On the DEWLine 2.0: Dwight Williams

Happier Birthdays to sabotabby!!!

Sat, 16 May 2026 13:16:58 GMT

Hoping that all goes well for your latest adventures!

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Happier Birthdays to puppetmaker!

Wed, 24 Sep 2025 23:41:52 GMT

I am grateful that you are still with us among the living.

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A Near Miss and a Death

Wed, 30 Jul 2025 00:23:28 GMT

Once I got back to the house from this morning's visitation, the job search resumed. No applications filed today. Not sure what impulse brought me back to Facebook tonight. Maybe it was seeing the news from Elayne Riggs on Blogspot about her employer's office building being the site of the shootings in Midtown Manhattan yesterday. (Glad you're okay, Elayne!)

And now that I'm here, I've learned that Pat Augustine has finally passed away.

We knew each other from Mike Norton's Comic Book Crossroads fanzine as contributors. A few years back, as part of his downsizing efforts in the wake of his cancer diagnosis, he sold me his Wacom Cintiq, which I'm still using as of tonight. It's been incredibly useful in my art hobbies. (We were both annoyed at the import duties I had to cough up in addition to what I paid him as I recall.)

A good guy, and I miss him.

(And I note that his Discord account is still logged in as I type this. Not a complaint.)

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Happier Birthdays to sabotabby!

Sat, 17 May 2025 02:36:03 GMT

Seriously, friend!

I hope better days are coming and that today was kind to you!

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Seeking Help For Trek + Comics Writers

Fri, 02 May 2025 13:36:17 GMT

I've been reminded over on TrekBBS that there's ongoing medical fundraisers for two writers whose work on comic books and on Star Trek I've enjoyed reading and re-reading over the decades.

Mike W. Barr

Peter A. David

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RIP: Erin O'Neil

Sat, 20 Jul 2024 00:45:04 GMT

Erin O'Neil died today.

If you were part of the Ottawa, ODSP, Disabled-Rights, CDB-support communities on Twitter, you might have known her as "veganlovebunny".

To me, she was a relatively recent acquaintance there, and her last years were a struggle that finally exhausted her. Environmental sensitivites, autism, lymphatic issues, disability "supports" that weren't doing the work of helping her, abusive fellow tenants, a landlord that wasn't paying attention except to punish her complaints.

She ended herself rather than be evicted from the housing she was barely holding onto in Manor Park.

She deserved better, a longer and kinder life. Friends who weren't so distracted by our own struggles, too.

I never got to meet her in person, and now I never will.

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Happier birthdays to sabotabby!

Wed, 17 May 2023 01:10:13 GMT

May your revolution(s) be triumphant!

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Amplifying Calls for Help

Wed, 11 Jan 2023 01:58:42 GMT

Shelley "TSivia" Rabinovitch is a friendly acquaintance of longstanding from as far back as the early years of Can-Con's relaunch as a convention for writers, illustrators and editors of speculative fiction and their fans. We were both on the organizing committee together for a couple of years.

TSivia is currently in need of some support herself at the moment. Details are in the link. Some of you will have already heard of this through other channels and already acted upon that, I suspect. If you haven't, please have a look:

https://www.gofundme.com/f/human-rights-tribunal-hearing-legal-fees?utm_source=customer&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_campaign=p_cp_guide_do&member=24246407

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Happier birthdays to radargrrl!

Tue, 29 Nov 2022 14:22:51 GMT

We've known each other going back a couple of decades now through first Livejournal, then Dreamwidth and also Facebook and elsewhere. Glad to still be in touch and in friendship!

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Sun, 25 Sep 2022 22:15:16 GMT

To those among my friends here who observe: Shana tova.

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Happier birthdays to dolari!

Wed, 27 Jul 2022 00:42:31 GMT

Hoping things get better still for you!

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Happier birthdays to jeffthoth and sabotabby!

Sun, 15 May 2022 18:20:15 GMT

In the former case, I'm a day late. In the latter, I'm a day early. I hope you'll both forgive my timing on this, and that better times await you both!

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Happier birthdays to bunsen_h!

Tue, 19 Apr 2022 13:54:13 GMT

We've been friends - at least, friendly acquaintances! - for decades through the Ottawa SF Society, National Capital FreeNet, and elsewhere!

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Happier birthdays, julian!

Wed, 13 Apr 2022 11:52:32 GMT

Hoping that today is kind to you!

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Happier birthdays, ysabetwordsmith!

Fri, 01 Apr 2022 18:26:33 GMT

Just got around to noticing your celebrations!

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Grieving For Smaller Things and Fed Up About a Big Thing

Sun, 23 Jan 2022 14:16:09 GMT

I've lost the Roma Barber Shop on Elgin Street, a place I've gotten haircuts at since moving to Ottawa in 1985. I found that out yesterday when I went over from Perfect Books to reassure the Costanza brothers that I hadn't forgotten them. The shop windows were already papered over.

I'm about to lose the Nutrition Company at Gloucester Centre unless the Husseinis can find a buyer before end of March. Bateson House, the furniture shop at Place d'Orléans Mall, is having their closing sale.

One of my nieces and nephews survived COVID-19, with help from the vaccines. Other friendly acquaintances have died of COVID before any vaccine could be delivered to them. Still others have died of the side effects of the Pandemic combining with other medical issues that they were either already dealing with or unaware that they had to deal with.

I'm not about to give up democracy to the fascists.

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Happier Birthdays, liabrown, seasonoftowers +lonemagpie!

Sat, 01 Jan 2022 03:10:58 GMT

Hoping that the years grow kinder to all three of you!

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Happier Birthdays, dianora!

Fri, 03 Dec 2021 19:01:16 GMT

Hoping you see many happier birthdays in the years to come!

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Happier Birthdays, commodorified!

Thu, 02 Dec 2021 23:08:54 GMT

Wishing you well on your birthday and many more, with hopes for even greater joys to come.

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Birthday Wishes for mdg1 and bewareofgeek!

Mon, 25 Oct 2021 20:13:56 GMT

Hoping that yesterday was kind to you!

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Achievements of the Day - 1 October 2021

Fri, 01 Oct 2021 17:23:05 GMT

- Back to the normal job search practices this morning.

- Successfully postponed the CPAP machine swap-and-payment date to next Tuesday in anticipation of finances falling together properly for that occasion.

- Continuing to watch lectures from Typewknd participants on YouTube. I am nerding out about type design this weekend.

- Tentatively scheduled to attend the monument installation for my late friend from Pen and Paper Workshop, Naomi Wilanski this Sunday morning upcoming.

- Missed today's City Planning Committee meeting being broadcast via YouTube.

- Other stuff to be added.

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Happier Birthdays, fajrdrako!

Fri, 24 Sep 2021 18:33:46 GMT

We've been on speaking terms for decades. I'm grateful to have illustrated a couple of your APAzines in times past and glad to still count you among my friends, and may you have more and happier birthdays to come!

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Sat, 12 Jun 2021 03:19:07 GMT

Yesterday, I was in a therapy chat.

Managed to remind myself during that session that six - seven? - people I knew to care about have died during the Pandemic so far. Only one directly due to the virus, and yet...

I'm not in tears, but there is a sense of a quiet gut-punch here.

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Happier birthdays to mcwetboy!

Thu, 18 Feb 2021 03:11:40 GMT

It's been good to have company in map nerdery!

Take care, okay?

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Gratitude at the End of 2020

Fri, 01 Jan 2021 03:50:32 GMT

I can't say I didn't keep looking. I can't say I didn't keep trying to learn new skills and update old ones. I can't say I didn't have help to keep going throughout this whole year no matter what. And yes, I've been making mistakes throughout this whole year.

You've been some of that help that's kept me going in spite of everything this year. I am grateful to you all for that.

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