Hello, World. It appears to be 2012. 
(I've noticed that some of you have been wishing each other a happy Year of the Dragon. Not to be a downer, but that won't come for another couple of weeks, as the Lunar New Year does not coincide with the calendar's. Until then, we Rabbits still reign!)


I've resolved to keep better track of what I read this year, and to cut down on re-reads. I promise that I won't bore you with constant updates, but here be a couple to start out the year:


My friend Martha alerted me re: a comic called Chew by John Layman and Rob Guillory. The protagonist is a cibopath, which means that he gets psychic impressions from things that he masticates, which in turn helps him solve crimes. And as he tends to wind up with cases involving murder, his diet has become a little... unsavory. (I suspect that this is a large part of what convinced Martha that this would be right up my alley.)





Another notable thing about the protag is that he is Asian American. You know how I know? One: because of his name, John Chu. Two: because of his coloring and facial features. 


That's it.


Keep in mind that I've only read the first volume; I suppose it's entirely possible that Chu starts fighting crime with crazy kung fu whilst simultaneously playing the violin with his toes and speaking in fortune cookie aphorisms in subsequent installations. Perhaps he will live in a dojo and have a mother who communicates with white people by screeching at them in her native tongue. 


But so far, so good.


The other day, I was trawling through the fantabulous Jason Chan's website (which has since vanished from the Wired :<) when I came across some cover art that he's done for some books (including Sarah Prineas's v. recently released Winterling), not to mention recent art for Magic: the Gathering. Ellen Potter's The Kneebone Boy caught my eye, and I picked up a copy. 



I just finished it this afternoon and am absolutely smitten. It is a terribly delightful, sad, sweet, and generally lovely book full of adventure and imagination and wit, and I recommend it even if you're not between the ages of nine and sixteen (I'm not).


In unrelated news, Joe has resolved to cook more, and rustled up an epic dinner of gruyere and mushroom quiche, California Waldorf salad, and "Aaasian coleslaw" last night. He used the leftover buttermilk to make a pile of buttermilk pancakes today. I've had a damn fine year so far. How about ye?


Cheers,