As regular readers of my zine know, Celia Perez is one of my best friends and favorite zine writers. Therefore it shouldn't surprise you that hers is one of the rare zines I'm including in my reading log. Since I read so many zines for work, it's just not practical for me to review all of them here, so I just write up my very favorites, and I don't even get around to them half the time.
Anyway, this issue of I Dreamed I Was Assertive is one of those zines that make me wish I was a better writer. I'm kind of ashamed that my messy old zines were next to Celia's on our table at the NYC Zine Fest! Oops, I'm making this about me, so I'll get back to IDIWA…
The zine is handwritten with hand drawn illustrations and well chosen old-fashiony clip art (public domain, cuz Celia is a librarian, after all), and there are a few crayoned in bits, which is one of my favorite ziney touches. I loved the first piece where Celia looks with sympathy on what would appear to be an out of control mother cursing at her kids on the el train. So often zines are about calling out bad behavior, and frankly zine writers can be kind of superior about such things sometimes. But here we see another mother who understands bad days and expectations that don't always come true.
The next essay is a piece about her family and childhood. If you know Celia, you know that she's not always the most forthcoming person, except in her writing. The way orderly librarians flock to chaotic, difficult to catalog zines, I think a lot of private people embrace a controlled distribution print medium like this to explore and share parts of themselves that they wouldn't have an outlet for otherwise.
Probably the most affecting part of this issue though is her "Daybook" entries of what she does with her time while her spouse and three-year-old son are away visiting relatives. You might think that she'll be busting loose with all that single, childfree time, and she does have a good run at errands and stuff, but really I think she's kind of freaked when she finds herself with all that time to herself, which is something I can totally relate to. I always want a day off from work, and I'm more psyched for time alone than Eric would probably like me to be when he goes out of town, but when it comes down to it, I quickly get kind of bored. I don't do a million productive things or go out wilding with the girls; I mess around on Facebook, play WordsPlay, and watch romantic comedies. And the weirdest thing is that like Celia, I sometimes get scared alone in the apartment.
There are also lists, a brownie recipe, and book recommendations to round out the lovely 26-pager. I think I may have said too much about it and that this was really more of a letter to Celia, but I do hope you'll consider acquiring IDIWA for your personal or library zine collection. Send her a nice message and tell her who you are and why you want her zine. Or ask for her postal address and arrange a trade. This girl really likes mail!