Not the only JERK in town - Soda Jerk Dillon

Since it was his last shift, I made Dillon sign his comic.
I totally realise this was wholly unnecessary, but he was a good sport about it.

Sometimes (and I hesitate to admit this) it's hard being the only JERK in town. And by that, I mean that humans often refer to me as "nerd JERK" and not my given name.

So what a relief it was when I walked in and saw Dillon at The Ice Cream Bar and someone referred to my new buddy as a "Soda Jerk."

It was obvious I was among friends.

What made it even better is that when Dillon had met on my previous visit to this 1930s style handmade soda & ice cream establishment, I had let him know that I thought this place was so cool that I might wanna do a comic about it.

So with my pen & notebook in hand, I started into The Ice Cream Bar's one year anniversary celebration.

What I didn't know was that it was my new friend's last shift ever. :(

That was until he told me... Good thing I keep my word and thought to bring my comic stuff (and that was just a failing Micron 08 & a shitty Daiso notebook).

Had to fix his name, cos he was tooooo effing nice to correct me on my spelling.

Today my friend Loun and I had "the best damn root beer float in the world" (Dillon's words) and a scoop of PB Rocky Road. I was trying to draw his hat while watching it through the mirrors in the joint when I heard my name. He was calling us over to the bar.

We chatted about it being his last night (I'm not gonna lie - I was pretty brokenhearted about it since he was way cool). I had given him my card last time, and he mentioned that he'd gone onto my website. That was damn cool of him.

He even said he wanted to order my comics and mentioned telling the owner that she ought to commission a comic about their unique shop. I was touched - and truth is, I would do the comic either way, cos the place is rad.

Here's a little more about Dillon:

I was gonna change his name, but hey! It's my mistake, so it stays in its pure form.
All facts were fact-checked by the man in the comic.

We sat at the bar for a while, having our waters refilled and chatting with him between customers. He made some rather interesting drinks with tinctures and extracts - he even tasted them as he was making them, which really impressed me.

As I was inking his bowtie, we geeked out about Mario Kart 64. He even combed his phone's pictures to show us his customised controller. It was such a good time being the gang of nerds in the corner.

I wanted to invite him over to play N64 before he left town, but I ended up rationalizing against it for some reason. I mean, I'd only met him once before and he was taking off. He was probably busy and stuff.

I imagine he was like "Why are you asking me to take this picture?"

Well, I won't say that I'll never go back to The Ice Cream Bar, cos I was there last night and Alex made us a totally legit Pistachio Milkshake of DOOM with Wild Cherry Whipped Cream (YUMMMM!!).

But I will definitely miss Dillon. San Diego, you'd better know what you're in for: a whole lotta deliciousness from this Soda Jerk.

From one JERK to another:
Dillon - you had better send me your address. I owe you some comics. And if you're down, Loun and I would love to play some Mario Kart with you when you visit SF.

Slightly Larger Glasses for 2013 - My Big Plans

Test Shot for my "Slightly Larger Glasses for 2013" vlog
Tests shots are great, cos they show you BBW bags in the background

So once again, the year has changed and we're starting anew, nerds!

But THIS YEAR, I'm starting pretty dang new by doing something really scary: letting go of something I'm known for and just putting MYSELF out there for the world to invest in.

EEP!

The emotional baggage that came with moving onto selling only my original character designs and nerdtastic art has been unexpectedly roller coaster-like.

• "Will they like it?"
• "Sure, they'll like it."
• "Will they buy it?"
• "Sure, they'll buy it!"
• "Will they want more?" 
• "Will they lose interest?" 
• "Will they hate what I'm truly designing from my insides?"
• "...Ermmmmm???"

I'm sure that everyone has this negative self-talk as an entrepreneur. It's natural that when you do something kinda scary (like all the amigurumi plush you've become known for since 2005!), you start to let those scary feelings creep in. After all, it's the quirky neurosis that gives us our loveable charm!

But I just need to remember that I don't need to let those feelings take me over.

So, in the spirit of making SURE that I make good with all of my big promises, I did a couple of videos on New Year's Eve on 2012. 

This is the first of my promises to you:

I will always let you know what my plans are.

nerd JERK's Slighty Larger Glasses for 2013 from Steph Cortes @ nerdJERK on Vimeo.

So now they we've gotten THAT out there, let's make sure our plans for the new year stick!

Here's to 2013, folks! Big plans, big hugs and big excitement!

Geek on,

- Steph