Sergio and I drove down to San Diego this afternoon, stopping off in Solana Beach at one of my favorite places to eat Japanese cuisine. If you're ever passing through Solana Beach and crave something that's been dipped in tempura batter and fried into a work of art, you want the Samurai Restaurant. Take the Lomas Santa Fe exit from the 5. It's located just east of the freeway in a big shopping center.
Tonight was Preview Night at the convention which is supposed to be a "less crowded" opportunity for attendees (with full passes) to browse the hall. If tonight is what's going to pass for modest attendance, the packed days will just be piles of bodies — many of them in embarrassing costumes — stacked atop each other in endless rows. When people ask me why I'm hosting 14 panels at this thing, I'm starting to answer, "So I'll always have an unsquashed place to be," and it's starting to make sense to them.
Not much to report, mood-wise. I think I wound up chatting more about Karl Rove than I did about comics. Matter of fact, I think I saw Karl. He was walking past a Star Trek exhibit dressed in a Klingon suit. Not everyone can pull that off but on him, it looked good.
By the way: A few days ago here, I posted a photo of Stan Lee dressed as a letter carrier and I announced that poor Stan had been reduced from being the most powerful individual in comics to delivering mail. This prompted a surprising number of e-mails — about fifty, so far — from folks politely (and one, not so politely) informing me that, duh, that's a still from the Fantastic Four movie and Stan is just playing a role, that of postal servant Willie Lumpkin. I also received one complaint from a mail carrier saying, in effect, "What do you mean, it's a comedown?"
This evening as I wandered the convention floor, taking one last look at the carpeting before the aisles get so flooded we never see it again, three different people approached me to make sure I was kidding; that I really didn't think Stan is working as a mailman. I told them no, it was just a joke. I'm well aware that he's actually wearing one of those striped shirts and selling sneakers at a local Foot Locker. I'm going to see him tomorrow and I may see if he can get me a discount on some New Balance 580s. Great shoe.
In the morning: The games begin! Good night.