Actual events, in public, with people, although let us note that some are being more responsible than others.

You have on the one hand, a community event held in the great state of West Virginia, featuring artists and artisans of all sorts at the Shenandoah Planing Mill in Charles Town on Saturday, 12 June. Among the studio tour artists will be webcomics own Danielle Corsetto, who was the one that first tipped me to the fun. I should note that this is not a comics-specific, comics-centric, or even comics-featuring event; it’s pretty much Corsetto that will be repping the words + pictures crowd, but come on! Iron forging! Log sawing! Leashed friendly dogs welcome! If you’re in the vicinity, it’ll be a hoot, possibly a hoot and a half.

But if you’re looking for something that’s comics-featuring, comics-centric, even comics-specific, look no further than Mini-MICE; from the folks that bring you the Massachusetts Independent Comics Expo (normally held mid-Octoberish at Lesley University in Cambridge, MA¹) will be going outdoors in the Central Square neighborhood of Cambridge on the last weekend of August (that would be the 28the and 29th) with 30 comics folks given tables each of the two days; to maximize those able to exhibit, it will be a different cohort on each of the two days.

Applications are open for Massachusetts residents until 28 June, who should be prepared to share new comics work, from 2020 to the present, and have comics be at least half of what you present on the table. The tables, due to distancing policies² will be 3 feet, under a 10 foot canopy, and are being subsidized by the Central Square Business Improvement District.

Restrictions that are presently in place³ mean that there won’t be any programming or live events, but what the heck — it’s gonna be free to attend, so head on over and check out new comics from local creators. Even if MICE is able to come back next year, it would be great to see Mini-MICE recur, and for other festival-type events to adopt a similar, open-air type approach in addition to their traditional presentations.

Contrast, if you would, with the announcement I got in the mail from a Long Island traditional comics show set for Hofstra University’s sports and event center the first weekend of August (that would be the 7th and 8th). As of this writing, there’s no acknowledgement of possible restrictions, nothing about distancing or mask requirements, zilch. I get that there’s uncertainty about what public events would look like in 2 months time, but every photo features large crowds in close proximity … it’s like the pandemic never happened, and I’d submit that’s the wrong message to send.

If this didn’t convince me that the organizers don’t have public health at the front of their minds, the fact that the one announced guest at this time is Dean Cain — who spent some of last summer mocking the idea of having to wear a mask on a plane — would lead me in that direction.

600,000 Americans are dead of COVID, and the deaths are still occurring; around the world, where vaccinations are nowhere near as widespread, things are getting distinctly worse. This pandemic won’t be over until things are safe for everybody, including those who’ve spent the past forever denying reality. To plan for an event is understandable. To make no attempt to change how things are done to a form that will at least acknowledge life was different in the summer of 2019 is just insulting.

Spam of the day:

Your bank account received a payment of $ 346000. Take your money urgently Your card has received a payment of $ 245000. Take your money

This from “michaelwof”, who’s been using a series of French and Belgian email accounts to try to convince me that FREE!! MONEY!!1! is coming my way if I just click on his links. Yeah, no.

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¹ Home to more colleges and universities than you can shake a stick at, despite what Ian said in Spinal Tap.

² Which, let’s face, are likely to change.

³ Ibid.