full week leading up to it, with multiple presents and cards. And we’ll celebrate again today with more.

Sal Buscema was as important to the Bronze Age of Marvel Comics as Jack Kirby was to the Silver Age foundation of that same universe. There are many folks my age who, when we think of the Marvel universe of characters, immediately picture his depictions of those characters.

There’s a new feral outside. Don’t know it was just passing through or if it’s looking for a place to live. I hope and pray it’s not pregnant or doesn’t have a litter hidden somewhere. I made swordfish for dinner last night. After Mary and I were done I put the scraps outside.

I think maybe it was David J. Schow who once told me that the desk in Robert Bloch’s office faced away from the window and the gorgeous view outside, so that Bloch could focus on the work. When I inherited J.F. gonzalez’s desk, the only place it would fit in my office was between two big windows facing the river.

…the one-two punch of Diamond and Baker & Taylor combined with tariff uncertainty, shipping delays, and a weakening economy is going to have snowballing repercussions throughout 2026 and into 2027. Buckle up.

which means that every five minutes, somebody is checking to see if I need anything — coffee, tea, meatballs, pasta, cookies, bourbon, a random jar of pickles from the back of the fridge — whatever is available. I know this is done out of love, and I am touched and grateful, but… it’s hard to work that way.

… to farm outrage engagement on social media, and then comparing and complaining about the results. More users blocked him on the platform than even the official ICE account. In my opinion, it couldn’t have happened to a more deserving individual.

I am very proud to accomplish anything under these working conditions.