Window Plants 2020

Sweet potato, potato, black tomato.

With everybody thinking about growing at least some of their own food, I'm posting photos of my window green house.

If anything makes it, it goes outside in a couple plots. 

The peppers are doing surprisingly well. I think these are from seeds one of my readers sent me.

The sweet potato is the one I used to clip starter sprouts from. 

Sweet potatoes, avocado, and ?

No clue. Fan sent it?

The black tomatoes are the continuing generations of tomatoes I rescued from a drie-out plant in a tiny plot at the edge of a small Capitol Hill park.

The avocado won't get much of a life. It's being grown for the leaves, that will be dried and ground for a kind of filé powder. It's related to sassafras.

Next to it is a plant I have no idea about. Another sent in by a reader probably. I'll plant any old thing, labeled or not.

The wild tobacco is mixed with leaves from alder, mint, coltsfoot and raspberry leaves. I have chronic bronchitis. Medicinal smoke helps keep my lungs from tipping into pneumonia.

Sweet potato sprouts, wild tobacco.

The aloe is because we have a wood stove, and if you have one of those, you get burnt once in a while. Grabbing a leaf and squeezing the gel onto the burn sure helps.

It's not a lot of gardening. Most of that is masses of kale in the garden. We cook it in everything, for iron and calcium. Marinated overnight, it makes good salad.

It's about all I can grow up here without a real struggle. Slip point has a cold, dry, salty wind all summer, and is too wet the rest of the year.

Peppers

Hello, fellow brown thumbs in uncooperative environments, everywhere.

North American tobacco

A

Aloe

West window.

Clallam Bay Drink and Draw

(Next Clallam Bay Drink and Draw is Sunday, July 21, 7pm to 9ish, at the Clallam Bay Inn Upper Room)

At Raincon, it was suggested we start holding Drink and Draws - the comics industry traditional meetings where we - well - drink and draw.

I'm the only one showed up for this first one, but the bar patrons were very supportive and interested. They were playing good, bluesy music on the big modern electronic thing that was too techy to be called a juke box. But I'll call it a juke box for want of a better name.

I had a pounder of the beautiful Pacific Pineapple cider, and finished this page.

Will putting up announcements on reader boards, and community announcements in local papers, every month.

Since I was the first attendee, I get to say when and where.

Every third Sunday of each month, 7:00 pm to 9ish, at the Clallam Bay Inn. No fee - just chip in for beer or whatever you want. If you want an APA - amateur press association minis - chuck in a few dollars for copies and layout.

If you're in the APA, I'm making sure an extra copy goes to the San Diego State University Love Library Special Collections. A place to store issues - and academic cred.

Clallam Bay Inn has also brought back waffle fries, by popular demand.

Tip your barkeep

Clallam Bay Comicon Now RainCon Afterparty

The Clallam Bay is now part of history - but it became the mother convention for:

RainCon 2 is coming! In June, 2019 - Bigger and better than ever. 

(It's been held since - it was fabulous! And plans are for an even better one next year).

The website is RainCon.com and you can join in at the Facebook page, Fans of RainCon. If you don't use Facebook, contact me at donnabarr01 at gmail dot com, and I'll hook you up with Evan Sveum, in Forks, who runs RainCon.

Unlike the Clallam Bay Comicon - which I never tried to promote as anything but an attempt to get what I love about comics onto the Olympic Peninsula - RainCon is a fully-expandable professional comics/entertainment convention. I've always promoted comicons as job fairs, and the locals are getting it. And yes, we can thank Twilight for turning around their ideas of what entertainment and city folk are all about. They want MORE.

The Clallam Bay Comicon will not continue. Those who usually come to Clallam Bay should know you are very welcome by this community, in all ways, and if you want to show up on the weekend after the 4th of July, to enjoy Fun Days, followed by an evening party and fireworks, please do come on up. I'll be at the beach and the newly-renovated Clallam Bay Inn. We could do a drink-and-draw!

Shadow Gone

On February 27, our last Bremerton cat, Shadow, passed away. He was old, and had long-standing

Shadow in the sun

kidney failure.

He passed without pain or struggle. 

Here are some photos of our boy.

Shadow once tried to save us from the Nesqually earthquake, jumping up and down and yelling, trying to get us out of bed. We didn't listen, but he tried anyway. No harm done. Brave kitten. And the only cat at the time who came back in to save us!

Shadow on the storage chest, when he could
still use the steps I'd made.

Asleep on the storage chest

Another angle on the storage chest

Social Security Pays For Jobs

Beautiful corner work

That's right. The moment the Social Security came in, we started to fix up a house that badly needed it. We started funding contractors all over the place. Windows and roof, too, because we very badly needed them replaced.

So - if you're a small business and you want to keep that money flowing - and keep health insurance off your back - support Social Security and the ACA.

This is our latest - and pretty much final contractor (cross fingers) project. A new back porch. The old one was rotting away under our feet. 

We went with Burdick Construction. Dan Burdick is our guy. And we were happy to pass on the tax money we'd paid over the decades to him. He's the best.

New back porch - small & nice

Hallowe'en Party and Haunted House, 2016

Witch and bones, actual Hallowe'en

Hallowe'en and the Haunted House, in Clallam Bay. A party on wheels.

Started down at the Three Sisters of Clallam, listening to "Therapy Session," a local deep country band. No Nashville, here. The band was a mix of Viking/Kitten costumes. No Led Zeppelin, but good tunes.

Zombie clown and John Lennon

The Sisters and their family wore a clown theme. My formal zombie clown outfit fit right in.

As usual, there was a great potluck. It's all about food and music up here.

And then - the Haunted House! Put on by Hessmart, the little store-deli-coffee shop-liquor store. In the empty space next to their store. Yes, it's the Haunted Strip Mall.

Hallowe'en Feast

Me and John Lennon went together first, to test it out. And came back with tales of getting practically the piss scared out of us. The halls were long and frightening, twisting on forever, and peopled by figures who knew how to fake and follow. I was screaming and giggling, John engaging.

We ran back to the party to encourage/recruit/entrap other victims!

Then Dressy Dog - who had never been to a haunted house in her life, and was terribly afraid to - teamed up with other partiers Queen of Hearts and MaskMan, with Zombie Clown holding her hand, and went back.

Dressy Dog did great! She got scared silly, and said she felt happy when she was most scared. She was a very brave little dog! I'm using their costume names, of course.

Hallowe'en Home

And then John Lennon, who'd waited outside, scared us all again.

We headed back to the party, and more music and food. Favorite dish: Pink Lady. Basically, strawberries and Cool Whip, whipped up together. 

What fun! The Girls put on a great show every year.

And I wish the guy who played John Lennon would just stay in character all year. 

2016 Clallam Bay Comicon

2016 Souvenir Sticker/Badge

July 9-10: During and after Clallam Bay/Sekiu Fun Days 10:00 am - 5 pm both Saturday and Sunday. 

EVERYONE WELCOME. If it's pretty or they can eat it, bring it.

ADMISSION for public: free. 

Facebook Events Link HERE. Use to organize events and exchange information.

DEALER TABLES:  $25 (27.00 through Paypal). Contact at: donnabarr01 at gmail dot com.

PANELS AND EVENTS

Dealer and panelist contracts: THIS PAGE. Payment cancellation deadline is May 1, 2016. You are expected to know your professional and licensing obligations for food sales or use of fire. Parents, please note your obligations. Panels held at front of the hall in round-table format. Participants will clean and straighten hall after show closes Sunday; keep the Lion's club happy.

Special Guest Leanne Franson 

EXHIBITORS at the convention for 2016:

1: Donna Barr's A Fine Line Press AND Clallam Bay Comicon Central.

2. Special Guest Leanne Franson.

3. Page Birmingham

4. Roberta Gregory. The classic Northwest artist will be here!

The newly renovated building - nice job, Lions!

WHERE:

Clallam Bay/Seiku Lion's Club

90 Bogachiel Street

Clallam Bay, Olympic Peninsula, Washington State, United States 

AWARDS: Your fans are your award. We don't get to say.

Special guests: all we can offer you is a deductible beach vacation, at the kind of old-fashioned con where the author/fan/friend were - and are here - the first priority.

OFFICIAL CONVENTION B&B: Winter-Summer Inn Bed and Breakfast 360 963 2264 The 3 lower rooms are being held for the convention. The deadline is February 11. Tell Owner Sandy Tsiang you are with the comicon, or you may be turned away. The upper suite is available to anybody, and there is no deadline on reserving it.

OTHER ACCOMADATIONS. 

FOOD AROUND TOWN

COMICON EATS: Dealers and panelists: we have a kitchen, with stove and refrigerator. You're welcome to use them. Keep it clean. Potlucks welcome.

HOW TO GET HERE: Airline: Kenmore Air Airporter: Olympic Bus Lines from Seattle. 

Once in Port Angeles: take the Forks bus to the the Clallam Bay connection at Sappho; Bus details at Clallam Transit. 

From Seattle: Ferries, drive to Port Angeles, then either highway 101 (113-112) or 112 to Clallam Bay. 

Carpooling: organize on the Facebook page.

BUSSES IN-COUNTY:  Schedules, etc.

WI-FI is 24/7 at the library, right around the corner, also at various businesses and the Visitors' Center.

FACILITY CARE: No tape of any sort on the wall. Respect the Lion's Club's wall displays. We all chip in to clean up at the end of the show. It don't take long.

LEGAL NOTES: Donna Barr is the ONLY Comicon staff. No one else has any access to official comicon decisions.

Parents and/or guardians are legally 100% responsible for their children and/or wards. Everyone else is legally 0% responsible for those same people.

For the archives:

The 2013 Comicon Report

The 2014 Comicon Report.

The 2015 Comicon Report

2015 Clallam Bay Comicon

Stickers will again be available. Only a dollar -

Dealers and Panel participants get one for free.

EVERYONE WELCOME. If you make or enjoy any sort of books - including comics - movies, music, poetry, cosplay, Steampunk, gallery art, jewelry, paint cars, bake pies, sing, do stand-up, sculpture, hip-hop, light shows, make frybread, whatever - bring it. Everybody welcome for the 10:00 am Saturday parade starting from the Weel Road Deli (Shell parking lot). 

Note: "We" = Donna Barr. Please everybody hit the bottom of this page for the - ahem - contractual agreements. No way we're mailing out stupid paper contracts for everybody.

First, con reports:

The 2013 Comicon Report

The 2014 Comicon Report

Former year Facebook pages: Construct search as: (Year) Clallam Bay Comicon. IE: 2013 Clallam Bay Comicon, etc.

Now - the 2015 information: 

OFFICIAL 2015 Charity: Western Wildlife Outreach. 

PROFESSIONAL GUESTS link for 2015

FACEBOOK LINK (If you want to keep up with ongoing discussions, ask questions, organize a sales rep or living space or panels, yada yada).

July 11-12: During and after Clallam Bay/Sekiu Fun Days 10:00 am - 5 pm Both Saturday and Sunday. 

ADMISSION for public: free. "We don't need no stinkin' badges." You're all special guests to us. And don't have to prove you're pros or amateurs.

BOOTH FEES: $25 ($27.00 Paypal).  CONTACT for payment instructions. You're just renting space, so share if you want. Shipping Over Canadian Border: Shipit2PA 

EXHIBITORS at the convention for 2015:

1: Donna Barr's A Fine Line Press AND Clallam Bay Comicon Central.

(Table 2 in 2016: Page Birmingham is unable to attend, but her payment will be moved forward for next year.)

2. Roberta Gregory - don't miss the Cat Toons books! Sharing her table will be Magic Realism Writer Bruce Taylor, with his books.

3. Charcoal Brown - Illustrator of "Pirates Dream of Me." Writer and illustrator of "Picnicker." 

4. Crime and the Forces of Evil - Swag Table for the Band.

5. Linda Medley, author of "Castle Waiting."

The newly renovated building - nice job, Lions!

WHERE:

Clallam Bay/Seiku Lion's Club

90 Bogachiel Street

Clallam Bay, Olympic Peninsula, Washington State, United States (Take Highway 112 through Clallam Bay. After the hard left, look for liqour store on the right; Bogachiel Street is the next left). Hall, table space, toilet, kitchen, outside lawn, parking.

I am NOT renting the attached fire hall. If YOU want to for events, studios, or Evil Lair, contact me for Lion's Club hookups. DEADLINE for contacting me for all building, etc: February 11, 2015. GAMES: You want games? Find a Gamesmaster and contact us to be put in the Panel schedule. Bring a large roll of plastic sheeting.

MINIONS: If you want to do something at the show, go ahead. Our official movie is "Despicable Me," My official title is "Gru," and if you get yourself hurt or arrested, we'll just laugh and point.

PANELS and EVENTS Link First come, first gets to have their say!

GUESTS: We have no badge fees to deduct, and the tables are cheap, and in our eyes, everybody is special but equal. We're so "ridiculously fun" - and, as we grow, profitable - that everybody's going to show up anyway, just to say they did. Cheap darn housing, too.

AWARDS: Who are we to judge? If your fans love you and buy stuff, you win. If they don't, start marketing your ass better. Watch and learn.

ACCOMADATIONS AND HOUSING OFFICIAL CONVENTION HOTEL: Winter-Summer Inn Bed and Breakfast 360 963 2264 Sold Out - BUT - We don't have a "party floor." Torsten Adair has taken the suite, and is looking for shares - at $30 a night! Contact him on our Facebook page (above), or contact me to help with connections. Large suite, central fire dome, kitchen, seven beds. 

Andre's Court Motel: nice rooms, local. Limited space. 

Sam's RV Resort has camping, $15 a night. Includes laundromat, near upper shopping area; Phone: 360 963 2402 
MORE places. But you'll need a car for most of them.
And More Places!

FOOD AROUND TOWN

COMICON EATS: We have a NICE kitchen available, so if you want to bring and sell food, take care of your own licensing or whatever. Or, if you're a participant, and just want to cook - we have a 'fridge and ovens and coffee pots. Potlucks and Sharesies welcome.

HOW TO GET HERE: Take a flight to Port Angeles on Kenmore Air, then take the Forks bus to the the Clallam Bay connection at Sappho; Bus details at Clallam Transit. Or take Olympic Bus Lines from Seattle. Best drive from Seattle: come in on 101, go out on 112 for all the views and fun. Coming from Portland, or other points south? Take the WEST side of the Olympic Peninsula, Highway 101, up through Forks; recommended to Twilight fans. Note: some folks may be planning a bus rock road trip, or a caravan. Go to the Facebook Page to start contacting and planning.

BUSSES IN-COUNTY: $3.00 passes for all-day, hop-on, hop-off service in Clallam County. Lots of routes and scheduling. Schedules, etc.

WI-FI is 24/7 at the library, right around the corner, also at various businesses and the Visitors' Center.

FIRE DISPLAYS: If you want to play Burning Man, contact the District Five Fire Department

LAST-MINUTE PRINTING: Already on the peninsula and forgot something? Need a large print order at the last minute? Olympic Printers are the guys.

CHILDREN: watch your own. Parents, please see * below. 

TRASH: Container in Lion's Club kitchen. SEPARATE THE CANS.

FACILITY CARE: No tape of any sort on the wall. Respect the Lion's Club's wall displays. We all chip in to clean up at the end of the show. It don't take long.

Don't set yourself on fire.

*On-Line Contract: If you attend as a dealer or performer, we'll assume you've read this page's information, and will use it to make your life easier - and it CAN change, up to the start of the show, and possibly afterwards, if we need to. No whining if you don't know the schedule; if we get no notification, we'll just replace you on the spot. Life goes on. Parents, please note your obligations as breeding units.

Year of the Horse

The Chinese Man leads the way

This year's film of the Clallam Bay Dragon Dance is too much like last year's. So I'm just posting a couple photos. 

The "Chinese Man" is very odd. Sue Heiny, of the Three Sisters Clallam Art Gallery, wore it last year. She talked a young man into doing it this year. 

It's the usual silliness, and if it hadn't been for Sarah Grafstrom, who posted her Golden Dragon head on Facebook Friday, I wouldn't have gotten myself together in time to make this quick cardboard horse head. 

Whineeee!

And bake up some quick 5-Spice Peanut sugar cookies. Yes, I cook with whatever I have in the cupboard. 

Thu, our favorite Vietnamese hairdresser, was in Vietnam this year, so she didn't provide her usual fabulous Vietnamese dishes, but the feast was pretty great.

Music afterwards, with some hard-driving guitar work, and the funniest version of one of the Dylan songs I ever heard (Oh, I can't think of the name). Sarah was, "This song is too long!" so they tempo'd it up to about five times as fast, with a drum-set driving behind them. I laughed so hard.

I can count with my hoof, too.

Met a very nice young man who was also a fan of Jeff Bridges and loved the animated movie, "Surf's Up."  You know how you see so many old farts (like me) hanging only with their own age? I dunno. I love all the new stuff, and this generation of kids and young men and women are just too cool. And fearless and funny. 

See? That brain damage that ruined my memory came in handy; I live in the moment. It's more fun! 

Um... Sarah threatened to choreograph a dance routine with me for the next party. I can't sing or play a musical instrument - and the only one I could hear, the highland war pipes, put blisters on my tongue as I tried to blow up the bag - but Sarah and I are the funniest dancers in town. Those of you who saw me dancing at conventions KNOW that.

Be afraid.

Clallam Bay Comicon Hoodie

Now we have a fancy new logo AND a hoodie

Our mascot's name is "SeeSee," and our motto is, "Who let you out of Clallam Bay?"

Carol Schultz, our local realtor, originated the motto when she saw me shopping in Forks and blurted it out at me.  It's what locals say when they see some of the more entertaining neighbors leaving the Clallam Bay Correctional Facility.

Mini Class Repeats Due To Snow - and Stuff

Because of the Blizzard of January (a whole six inches) and other - um - stuff, the mini class being put on in preparation for the Comicon is being repeated.  And we'll have an event (oh noes!).  Here are the flyers for the Comicon and - wait for it - the Hoodie Contest:

The cure for too much holiday party

Sooner or later on a holiday, you have to get out of the house.

Everybody, including the cats, is turkey up to HERE.

2012 Clallam Bay Comicon

When: Friday, July 13 to Sunday, July 15, 2012
Time: until 4:00 pm Friday, and around 11:am to 4:00 pm Saturday and Sunday
Where: My yard in Clallam Bay - 610 Frontier Street
During this: http://www.clallambaysekiufundays.com/ or until I get tired of it.

AUTHORS of any age who bring their own drawn or prose books, miniis, sketches, art (comics or writing) or any form of cartoons for sale or display get in FREE.

DEALERS who are selling any books or art but those they have created and own the copyright on pay $5.00, irregardless of age.  

Admission for public: free.

DEFINITION OF DRAWN BOOKS ("comics" or "graphic novels"): ANY FORM IN WHICH ART AND WRITING BALANCE ONE ANOTHER. Go nuts. This is your chance to draw and write about life in Neah Bay (for example).  Yes, you can use your nutty family as characters.

Provided: Big gazebo in my front yard on the grass.

NOT provided: Tables, food, water or a restroom (there's one downtown in the county park). If you just want to bring a fancy rug and pretend you're at a Souk, that's fine. I are a author, not a volunteer. I'm not advertising this, except here (and maybe on the post office wall), so if you want an audience, Facebook this.

Conditions: This is by a windy beach, so bring weights and a hoodie. If you want to swim, you'd better bring a wetsuit. There's an undertow. Local surfing, so you might want to bring your board (warning; waves onto a reef among logs. This is only for crazy people, and we don't have a lifeguard, so play Surfer Dude at your own risk. We shall just point and laugh). Bring binoculars to watch our eagle families, seals, harlequin ducks - sometimes an elephant seal pup (do not approach wildlife, thank you).

Housing: http://www.sekiu.com/  BOOK EARLY.  The towns fill up in the summer.

Spoiler alert: The Mean Stuff: I'm just sayin'.

Babysitting (including letting kids look at books you haven't looked at and then bitching about it): $80.00 an hour. You will be billed.

Trash: TAKE IT WITH YOU. Or don't get invited back. There will be a list.

Table monitoring: This is your job. Either cover the space, or take your stuff with you, or get somebody else to watch it. Not me.