^

this is my friend Rory Root. he passed away today. he was a friend to me and many, many others. he took us cartoonists under his wing, gave us encouragement, showed us his support.
when i felt no self confidence at all, rory pulled me aside and gave me rallying pep talks. he enthusiastically bought my books, insisted on carrying them at Comic Relief, saying they were worth it and that i was worth it.
he even asked me to paint him something. when i asked him what, he proclaimed, "the things i like are
outerspace and
cats!" i ended up painting him both.
and he bought me scotch! well, i did the same for him. we knew that cartoonist jams were more fun that way. i miss him a lot already.
***