I wonder if part of why I start feeling weird about being in New Orleans after a bit is the familiarity. Every corner of it is a place I’d been for years, since I was born. And more importantly, they’re all places I remember being a depressed, bitter boy. I had to leave town to reinvent myself; every corner brings up a palimpsest of all the previous times I was there, with a tiny hint of the moods I was in every time I passed through there as a young adult.

I dunno. More prosaically I can never stay here more than a week or so because I’m allergic to the place.

I think it’s about time for me to get back to Seattle. My brain keeps playing the title track off of “Trick of the Tail”, and I’m pretty sure that the Fabulous Beast in the song is me, and the distant City of Gold is Seattle.

I grew up here, it’s a charming (albeit run-down) place, but I don’t think I belong here any more.

Oh man. I just spent like 20 minutes wrapping gifts for my friends’ kids. But I figure I’m giving Lucy what could be the entry point to a career, I figure it demands ceremony.

I wrapped a sketchbook. Then I put “The Explorer’s Guide To Drawing Mythical Creatures” on top of that, and wrapped that pile. Put “Dragonart” on top of that, and wrapped it. Finally, Hultgren’s book on drawing animals went on top of THAT, and I wrapped it all. No bows; each was just wrapped in two layers of similarly-but differently colored pieces of tissue paper. With, if course, a color gradient going on from one package to the next. I taped down the end flaps on the bottom of the packages; the front invites opening, by having a loose edge of the paper visible, with the second color poking out a little to create a decorative accent AND to draw your attention to where to rip.

I mean, I could have just bunged then all into one of the gift bags my mom has around and wadded up the tissue paper over it – but this way I create a bit of a narrative of increasing coolness with the books, that culminates with a blank sketchbook.

There’s also some markers and pens, hidden in the same gift bag, wrapped in the same purple tissue I have wads of protecting this delicate, crazy wrapping job.

I did the same with the two graphic novels I’m giving Clay – first he’ll find “King City”, then “RASL”, figuring “the new book by the dude who did that Bone thing I enjoyed” is cooler than this weird thing by a guy he hasn’t heard of – but really that’s just so he gets to share in the fun.

DEAR INTERNET: Does anyone know any review sites that focus on The Kinds Of Games My Mother Likes on the iPad? “Casual” games, solitaire, gem matching, hidden object, that kind of stuff. I gave her a gift card along with my old iPad, and realized I really have no idea what to suggest grabbing.

An iPad game review site with a decent amount of Mom Games reviews would be fine too. (jayisgames.com comes to mind now that I think about it – any other suggestions?)

Plus if your mom has some app she loves, let me know.

(This is assuming your mom is kinda like mine: in her sixties, not a total technophobe but also not into tech for its own sake.)

So this morning I got up and gave my mom her Chrisbirthmas gift: a hand-me-down iPad.

More importantly, I’m hanging out on the couch with her helping to get it set up and teaching her how to use it! Right now she’s sitting next to me arranging her apps. In the long run… I’m kind of hoping that next time I’m in town, she’ll have barely touched her aging, sluggish laptop for anything but a few tasks. I don’t think she really needs more than the iPad can do, to be honest.

Raccoon tail: acquired.
Face paint: already hanging around the house.
Lab coat: acquired, modified to fit me better and have a slit up the back for the tail to poke out of.

Ears would be a nice touch but yeah, I think I’m as ready as I need to be for Dr. Procyon to make an appearance onstage at the COG’s twentieth anniversary show this week.

And speaking of the COG – WHY ARE NONE OF YOU BACKING PINKERTON’S KICKSTARTER.