The Optimist

Author notes

Page 35

Kristen Gudsnuk

on Aug. 27, 2009

Hey guys! Here's the next page. Sorry for the intense build-up unintentionally caused by the long delay. Well YES YOUR FEARS ARE COMING TO FRUITION!!!!! I love Jadwiga's face in the last panel. she has a piggy nose and it's cute.

OK so there are some new things. First of all, TWO NEW ENTRIES INTO THE FANART CONTEST!!!! Pato and Darkwaterfrey, of the comics MAYA temple of warriors (a continuation of MAYA Legend of the Wolf) and Adventures of Katmandi respectively, are the most recent contributors. Check out their lovely works here!!

And now, the moment you've all been waiting for: a lengthy diatribe about my personal life.
So, things with me are going pretty well. In the past week I've found employment, decided upon a new project to work on after I finish this comic, and been lovingly harangued by my kind aunt who has an incredible influx of contacts in the publishing industry (my job of choice is in the editorial department of a publishing company). My job is at Save The Children, but I'm just a temp. I put together packets to get sent to sponsors' houses, enter data into an ancient database (same one I used when I worked at Health Net… O_o!) and other mindless temp functions. Not that I can complain about the mindless part, though– I've always liked those insultingly simple tasks, if only because it frees my mind up for daydreaming, for planning, for storytelling. The post-Optimist project I want to work on is a novel. I've always wanted to write a real book. In high school I wrote something approaching a novel, but it needed work, and isn't an achievement to be proud of.
This story I want to write is about a fifteen-year-old girl who falls in love with someone twice her age, and while her mother and newly-minted stepfather are away on their honeymoon, she is sent to stay at his house. DUH-DUH! (well, his mother's house but he's at home taking care of her because she fell and hurt her leg.) The thread that ties the two together is a mutual adoration of the wonderful band Bourve, a pop quartet with a formidable discography. I think she may convince him to take her to a Bourve concert, and maybe some sort of awesome antics will ensue. Of course, Bourve is a fictional band, but they've already got two songs: one is called "Take That, Nicholas," and the other is called "Waiting for Wednesday".
Sample lyrics from "Nicholas" :

Nicholas and I took a ferry to watch marine life swim
I brought finger sandwiches he took his camera with him
Somebody asked him want to get a picture with your girl?
He said, she's not my girl she's my friend.

Go take a picture of a whale, then, Nicholas
Go take a picture of some stupid whale.

When I saw him next it was an awful surprise
I hadn't showered lately, sleepless crusted eyes
He said you look nice and kissed me on the cheek
I told him you're a lousy liar, friend.

My hand is cold, warm it for me dear Nicholas
He didn't hear me whisper that, I guess.

Heh! Not bad for written on the sly at work!! I'm trying to pay less attention to syllabic count (something I'm a bit anal about) to let the 'writing spirits' take over me, and to find more unusual rhymes (failed a bit here).

Waiting for Wednesday:
"Bridge club is a snore but I signed up because you're in it
We play some bridge with other folks but oh, we never win it
I think you joined ironically- neither of us knows how to play
I got a book from the library, called Card Games for Dummies, and tried reading it today
I fell asleep instead

And I'm waiting for Wednesday to roll around
Monday, Tuesday, lost and found,
Feeling like I'll go berserk
After I get out of work on Wednesday
Please oh please, play against me
I promise that I'll let you win.

After club let's get some drinks
Oh you don't drink? Neither do I
Instead let's sit and watch the sky
Get dark and blanketed with stars
Sitting here inside my car
Do you like this song? I do too
I wrote it, wrote it just for you

That one… OK to be honest these songs don't really matter, they just help me get a feel for all the Bourve-iness.