Bad Seattle! BAAAAD!

Men are so lazy....

Leaf blowers. Lawn mowers. Edgers. Rowr rowr rowr rowr, hour after hour, no matter where we go, while their clueless macho users bitch and whine about how expensive fossil fuels are (wah wah wah).

There's ONE thing the Ghosts (the future Dead People and their dead DNA) hate more than anything in the whole world: being made fun of. You know how girls get the hit with slut-shaming? Well, this is slug-shaming.

In Seattle, in a nice little apartment-complex area, the entire place was assaulted with the sounds of these asshat things.

First of all, thanks to Roberta Gregory for this site on the health hazards of leaf blowers.

So here's the pretty picture and suggestion for going after the noise pollution. Anybody looked into all these shootings and asked if enough noise drove anybody over the edge? We know it does in the rest of the animal kingdom. And we're no different.

Get a fucking broom - STUPID.

And don't bitch about not having an edger. If I can sit on the edges of my yard for a few hours in late August, and edge everything by just ripping, so can you, Mr. Thinks-He's-So-Tough (oh, and can we SAY passive-aggressive with your little machine, you dorkwad?). And then, since you used an electric or push mower, you can use the CLEAN grass hay for your own animals, chickens - or even offer it at farmer's markets for sale!

That's right. Instead of losing money on your yard, you'll be making it.

The Ghosts are also the Greeds. They cannot resist cash. Here's how they can get some. And shut the fuck up.

(And my fellow rural types - yeah, I was raised hick - that don't let you off the hook. Plenty of rural people in cities, now, and even if we've moved back we're calling our own on the arrogance, stupidity, pride in ignorance, cruelty, rank cowardice, narrow-minded industrial greed, short-sightedness, whining when you've been told That's Not A Toy! and fear of wildlife. It's 2013 - get with the program and grow up.)

For you Libertaripoops, Goethe said, "Control yourself or be controlled." New York went there before we did, with Noise Ordinances.

Hempfest and Me

Okay, so I don't do the EmJayJay (yes, I'm one of the 29% who have their own cutesy name for weed); I cough my brains out if I try. Or at least nothing but medibles, if legal and available (and please, coconut oil), for sleep and pain.

BUT I do want to hit Seattle Hempfest in 2014 for the first time in years and years and years, just as a party. See the picture? That's me with far too little Seattle of late, at C.C.Attle's on Capitol Hill. It's also why @RuPaulDragRace now follows my tweets.

And because I'm a Leo, we could use the August date to consolidate all our birthday parties! Heck, we could do everybody's birthday party - why not?

As usual, looking for a couch. I'll buy breakfast, or one of those Safeway Roast chickens for supper. Hey, I'm an artist. We're always broke. Well, no we're not - but properly managed, food and clothes and even shelter can be cheap - and why spend the Trying to Recreate the Olduvai money when  we can use for that next set of brushes or that art program? Priorities, people!

Hallowe'en in Seattle? Maybe?

Am seriously thinking of going to Seattle for Hallowe'en - haven't seen the Sisters in years, or BUMP ever, or a Big City during my favorite holiday for ages. Damnit, I'm due one. 

I'm WAS going to experiment with buses. But now I know I can do it - and I always save so much money on bulk items for food and the house that I end up making a profit, 'way over the gasoline. So I'll have a car at LEAST up to Bremerton, and then can do public transport and Car2go in Seattle. I can stay longer an visit with people if anybody wants me to.

I'll be driving in the 31st, and I have a room Hallowe'en night at the Green Tortoise Seattle hostel. 8-girl room; but I've lived in barracks, and am kinda looking forward to it.

SOOOO.... anybody got a couch? Anybody want comics or art? Or there other events you're part of I should be at? And - I CANNOT PROMISE. I'm just setting this up ahead of time, because snowing in on people at the last minutes is crap. We could do that when we were kids, but now we need some lead time. There are sick people, and schedules and even poking into a couch and staying most of the day out of the house when there's been no warning is hard on aging system. For everybody. I mean, I may be a hobo at heart, but that doesn't mean everybody else is (come to think of it, unless it's an emergency, I'm not real will about the sudden visit, either. Dan certainly isn't).

Whether or not I actually arrive depends on HEALTH. If all I can do is sit huddled by the woodstove watching "Arsenic and Old Lace" and handing out candy while wearing my sequin fedora (thank you, Maureen of Cartoonists Northwest), I might have to. But just in case.... I would really love to do Hallowe'en in Seattle.

Note: I did attend the party in Seattle - and another one. Will be posting soon!

Cartoonists and a Play Meeting

Grey Cat! Best snuggles ever.

Ah, fun in Seattle - and Renton! Went to the Cartoonists Northwest Mad Hatter Party, even scored a sparkly-banded fedora, which I shall probably be wearing at conventions.

Roo Butt!

Thank you, Noel Franklin and Roberta Gregory, for arranging to put  me up for the weekend. And Shawn Connor, Noel's boyfriend, who provided space in his grandparents' 1916 house on Phinney Ridge, and Bruce Taylor, who owns a lovely condo on Yesler Way.

And Grey Cat for cat snuggles all night. And Roo for keeping a tired stomach warm.

Noel is the accountant for the Desert Peach Musical concert revival. She and I and T. Brian Wagner, who is one of the original writers on the play, had a very productive meeting Monday, at CCAttle's on Capitol Hill, hashing out some details about accounting, funding, contracts, copyrights - you know, the usual nuts and bolts. Everybody seems pretty confident and happy that this thing is very possible, now.

Roberta Gregory and I ran around Seattle, of course - a must for when I'm in town! I wish I could come in more often - I had promised every month - but I'm afraid that, with travel, illness, recovery and catch-up, it's going to have to be once very quarter. But this site will always have details at the top of the page for when I'll be peeping out of our place on the beach.

Yori at Pike's Place Fish Market.

Of course, had to hit my homeland - the Pike's Place Market  - while I was there. Here are a few of the fun people I spoke to while there.

Mike's Peppourre, offering their new beer hot pepper sauce! 

While I was working as a vendor at the market in the '80's, I walked past Mike's Pepporri. I noticed, out of the corner of my eye, an older First Nations woman, wearing a basket hat, selling baskets, right in the outer doorway. 

"Huh," I thought. "Doesn't have to have a booth or a slab? Must be really grandfathered in." 

Jonny Hahn - on the piano in the rain.

Of course, nobody is allowed to just sit and sell at the market, especially a full display like that. It wasn't until later that I remembered that Chief Sealth's daughter originally sold baskets in the area - and that one never recognizes her at the time, and only realizes later. Oh....

Here's one of the street musicians in the market, name of Jonny Hahn. Any man who can drag a piano out every day, in the rain, AND be a leftie activist - hey, I'm putting money in the hat. And yes, I posted his information, so you can buy CD's. He's good!

Oh, it's worth it.

And thanks to Denny Eichhorn and Jane Rebelowski, for allowing me to leave Altima Thule in their driveway over the weekend. These travel plans get a bit complicated. I'm going to try to use the State transport systems more in the future. Organizing now for an Orca card (Washington State epurse card) and I've already got my Car2go card. 

Roberta and I were going to use a Car2go ofter the meeting, but she'd had a beer and I'd had a very nice gin Collins, and one doesn't drive a Car2go in that state, thank you. The next time we thought to use one, when properly sober, it was reserved. No matter. I have my card, we shall drive the tiny blue-and-white chariot yet!

Okay, except for updating my cell phone situation, I'm closer to getting back to drawing pages for Afterdead. 

And Jim, the cat we're teaching to walk on a leash, has decided to sleep in the chicken coop today, the big one, not the little tractor the hens are in. So I should check and see if he's over his nap, yet.

Will The Taliban Let Me Travel?

Me in Seattle, ECCC, Prism booth. OOH, I miss that town.

I need to go to Seattle November 19, 2013, to meet in one of the twelve - TWELVE - US offices to get my NEXUS travel card (those guys got SO abandoned - it takes 'em six months to do a background check. They must be using computers from 1993).

This is, of course, basically the Taliban allowing me to move outside the borders of a male-built country/boys' club on my own planet. Well, it is. Yes, I'm an old Trekkie - I think in PLANETS. The border patrol ever stops me and asks me where I'm from, I'm saying, "Earth."

Anyway, if anybody wants to see my friendly face for that date, let me know! We'll get together for SOMETHING. Me hunting Seattle real-estate, if nothing else. Because I feel my work out here is done - or other folks need to man up and take it on. Their turn.

2014 Clallam Bay Comicon Spaces

BOOTH FEES: $25 ($27.00 Paypal).  CONTACT for payment instructions.

Upper building, parking, lawn.

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).

Upper dealer's room

SPACE: Dealer's Room: main club building. Gaming and music: outside covered porch. Panels: outside covered porch. Parking: around Lion's Club, Old Fire Hall and Clinic parking lot. 

Outside porch: gaming, concert, panels, as needed.

PROVIDED: space, electricity, bathroom. Closet Wi-fi is 24/7 at the library, right around the corner.






SCHROEDINGER SPACE: IF you contact me before February 11, 2015, I can hook you up with the Lion's Club about securing and renovating more space in the old Fire Hall. BUT - you MUST contact me by that date. These guys don't have magic wands. And I'm not Maleficent.

Old Fire Hall; Shroedinger Space

2014 Clallam Bay Comicon Panels and Events

Email me to make changes or put in a panel or event. FIRST COME, FIRST SERVED. Make up your own stuff, find your own panelists. You're grown-ups. PANELS ARE ONE HOUR - unless you want to arm-wrestle one of the other panel moderators (email links included). 

Gaming All Weekend, with Marcus Evenstar. See details below at *

Saturday, July 12, 2014: OPTIONAL. Parade, fun, fireworks, parties. 

Sunday, July 13, 2014: First Day of 2014 Comicon:

9:00 am: Show opens. 

11:00 am-12 noon: Project Wonderful Breaks the Ice. "Authors/artists/all creative people: how to spread the word on your work on a budget." Moderator: Linden Cook. Details below at **

1:00-2:00 pm:Only A Zombie, Live! Donna Barr and Roberta Gregory write the next episode before you very eyes! Come watch two classic drawn book professionals write prose without plans or limits, demonstrating that Editing is for Afterwards. The Zombie Challenge: If you're a west end local, compete to add yourself as a character to this Clallam Bay Zombie novel.

2:00-3:00 pm: The Potential Panel (because we lost our moderator): Science vs. Superman, the Bible, and Other Imaginary Books How the Bill Nye debate SHOULD have gone. We need a moderator. Bring smoke and mirrors and your favorite imaginary books! Yes, it's the Sunday afternoon comedy panel. Moderator: Angela Bocage has had to cancel due to a family medical situation, so we need people! Many hugs and hopes to Angela and a family knee!

3:00-4:00 pm: Torsten Adair presents! The world premiere live reading of his comics script, "Battleground State"! What happens when superheroes Ultraman Red and Ultraman Blue both campaign for President in Florida?! Needed: two males, a soccer mom, and two kids. And someone to work the slideshow on the laptop. Torsten Adair, narrator and a surprise role.

4:00-5:00 pm: Kitting Out Cheap. Dara Korra'ti shows how to get started in music without breaking the bank. For serious musicians on a budget.

5:00 pm: Show closes for the day. Let's go party!

Monday, July 14, 2014: First Day of 2014 Comicon:

9:00 am: Show opens.

10:00-11:00 am: Bagpipe In Your Supersize Drink: Donna Barr shows everybody how to make bagpipe chanters out of drinking straws. She'll have some; bring more. 

11:00 am-12 noon:  How To Make Your Own Comicon: Donna Barr shares how she did it - and how she got paid to do it. Note to attendees: go the Clallam Bay Comicon link and you'll see all the details.

12:00 noon-1:00 pm: Are We A Music Festival yet? Two bands!! TWO! Crime and the Forces of Evil - and! - Leannan Sidhe. Details for the performers at **

5:00 pm: Show closes. Serious hall clean-up! That means you, buster. We do the Lion's Club hall proud!

Post-convention potential event: Pickup games. And a second hall cleanup - and if you don't help, the Munchkins will get you. The blue ones.

Notes on our participants: 

*From Marcus Evenstart, Gamesmaster: "Greetings from MIB 2404, gaming advocate! I'll be bringing a selection of games to this lovely event from my collection: Munchkin (several varieties), Ogre Designer's Edition (now with giant monsters), Girl Genius (card game from the web comic), Tokkaido (travelers in Edo Japan). There are more on the shelf (Roborally, Myth Fortunes, Discworld, XXXenophile, Arkham Horror, etc.) but I'd rather not haul those unless there's a request.

"Since we're arriving on Friday for the full weekend, I'll have time for pick-up games. If we can't find a venue in town, I'll be bringing table and chairs and we could play at our hotel or other well-lit, warm & dry location.

Be seeing you!"

**From Linden Cook, Project Wonderful: "Hi everyone! I'm Linden and I manage the customer service experience at Project Wonderful. And I'll be kicking off the Clallam Bay Comicon's panels! It's an intro to advertising your comic or writing online, both generally and in our auction.

"I've worked with PW since 2008 and helped over 6000 people over that period, including designing and running many campaigns first-hand with a wide variety of budgets. I envision this panel as starting with a quick overview, and then ideally we can move to a Q&A format to gear the main information to whatever those of you there need right now.

It's going to be a fun weekend, and I'm looking forward to meeting everyone!"

***Dara Korra'ti, a.k.a. Solarbird the Lightbringer, is a supervillain musician, systems disrupter, and general Part of the Problem who has triggered more than her fair share of IBM Urgent Service Bulletins. She also built and operates Supervillain Studios, where currently, she's wrapping up work on the _Free Court of Seattle_ soundtrack album, _Bone Walker_.

Leannan Sidhe is a fey musician with wandering gypsy feet, a shimmering soprano voice, and writes music that tends to the bittersweet.