Saturday, April 26, 2014

My First "Foldy": In Oregon

Foldy: one sheet of 8.5 in. x 11 in. paper folded up, resulting in a 5-page mini-comic
 I saw one of these in Portland, OR, at indie-press emporium Reading Frenzy and decided to make my own. 
This first one is a true-life episode from my trip. I also put in trillium, ferns, pine trees, and a Steller's Jay.

Unfolding the foldy is half the fun––like those paper fortune tellers I loved on the playground–– and that fun is lost here. So if you'd like a copy, email me, and I'll mail you one.


Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Reflection in a Chrome Eye

Me at the thrift store where I volunteer, reflected (distorted! my head isn't really elongated) in an insulated chrome server produced in the 1950s and -60s by the West Bend Co. 
Supposedly for hot foods or cold, but the penguins say cocktail ice to me.

Prices at the thrift store vary a lot, but with the Internet, you're unlikely to find a real steal these days: the staff researches unusual items online to get some sense of their worth; or, rather, of their going price. 
They still sell stuff pretty reasonably though. This bucket is $7, and I found it online for $18 to $45.

I hear at the store that prices for antiques are down, partly because you can find anything online, and partly, so I hear, younger people don't want to lug monster sideboards around or bother with fragile china. 
I bet these penguins will go fast though.

Sunday, April 20, 2014

Happy Easter!


March 26, 1937: A group of children and their dog playing an Easter game in Cardiff. The game involves trying to eat an Easter egg off a piece of string without using their hands. (Photo by Richards/Fox Photos/Getty Images)

Wednesday, April 16, 2014

Lynda Barry and... is that you, Spock?

On her Near-Sighted Monkey tumblr, Lynda Barry posts pictures of monsters for her cartooning students to draw, including the Gorn--here (scroll past the many other cool things, including illustrations of Flannery O'Connor's prayer to be turned from a cheese into a mystic). 
I haven't come across any other L.B. references to Star Trek otherwise.

But I just found this, from 1983 (from here: Young Lynda Barry):

I bet every kid who grew up watching TV in the 60s would recognize that 'JIM!' as Spock's warning call to the Captain.

And l'astronave means "rocket" (or star/space-ship), you know, so I like this doubletime.