GaimanMania once again hits the Philippines!

Neil Gaiman of American Gods, Stardust and Sandman fame dropped by the Philippines for a speaking engagement at the recently concluded AdCongress and as an honorable guest at the Philippine Graphic/Fiction Awards. (For the uninitiated, Neil is a demigod in fantasy and “horror” fiction not unlike Tarantino’s status in indie film making)

But my real story goes like this…

Some two years ago, when Gaiman first visited the country for a book signing, and just the same time when Pang was pregnant with our second, we fell in line to have a couple of our comics signed (needless to say, I was a big fan).

Neil Gaiman

A lot of people turned up. A LOT. To give you an idea, the queue started at Fully Booked at the upper level of Gateway and spiraling all the way down to the 7-11 along Aurora Avenue. That’s where we started to line-up a good five hours before the signing started.

Yet it was all worth it, we decided that it would be cool to have the comic dedicated to Lukas Ezra (the name we would be giving our second son).

Neil Gaiman, a comic book, a marker and an infanticipating lady on her last trimester – the result – a masterpiece doodle for a yet to be born baby boy. Surreal!

Here’s the “doodle” two years after …

Neil Gaiman

And the three generations below …

Jakob and Lukas with their dad (center), and his dad (lower right).

Lolo Patricio would have been proud.

“I must confess, I have always wondered what lay beyond life, my dear.”
Yeah, everybody wonders. And sooner or later everybody gets to find out.”
from SANDMAN #31: “Three Septembers and a January”