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Morty Comix # 2355

Morty Comix # 2355 was tucked into the door of a deserted business for sale in Pe Ell, Washington.

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Rapids on the Chehalis River

Rainbow Falls State Park

Favorite Movie Quotes: Richard III (1955)

"Conscience is a word that cowards use."

Phone photo 1491

Rapids in Chehalis River

Rainbow Falls State Park

Morty Comix # 2354

While waiting for breakfast in a cafe in the misspelled town of Artic, Washington, I perused through an atlas they had on hand for customers and used Morty Comix # 2354 as a bookmark, and, er, forgot that I left it there.

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Rainbow Falls State Park, Washington

Favorite Movie Quotes: The Road Warrior

"If you had a contract, it was with him. And it died with him."

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Preacher's Slough

Grays Harbor County, Washington

Don't Let This Guy Influence Your Vote

A wild cartoon drawing from the cover of a Bellevue, Washington "magazette"

The Reflector, March 1, 1918

Phone photo 1488

Favorite Movie Quotes: Rio Bravo

"You want that gun, pick it up. I wish you would"

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Favorite Movie Quotes: Repo Man

"I don't want no Commies in my car! No Christians either!"

[Reviewed in Cheaper by the Dozen 29]

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Favorite Movie Quotes: Regarding Henry

"Don't listen to nobody trying to tell you who you are."

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Morty Comix # 2353

 

So I had to rummage through one of my several junk drawers, and finally found the hole-punch tool. Now how often does anyone find an occasion to use one of these?

And here we see the hole-punch tool doing what it does best, punching a hole. In this case it happens to be in Morty Comix # 2353. Why am I doing this?

Here's why. I have a big helium balloon shaped like a ladybug. The store even pumped extra helium into this thing when I purchased it.

So I tied the Morty Comix to the end of the ribbon dangling from the string on the balloon, using the hole I punched with the seldom used hole-punch tool.

From my front yard the wind was strong, heading west from the Pacific Ocean (about an hour away while driving).

And so I released this Morty Comix to the Heavens and watched it for about five minutes before it actually entered the cloud layer. What amazed me was that even though the wind was strong at ground level, the balloon basically went slightly west but vanished in the clouds still over McCleary city limits. See if you can spot it in these subsequent phone photos. I was able to observe it until it vanished into a cloud.

This is one Morty Comix that should be a real collector's item! Well, that is, if anyone out there is nuts enough to try to collect these babies.

This is the second issue of Morty Comix I have sent out on a balloon. Back in my last house here in McCleary I launched one probably in the 1980s. It was during Bear Festival time. I suppose I could look up the number but I lack the energy.

As I recall that particular Morty Comix was an index card folded in half with four images drawn into it and the card stock weight made lift off rather iffy. And instead of being herded east, as the winds here usually do, that Morty Comix barely cleared a giant evergreen and floated magically to the west-- toward Elma.(7 miles away)

Of course back then when I launched the first Morty Comix, in 1983, there was no such thing as Internet or scanning. And I kept no record of the image.

Of all the places that have been Mortyfied since I have started this new phase, only one has responded.

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Tumwater, Washington

Favorite Movie Quotes: Rat Race

"They're always pissed, Honey. They're Nazis. It's like it's their job." 

[Reviewed in Cheaper by the Dozen 51]

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Tumwater, Washington

Favorite Movie Quotes: Raising Arizona

"OK, then."

[Reviewed in Cheaper by the Dozen 30]

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Tumwater, Washington

Morty Comix # 2352

Morty Comix # 2352 was deposited in a gasoline pump information sleeve

Olympia, Washington

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Mortymail 5/9/12

OK, I admit I have become a terrible correspondent to those of you who contact me via USPS. And I have been for a number of years. Burnout is liberating yet guilt-inducing.

Anyway. It is not my intention to make this a regular feature of Morty the Blog, but I thought I would report on some of the stuff I get in the mail before I send it off the to the Washington State University comix collection. In no way is this making up for Richard Krauss basically suspending Midnight Fiction, and I am not reviewing. If you are looking for a networking place, send your comix to Rick Bradford at Poopsheet.

I let my mail pile up quite a bit before I even look at it. Then I get out the jack-knife, slice those babies open after they have collected dust for a week or more, and mostly pay bills while some old movie is in the VCR. Yes, you heard me, I said VCR. Occasionally some comix stuff slips in there.

Here's what arrived this week:

Kel Crum sent me his latest, Scribbles. I'd like to know how he found legal sized paper to print this work in the classic enlarged digest size which I loved. I finally got to meet Kel at SPACE last year and admired his performance skills during the comix reading show.

Bruce Chrislip sent me a big packet of material. Included were copies of a couple jams from SPACE 2011. I found his reprint (20 years later) of Thurber of Ohio to be especially wonderful. Before Bruce and I left SPACE in Columbus last year to head for Cincinnati, we visited the Thurber House. I really enjoyed visiting the home of one great Ohio cartoonist while accompanied by another great Ohio cartoonist.

I hope one day Bruce and Joan Chrislip return to Washington State.

And finally, our old Newave comrade, Gary Fields, sent this great version of Morty the Dog! 

I love it!

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The cherry blossom petals fall like pink snowflakes

When the wind picks up the neighborhood becomes a pink snowglobe thanks to my tree and a couple others in the nearby area

Favorite Movie Quotes: Quo Vadis

"It is not enough to live well. One must die well."