Another good book

Here's a comic by Peter Bagge, who we may all remember from the comic book "Hate."
He recently released a collection of his comics that were published in "Reason" Magazine. The collection, and the comics therein are up to his usual high standards of intelligent entertainment.
It's really unique to see a collection of what amount to illustrated newspaper columns.
I have been catching up on his work, in that I just read his new graphic novel, "Peter Bagge's Other Lives." I also was re-reading the older issues of "Hate."
One of these days, I may come up with a longer essay about Bagge's work, but for now I'll just say the old stuff is as good as I remembered, and the new stuff is as creative as I'd hoped.

My only NFL draft comment (s)

I wonder how the fall of Brady Quinn prejudiced teams against Jimmy Claussen?

My other (somewhat related) comment: We won't know exactly who were the winners and losers of this year's draft for at least three years. Despite this, some NFL pundits told you Sunday afternoon you how well your team did in the draft.
Remember, Phil Savage was a genius when he got Joe Thomas and Brady Quinn in the first round of the 2007 draft. Draft experts gave him high marks after pulling that one off.
Two years later, he was fired.
Now, Thomas is a pro-bowler, Quinn is with Denver. Second-rounder Eric Wright started the last few years, but is in jeopardy of losing his slot to a spate of new cornerbacks.
How do you grade that draft now?
One other note: Gerard Warren (Yes, him) is still playing the the NFL. He played in all 16 games in 2009, and just signed a deal with the New England Patriots. That will be 10 years in the league. Was he really a draft bust?
(Does Bill Belichick like signing former Cleveland players and making them successful, just to stick it to the fans that rode him out of town on a rail? Will he cut Tom Brady someday, citing "diminishing skills?")
So, how did your favorite team do in this year's draft? They probably filled some needs with players they thought were pretty good.
How do you grade their picks? Ask me in 2013.

Zombie detective?

Doesn't this look awesome?
Drawn by our old buddy Mike Allred, of course it does!
Here's how the Vertigo Web site describes it:
Gwen Dylan is a gravedigger in an eco-friendly cemetery…and a zombie detective. Once a month, she has to eat a human brain – both to keep from going all "Night of the Living Dead," and to keep her own memories intact. As a result, Gwen's mind is crowded with the dead person's thoughts. And lately, she feels compelled to fulfill their final requests. Torn between a mysterious mummy and a dashing young monster-hunter, Gwen is set for adventures beyond imagination! A were-terrier, a swinging '60s ghost and a pack of paintball blasting vampires complete the cast of I, ZOMBIE.
The writer, Chris Roberson just finished a "Fables" tie in miniseries called, "Cinderella: From Fabletown with Love," which was very, very entertaining. I'd recommend that, too.
Pair him with one of the greatest comics artists of this generation, Mike Allred, and it just has to be good.
Trust these creators. Let them take you on a journey. You won't regret it.

I found a pretty picture

I have nothing really to say today, but isn't this a wonderful Flash Gordon picture by Alex Raymond?
I wish I could draw half as well as he could.

I added some new links

On the side, the observant reader (I am talking about you, of course) will not that I have added two links.
The first one I added, "Where's George," became the last one in the pile.
Do you ever wonder where that paper money in your pocket has been, or where it will go next? This is the place to find out.
I have logged two dollar bills into the database, and, sadly, they have never been logged again. It's still fun to see how far a dollar bill can travel.
The second is a link to Jonathan Coulton's Web site. If you haven't gone to see it yet, what are you waiting for?

A comics event nobody ever thought would happen

Mike Mignola, Evan Dorkin and Jill Thompson are planning a cross-over between "Beasts of Burden" by Dorkin and Thompson (lest you forget, I told you about it here.), and "Hellboy," created by Mignola.
Dorkin is to write and Thompson is to paint the comic, which is due out in July.
Here's a story about it.
Here's a quote from the article:
"Like everything else," Thompson added, "we're trying to tell a good story but also touch your heart, and it's stuff that chokes me and Evan up. Every time we do a new issue of 'Beasts of Burden,' we're trying to make you cry! We're trying to break your heart. It should be a really fun adventure, and it has consequences - it moves our characters forward, our fellas, and you learn more about the town and the history of the town, and why things are happening the way they are."

Serial cereal blogging

Fruity Pebbles go really fast if you eat two bowls every morning instead of one.

Do you have to be smart to be an NFL player?

Here's a link to a story about this year's Wonderlic test, the one used to grade how smart NFL hopefuls are. Presented in honor of the NFL draft, currently being hyped, but starting Thursday evening on your television window to the world.
Here's another version of the same story.
Here's a more complete version from the Washington Post, if you are still interested enough to be reading this. And, if you are, thanks!
However, here's a story that says the Wonderlic test doesn't really measure future NFL success.

NFL Draft value chart revealed!

I have always heard about this mysterious chart that tells NFL officials what each draft pick is worth in points. It rates each pick (not each player) on a 3,000 point system, and is used to determine fair value when trading picks.
For those of you who are interested in these things, here it is.
It's amazing how quickly the value falls off. By the seventh pick, the value of the pick is halved. By the sixteenth pick, the value is at a third.
How do we conclude the seventh pick in any given draft is half as valuable as the first one? I don't know. It would seem to me that the seventh pick is probably something like 23/30 as valuable, and the eighth is 22/30 and so on.
Certainly you could examine the value of the value of the picks in terms of the players picked at the position over the years. But, I can't imagine that all the number one picks have played twice as good as the number seven picks. I'd bet, in fact, they have really been something like 23/30 as good, especially as the sample size gets bigger and bigger.
Maybe someone who has developed a complicated system for keeping a fair and equitable draft order for fantasy baseball could weigh in on the subject.
Regardless of this value chart, the NFL draft is really a calculated crapshoot. Don't let people like Mel Kiper fool you into thinking it's a science.
If it were that easy, there wouldn't be nearly so many experts telling us so many different things.
People who play the slots in Vegas will tell you their system works, too, but there are a lot more bankrupt gamblers out there than empty casinos.

Serial cereal blogging

After months of trying to finish all the cereal from a giant "Combo Value Box," consisting of two big bags of Apple Jacks and one of Fruit Loops, I have given up and started in on a box of Fruity Pebbles.
I am never going to buy one of those giant boxes of cereal again. It's way too much for me.
I still have one bag of the Apple Jacks left. I got thoroughly sick of the Fruit Loops abut 3/4 of the way through the bag.

Random Cleveland Indians thoughts

1. Doesn't Michael Brantley's swing remind you a little of David Justice's? I don't have any comparison videos to post, but to me, it looks very similar. I wouldn't be surprised if he doesn't develop some power as he matures.
2. David Huff may wind up being the staff ace, if he keeps pitching as well as he has so far. He had outstanding control and was very efficient this afternoon. He worked so quickly the game took only slightly more than two hours.
3. On opening day, Chris Perez got booed by the fans during pre-game introductions. I have a feeling he's going to have a tough time winning them over.
4. It brought tears to my eyes to see Bob Feller throw out the ceremonial first pitch to Sandy Alomar on Opening Day. Feller threw from the mound. One of the people sitting behind me seemed surprised that, at age 90, Feller would still throw the full distance. Obviously, he didn't know too much about Bob Feller.
5. I'd really like to see the Indians get rid of Jhonny Peralta and let Andy Marte play third. In this afternoon's game, Marte hit the ball hard and played aggressively on defense. Peralta always just looks bored.
6. Matt Underwood has really improved as an announcer since is first couple of seasons. He does a good job to describing the game without even really letting you know he's there.

Jonathan Coulton tells us about the presidents

Somebody took his song, "The Presidents," and set it to a video for us to enjoy.

My solution for NFL's overtime rule

I have observed all the controversy about the changes the NFL has proposed to it's current overtime rule.
My suggestion is simple: The first touchdown wins. No field goals allowed in overtime.
No cheap victories on a pitiful 30-yard drive and a long field goal. To win, you have to earn it.