Sometimes things don’t work out right.
And sometimes, that’s okay.
At the 2009 WonderCon, I had one of those moments where things were failing spectacularly for us. (Or me at least.)
You see, we rolled into town late, and had to really boogie on setting up our display. We’re now using a lot of pvc pipe and fixtures, as it’s portable, light, and fairly cheap. And it works pretty well.
Turns out I forgot 18 pipe fittings that are crucial to the setup. Thing is, these fittings are not standard fittings like you might find at the Home Depot; these were “furniture fittings,” used to set up greenhouses and small displays. I put a lot of pressure on myself to do good at conventions, and here was a splendid failure in packing.
I could not fathom how I forgot these pieces, and I was so furious with myself, I started to melt down. You know, red tinted tunnel vision, boiling blood, and classic berserker rage. It was terrible, and I was flipping out. Just about the middle of that, an artist whom I admire stopped by to give me his latest book. I tried to thank him, but I know it just didn’t work. I was raging, and I couldn’t stop. Now I felt like a fool as he probably figured that I was some kind of negative jerk.
On top of it all, my mind was racing to figure out some new way to set up the display before the doors opened in 30 minutes. Dawna tried to calm me down, but it took a really long time.
Eventually, I got my wits about me, and Dawna and I improvised a new way to set up our display. We borrowed some stands from our neighbor, and we just did our best to make it work. Heck, it worked better than the display that I’d spent hours planning, testing, and revising. It moved from being a wall supported by a box, to a more simple wall of products. You could see more products all at once, and it lead to better sales.
Lesson #1: our disaster forced us to innovate, rage and all. Today, our display is a refined version of that “failure.” Perhaps you saw it in Seattle at the Emerald City Comicon, where we tried it out for the first time. Perhaps you’ll see it this year at the San Diego Comic-Con.
Now, I just got to find my friend again, and prove that I’m not always a bull-headed berserker.
Lesson #2: Don’t be a jerkhead to your friends, and most of all to your wife.
- Daniel
*I wasn’t really a “jerk” to my friend, but I certainly wasn’t up for being friendly and conversational.
You’ve been a rager before, right? Or am I the only one?
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I once took a car completely apart with a slag hammer.
Trust me when I say I know of rage.
You are not alone.
Yay, slag hammer!
Ever since I was really young I’ve had a problem with rage, myself.
Don’t feel too badly about being somewhat rude to your friend. Crap happens.
Forgot to add that I really enjoy your comic. Keep up the excellent work!
Yeah, thanks. It’s not the way that I like to be.
I greatly dislike getting that way as well. On the bright side, there are relatively healthy ways to deal with such emotions. I’ve taken to drawing a lot more. I might be starting a comic of my own within the next year or so. Should be awesome.
Sure. It’s not like I’m Mr. Rage Beast, but I think by acknowledging my weaknesses, I might be able to handle it better next time.
Let us know when you launch your comic!
Haha, same here. I’ll definitely let you know when I do. Sometime within the next six months I’m going to be heading off to basic training for the Air Force so I want to wait until after things settle down to start posting things. My couple latest submissions on deviantART (link is on my name) have to do with very likely comic stuff, so check that out if you want.
Good luck with basic training. Do push-ups NOW!
Then get to your comic when things calm down.
Thanks. I’m going to start a daily exercise regime here shortly. My bro is joining up as well so I have someone to help motivate me.
I still have plenty of time to draw while relaxing, though. I’m just drawing a lot of random stuff. Not really into trying to force myself to come up with jokes or anything. That doesn’t seem to work very well.