When I first moved to North Carolina to join what became ARTAMUS STUDIOS, along with such talented folks as Richard Case, Jeff Parker, Chuck Wojtkiewicz, John Lowe and several others (we had a pretty packed house for a while there…! It was a wonderfully creative atmosphere…) one of the first things we did was to buy a copy machine. We were commissioned, as a studio, to do a fill in issue for one of the then burgeoning MALIBU COMICS’ ULTRAVERSE titles called HARDCASE. The book had fallen critically behind, and we were tasked with producing the entirety of the interiors for, I think, the third issue, in ONE WEEK. Layouts, pencils and inks. We completed the task within the given timeframe….. and though it’s not a job that any of us were particularly proud of, the money it brought in enabled us to purchase a large copy machine for our newly born studio– as well as a fax machine and several phones. So we were set up to communicate with our various clients with the fax and phones…. and more importantly– to those of us who worked in this manner– we were now able to make enlarged copies of our layouts for tracing onto the art board the comics companies provided for us. I worked in this manner…. and still do to this day.

Eventually everyone moved on from the studio. Several of our number went out west. Some left the comics industry altogether. But always, there was the copy machine still sitting at ARTAMUS STUDIOS. Until, at the end, when it was just Rich Case and myself… and Rich decided that moving to the video game industry was more stable for him and his family than freelancing in comics (and who can blame him…. he’s right). And so, the studio was finished. But there was still the good old copy machine. That came home with me, since I’m still working in comics, and still working in basically the same manner. The thing is, though– this April will make three years (ALREADY!) that I’ve been working here in my abode…. we purchased the loyal copier back in 1993– it will be almost 13 years old by then. Even though we never used it nearly as much as a ‘real’ office would have, time takes its toll on all mechanical things, regardless of how well kept they are. Over the past couple of years, I’ve had to have a technician come out to service the old fella several times, and it’s never inexpensive. Frankly, it’s slowly breaking down.

And so I decided that I’d become a bit more modern, and buy a printer that prints on 11 X 17 inch paper for making my enlargements. I’d often have to make several tries at getting the copy just the right size with the old copy machine… and with this new method, by sizing the layout in Photoshop on a template, I can get it right the very first time. It’s much more convenient… and I like staying current and using technology to my advantage whenever possible. And so the new large format printer has joined my family of other computer peripherals… the smaller, 3-in-1 printer/scanner/fax machine (does anyone actually ever FAX anything anymore…?) and my large flat-bed scanner. I’m pretty much ready for anything I need to do.

And every time I print out ANYTHING…. whether it’s on the large or the small printer…. it instantly transfixes Charlie. The second he hears the printer starting, he’ll stop whatever he happens to be doing, and jump up on the table to watch the paper print out. It seems to mesmerize him…. and I can’t distract him from watching it no matter what I try. It’s hilarious. And it never seems to get old for him. You’d think that after so many times (I’ve had the smaller printer for many months now) that it MIGHT start to get old for him… but no.

And frankly, I hope it never does.

This is Entry 174.

Mike

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