Americans & Elves

Well, it's a big day for the U.S. of A. Election Day. Will America vote in favor of the man who could be their first black President, or for another four years of conservative hegemony and imperialist foreign policy? We'll see. It's safe to say that I'm still bitter with how our election in Canada turned out, so as much as I'd like to see things change for our neighbors down below, I reserve the right to remain skeptical. 

If they do elect Obama though, it'll mean and sea change in American international relations. And seeing as Harper has directed so much of our foreign policy to agree with American interests, I think it'll be interesting to see whether or not he backpedals towards a more moderate conservatism. Either way, we're stuck with this sweater-wearing con man until either the Liberals or the NDP call another snap election. Oh, snap! 

Anywhoo.

I just returned from the library with the second volume of James Kochalka's daily sketchbook diary, American Elf. Since first discovering Kochalka's work last spring, I've been consistently enjoying every comic of his that I've been able to get my hands on, from SuperF***ers to Monkey Vs. Robot & The Crystal of Power. Since October 26, 1998, Kochalka has been drawing scenes from his daily life, depicted in small four-panel comic strips featuring himself as a magic elf boy. I'm pretty sure there are at least three collected volumes of American Elf available, and the webcomic, serialized on AmericanElf.com, has just celebrated it's 10th Anniversary. So, hurray! Hopefully he doesn't stop writing it anytime soon, because it's an excellent read, perfectly balanced between poignant tenderness, exuberant joy, cute rage, and occasional vulgarity. Okay, so that's a lot of elements to balance, but who cares, you can read it for free online! You like free things don't you? You're not weird, are you?