"I Only Came To Say I Must Be Going"

Hello, Readers.

This will more than likely be my last post here on Elmo's Junction. If not the very last, and future ones will be very far between.

I feel like I've covered about anything I can here...so it's time to go. Thanks to all who have tuned in from time to time, as well as the many comments and emails I received.

The Beatles & Bizarros blog will always be there, of course, and occasionally, will be updated.

So, a tip o' the hat and a good-bye to you all.

~D.Puck'.

"Happy Anniversary Star Wars Pepsi Bottle!"

I'd like to wish my Star Wars Plastic Pepsi Bottle a Happy 10th. YEAR ANNIVERSARY!

I purchased this full bottle of regular Pepsi in 1996 when the original Star Wars (Episode 4: "A New Hope, as it's become to be known now) was re-done and re-released, and it has remained cold and UN-opened in my refrigerator (except for taking the above photo) since that time!

(I did consider opening it and drinking it here now on it's tenth year vintage, but...naw! (Sodas that are 10 years old? I just don't think so. Unlike wine, I don't believe it would have matured with age!)

"Ills & Thrills"

Had to finally go to the dentist today. For the past week, my jaw and gum had been sore and a front tooth very sensitive. He confirmed my worst fears of an infection. This was particular bad because it was the only tooth on one side that held my lower partial plate. How well now I'll be able to eat is yet to be known since it'll be while before this medicine gets out of my system and all the feeling comes back into my mouth, but it looks like I may have to be forced to start using a little bit of dential stick 'em of some sort. But...I knew this was coming and maybe now I won't be as ill as I've been for days.

Not a whole lot new this week, save that my Network Card finally went out on this ancient pc and it'll cost me around $50. to have that replaced, forcing me to currently use a Dial Up connection. Since this computer's old anyway, that works just as well.

I did get in a full run of the 1970's DC title, Black Lightning the other day and have re-read same. Pretty dated stuff there of course, but none the less enjoyable; some of Trevor Von Eden's earliest artork.


And...speaking of Von Eden, I'd like to give you my own little review of a 1980's DC title that I'm certain "Johnny Bacardi" will take interest in, as I give my opinions on the 12 issue series of Thriller. And, I won't go into the book's history, description of characters, etc., because "Johnny" (aka: David A. Jones) has done this much more elaborately than I could hope to. (For an in-depth study on this title, simply click onto the Thriller link I've posted above.)

Now I'm not personally the big fan of this series, but I'm sure that many are. However, I did always like the work of both Robert Loren Fleming, and Trevor Von Eden. And when this team was actually involved with the title, I found it to be pretty original and many interesting concepts and ground-breaking designs (particularly with the panel layouts).

But unfortunately, I also felt that this was one of those unfinished projects; what with the loss of Fleming by issue #7, and Von Eden by #8, and the final 4 issues to be completed by Bill Dubay and Alex Nino.

Normally, I like either of these two fine talants. I'd seen Dubay's work in the "old days" of fanzines, and I was always a tremendous fan of Nino's artwork from his time at Warren Publications, and those esquisite "Capt. Fear" stories for DC Comics (circa 1973).

But Bill Dubay just didn't seem to fully grasp the concepts set forth by Fleming, and , sadly, this art by Alex Nino was some of his worst, with panels looking hurried, half-finished and lacking detail. In fact, the only time I saw Nino really cut loose was in a couple of double-page spreads (that were excellant); not enough to carry the whole issue, tho'.

To myself, this project should have been completed by the original team, say, in a Graphic Novel format.

So...my own opion of this series is, that the first 6 issues of Thriller were great! The second half was very disapointing...but with reason.

"The Catch-Up"

Two days ago, my mom fell once more in the hallway of her house. She hit her hand and that night I was down visiting and noticed it had swelled considerably. I asked her if it hurt and she said, "yes", so I told her if it was still hurting today she'd best see the doctor about it.

Sure enough, she had broken her left hand, and tomorrow will be getting a splint on it. Although she said it hurt somewhat, I think she's more aggravated than anything because she's left-handed (the hand she broke). Anyway, she's taking my advice now and will be using, at least, her cane while walking.

I went down there today and mowed their yard for a good hour or better until the rain began. At least I got the back and the trim around all the trees, bushes, edges of the house and shop,etc. finished before the rain began. Now all dad will have to do is mow the flat areas with his riding lawn mower.

Finished up the rest of my own lawn as well a couple days back for another week or so. Also painted more on the garage and got up on the house and primmed/painted some new wood that had been added during the recent reshingling. Noticed an area I need to have the shingler come back and add some metal "flashing" to, plus I retarred a few old areas that appeared to need it.

The old wood on part of the one side of the old garage isn't going to take paint, so I'll probably have to put some more pieces of plywood over the that and then I can just repaint it with a roller. There's still plenty of outside painting left to do, as well as repairing some old wood in the back of the house, plus enclosing the screened-in back porch before I can seriously attack the interior. I want to start with the entrance way and repaint every area of wood inside. Thus far, I've got the interior door/windows and edging, but not the side/inside windows, & not that side of the door.

The living room trim work is pretty much done, having been repainted when we hired a painter to do the walls, but the dining room needs about all of it repainted save one of the 80" windows that I did just last week.

Then it'll be the bedroom window, doors and trim work, the bathroom (save for one door there also that I've already done), and the kitchen, and finally the pc room. The back storage room looks fine as does the utility room, so those I believe I can pass on.

Other "things" that'll eventually get done are shelves built into the inset doorway (that's closed off for use) in the bathroom, so I can rid us of the mobile ones over the commode, then redoing drop ceilings in the bathroom, dining room and entrance way. Oh yeah...I still have to repour the front sidewalk.


But it'll all get done "in time", as I stay busy with my folk's chores and my father-in-laws' well. In fact, Wednesday I need to go to see my father-in-law and mow HIS yard for him, plus some other stuff.


Time can be a difficult thing to obtain. At work I haven't had but two full days off in three weeks. That I'll get tomorrow and Wednesday, at last.

In other news...


I finally got tired of looking at all these comic book duplicates I had stacked around the pc room, plus paperbacks and hardcovers, etc., so I sold everything to one dealer as a lot and got them out of here. I then moved the secondary comic collection in here to organize the boxes, which I've got about 1/2 finished. I'll reinvest the $ I received from those books BACK into my collection, naturally. Got in one new silver-age comic I'd won on auction: a copy of Adventure 354, which is a Legion of Super-Heroes app. from 1967.

This was one of my favorite Legion stories where the grown-up Superman goes to visit the ADULT LOSHs and we discover which ones had died, gotten married and all. (I consider this issue an important key in the SA history of this team.)

I also won a full set of the DC bronze-age title, Black Lightning (#'s 1 thru 11), produced during a time when both DC and Marvel introduced many ethenic characters, several of which are still around today. Like "Black Goliath"(just called "Goliath", I believe, currently), "Vixen", "Luke Cage Hero For Hire". Not all were African-America types though. These companies gave use both Native American and Asian characters, too. If the 1960's was the era of creation for these companies, the 1970's were at least (perhaps) the era of enlightenment.

And in one week (7/17) I'll turn 55 and will be eligable for A.A.R.P. suppliment health benefits. (So...move over Paul McCartney.)

"And...July...."

Finally got around to reading The Legion of Super-Heroes (DC/2005 series) 1 thru 11 (minus #8 which the dealer I got them from screwed up and left out of the run), plus Supergirl & The LOSHs #16.

Seems like with every new Legion series its writer wants to redefine the team. We now have The Legion recognized as more of a concept or idea, especially among the futuristic teenagers, rather than some organization.

There's also some interesting changes in the members, such as "Star Boy" now being a black guy (maybe this happened in a previous series?), but a trade-off with "The Invisible Kid" back to being a white guy. And that funny thing they've got going with "Colossal Boy", who insists his code name should be "Micro-Lad", because he claims his power isn't being able to grow into a Giant, but that he's really from a WORLD of Giants, and his ability is rather being able to shrink down to 6 ft. in height.

There's some interesting nostalgia here-and-there, showing the members reading silver-age DC comics. Things like a funky old Batman where he and "Bat-Woman" get married, or an issue of Mystery In Space featuring "Ultra, the Multi-Alien", so at least with the updated version where they want to hook in the new generation of readers, they also have some ties to their past where us "oldsters" can enjoy the title as well.

Crisp enough artwork and readable plotlines, this is one of the better LOSGs titles I've seen, and now with the addition of "Supergirl" back into the picture (Supergirl & LOSHs 16, which is what the title's now changed to), I can only see it getting better. Good job, DC!

I also read Superman V2 #'s 204 & 205 (Jim Lee's first two issues), which are now two years old, but as current as I've personally seen with this title. Not sure if I'd even want to see further issues as these books, although blessed with excellant Lee artwork, and Lee and Turner covers, have stories far too stretched out from issue-to-issue. These first two issues could have easily been put into one book. "So much fluff and not enough substance for me to really enjoy them.


And, on to other things....

I finally got another gallon of paint, so my wife and I went out and used it down to the last drop trying to make the old storage shop next to the house look better. I had put new wood on the backside of this a week or better ago, but it wasn't the color of the rest of the building (which now it is). We used what was left to paint other areas, but still lacked probably two more gallon to make it complete.

Also, the "shingle man" came by today and, weather permitting, he'll put a new gutter on one part of a side of the house and new shingles on a section of the roof this coming Monday. Outside of finishing up the scraping of old paint and repainting on the backside of the house, and some interior painting, my work will finally be done, at least on that part, and really all I can afford presently from the insurance settlement we received from the storm/hail damage of some months back.


Went by a few yard sales today and picked up a MTV "Singing Machine" Karaoke today, with AM/FM radio and t.v. Only paid five bucks for it, so no big loss there if I can't get it to working completely. Thus far I've gotten both the t.v. and radio working; wish I could figure out the CD player attachment as well.

Also found a nice little 1950-60's Stewart transistor radio, in its original box and earplug, for a buck that works, a Superman pinback (new) for a couple bucks, and one of those cold-cast "Robin/2 Face" statues w/its original box and certificate (from the Batman Forever flick), and a "Wonderman" action figure MOC. Grand total was less than $15. for all of it, so I did okay.


This is, of course, The 4th. of July weekend, and this being July 1st. means half of the year has already flown by. Quick trip! Less than 6 months now till Christmas. The years do seem to get a whole lot shorter to me anymore. The 3rd. of July always makes me a bit paranoid from having the only major auto accident I've ever experienced, even though that was was back in 1969. That's one day I'm especially careful about driving, and refuse to go anywhere near where the accident occured (although that's just superstition on my part).

I'm staying "busy" (as usual), with this being my first full day off in over a week now, which explains a lot about why I don't have the time to do more regular blog posts. At work we've had two different employees taking vacations over the past 2-1/2 weeks, then another one out with tooth surgery for several days leaving only a couple of people to run the entire retail during the weekdays. Add this OT at work to my ever-additional chore load of mowing my lawn, and with my folks getting older their lawn as well, plus the occasional 45 mile trip to my father-in-laws to mow HIS yard, plus work on house repairs, etc., etc....well...you get the picture.

Haven't had time to go see the new "Superman Returns" , visit a comic book shop, or much else except come home and sit down and relax, or come home and work even more, and just come home and collapse.


Hope everyone has a nice and safe 4th. holiday.