Postcard - Seattle, Washington

"Seattle, Washington. The new King County Domed Stadium (home of the Seahawks) opens in 1976 and is the dominating structure in this birds eye view of the 'Queen City.' The stadium covers 9.1 acres -- 720 feet outside diameter -- 250 feet to top of dome -- will seat 60,000 for baseball, 65,000 for football and 80,000 for personality shows."

As it turned out, this structure became the King County Doomed Stadium.

Phone photo 2479

Charlie embraces his reluctant mentor, Buster

WARNING! HELL IS WAITING FOR YOU!

And they'll be NO BUTTER IN HELL!!

A newspaper ad from the early 1980s, during the rise of Ron the Con.

I love the "Christians Who Love You" counterbalance after a message of despair and fear.

Personally, I prefer Shakespeare: "Use every man after his desert, and who should ’scape whipping? Use them after your own honor and dignity. The less they deserve, the more merit is in your bounty. Take them in."

Phone photo 2478

Buster

Postcard - Seattle, Washington

"Lake Union, Seattle, Washington. Located in the heart of the city this lake provides recreation for boaters as well as a home for those who live in houseboats. Interstate Hiway 5 is in the center and in the background magnificent Mount Rainier."

1970s.

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Hettie

My Old Girl

Postcard - Seattle, Washington

"Seattle, Washington's Gasworks Park, on the north shore of Lake Union provides an attractive recreational setting. In the background, the downtown business district."

Late 1970s, most likely. Too bad the postcard didn't include the crazy looking industrial ruins of the park.

During Norwescon 20 in 1997 at SeaTac the amazing Brad Foster was a guest of honor and several cartoonists hijacked him and took him to this park. I wasn't part of that crew but I did join the subsequent comix lunch. We all compared what we had studied in college to the reality of what we were doing now. I believe I was the only one in the large group who was actually employed in my academic degree (MLS, i.e., librarianship).

Phone photo 2476

Oakville, Washington

Tragic Rice-A-Roni Mashup

It's him again, Steve Reed of "Weber Cooks" putting it "into the thing."

Once again, on the razor edge of bathos and pathos. We laugh, we sob.

Check out Keith Smenderson's original interpretation. Nice job.

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Oakville, Washington

Favorite Movie Quotes: Spellbound

"What is there for you to see? We both know that the mind of a woman in love is operating on the lowest level of the intellect."

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Oakville, Washington

Postcard - Seattle, Washington

"Looking south from the top of the Space Needle-- this is how Seattle looks in the twilight. 90 miles away but seemingly close-by stands majestic Mt. Rainier (14,408 ft.) glowing in the sunset like a strawberry ice cream cone. A beautiful and unforgettable sight from the Space Needle or from a plane."

Probably from the 1970s. This is one of the more unusual bits of postcard prose I have encountered. Rainier has been one of those awesome geographical features that never ceases to instill wonder into the hearts of us native Washingtonians, east and west. It is part of who we are. We love it, but the Mountain could erupt at any time, causing incredible widespread damage. Those of us who remember the eruption of Mt. St. Helens in 1980 know it can happen with relatively little warning.

Calling The Mountain a "strawberry ice cream cone" is deliciously bizarre.

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Oakville, Washington

Postcard - Seattle, Washington

"Seattle, Washington's downtown business district at night offers this beautiful view as seen from the top of the Space Needle."

Late 1970s. In that era catching the last bus out of downtown in the wee hours up the U District was always a trip in the Boomer sense of the word, generating lots of material for any cartoonist.

Phone photo 2472

Oakville, Washington

Morty Comix # 2569

Morty Comix # 2569 was slipped behind a poster in front of the Danger Room, Olympia, Washington.

Phone photo 2471

"World's Largest Egg"

Winlock, Washington

Favorite Movie Quotes: Spartacus

"When the blazing sun hangs low in the western sky,
when the wind dies away on the mountain,
when the song of the meadowlark turns still,
when the field locust clicks no more in the field,
and the sea foam sleeps like a maiden at rest,
and twilight touches the shape of the wandering earth,
I turn home.
Through blue shadows and purple woods,
I turn home.
I turn to the place that I was born,
to the mother who bore me and the father who taught me,
long ago, long ago, long ago.
Alone am l now, lost and alone, in a far, wide, wandering world.
Yet still when the blazing sun hangs low,
when the wind dies away and the sea foam sleeps,
and twilight touches the wandering earth,
I turn home."

Phone photo 2470

This obscure spot next to the railroad tracks just outside of Longview, Washington has a sign marking the area as the site of the 1852 Monticello Convention, where settlers who lived north of the Columbia River in the Oregon Territory created a petition to form their own political subdivision because they wanted to have the freedom to pump gasoline into their vehicles on their own. This was the beginning of what later became Washington State.

Postcard - Seattle, Washington

"Seattle's Downtown Business District as seen at night from the top of the Space Needle."

Late 1970s.

Phone photo 2469

Kalama, Washington

Favorite Movie Quotes: Spaceballs

"Look, your Highness, it's not that we're afraid, far from it. It's just that we've got this thing about death. It's not us."

Phone photo 2468

When I was in Kalama hiding Morty Comix # 2564 I struck up a conversation with a fellow senior  traveler in the restaurant. He owned this beautiful old Ford and you can tell taking care of this vehicle is a real labor of love.

Postcard - Seattle, Washington

"Seattle's downtown business district and the Kingdome, with snow-covered Mt. Rainier in the distance, as seen from the top of the Space Needle. Mt. Rainier is 14,410 ft. (4,395 m) high and 90 miles (144.81 km) away from Seattle."

Late 1970s probably. No later than 1980.

Phone photo 2467

Portland, Oregon

Favorite Movie Quotes: The Sons of Katie Elder

[And just in time for Mother's Day!]

"You've been tryin' real hard not to tell me something, Billy. What is it?"

Phone photo 2466

Scappoose, Oregon

Morty Comix # 2568

Morty Comix # 2568 was form-fitted into a plastic container that originally held plastic silverware. Yes, I'm one of those guys who, if I'm not eating over the sink, uses paper plates and plastic silverware.

After sealing the Morty Comix into the box with the clear plastic lid, I deposited it in an algae-covered real estate brochure distribution box outside an abandoned bakery in Tumwater, Washington.

O, the Wonder.

Morty the Blog readers will recognize the bus stop in the background under the high electrical wires where I recently left Morty Comix # 2567.

Super alert readers will recall I left Morty Comix # 2357 in the neighboring yellow real estate freebie box almost a year ago.

Morty Comix # 2490 was tucked behind the sign of the front door of the bakery last December, and is still there. I noticed workers have started cleaning the place up, so perhaps the days of that issue remaining hidden are numbered.

Phone photo 2465

Peace Candle of the World

Scappoose, Oregon