Monster Expert

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Due to my recent Internet troubles, here's a second Stay-At-Home Matt comic in less than twelve hours. Whoopee! Also, if anyone can verify Jack's facts, please let me know; that kid's been known to make up stories.

I Told Her To Wait

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The meatheads over at Time Warner must make their modems out of duct tape and wishes because yesterday I blew through my second one in, like, six months. C'mon, I post a stupid little webcomic; it's not like I'm playing Global Thermonuclear War here. Anyways, Kids, I'm a day behind on updating Stay-At-Home Matt now but, hey, better late than never, right (by the way, I was watching 28 Weeks Later)? On the up-side, while we were downtown, the boys and I went to the Strong Museum Of Play and checked out their new superhero exhibit. Our favorite part was the gamma ray reactor that gives you super-strength.

[Jack said he looks like the "Electric Hulk"]

If Looks Could Kill

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I generally try to steer away from the cut-and-paste style of repeating panels but that kid stared at me, without blinking, for about a full minute so I thought it was justified in today's Stay-At-Home Matt. Seriously. It was unnerving. I was afraid he was gonna wish me into the cornfield or something.

So, Yeah, I Sleep Naked

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Warning: This comic contains nudity and foul language. Reader discretion is advised. The management of Spinadoo Comics is not responsible for any ill effects you may feel from observing my naked and pasty-white body, including (but not limited to): shortness of breath, chest pains, vertigo, nausea (especially nausea), loose stools (eeewww), catatonic states, and/or death. Please read responsibly.

I probably should have put that at the top, before the comic, huh, Kids?

(hee hee)

Night Night

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This is actually an abbreviated version of what has been a nightly conversation between Eli and I lately; he'll usually go on like that for about two minutes before I cut him off. It's adorable.

Pictures In The Sky

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I considered giving this Stay-At-Home Matt comic the title "New Moon" to try and sneak some Google search traffic but... I didn't. Well, it's Cheerios-and-Sesame-Street-time, Kids. Have a great Sunday and let's go Buffalo!

Fourth Quarter Blues

Alright Kids, you've been patient. Let's start off today's post with a brand new Stay-At-Home Matt. Booyah:

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So, how are all you Kids doing? Sorry it's been a few days since my last update but, like the comic above says, I've been relaxing (sort of) the last couple of days. Now that we're entering the fourth quarter, work has gotten pretty crazy and I needed to take a little time to step back and preserve my sanity (you know, instead of doing something impulsive and stupid like shut down my site). But now I'm back, I'm recharged, and I'm ready to get a-bloggin'.

[The nerd's refuge: graphic novels and sci-fi DVDs]

So what have I been up to, you may wonder. First of all, I read a terrific graphic novel called Garage Band, by an Italian artist known as Gipi, about a group of four young men who hold their band practices in a reclaimed garage. With such a simple premise, the author creates a safe haven for the teens to work out their personal problems and, with incredibly lush watercolors, stunningly illustrates the catharsis of rockin' out (I imagined them to sound like some kind of European version of early Deftones who I've been listening to a shitload of the last few days). As you can probably tell from the third panel of the SAHM strip above, I also watched The Happening the other night. If you haven't seen it, I won't ruin it (more) for you, but I will say this: the plants are killing people and it's a stupid freakin' movie.

[The Onion has never steered me wrong]

On the topic of movies, if you're in the mood for a good one, check out Blood, Boobs & Beast, a tremendous documentary about horror B-movie icon Don Dohler by film-maker, comic genius, Spinadoo Kid, and gentleman-scholar, John Kinhart. It's super-entertaining and chock full o' all three titular (hee hee) elements. I already have a copy but, if you don't, you can watch it for free over at Cine Px (but you should totally buy a copy and support John because he's a good dude).

But I wasn't a total shut-in this week. Wednesday was my mom's birthday and we went to one of her favorite spots in Rochester: Birdsong Trail, a beautiful little wooded area where black-capped chickadees will eat birdseed right out of your hand. Of course, the boys were way too loud for any birds to get anywhere near us but it was still fun:

[For the affordable price of free!]

[Eli in his Mountain Man pose]

[I had just told him about the Blair Witch... just kidding, Mom]

Man, I'm tired just from typing all that; no wonder I needed a few days to chill out. But don't worry, Kids. I should be back to drawing and posting fairly frequently again (please bear with me, though, because my work schedule might interfere with those plans until after the holidays). Oh, Jack's been busy lately, too. I'll leave you Kids with his latest masterpiece. Thanks for all your patience, understanding, and support. You're all aces!

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[A Little Help From Jackson (Jackson Graupman) - Crayon on paper]

It's A Dirty Job But...

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Ugh! I'm still so sore from all that raking. It's a good thing my job doesn't involve lots of repetitive heavy lifting. Oh, wait... dammit.

As a little epilogue to the Stay-At-Home Matt strip above, let me just say that Eli is doing much better now. It turns out my kisses have magical healing properties. Are you listening, Anne Hathaway? Are you?!

Oh, No!

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Well Kids, this weekend was crazy busy so the mini-Stay-At-Home Matt above was all I was able to draw for today. Have no fear, though; tomorrow's SAHM is already drawn and it's four panels of full-sized comicky fun. Here's a photo of what kept me so busy:

[47 bags of leaves on the curb, 47 bags of leaves...]

I Love Her More Every Day

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After reading today's Stay-At-Home Matt, Emily informed me that she actually said "Practice, practice, practice." I think it works either way.

Have a wonderful weekend, Kids.

Adriana Has Questions, Too

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The lovely and talented Adriana Vargas, creator of the charming autobio comic Fall On Me, sent me a note today about a recent post on her blog. It seems that, just like my cousin Becky, she was inspired by my recent Stay-At-Home Matt comic entitled "Questioning" and drew up her own version (the super-cool comic posted above). Pretty rad, huh? It always amazes me what hits a nerve with you Kids and it's pretty awesome to see this idea take off a little bit. Viva la revolucion! Thanks, Adriana!

You can check out more of Adriana's work at her blog, her website, and her store.

[Comic reprinted by permission]