I’ve been working so hard all week (and this weekend, too) that I’ve been forced into silence here since Saturday. But since three things equal a post, how about we let these pics stand in for my week?

First, a lovely pic Irene snapped of me with Geoff Landis and Mary Turzillo at my favorite local dim sum restaurant, New Fortune. While on their way to Maryland for a scientific conference, Geoff and Mary swung through West Virginia Saturday night and had dinner at the Edelman-Vartanoff homestead, followed the next day by shumai over in Maryland, which Irene and I ran over to share.

It was good to play catch-up outside of the madness of a convention.

Next up, a pic of that shows old Marvel pal Bill Mantlo, whose medical woes were recently reported on at length, in far happier times. I published it in the December 1974 issue of Marvel’s official fan magazine, FOOM. It was part of a strange idea I had of running baby pictures of artists and writers, and while everyone else turned in the real thing, Bill came up with this.

And that’s how I’d rather remember him.

As for pic #3, it made me laugh so hard midweek that it brought tears to my eyes. It appeared on the cover of I’ll Be Dead By the Time You Read This, by Romeo Alaeff, a copy of which had been sent by a PR rep who must not have realized this isn’t the sort of thing we’d cover over at Blastr. But I’m happy for the mistake, because the cover, which illustrates the existential angst of a goldfish, cracked me up.

The book also features drawings of a rhino hoping, “There must be a reason I’m here,” a moose asking, “Tell me everything is going to be OK,” and other intriguingly philosophical animals. The disconnect between the cute animals and their weighty thoughts tickled me on a day I needed tickling.

So there you have it. Three pics I hope make a post. I now return to radio silence … though hopefully not for as long a silence as this has been.