Sat Sep 8, 2007 — by Martha Thomases

MARTHA THOMASES: Anticipation

Brilliant Disguise #21

Tomorrow is the Big Day. After months of blogging, after weeks of teasing on the podcasts, we’re going to announce what’s next here at ComicMix at the Baltimore Comic-Con. If you aren’t able to be in Baltimore with us, I’m sure Editor-in-Chief Mike Gold will make sure you know as soon as everybody else. He’s good about sharing that way.

As I write this, the Big Day is not tomorrow. It’s the day after the day after the day after tomorrow. This makes me very happy. I have nearly 90 hours to look forward to our panel.

Anything can happen.

When I was a child, I was a huge fan of The Mickey Mouse Club – the real one, with Darla, Annette, Karen and Cubby, not the fake one with Justin, Britney and Christina. Every day of the week was something special. Monday was Fun with Music; Tuesday was Guest Star Day; Thursday was Circus Day and Friday was Talent Round Up. The best was Wednesday because that was Anything Can Happen Day. That’s because, well, anything could happen.

Often, I like the anticipation as much as or more than I like the event I was anticipating. For example, I spend most of March waiting for the warmth of summer, and then I hate summer in the city. Spring is really the best, with the buds on the trees promising flowers and shade.

I’ve been happily with the same man for nearly 30 years, but sometimes I miss courting, when we didn’t yet know how the other would taste or smell or speak.

Comics? When I was the kid watching Mouseketeers, I couldn’t wait until Sunday, when I got to pick out my weekly comic book. Then, when it was Sunday, I would pick up each one, examining the covers, looking for clues (like a giant gorilla) that would tip me off that this was the best story ever.

Trust me, this is not one of those times when the anticipation is the best part. This is better.

You don’t believe me. You think I’m a publicist, and therefore I’ll say anything to get your attention. I once worked for a man who described a the job like this: a pessimist says, “The glass is half empty;” an optimist says, “The glass is half full.” A publicist says, “Oh my god! It’s a flood!” A funny story, but it’s not the way I see my job. I’ll tell you the story about where the glass came from, what happened to the water, and which of you might someday be thirsty.

So go about your Saturday, and enjoy yourself. If you find yourself in Baltimore, come by the ComicMix booth and say “Hi.” You can talk to some of the talented writers, artists, and crew, maybe get some clues about tomorrow’s big story. If you bring your own yarn and needles, I’ll show you how to knit.

If you aren’t in Baltimore, enjoy the summer weekend. And if you find yourself in traffic, or there’s a seventh-inning stretch, you can think about tomorrow and smile.

It’s worth it.

Martha Thomases is ComicMix's empiress of all things media, a.k.a. Martha the Merciless.

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