Previous News01.31.2011 - Terrence Marks:As you may have seen on twitter, I was having car problems. I was driving home from work and my car started making this odd noise. I took it in the next day. Figured I'd get a belt tightened, maybe get some writing done while I was waiting. So they tell me it's the transmission. It could go at any moment. It'd be $2500 to replace it, which is perilously close to the Blue Book value of the car. I mention that, and they suggest rebuilding it for $800. I didn't get any writing done that day.On one hand, in the last few months I had a variety of belts and fluids replaced. I just sunk a moderate amount of money into it and I'd rather that investment pay off. And it's been a good, reliable car. On the other hand, it's nearly at 200,000 miles. It'll need new brakes sooner than later and there's an oil valve leak. I've got decisions ahead of me.
I've realized that I know very little about cars and less about buying them. I was hoping that I'd have a few weeks to research things when the time came. Upon reflection, I have no idea why I expected that. After a bit of research, it looks like the advice Kimberly gave Brisbane in Spice and Rabbit was pretty good.
I began the week totally unsure of what I wanted in a car (apart from four wheels and goes). So I was totally being hit with too many choices, and it paralyzed me. Seriously. Last time I tried to see a movie on Netflix Instant, I spent so much time trying to pick one that I didn't have time to actually watch the movie. I can't compare seven hundred different things in any meaningful way.
The other problem is that it's a big purchase. I want to feel like I'm choosing correctly. Otherwise I'll spend the next few years wondering if I got ripped off.
On the plus side, after I got over the shock, I got sixteen comics written last week. Why? Because I'd rather write comics than search for cars. I love writing, but You Say it First is going into a difficult phase and I'm always able to find something else I'd rather do. Now I've got procrastination working for me instead of against me.
Anyhow, my father-in-law took a look at it and replaced the transmission filter. It appears to be running properly and quietly at the moment, which is good. Hopefully it will continue running properly far into the future.01.19.2011 - Terrence Marks:12.01.2010 - Terrence Marks:Can you believe that there are now eleven years worth of comics in the Namir Deiter archives ? That eleven years ago, Isabel Gonzalez decided to start a comic, and the story she's telling is still unfolding 2895 strips later? Well, it's true.She's in the middle of very big arc, which is why we're not taking time to celebrate it in-comic. Wouldn't be fair to Joy that way. But if you happen to play Frontierville and want to add her as a neighbor, that'd be mightily appreciated.
11.25.2010 - Terrence Marks:I hope you're all having a great Thanksgiving. Unless you're Canadian, in which case I hope you enjoyed Thanksgiving when you had it last month.I'm feeling a lot better than I was when last I updated. Things have been pretty interesting around here. In a good way. Unfortunately, they've also been busy. Why? CompTIA provides a number of IT-related certifications, including A+ and Security+. If I get one before December 31, it lasts forever. If I get it after, it lasts three years. I'm studying for the Security+ exam now and will probably go for the A+ exam after that.
I've been meaning to get A+ certification for the last six years. I've been putting it off in the hopes that I could get someone else to pay for it. There's always been a gap between when we have a certification budget and when I'm ready to take the test. I always seem to do these things right before the deadline. I got my Windows 2000 MCSE the day before they discontinued the test.
Anyhow, I'm going to be busy for a little while. We've started playing D&D. I picked up a bunch of awesome comics that I don't have time to read or discuss - Darkwing Duck, Usagi Yojimbo, Cross Game, Fushigi Yuugi, the new Amelia Rules trade paperback.
You know what's awesome about Usagi Yojimbo? He's there to kill bandits and build a giant taiko drums. Any other action hero would follow that up with "...and he's all out of keyaki wood" (which is what they make taiko drums out of). Usagi Miyamoto is not out of keyaki wood. He is going to kill bandits and build a giant taiko drum in a historically accurate way, which is much more impressive than merely doing one of those things.11.15.2010 - Terrence Marks:My ear has been hurting me for the last few days. I've been meaning to mention it, except I keep trying to find something witty to say about constant pain. I've got five messages in my drafts folder that begin with "ow! ow! ow!" and go downhill from there.The good news is that my eardrum isn't ruptured. The bad news is that my ear canal is infected, which the doctor says hurts even worse. I'm inclined to believe her. Like many problems, it will pass. In the meantime, I'm feeling pain in places that I didn't know could feel pain, avoiding solid food, and sleeping a lot. Isabel has inked the comics, but spent the last few days taking care of me instead of coloring them. I appreciate that. I know that a lot is happening in all of our comics right now and appreciate your patience.
11.01.2010 - Terrence Marks:We made donation the goal. Thank you all for your support. Isabel has had a bad cold for the last week, though and is taking tonight off. We will, as always make up for it. In the meantime, a very nice reader has created the Namir Deiter Wiki. If you contributed to it, that'd be awesome.10.04.2010 - Terrence Marks:The wallpapers were updated on the first! But now you can see the previews if you scroll down. We've got some awesome Halloween wallpapers featuring Joan, and Richard & Veronica. Any donation of $1 or more gets them to you, and $10 or more gets you access to NamirDeiter.net (including all the past wallpapers, sketches, bonus comics, commentary, and more)Thank you all for helping tag our comics! We've added a few features - you can list all tags for a comic (Namir Deiter, You Say it First, and if you're a donor, NamirDeiter.net ). As you can see, Tipper is in the lead, with Brisbane in second place.
You can also view all the untagged comics if you're looking for a place to pitch in. Again, you can choose ND, YSIF, and NamirDeiter.net.