6:45. WE arrive at Lee's comics in Mountain View. I've been thinking since I got home from school about Daniel Clowes, Daniel Clowes, and the smart things I'm going to say to not make me look like a moron. 'Hey.. I just wanted to say you're one of my favorite artists'... no.. 'you're a great artist'.. no.. he must get that all the time. Sounds like I'm worshipping him.. nono. I walk in and there's the panel of artists. I look through them, don't recognize him at first. I wait for my dad to get my sketchbook at office max and then take a closer look, stepping in line. And there he is. Daniel Clowes. The heavens sing and the earth quakes, my knees start knocking together. All conversations which ran through my head go blank and now I have to come up with new ones. I get closer and closer and Jaan Pehechaan Ho from Ghost World starts playing on the DVD in the screen above me. Jaan Pehechaan Ho above, Daniel Clowes below. Surreal! 'You live in Oakland, right?' 'So I was wondering... did you have a lot of say in what to pick for the Ghost World soundtrack?' I get closer and see his face again. The first thing that hits me is his eyes.. startling blue eyes. He has thinning, short grey hair but it doesn't look old on him... not at all. His face is very young, 30? 40? His eyes are so big! And I compare him to the little card I got from the Booksmith at Haight and Ashbury from the signing I couldn't go to... Looks uncannily like him, except the face is longer. His real head has a nice shape. I start smiling like a maniac at Jaan Pehechaan Ho, and it's a good thing too for in my haze I hadn't noticed a cute worker from the store climbing up onto the counter and taking a picture of the line, with a close up of me right smakc dab in the middle. I give him a weird look and he smiles at me momentarily. The line inches forward. The guy in the back of me asks to see the Booksmith card. I let him ogle for a bit, then take it safely back into my possession. Daniel Clowes laughs and smiles at the people 2 slots before me and talks to them for a long while. He gives everybody the same sketch... a little guy with a couple hairs on his head. and before I know it it's my turn. I step up and he says, "Hi. How are you?" "I'm good, how're you?" "Good."He smiles. I don't feel as nervous as I did. He uncaps the silver pen and signs my Spice poster. I hand him my ghost world book and card. I ask him, "So, are you going to be at the APE tomorrow?" "Yes, I am. I'm going to be there later, though. Like around 4." I scrunch up my nose. "Oh." He smiles. Oh, what a brilliant nice smile he has! I'm not nervous anymore... well, maybe just a little. "You're going to be there early? "Yeah..." "Ah." Another smile. "Must be a lot of driving." "Yeah. I don't know how I even got dragged over here." laughs. He's on my ghost world book now and I'm silent as I see him draw what I think is going to be the little dude with the couple of hairs. He asks me, "What's your name?" "Stephanie." "Stephanie with a 'ph?'" "Yes." "And an 'ie?'" "Yeah." "Ok, jsut making sure. You can never be too careful." And he writes in tat special writing that he has: To Stephanie. And maybe he sees me and knows exactly what to do because of his wonderful knowingness of the human nature or something, but instead of the little dude with the two hairs I am ecstatic as he draws Enid. I seriously freak out. Then I ask him to please sign the card, and he asks, "Where is this from?" "The signing at Haight and Ashbury? I didn't get to go to that one." "Ah, yes. Ok, sure." He signs it graciously "to stephanie" as well. I didn'texpect him to bother, so I am duly impressed... and kind of dissapointed in not being specific enough because I was going to give it to Kathy, but then I realize I can get him to do another one for me tomorrow and so I am comforted. "That's kind of a better likeness of you," I say, referring to the card, because the self portrait he supplied for the Spice poster is a funky little Billy Boy Genius comic thing. He chuckles and I feel happy. "So, maybe I'll see you tomorrow?" "Yes, thank you very much!" "Sure! Bye" "Goodbye" Still in my trance, I get signatures and sketches from the rest of the artists, and I talk to Serena a little because she looks a bit sad. She's being slightly neglected (there's a huge line for daniel clowes and not much of anybody for anyone else) and so I go over and say hello(though she looks much happier when I talk to her, and also that she now has abig slice of pizza) I ask her if she's going to be at the APE, even though I already know, and say that I really like Nightmares. She happily says, "Thank you!" and we talk a little about SLK or whoever, that girl from Singapore who draws the comics, and about all the presents she always brings for everyone. I say goodbye to her and get the rest to sign, and get evreyone else's signature and 3 sketches. Then we took off for dinner at Jaz's house but I don't care. OMIGOD! I GOT TO MEET DANIEL CLOWES! I am so taking my picture with him tomorrow. Omigod.