The photo is one Fraction took of the solar system mobile in his office.

Thanks for all the birthday wishes! I am feeling better today. Not yet back to what I consider normal, but I’m functional at least — which is grand timing as I have to finish up the adaptation of Black Cat 14 today and I got ZERO work done over the weekend.

In addition to not getting any work-work done, I got nothing done around the house. Especially a bummer as family and friends who are coming in for the baby shower start arriving on Tuesday. That list I made of all the things I wanted to get done before they arrived? Not touched really. (Fraction pointed out that he did change the light bulb on the front porch, so one thing got done.) Oh, well. I suppose they’ll still love me.

E-mailed the tree guy this morning to find out where we stand on getting the rest of the hackberry stump pulled out — the fence guys can’t start until the stump is gone.

In about 20 minutes, I’ll take the dogs for their furminator treatments (where I’ll ask them to bag up Claude’s hair for Nikol to spin — I kid you not!), then stop at the bank on the way home to have some papers notarized. Then? Hopefully, off to a coffee shop where I’ll work until my lunch with Steven and Xtop. After lunch, I’ll head back to the coffee shop to work until I’m done.

Long day ahead of me. Bleh.

Via blog@Newsarama.

Also!  Publisher’s Weekly has a list of February’s Comics Bestsellers and Black Cat vol. 6 is number 5.  (The list says volume 16, but it’s a typo.)  February 7th and the bestsellers list is already out.  Weird, huh?  I imagine this is another reminder that in comics the reader isn’t the consumer; the consumer is the retail establishment.  It’s been explained to me a dozen times, but it still strikes me as odd.

You get the idea. I’ve got a bajillion things to do today and a throbbing headache that urges me to curl up with NyQuil. Send pity.

Quick Miscellany:

• Currently working on Black Cat v.10 and the 30 Days project with Niles and Randall. Ivan, I haven’t forgotten you.
• Got a lovely inquiry/blast from the past off the PW interview. Cross your fingers for me; this could be cool if I can find a few extra hours in the day. (Who needs clean laundry?)
• There’s a preview of Fraction and Brubaker’s Iron Fist up on Newsarama. Go check it out.
• Speaking of clean laundry, the newly-established girl farts book club is reading and discussing House Works this holiday season. If you could use a little help around the house, pick up a copy and join our thread on the girl farts vox page. If this works out well, maybe it’ll be an ongoing thing.
• Hillary wrote to ask me where the uberlist central page was. It’s right here.
• Theron Neel sent me this link from You Tube-esque metacafe: Thousand-Hand Bodhisattva Masterpiece. Gorgeous. Thanks, Theron.
• I’m off to make myself some soup.

Edited to Add:

• Nikol added some of her bonus patterns to the Naughty Needles site.  Don’t forget the book is available for pre-order and comes out December 19th.  (And I’m in it twice!)

Kelly Sue DeConnick has achieved a following in an unexpected area: manga adaptation. Though she only began studying Japanese this year, she’s worked with professional translators over the past four years to craft English dialogue for such series as Sensual Phrase, Fruits Basket and Sexy Voice and Robo, among many other titles.

PW Comics Week: How did you get started in this field?

Kelly Sue DeConnick: Almost accidentally, as odd as that sounds…

More in link.

Text/SFX:
SFX are translated with over-lays, which look decent enough with a few instances trying to mimic the original style, including transparency. I definitely applaud the effort made there. The English script is adapted by Kelly Sue DeConnick (Blue Spring, Sexy Voice and Robo, Sensual Phrase), her first shounen title I do believe. The script reads wonderfully and is not filled with the corny dialogue and catchphrases that usually permeate the Shounen Jump line. The characters’ cool and suave attitudes are captured wonderfully, which makes the translation a definite highlight of this volume. Very nice work!

Full review in link. Associated forum thread here.