Thursday, May 2, 2013

Found Object in Elma Leads to a Bizarre Case


"I'm a creepy stalker! morelater.com/creep"

"His name is Rick or Eric. His phone number is 360-970-3081. He's been stalking a blind woman since September. He got her number by following her around and listening to her. She called the cops, but they wouldn't do anything. Know any more about him? Call 425-522-3748."

So I'm minding my own business like a Norm, walking down the gritty sidewalks of Elma, Washington, when I spy this little (1.5 x 2.5 inch) card on the ground.

For those of you who enjoy a little detective work like I do, be prepared to enter a bizarre case here when you dig a bit. Naturally it involves my alma mater, The Evergroove State College!

There are two sides to everything, and I am making no conclusion here, merely reporting.

As a Morty Comix distributor I am curious how many of these little cards were printed and how they were scattered. And why did I find one on the sidewalks of Elma?

I'll add this to the next box I'll be sending to the WSU Comix Collection. It qualifies as a micro-zine-- an independent voice using nontraditional print channels to be heard.








Phone photo 2445

Grays Harbor, seen from Hoquiam

Mysterious Events

Steve's has some new decor, two framed photos of the comedian Buddy Hackett.




Then something mysterious happened. Cats are not responsible for this, all four were outside at the time.



What could these events mean?


Morty Comix # 2564







Morty Comix # 2564 was left at a place I've been before, as documented in Phone Photo 752. This restaurant in Kalama, Washington has the kind of booth seats where the cushion sits on top of a hollow box. If you contort yourself just right, you can drop off something, say, a Morty Comix, into the hollow area under the booth seat where it probably won't be found for years.

This joint had a couple playing cards (Ace of Diamonds, Ace of Hearts) on the ceiling with names and Oct./Nov. 2011 dates on them. The waitress told me they were there all this time as a residue of some act given by a magician, who had made a whole bunch of cards mysteriously stick to the ceiling.

By the way, this is a great place to stop if you are on I-5 and hungry between Oly and Portland.

Life in Bezango!

 

Phone photo 2444

Humptulips River

Postcard - Seattle, Washington

"Seattle skyline with Space Needle and Mt. Rainier in the background."

This one is dated 1978.

Phone photo 2443

Humptulips River

Favorite Movie Quotes: Runaway Jury

"It's Monday, Buddy. Don't be a Tuesday."

Wednesday, May 1, 2013

Phone photo 2442

Tsunami warning station, Ocean Shores, Washington

Cannibalism at Jamestown

I know many of my American pioneer ancestors had been guilty of some pretty outrageous behaviors, but this one is new to me. In today's news:

"Scientists said Wednesday that they have found the first solid archaeological evidence that some of the earliest American colonists at Jamestown, Va., survived harsh conditions by turning to cannibalism."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/01/cannibalism-jamestown-archaeological-evidence_n_3193947.html

Apparently this took place during the 1609-1610 "Starving Time," but could have extended up to 1625. I had a number of ancestors at Jamestown and I know at least one of them was there in 1610 and several others arrived within the following decade.

When I toured Jamestown in 1973 (and kept the card you see here) we knew the settlers had it rough, but Jeeeeez.

Phone photo 2441

This tsunami warning station looks like something Rube Goldberg would've invented

Ocean Shores, Washington

Happy May Day!


Phone photo 2440

Ocean Shores, Washington

Morty Comix # 2563





Morty Comix # 2563 was pinned up on a community bulletin board at the parking garage entrance to a grocery store in downtown Portland, Oregon.

Phone photo 2439

Migratory shorebirds (Godwits?) find a spot between the clamdiggers

Ocean Shores, Washington

Postcard - Seattle, Washington

"Seattle, Washington at sunset, with the 600 ft. high Space Needle in the foreground, the Kingdome and the Pacific Science Center Arches on the right, and Mt. Rainier in the background."

Taken sometime between 1976-1980. That little pointy-topped building near the center of the postcard is the Smith Tower. When I was a kid that was the tallest building on the Seattle skyline.

Phone photo 2438

Ocean Shores, Washington

Favorite Movie Quotes: Rooster Cogburn

"I am retired, reeelieved, and reeeejoycin'!"

Phone photo 2437

Clamdiggerama

Ocean Shores, Washington

Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Buddy Hackett Fever

For some reason I went into kind of a strange delirium and found myself decorating the house with pictures of Buddy Hackett. This fever has passed, but now what do I do with all these Buddy portraits?


 Buddy on the knick-knack shelf


 Buddy by the woodstove


 Buddy between doors


 Buddy on a bookshelf


Buddy in the studio

Phone photo 2436

Clamdigging holes

Ocean Shores, Washington

The Interstate Bridge Ghost





When I was down in Vancouver, Washington yesterday I took the opportunity to pay a visit to the  gravesite of former Vancouver Mayor G.R. Percival, thought by many to be the identity of the frequently seen Interstate Bridge Ghost.

The details of Mayor Percival's mysterious demise can be found on a post in Between the Lines.

Percival's headstone was nearly entirely covered with matted grass. After I cleared some of it off I was surprised to see his name was given as "Grove R. Percival." Most of the other sources give his first name as "Grover," the cemetery manager even wrote "Grover" on the location map he gave me. In fact, somewhere I found his full name as "Grover Reed Percival."

Yet another mystery to add to the list about this individual.

Phone photo 2435

Clamdiggers at Ocean Shores, Washington