Cloud and Tree

Journals of Toast 53

ezrast — Wed, 21 May 2008 17:21:00 -0500

Where does the time go? School ends, I move into a new apartment (yay!), and then it's been three weeks since the last episode. It's a good thing there's a library just down the street or it would have been even longer--I am currently internetless. Ah well.

Journals of Toast 52

ezrast — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 16:06:00 -0500

Spirituality advice with Toast: Just don't become a theist.

Journals of Toast 51

ezrast — Sun, 02 Mar 2008 14:35:00 -0600

I was all sick-like when I wrote this. I'm mostly better now though.

Journals of Toast 50

ezrast — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 14:46:00 -0600

Um. Hi guys. Haven't seen you all in a while.

When I originally posted this it went along with a whole bunch of rambling that I'm pretty sure nobody wanted to read, least of all me because it was terrible. Essentially, it said this:

JoT is now one year old, woohoo.
The comic means a lot to me even though almost nobody reads it.
I feel bad about not updating for so long.

The end of 2007

ezrast — Mon, 31 Dec 2007 16:01:00 -0600

I've drawn a bear in an ill-fitting hat, just in time to get it out of my system before it officially becomes a meme, as predicted by the splendiferous Wondermark.

Also: it's time to say goodbye to 2007, I guess.
Hey 2007! I'm leaving. You were a disappointing year. In fact, you were terrible. Good riddance, don't call me. I'm with 2008 now.
--Ezra

A tablet

ezrast — Thu, 27 Dec 2007 23:30:00 -0600

I received a graphics tablet (Wacom Bamboo Fun small) for Christmas. After a little practice with it I am capable of producing images that look like they were made by a sixth-grader. This is a nice change, as most of my images look like they were made by a third-grader. Clearly, this is conclusive evidence that expensive electronics are worth at least three years' of practice drawing.

Journals of Toast 49

ezrast — Thu, 27 Dec 2007 17:30:00 -0600

Actually I like Christmas, but for all the wrong reasons. As an atheist, the religious connotations of the holiday mean nothing to me; as an avoidant introvert, I am bad at shopping for things that I think other people would like; as a staunch cynic, I believe the whole Santa Claus shtick is only maintained in our culture due to the asocial tendencies of parents wanting to either assert their dominance over their children (by lying to them) or vicariously experience a nonexistant fantasy through them. Christmas (as it is integrated into our mainstream society) is a reaffirmation of materialism that permeates society, strengthened and perverted by corporate culture.

The fact that despite our rampantly materialistic tendencies and corrupt motives there is one day a year where all of us (okay, most of us) mutually and assuredly agree to just give stuff away to each other is pretty amazing. If I were designing an ideal society, would I designate one day in particular where everyone is obligated to buy each other things? Probably not, because that doesn't really make sense. But as a product of the natural development of our own, real, flawed society, it's actually pretty neat.

P.S. I really hate that I had to resort to a pun on "façade" but I couldn't think of any other word synonymous with deceit that worked.