Monica Macquette, Petey Puzzle, and Amorph Family Foto

Monica Villarreal macquette from Paul Taylor and Patch TogetherThree things:

FIRST: I'm a big fan of Wapsi Square. I like the story, and I love Paul Taylor's artwork.

Paul has recently partnered with a firm called "Patch Together" to create figurines, and they've agreed to do a macquette of Monica Villarreal, the short-yet-heroically-proportioned protagonista from Wapsi Square. They just need 50 pre-orders to kick off the run.

If this is something you'd like, too, here's where you drop coin.

SECOND: Schlocker and jig-cutter extraordinaire Mark Smiley has created an authorized, one-of-a-kind 8"x10" jigsaw puzzle based on "Petey's Galactic Bath." This is hand-cut from 1/2" multi-ply hardwood, sanded oh-so-smooth on the back, with a laminate image on the front. If you want it signed, we can oblige. It's up on eBay right now. Mark and I are going sixty-forty on this -- he's the craftsman, I'm the hack with the big audience.

Petey's Galactic Bath one-of-a-kind jigsaw puzzle by Mark Smiley, authorized by Howard Tayler

THIRD: As part of the LTUE fundraising auction, Mark Smiley and I are offering a second one-of-a-kind jigsaw puzzle, this time featuring the "Amorph Family Photo." The auction is Saturday night, and yes, you must be present to participate.

Amorph Family Photo one-of-a-kind jigsaw puzzle by Mark Smiley, authorized by Howard Tayler

I expect that by the simple expedient of a smaller bidding crowd this one will go for maybe a quarter of the price of the one on eBay, but that's just me pulling numbers out of my [ahem] thin air. If you're local, looking for a bargain, and interested in supporting LTUE, we'll see you Saturday night.