











I got local creator Brian Canini’s “ The Big Year ” comic on Kickstarter. It is a daily journal comic over the course of a year. I laughed, I cried, I felt the feels. The comic was done in 2015 and into 2016, two years ago. He was buying a house and getting married. He had a kid, a good paying job, friends and loving family, and another kid on the way. He has the perfect life and expresses gratitude on several pages yet sometimes still feels disconnected, anxious, depressed, unfulfilled and out of control.













I couldn't help but compare his life to mine. I must admit feelings of envy and inadequacy while reading this (much like spending too much time on social media.) I felt sort of unaccomplished and worthless, like his darker pages where he expresses his frustration, apprehension and existential angst. About the only things we have in common are that we are both newlyweds who love our spouses with our whole heart, and we both love IP comix.. After reading this book, I felt a connection with the author and also equal parts depressed and motivated about my own life, and a little less alone, and also happy for him. The beautiful life experiences he illustrates, from the mundane to the miraculous made me a little more hopeful about the future and my place in it.









from the Introduction by his buddy Derek Baxter from Drunken Cat Comics













This book inspired me to try making a comic again, like I did back in 2014 with ‘FML’ and ‘Bird Brains’ . I want to do a daily over a long period of time like he did. Maybe I can make a connection with someone on the other side of the panels.







