Comic Cuts — 31 January 2025

I'm progressing nicely with the new quartet of books to be published by Bear Alley. I have the first volume mostly done, with a foreword and part 1 of a biographical essay in place. I have some corrections to make, but I'm close to getting a proof copy printed.

I'm working on volume two at the same time, which will include two essays (one a continuation from volume one). They both need some editing at the moment, but I'll hopefully be back to that once I've finished writing this, which I'm doing in glorious sunshine on Thursday morning.

I've just come back from a wander down to the Post Office that I extended into a large figure of eight so that I was walking for half an hour. I'm trying to get out more because I'm still trying to lose a few pounds. I put on my usual three pounds over Christmas and I've shaved off two of them, thanks to a slight uptick in exercise and more soup lunches. But I need to lose more as I have doctors to satisfy that I'm doing something about my diabetes. Since the problem is what I'm eating and how much I'm exercising, it really is down to me to do the work.

I should add that I'm almost two stone lighter than I was in 2013. Unfortunately, I'm also a stone and a half heavier than what I managed to get down to in 2020 when, thanks (bizarrely) to Covid, Mel had to work from home so we were making best use of our exercise time and eating far more sensibly than I do when I'm on my own and the temptation just to make sandwiches or rolls becomes too much...bread is my Kryptonite!

I had to have a blood test on Monday which went a bit awry. The veins in my elbow area (where a doctor will normally take blood) are not close to the skin and seem to be retreating into my arms. Usually one or the other will offer up a vein if you tap for a bit. This time, nothing, so I had to have the blood taken from my hand. I've no idea how common this is, but it's a first for me. And while that was happening, all I could think was that I'd make the world's worst heroin addict. Can you get high from licking it or just rubbing it on your arm?

Before this takes too dark a turn, I'll bring this week's news to a close with a plug for Alan Clark's British Comics of the Silver Age, reviewed recently. Unfortunately, I managed to post the review eleven minutes after the last copy sold on Alan's eBay store (7.21am, with my post going up at 7.32!). The good news is that there should be more copies available from today (Friday). Just don't ask me when.

(* If you've read my book Beyond the Void, you might recognise the two artists of the Brown Watson westerns that make up this week's column header. They are Stanley Nicholson and Ed Blandford, who were both featured in the book. These images are from Ray Steptoe, who has been scanning a great many westerns over on Facebook.)