The Comet - March 2021

JAIME’S TATTOO GARDEN PAGE 16

EVERYTHING WILL BE FINE

everything will be fine

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THIS issue editor: Ron Evans publishing assistant: Sarah Sims contributors: Cory Calhoun, Sarah Sims, Kristen Acesta Dan McConnell thecometmagazine.com facebook.com/thecometmagazine thecometmagazine@gmail.com

bot factory...........................PAGE 4 crossword..........................PAGE 7 withinder............................PAGE 8 what even is art?...............PAGE 10 nicole west.........................PAGE 16 comet tales........................PAGE 21 mark pickerel.....................PAGE 24 star bitch............................PAGE 27 Brain DUMP...........................PAGE 28

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COMET HEADQUARTERS march 2021

No Joke. Exactly a year ago I actually wrote down in one of my notebooks “2020 is the year you get things going.” Let’s all take a moment to laugh, mock or more likely cry at that seemingly mundane positive affirmation. I’m not even a positive affirmation kind of guy, which makes the face slap from the universe even funnier. Well you can’t win them all. And most of those plans I jotted down will still work for 2021. Eventually.

But a year later, there is hope in the air. Vaccinations are making their way across the globe, hospitals seem to be getting a break on the Covid jams and we can almost smell the return of normal life blowing in with the sweet balmy allergy-inducing winds of spring. We clearly have a long way to go but events (REAL life ones) are starting to slowly pop up here and there already. So it seems our events pages may be coming back...soon-ish. I promise I won’t write that down though. Wait, does typing count? Shit.

Anyhoo, while we are waiting for events to come back, we are still playing around with some new features and contributions which you will notice over the next few issues. Many writers come and go as they find - or fail to find time and inspiration to bust out a column, so there will always be an element of ‘you git what you git’ to the magazine. Which honestly makes it more fun to put together.

Over the past year of not printing there have been dozens of features and stories we have covered solely for the website and many of them are on evergreen topics deserving of being in print. So I will cherry pick a few from time to time to be included in the analog issues.

Speaking of issues...ya’ll hanging in there? This slow approach to normal life will likely be the hardest right toward the very end. Senioritis? Or something like that maybe. Knowing it’s JUST around the corner is almost too much to sit with. But sit with it we must. A bit longer. So, it’s a good reminder to check in on your peeps. A little random howdoo or cutthroat round of Words With Friends can go a long way in keeping each other from living out those cartoonish acts of violence many of us have been imagining over the shut down.

We are almost through it. Or at least ALMOST almost through it. It’s poignant to think back one year ago when we were still making plans to go out and drink green beer while wearing obnoxious t-shirts, tinsel glasses and giant hats with our pals for St. Patrick’s Day only to find out one week later that...the world had other plans. It just couldn’t in good conscience allow us to continue being this tacky. So we needed a year in timeout to reassess some things. And I think we have certainly done that. Now then... where are my shamrock undies?

Happy Trails, Ron Evans Editor of The Comet

Comet and I making electronic music with fake instrument made of foam because one year of lock down = CRAZY.

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Bot Factory: The Art Of Cory Pearson

Picture Perfect

Flower Girl

by ron evans Cory Pearson is a local artist who has been busily digging through bins of rusted old cigar tins, busted tools, steam gauges and random metal bits. With a bit of a mad-scientist flair, Pearson pieces together little critters, robots and scenes with clever arrangement and a good dose of humor. He’s also a skilled woodworker and has dabbled in acrylic and spray paintings ranging from sci-fi spacey scenes to the abstract. I wanted to know his process and how he got into making his army of mini-bots and how he’s handling creativity during a pandemic.

Tell us a bit about your background as an artist and how you arrived at the found-object assemblage technique?

I’ve always been interested in art since I was young. I would draw and doodle all the time and then woodworking came into my life in junior high and I focused

on that for most of my teen years. But it wasn’t until my early 30’s that I really focused on art. I taught myself how to do spray paint art, with some help from YouTube. I then moved to more conventional painting. Well I guess I wouldn’t call it conventional, more like wacky weird inspiration. Recently I’ve gone back to woodworking as a side hobby and started to teach myself how to carve wood.

I would say it was actually a couple years after I met you that I discovered the found object art world. You were having a themed show at the RadarSation and while talking to you about ideas for the show you mentioned maybe doing some sort of figure or sculpture rather than another painting. I instantly ran with that idea and found myself creating my first of many bots, as I like to call them. So a big thank you!

I’d completely forgotten that. Honored to have contributed!

just dig through the parts and components and see what inspiration strikes?

Where do you get your parts for your pieces and do you have a stockpile to rummage through - or are you typically on the hunt for the perfect piece to finish a work in progress?

A lot of times I will think of something in my head and then go rummage through my stock and kind of lay things out piece by piece until I’m satisfied with how it looks. Other times it’s just looking through an assortment of chaos until a couple things catch my eye that look good together.

I have a decent amount of parts and pieces stocked up. I tend to grab a lot of free electronics and motor parts, disassemble them and use what ever inner workings I think will look good. I also do a lot of thrift store and yard sale shopping looking for all those unwanted items that most people think have no life left in them. I’ve had many pieces though that I couldn’t finish until I went out and found that one perfect part to add to it.

Do you have images in your head of final pieces, sketch things out at all or

Do you have a dedicated studio space?

I have a wonderful little shop that my parents let me borrow to do my mad scientist work in. It’s just right for what I do.

How frequently are you working on new art?

I would say I work on a new piece or two

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Clockwise from top left: “For Love”, “Desperation”, “Squirt”, “Kuksha Bushcraft Cup”

at least every week. Sometimes one of my sculptures will take a couple weeks to finish though because I’m waiting to find that one perfect part to finish it off with.

How does assemblage art compare to creating a painting from scratch in terms of process?

I find that creating a found object sculpture comes much easier to me than beginning a painting. With painting I could sit there for an hour or two and only just begin one and usually painting over and over on one area trying to get it just right. Whereas with building my bots I could lay multiple pieces out and end up constructing more than just one at a time, which in many cases I do or at least get a good idea for another piece.

Has the virus of doom slowed down your process or are you busy tinkering away as per usual?

Covid has actually helped in some ways because already being an introvert it means I just get to stay home and think of what to build next. It has definitely

given me more time to work in the shop.

Where have you exhibited and sold your work?

In the past I’ve had my art around the Wenatchee valley in a few places. I’ve done the monthly show at Lemolo’s Cafe and had my art in the RadarStation Art Gallery. At this time you can find my art at Lynnart Gardens at 302 N. Miller st. Wenatchee and at Pan’s Grotto on Wenatchee Avenue.

Any events (pending COVID stuff) planned ahead?

I have no events planned at this time but hopefully when Covid ends more opportunities will arise.

You can find Cory’s bots and more on his Instagram: @bots_n_lotz

Originally published at thecometmagazine.com July of 2020. C

Cat Butt

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TBD, ????????? ??, 20???

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#

CORY CALHOUN'S PUZZLE CORNER Crosswords & more made exclusively for The Comet

THE 1ST META CROSSWORD CONTEST of 2021!

Enter for a chance to win a cool mystery prize by solving 2021's 1st meta crossword! HOW TO ENTER: 1. Solve the crossword below. 2. Solve its meta puzzle (instructions at tinyurl.com/corymetas). 3. Email just the meta puzzle answer based on the hint (don't send the solved grid!) to cscxwords@gmail.com by 12am PT, March 28, 2021.

(One submission per entrant, please.) We'll randomly pick a winner from the correct submissions, and announce the winner and puzzle answers in the next issue. Good luck!

"KEY MATCHUPS" HINT: Find a 7-letter common pet breed.

1

2

3

4

5

6

8

7

15

16

17

18 19

22

23

20

28

35 40

44

37

53 59

51 55

14

31

32

33

34

65

68

69

43 48

52 56

61

60 64

13

42 47

54

63

12

38

41

50

49

58

30

46

45

11

26 29

36

39

10

21

25

24

27

9

57 62

66

70

71

72

73

67

ACROSS 1. Set of kettledrums 8. 44-Acrosses taken by H.S. seniors for coll. credit 15. Local individual in a news story-or, often, an Onion "article" 16. Baton wielder 17. Like warm winter underwear 18. Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, for one 19. London suburb that's a homophone for the last name of the famed optical illusion graphic artist whose first two initials are M.C. 21. Adjusted, as a guitar 22. Leaning Tower of ___ 25. Metal in rocks 26. See 39-Across 27. Kitchen sponge brand 29. Pet lovers' org.

31. Late Supreme Court Justice ___ Bader Ginsburg 35. Mother ___ 37. Lil Wayne's forte 38. Fencer's blade 39. With 26-Across, meditative exercise discipline 40. Converted via cipher ... or what the answers to the boldface clues are 43. Demolition stuff 44. Knowledge assessment 46. Texter's "That's incredible!"

47. Adulterate

DOUBLE ANAGRAM CHALLENGE

49. Sandwich shop 50. Waterproof cover 52. Picard's "Number One" on Star Trek: TNG 53. Fr. holy woman 55. Matterhorn, e.g.

57. 100 centavos 58. Joe ___ (average guy) 61. Singer Osmond or physicist Curie 63. Pseudonyms 66. Lower completely into liquid 70. Canned, tightly-packed fish 71. Involves 72. Make more attractive 73. Pragmatic sort DOWN 1. Bug, as a phone line 2. Lyricist Gershwin or NPR's This American Life host Glass 3. Club ___ (resort) 4. The PA in the beer type "IPA" 5. Crucify and Cornflake Girl singer Tori 6. Cheesy chip 7. Comic book artists and tattoo artists 8. PA system component 9. Average 10. Saw things?

11. The mythological figures Ra, Sol, and Helios, for three 12. Knock for a loop 13. Branch headquarters?

14. Auctioneer's closing word

20. Change an electronic device's settings, perhaps 22. Like most indoor plants 23. Mountain climber's tool 24. Kind of number 26. Batman, aka the ___ Crusader 28. Suffix with verb or malt 30. No-goodnik 32. Understanding 33. Present and future, for two 34. Straight, for short 36. "Please make ___ of it" 41. Nashville-based awards org.

42. Varsity Blues actor James Van ___ Beek 45. Living room furniture pieces 48. Like a two-footed being 51. Carpenter's smoothing tool 54. "I'm afraid I'll have ___ this one out" 56. Accident-___ (likely to make a gaffe) 58. Disrespect 59. Hammer part 60. Bring on 62. Tiny bit 64. Opposite of WSW 65. Bernie Sanders or Elizabeth Warren: Abbr.

67. 52, in Roman Numerals 68. Golf pro Ernie whose last name sounds like raised Chicago trains 69. Summer clock setting: Abbr.

SOLUTION TO LAST EDITION'S CROSSWORD

>>> Instructions @ tinyurl.com/coryanagrams <<< removed letters (1 per word):

anagrammed words:

_____ _____ _____ _____

_______________ _______________ _______________ _______________

CRANNIES INTO LADEN REVILES

word anagrammed from removed letters:

_______________

SOLUTIONS TO LAST EDITION'S ANACROSTIC CHALLENGE

ANSWERS: banana, immediate, lighten, look at, Yamaha, Photoshop, oaf, roast beef, toughie, emotive, riptide. QUOTE: "I am gay and out. I do feel like there is a movement against homophobia. I hope to be a part of that." QUOTE'S AUTHOR: BILLY PORTER (spelled out by the answers' first letters)

I CRAVE FEEDBACK! Thoughts? Suggestions? Lemme have it. CSCXWORDS@GMAIL.COM

32 34 book series, 1978-2017 36 What she is in Italy?

EMAIL @ >

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withinder:dating bios for the self-aware Real locals sharing their real dating bio. We think it will be...illuminating.

Holly, 25 Hey! Looking for a fun-loving, familyoriented girl that works hard and plays harder? Then move the fuck on. Don’t get me wrong, I’m great. But not in those ways. I am very funny – but I am also very aware of how funny I am which kind of ruins the whole vibe. I am not bad looking and I will oscillate rapidly and without warning between thinking I’m hot shit and having the self-esteem of a fat, acne-riddled middle schooler. Fun fact: I was a fat, acne-riddled middle schooler.

But damn, I’m funny. That might be why.

I’m like, super chill, and fun to be around, except for when I’m not. I say I’m really laid back, but in reality I am an anxietyriddled, rage-filled weirdo with no social skills. There are rumors that I am actually just three raccoons stacked on top of each other in a trench coat.

I like cooking, going to the movies and camping. I will plan all of our dates, because I don’t think you will do it correctly, however I will complain that you never do it. The same goes for doing the dishes. Additionally, once we move in together, I will get mad at you for not paying enough attention to me. I will also get mad at you for not giving me space.

There will be no way of distinguishing which I want or why I am mad. I will tell you that I am not jealous, but rest assured I am. I also have like, major trust issues, but I will not address them. I spook easily, and if I decide to pull the plug on our relationship, I will ghost you as though I got Thanos-snapped out of existence.

I am very petty, easily annoyed and pas-

sive aggressive. Despite being incredibly self-obsessed, I would never date someone like me and find it suspicious that you would.

If you’re well-rounded and likeable, that’s a hard pass. I like people who are “projects,” because they make me feel better about myself. However, I am also notorious for starting projects, never finishing them and then moving on. So, you might end up worse than you started, but that’s a you problem.

If you are a risk-taker who loves adventure, I might be the one for you. I draw my mood out of a hat every morning and nothing you do or don’t do will change it.

Hang on, it’s a bumpy ride.

Ready to stick your dick in crazy? Hit me up.

Jason, 38 Hi, I’m Jason. If you like fun, adventure, feeling stupid, and indecision, then I’m the man you’ve been looking for. I’m good looking and good in bed but that doesn’t make up for my deep-seated insecurities or tendency to let people walk all over me. I’m a lonely kid who grew up in Rock Island and will gladly sacrifice my own happiness to make you like me. Do you like people who have strong opinions? Then you better move on because I live in the gray. Like an octopus, I’ll bend and contort myself to fit the image of what I think you think you want me to be, usually at the cost of my own comfort.

As soon as you start to see through my masks I’ll just make you feel stupid with my impressive intellect. It’s a great self

defense mechanism and sometimes you don’t even know I’m doing it! The worst part about me is that I truly just want to connect with someone authentically but have so many crippling personality faults that they preclude me from ever being real. Of course, you won’t realize this until it’s too late because I’m charming as fuck. I’m really good at distracting people from these sad truths because I’m hilarious and use humor, often inappropriately, to deflect from feeling actual feelings. I like magic tricks, Star Wars, true crime podcasts, and pretty much everything else that screams “you’ll die alone.” For a good time that will end badly, give me a call.

Kate, 41 I would rather call my height 5’3, and not 5’2.75. Would rather say my hair is naturally silver and not white, tell you that I come from a long line of well-adjusted geniuses, chose not to have children, might look a tad frail but am in perfect health, am calm and relaxed almost all of the time. Would rather call myself easygoing, make you think I eat burgers every week with no qualms, am an excellent driver (stick, of course) and that I’m generally happy.

The picture I’d rather paint, however, has gotten me nowhere fast in loveland. An unvarnished account is the only route I haven’t yet taken.

Here’s that version: I’m almost 42 years old.

I’ll be divorced in a year.

If I got pregnant, I’d be high-risk for three solid reasons.

I have bad feet and vision.

I don’t drive or fit in or do small talk or office jobs.

Hip openers make me ugly cry.

I get overwhelmed, bored, and irritated easily.

I don’t like wool or tags that touch my skin.

A pebble in my shoe on a walk is my nightmare.

I will never think raccoons are cute.

I take things personally.

I got hepatitis B through unknown circumstances. I want to believe I contracted it from a blood transfusion at birth and not through sex, but I’ll never know for sure. I had a wild phase in my twenties involving promiscuity and heavy drinking but no drugs. I’m addicted to anything that gives me the sense that everything will be ok --- ‘everything’ including me.

I take pains to present myself as Virgoan, but I’m a true Aries/Pisces-- either a flaming torch or a wet rag on the floor.

I have insomnia.

My worry creates a cloud of self-consciousness that can be sniffed out by anyone within a mile radius. I’ve become so used to the smell that I don’t notice it, which makes everything worse.

I don’t have a warm family system. Instead of thick, healthy coils that weave in and out of each other to form a stable foundation, my roots are a tangled bed of dried cappellini that you have to tiptoe around to avoid crushing. Without a sense of possibility and dreams, I wilt. I find four walls stifling, but too much vastness gives me anxiety.

I’m not easily satisfied.

I rarely feel content.

Oh, and: I’m passionate and playful.

I love candles (but can’t drink wine by candlelight (or any other kind of light) or I’d burn the house down).

Going to the movies with me is a rare treat. When the conditions are right, I get more joy from life than anyone. I would do anything for my sisters. I notice things.

When I am an asshole, I apologize.

I appreciate beauty.

I am willing to recover.

I am brave.

Created and compiled by Sarah Sims.

Send your self-aware dating bio to sarahradarstation@gmail.com C

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WHAT EVEN IS ART? LOCAL creatives WEIGH IN

The infamous Andy Warhol “Brillo Box” from 1964 - often brought up in ‘what is art’ discussions. This one sold for over 3 million dollars in a 2010 Christie’s auction.

by ron evans What is art?

I hate the question on some level. But it comes up a lot in the arts community, at coffee shops, galleries and late night semidrunken ramblings over Negronis. And while I don’t love the question itself, I do like how the answers tend to steer the dialog into a thought-provoking discussion on creativity.

When RadarStation was still in my house in East Wenatchee several years back there was an incident that has stuck with me concerning this question. It was during the second opening for our Forms: Invasion of The Naked Humans show which was an eclectic showcase of nude sketches, paintings, photography and even a few live nude humans hanging around.

Literally. Toward the end of the evening a local artist walked into the show. After a perusal of the creative offerings on exhibit this person began to (rather noticeably) chastise the show, the artists involved and the gallery itself.

At first I tried to ignore this seemingly

passionate voice of dissent. Any collection of art is fair game for criticism after all. But the tone seemed to be getting a bit more spicy - at one point he used the word vacuous to describe the show and I almost stepped into the conversation. Although I had to look it up to see if them was fightin’ words first. vac·u·ous /ˈvakyooəs/ adjective : having or showing a lack of thought or intelligence; mindless.

Why, them are fightin’ words!

But then I noticed some of the artists gathering around this person to engage in a discussion about art so I held back and let it play out. Ultimately the discourse ended with a bit of an agree to disagree settlement. But not before the conversation had gotten quite deep and philosophical on the topic of art for art’s sake, and the exchange ended up being one of my favorite memories about that era of running the gallery.

Some of the artists felt attacked and defended the style, subject and technique

of their works. Some felt compelled to defend and explain RadarStation itself.

Some of them were simply curious what this person found so objectionable about the show - the nudity didn’t seem to be a factor. But they all calmly engaged in a chat about what art even was.

At some point the young man turned to me and asked “Why are you even an artist?”

It’s not the first time I’d been asked this and I gave my usual answer which is “I don’t know if I am an artist. I just like to make shit.” I realize this is a bit of a copout answer, but it also happens to be a true (albeit simplified) account of how I look at my creative output. I’m a maker.

A designer. A curious tinkerer of miscellaneous mediums. And maybe an artist.

He seemed satisfied with that response and moved on. But it got another round of conversation going. Why are you an artist? Why make art? But most of all...what even is art?

As it’s a frequent point of conversation amongst artists and art enthusiasts alike, I wanted to delve a little deeper into this question. Rather than wax on about the topic myself, I reached out to see what members of our local arts community had

to say on this. Some of them responded immediately with a thoughtful but succinct mission statement. Some took several days to ponder such a vague yet grand question. And a few admitted they couldn’t really find the words to sum up their thoughts on something so ethereal.

What I love most about the responses is they almost read like a collection of poems. Maybe this is poetry? What is poetry? No, no...that’s for another article.

“What is art? I picture a panel of academics and historians deliberating all sorts of ideas here, but I think it’s quite simple.

Art is the language of the collective experience. Art is found in a million places every day...it could be how you cut the banana for your kid, compose an e-mail, or prune the tree. Some of us make a practice of expressing how the world feels to us (we’re called artists) but all of us communicate what we’re experiencing in some way - and we experience much, much more than we’re conscious of. I prefer the question, ‘What is art for?’, to which I’d answer, ‘Art creates empathy.’”

- Lindsay Breidenthal painter, muralist “To me Art is natural as speaking. It’s the

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necessity to communicate. It’s an urge to create. I believe it is a genetic function of the human brain. We are all artists, we are all creators. As children we draw sometimes before we talk. But as we grow up our creativity is truncated, erased, stopped, usually we become embarrassed by our drawings or someone made us feel inept, stupid disenfranchised by our own visual expressions. Even though our dreaming mind continues to form images and colors but we forget or disown when we are awakened. Art is an expression of our feelings. I called myself an expressionist because my feelings are affected by the events going on in the world and that becomes my images, my color, my forms. I don’t deprive my art of the significant and natural means of expression.

I sell my art for very little because to me the joy of expressing the transformation of my feelings into images and the power of awakening these emotions and inventing color is worth gold. To take a blank canvas and start a journey into the unknown brings me great joy, calms down my busy mind, it brings me into a meditative stage which I love.”

- Martha Flores painter, poet, sculptor “Art can be many things. It can tell us who we are, or make us question why we are.

At its best it can bring joy and wonder, at its worst it can be boring or invoke anger.

Art has no membership, no invitation or exclusion. There is no reason to make art, to look at art, to care about art. But we surround ourselves with it, formally or not.

And even though we could live without it, why would we?”

- Chad Yenney collage artist, owner/curator Collapse Gallery “If I told you there was a lens in which to view the functionality of the world, would you pick the most useful one? The most economical? The prettiest? Perhaps one rich in your own personal history, making everything jaded and dysfunctional to prove a point? Art is vocabulary. You might choose to sow corn in rows for the highest yield, or maybe we throw the old washing machine out in the front yard out of laziness, but it nevertheless displays a message. Art is the tangible conversation

of that message. Everyone does it, some people just have enough time to think about it.”

- Kristen Acesta mixed-media artist, owner Salt Creek Apothecary “Art is a way of being; thinking, seeing, making, doing, and is the outcome of those efforts. It is the sum total of thousands of little decisions applied to, and translated within a chosen medium by a maker. It is the interpretation of experience and ideas that are formalized within the defined content of medium and setting.

Art results from deliberate acts of human intervention in the gathering, arranging, organizing and presenting discrete parts into new perceptions of objects and experiences that can be measured by the six senses of touch, taste, smell, awareness of space, sound, and sight. Done well, art challenges those senses to see and experience something fully, differently in a manner that transcends medium, time, content, context and setting. Good art asks something of the viewer and acts as a bridge between the efforts of the maker and the perceptions of the receiver.

Or at least that’s what I think this three millionth day of the first year of the Covid 19 Pandemic and the twelve millionth day of the friggin trump regime. Given that, I may not be thinking clearly. Art may just be throwing paint at a canvas or wadding clay into a lump.”

- karendawndean multi-medium artist “Art Stands witness to the Dream in me.”

- Jan Cook Mack painter “Art to me is one of those few things that separates us from animals. The act of intentionally creating a visual work of art goes all the way back to the Paleolithic cave paintings discovered in France. Humans are drawn to create, especially as children, it is an innately human activity.

Only as we grow older do we complicate this urge by our fickle modern way of life.

Art is like a Rorschach test to help us better understand ourselves and the world around us. All art forms seek to express that unexplained essence of the soul connected to source energy and the collec-

tive consciousness. I also believe it is in the eye of the beholder. If a person creates something, it can be art. Anything less than that unnecessarily convolutes things.

But it doesn’t mean all art is ‘good.’”

- Bryant Goetz painter “Art is the human response to circumstance with concern for aesthetics. It is the fascination or bliss made manifest by skilled hands in the medium du jour. It is the compulsion we have as artists to exorcise the current fixation into form and the risk we take in baring it to the audience.

From the viewer’s perspective, art is something made by skilled hands to express an idea, emotion or point of view.

The artist’s intention may not always be apparent to the viewer but that is part of the beauty. The viewer has the freedom to interpret what he sees and so the act of viewing art can change its meaning. Art always invokes a feeling in the viewer, adoration or abhorrence, either way the artist has succeeded.”

- Kasey Koski multimedium artist, Curator of Exhibits - Wenatchee Valley Museum and Cultural Center.

“Unadulterated, unapologetic, aimless creation. Art is not a means to an end, the means is the end. People craft creations to acquire money, praise, or prestige, this is not art, it’s contrivance. Art has no end, a scratch-less itch. It’s genuine, authentic vulnerability, the doing of something for no reason, purely because you’re compelled to. It’s intuitive, evolving, and cathartic. It’s manifesting thought, the actualization of an unsolicited idea. Art is without adequate definition. Ask, why do you make that? The answer should, in truth, be, ‘I don’t know.’”

- CG Dahlin poet, painter, publisher I don’t know about you but reading these made me wanna make some art. To look at some art. It also made me miss being out and about at art openings, swirling a fine (or proudly cheap) glass of red wine and getting deep about the works we were surrounded by. To some, that may seem like a pointless exercise in arbitrary pontification. But as you can see in these re-

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sponses, the philosophy and reasonings on the practice of creativity are not only inspirational and insightful - they can be works of art themselves.

I like to think that the young artist that walked into a nude art show in a kookie little make-shift gallery back in 2016 was simply traversing his own path to find meaning and connectivity in art. Maybe his frustrations came from not getting what others saw in the show. Maybe it came from the school of thought that not everyone should be allowed to play in the art world. That this inclusive spirit somehow lowers the bar concerning consistency and quality. Maybe he just found the whole thing to be tacky. Whatever it was, I’m glad it happened for all the reasons mentioned above and I respect his passion and willingness to engage in a discussion, rather than scoff it off and walk out. Although, I would have preferred the dialog to have stayed out of the insult lane. Because while all art is fair game for criticism, in the proverbial words of the late (man I hate saying that) Robert Wilson, “There’s no room for snobbery in art.”

Of course there can’t be one simple answer to the question “what is art?,” but there do seem to be some connecting themes in all of the responses. Some look at art as an almost religious (they’ll kill me for using that word) practice with its own disciplines and structure. Some free-wheel it and find the deeper values in those accidental moments of experimentation. Some just like to make shit. Whatever the philosophy, all of us are deeply affected by the creative efforts of others in ways we often don’t even notice. You may see the print of Monet in the frame bin at Goodwill but miss the intricate patterns on the Persian rug rolled up next to it. You may notice a vibrant mural on the side of a building but miss the hand painted letter work on the sign just above it. We have crafted an entire civilization out of art but we tend to only truly see what speaks directly to us. So maybe the better way to phrase the question is, “what is art to you?” C

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Sir Arthur and the Fairies an essay

Spirit photograph of Arthur Conan Doyle taken by the ‘spirit photographer’ Ada Deane in 1922, the same year in which Conan Doyle’s The Coming of the Fairies was published.

The Dancing Fairy, featured in Conan Doyle’s The Coming of the Fairies (1922)

By Mary Losure In the winter of 1920, readers of the popular British magazine The Strand found a curious headline on the cover of their Christmas issues. “FAIRIES PHOTOGRAPHED,” it said. “AN EPOCHMAKING EVENT DESCRIBED BY A. CONAN DOYLE.” The Strand’s readership was well acquainted with Sir Arthur Conan Doyle; most of his wildly popular Sherlock Holmes stories had appeared for the first time in its pages. The great man’s claim that fairies –real fairies – had been photographed in the north of England by two young girls was greeted with wonder, but unfortunately for Conan Doyle, most of it was of the “what can he be thinking?” variety. How could the creator of the world’s most famous, least-fool-able detective have convinced himself that “fairy” photographs were real? Let us proceed, Holmes-like, to examine the question.

Mistake Number One: Misinterpreting the Evidence

surely, would not be able pull off such a hoax…

To his credit, Conan Doyle made what was (to him) a thorough, scientific, stepby-step investigation of the “fairy” photographs. For his first step, he consulted experts at the London offices of the George Eastman Kodak Company. They examined prints of the first two “fairy” photos and told Conan Doyle they could find no evidence of photo-doctoring; still, they insisted someone who knew enough about photography could have faked them.

Mistake Number Two: Our Man Not on the Spot

In Conan Doyle’s mind, that ruled out the two Yorkshire village girls who had taken the photographs, Elsie Wright and Frances Griffiths. “I argued that we had certainly traced the pictures to two children of the artisan [working] class, and that such tricks would be entirely beyond them,” he wrote. Working class girls,

Conan Doyle’s next step was an on-thescene investigation – but Conan Doyle himself did not go. Instead, he enlisted a far-from-impartial surrogate -- an ardent believer in fairies named Edward Gardner -- to carry out the mission. Gardner had already talked to several people who had assured him the girls had played with fairies and elves since babyhood.

He had already written to Elsie Wright’s mother begging her to get her “little girl” to take more photos. “I know quite well that fairies exist,” Gardner wrote in one of several letters to Elsie’s mother, “and that they are very shy of showing themselves or approaching adults, and it is only when one can obtain the help of their ‘friends’ that one can hope to obtain

photographs and hence lead to a better understanding of Nature’s ways than is possible otherwise.” Gardner explained to Elsie’s mother that he had long been anxious to obtain photos of “fairies, pixies, and elves, and if possible of brownies and goblins.”

So it is perhaps not surprising that when he actually visited the Wright family in the Yorkshire village of Cottingley, Gardner found no reason to suspect there was anything amiss in the photographs.

He talked to Elsie’s parents, who (not knowing themselves whether or how the photos had been faked) gave him sincere and honest answers. They told Gardner all they knew: that the two girls had borrowed Elsie’s father’s camera and gone down to a little hidden valley behind the house where the younger girl, Elsie’s cousin Frances, believed she saw fairies.

The girls had returned a just short time later with the negative that Elsie’s father

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Elsie and the Gnome, featured in Conan Doyle’s The Coming of the Fairies (1922)

developed in his home darkroom: the first fairy photo.

As part of his investigation, Gardner walked with Elsie to the exact spot, in front of a waterfall, where the photo had been taken. He was glad to have a chance to question the girl alone, he later reported back to Conan Doyle. He asked Elsie what colors the fairies were and she told him they were “the palest of green, pink, mauve,” Gardner wrote to Conan Doyle. Elsie also told Gardner the gnome in the second photo had been wearing black tights, a reddish brown jersey, and a red pointed cap. In answer to Gardner’s questions about the markings on the gnome’s wings – both Conan Doyle and Gardner thought they looked like a moth’s wings — Elsie explained that they weren’t wing markings at all, but musical pipes. She added that on still days, you could hear the faint, high sound of gnome music. After that, Gardner reported back to Conan Doyle that

the family’s “transparent honesty and simplicity” had convinced him, Gardner, that the photographs were entirely genuine.

Mistake Number Three: Conan Doyle’s and Gardner’s misperception of Elsie Wright To Gardner, Elsie seemed a “shy pretty girl of about sixteen.” But at the time they met, she was really eighteen, going on nineteen, and for years had cherished the dream of becoming an artist. It was Elsie who had painted watercolor fairies, stuck them to hatpins, and arranged them in the foliage in front of Frances. It was Elsie who, using a complicated, oldfashioned camera to take her first-ever photo, managed to capture the strange, haunting image that would go down in history as the first Cottingley Fairy Photograph. Gardner had seen a number of Elsie’s watercolors displayed on the walls of her parents’ house. Still, he in-

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The first fairy photograph, featured in Conan Doyle’s The Coming of the Fairies (1922)

sisted that she was not a good enough artist to have drawn the fairies in the photos, and Conan Doyle believed him.

Mistake Number Four: Creating the Evidence During his visit to Cottingley, Gardner implored Elsie’s parents to get her to take more fairy photos. Elsie insisted that wasn’t possible because Frances had to be there, too, for the fairies to appear.

(By that time, Frances had moved away from Cottingley to the seaside town of Scarborough). Undeterred, Gardner arranged with Frances’ parents for Frances to spend part of her summer holidays in Cottingley. There was nothing either girl could do – the pressure was on. So when Frances arrived in Cottingley and the two were alone, Elsie told her she’d prepared two more cutout fairies, one for each girl. In the hidden valley, the two girls took two more photos. Then they both agreed, in secret, they would never

take another fairy photo.

Gardner was delighted to get the two new photos, but even more thrilled with a third photo, one which Elsie had not faked. Both girls thought at the time it was just a bird’s nest, some rainwater, some shapes and shadows--but Gardner insisted it showed fairies. Conan Doyle thought so, too.

A second Strand article, published in March of 1921, announced “The Evidence for Fairies by A. Conan Doyle, With New Fairy Photographs.” In the article, Conan Doyle quoted Gardner’s assertion that the third and most amazing photo was a “fairy bower.” Conan Doyle also included Gardner’s remark that “We have now succeeded in bringing this print out splendidly.” The article did not say what Gardner meant by “bringing out” the print.

The man who had created the world’s

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Public Domain

Poetry

featuring works by Robert Frost Stars How countlessly they congregate O’er our tumultuous snow, Which flows in shapes as tall as trees When wintry winds do blow!

As if with keenness for our fate, Our faltering few steps on To white rest, and a place of rest Invisible at dawn, And yet with neither love nor hate, Those starts like some snow-white Minerva’s snow-white marble eyes Without the gift of sight.

Evening In A Sugar Orchard From where I lingered in a lull in march outside the sugar-house one night for choice, The Hairbell Fairy, featured in Conan Doyle’s The Coming of the Fairies (1922)

I called the fireman with a careful voice And bade him leave the pan and stoke the

greatest detective never knew how badly astray his own investigation had gone. In part to avoid embarrassing him, Elsie and Frances did not reveal the secret of the paper cutouts until long after his death.

Elsie had once seen what she remembered as “cruel” cartoon of Conan Doyle in a magazine, and perhaps by then she realized, too, how desperately he wanted the fairy photographs to be real. If the photos were real, Conan Doyle wrote in The Coming of the Fairies, a book that included both Strand articles, they would provide the first solid evidence that whole new orders of invisible beings existed in our world.

“There is nothing scientifically impossible, so far as I can see, in some people seeing things that are invisible to others,” Conan Doyle wrote. He did concede that it would take some time before “the ordinary busy man” realized that “this new

order of life is really established and has to be taken into serious account, just as the pigmies of Central Africa.”

shouldn’t be; it’s a telling glimpse into the character of a man too often confused with his cold, rational hero.

“Victorian science would have left the world hard and clean and bare, like a landscape in the moon,” Conan Doyle wrote, but now -- with the coming of the fairies -- everything had changed. “One or two consequences are obvious,” he wrote. “The experiences of children will be taken more seriously. Cameras will be forthcoming. Other well-authenticated cases will come along. These little folk who appear to be our neighbors, with only some small difference of vibration to separate us, will become familiar.”

This article was originally published in The Public Domain Review under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0. If you wish to reuse it please see:publicdomainreview.org/legal/ C

Conan Doyle’s belief in spiritualism, séances, and “the spirit world” is well known, yet his steadfast belief in the Cottingley Fairies is sometimes glossed over or even ignored by biographers. It

arch: ‘O fireman, give the fire another stoke, And send more sparks up chimney with the smoke.’

I thought a few might tangle, as they did, Among bare maple boughs, and in the rare Hill atmosphere not cease to glow, And so be added to the moon up there.

The moon, though slight, was moon enough to show On every tree a bucket with a lid, And on black ground a bear-skin rug of snow.

The sparks made no attempt to be the moon.

They were content to figure in the trees As Leo, Orion, and the Pleiades.

And that was what the boughs were full of soon.

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nicole west: Create from love, go from there

BY RON EVANS I had heard the name Nicole West for years as a gallery curator and art magazine publisher but for one reason or another I had never met the artist or seen any of her work. Until about a year ago. Upon seeing the sculptures, I can tell you that as enthusiastic as the praise I’d been hearing was, nothing prepared me for the level of quality, imagination and artistry I was seeing in these sculptures. Whimsical fantasy characters right out of a Jim Henson film mingling with pop-culture iconography, S&M, rockabilly and pinup. Everything badass was right there in these small but incredibly realistic and detailed clay sculptures dressed with tiny handmade costumes and props. I had to reach out about an interview with Nicole and we had a great indepth discussion on all things her.

First off, what was your background in the arts?

I think my background begins like so many artists - creating since childhood.

My mom tells me I bit animal shapes out of my toast. She even let me draw a mural on my bedroom wall. I was very lucky to have all of my artistic inclinations well fed. Even a stable of modeling clay horses in the freezer!

I loved so many things it was impossible for me to figure out what I wanted to do, so I bounced between a little of everything including jewelry, fashion and the FX world. I was obsessed with horror movies and makeup. I can’t even tell you how many Fangoria and Cinefex magazines I had. I sometimes kind of wish I had gone that way. Growing up in Los Angeles certainly made it possible, but I was way too lazy to work the grueling hours. Not that I don’t end up working some long hours now.

Trinket Faerie Queen

I kind of stumbled across what I do now.

The human form was never really my muse. But I was always curious about my mom’s small doll collection. I hated dolls, they creeped me out. I gave any doll I got to my brothers so they would go burn them in the backyard. I asked her one day about them and she told me about the collection she had as a child, which was given away, and how much she missed it. That was when I decided to give it a shot, and I made my first doll for my mom. It was so ugly. (she laughs) I mean “kill it with fire’’ hideous! But she loved it. She took it to the ice rink she taught at and one of the people there told her about the doll world and that I should check it out.

Then I did some shows and met the editor of one of the art doll magazines at the time. She bought one of my pieces for her daughter and eventually had an article about me in the magazine. That truly cemented me on my path. I kept growing and evolving in that world until they became multimedia sculptures. I never in a million years thought this is what I’d be doing, but I really do love it. All the different things I got involved in came in handy too for the costuming and such.

I am mostly self taught, never having gone to any school for what I do. But several years ago I did take two extremely intensive anatomy courses (AnatomyTools, in case anyone is interested) that taught me the things I couldn’t learn on my own. I now have a deep appreciation of how complex the human body really is. The knowledge I gained cracked my head open. Seriously. It took a week to recover cognitive thought. I thought it was brain damage as I kept forgetting things everywhere I went. I guess 10 hour days, 5 days in a row can do that to you. Can’t believe I did that twice! I couldn’t possibly apply all that I learned to what I do now without it taking me months to complete a piece. I’m glad I don’t have to. That to me is the wonderful thing about creating. You don’t have to use it all, just what feels right.

I find it interesting that one of my close friends works at an amazing studio. We met when he began as a collector of my girls, but is now a great friend that makes the realistic ice cream cones and big cherries that I work into my pieces. I’ve learned a lot about that business from him What was your first medium of interand I’m really glad I didn’t go that direc- est? tion. I think I’m right where I belong.

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Behave Bettie

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Frosty Tinkerbell Antiquity

Hmm, that’s a really good question. I think drawing was my first love. Lots and lots of horses, and Mickey Mouse. I drew on everything. Oh, those brown paper bag covers on school books were the best. For a time I really got into charcoal and graphite portraits. I fell in love with it after a life drawing class in school. I still have my big drawing pad with my portraits of Prince, David Bowie and Robert Downy Jr. Hopefully one day I can get around to finishing them. I only have one that I finished. The group A-ha. Oh boy, I just dated myself big time...

How did you find your way from there to sculpture?

I think sculpture was my second love. I was always sculpting something with whatever I had on hand. Be it tiny tin foil horses from Hershey’s Kisses wrappers or melted candle wax I would dip my fingers in (I got bored easily). I know someone who still has a dolphin I made eons ago from wax. Horses were my biggest love so I was always sculpting them. I still have carousel horses I made as a teenager. Wanting to restore carousel horses started that obsession. There are two iconic old carousels in LA. Now that I think about it, I used to draw them too. It all led to that day with my mom and her dollies.

I’ve dabbled in sculpture - after many swearing words and a few hours I typically say “good enough” to a decidedly lumpy potato head. How in the hell does

Emerald Dragon

one get to the level of detail and realism like rubber stamps, vintage sequins and you have achieved with your work? beads, every kind of paint you can imagine, even vintage costume jewelry. I love Oh boy, my first human was hideous! All collage work and fiber art of any kind. I flat faced, no angles at all. I honestly cringe have a ton of needle felted and crocheted when I look at a lot of my earlier stuff. It’s beings as well. You know my bestie Aimee taken years. Around 30 years. And I don’t (renowned Cashmere-based puzzle creeven think I’ve gotten good at this until the ator Aimee Stewart featured in The Comet past six years. That’s when I took the anat- February 2021 issue). We are always playomy workshop that really helped me get ing in some medium or other at the studio. to a new level. I’m honestly quite lazy so I have to push myself to try new things. It’s Do you sketch up your concepts or just a good thing I do love to learn. To do the grab the clay and see what develops? challenging stuff. That’s what I’m learning the most right now. I actually work from I used to sketch ideas a long time ago. I real faces now. A while back someone was wish I had kept up with drawing skills, but harassing me on eBay, being cute and ask- oh well. Nowadays I do a kind of story ing me what molds I used for my faces. I board. I have thousands of images saved. I know it was just a jerk, but it lit a fire and search for the pose I need, a face and hair, made me ask the question “are your faces then costuming if needed. I like to comformulaic?” The honest answer was yes. I bine various ideas into something new and decided to change that. Now I find inter- exciting. Quite often though I don’t find esting people to inspire me. I’m actually what I need so I have to wing it. Which is grateful for that jerk. good, it keeps my muse on her toes.

Oh, and I totally swear all the time at my sculpts. I swear like a sailor and ask why they hate me. I’ve even thrown a few! I highly recommend it.

Have you mass-produced any of your sculptures, either for your own sales or a company that licenses and distributes figurines?

Are you strictly a polymer sculptor? I was offered opportunities in the past, but And do you dabble in other mediums I just wasn’t ready for it. I was and still these days? am incredibly picky about quality and being involved in the creation. If the right My main work is polymer. But I love company approached me I would jump at dabbling in just about everything. I get the chance for production pieces. I think obsessed with new things all the time. It it would be a wonderful opportunity for leads to hoarding of various collections more people to be able to collect my girls

in some form or another.

I feel ready for a new avenue and I’m even looking at trying some limited edition resin work I can produce myself. It’s really an exciting prospect. I have lots of ideas and plans. I hope to start getting a few ideas in particular onto the molding and casting table. Once spring arrives I’ll probably get that rolling. There will definitely be some kitschy stuff, unrelated to my girls, coming soon.

On the topic of figurines, you are crafting original one-of-a-kind sculptures.

The pop-art/fantasy art world often struggles to find a place in the fine art avenues. Have there been any challenges with people seeing your sculptures as fine art vs. a figure you can buy at Hallmark for $28?

I’ve been really lucky. I’ve never had anyone say anything disparaging like that. I have plenty who find out the price and get sticker shock, but they are always gracious and say they are worth every penny, just out of their price range. What I tend to get more is people wanting to get into doing this but only being interested in making money. Not because they want to create.

That bugs me big time. I have no problem sharing with someone who is genuinely looking to be creative. From my perspective, only looking at the money is a sure fire way to fail. I tell them that too. Create from love, go from there.

I’ve personally avoided the fine art world.

It’s...difficult. A few years ago I had one of the creators of a huge erotic art show find my art and contact me. I was excited to do something for the venue, but unfortunately, I just ended up being reminded of why I’ve stayed away. Disingenuous. That’s all I’ll say...

Do you have spurts of creativity when the inspiration strikes, or are you working most of the time?

Oh boy, that’s the question right there! The difference between inspiration and motivation. Inspiration is always best, of course.

And thankfully I’m usually always inspired.

But...there are times when it’s just not there.

A big fat wall drops down and gives you the finger. How rude. When that happens, creating can feel like a job. And that really sucks.

I try to give myself time to relax because it’s probably needed. I used to push through, which then caused me to make uninspired pieces. I personally can’t stand them, but they always found their home. If I take the time off to recharge and I’m still not feeling it, I have to meditate to try to break through the block. There have been times I’ve been in that inspiration black hole for a while. Personally I just have to work through it. Sometimes I don’t even realize I’m in it and it’s not until I come out of it that I look back and see. Yikes!

But it’s all part of being creative. We aren’t machines. It takes that special creative spark within to make magic. It has to be nurtured, not abused.

How and where do you sell most of your sculptures?

I started off doing commissions for collectors. Then I found my way into shops and small galleries. I did that for years. But after 9/11 the market shifted and changed. I almost walked away from it all. A really good friend that worked at one of these shops convinced me not to give up. That’s when I found eBay as a place to start selling. It was weird because I kinda had to reinvent myself. It was a rough transition but it ended up being the best thing to happen to me. I’ve pretty much been there for years. I also did commissions for my long standing collectors.

The cool thing is, last year, during the pandemic, I finally decided it was time to open up commissions to everyone. I constantly got requests for years, but I wasn’t open to the idea. But now, it has been really incredible.

There is something about bringing someone else’s dream piece to life. I’m learning

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Arctic Mermaid

so much from this experience that I kinda kick myself for not doing it sooner. Outside the box is always a good place to step when you need a shift in perspective.

I still create my own dreams and list them for sale on eBay. It’s a fantastic way to reach people around the world. My girls live in places I’ve never even been. Russia, Japan, Europe, Australia. They have better adventures than I do.

Are you active on social media? If so, how have you utilized that concerning a career in art?

I try to be, definitely. Facebook has actually done a lot for me. I only came to Facebook to share my art. I have my personal page but I immediately set up a fan page after I joined. The algorithm sucks now, but I still reach a lot of people. I enjoy interacting with everyone but I especially love that I can inspire others. Knowing that my posts can bring magic into someone’s day, that’s the cherry on top of what I do.

Candy Mermaid

the why. First, the clay. I’ve worked with a lot and this is what works for me. Kato clay and Fimo clay. Fimo is more flexible and Kato is really strong. I find the combination is perfect. I use a 50/50 combo of clay brands and also translucent/opaque.

Too opaque is flat for skin. Too translucent looks waxy and is hard to see detail. I usually mix my own skin colors as I don’t much care for the colors that companies Speaking of career - are you full time come up with. with this?

I paint with Genesis heat set oil paints.

For the most part, yes. I’m seeing some in- They can be thinned out like watercolor teresting things on the horizon though. As by using a polymer clay softening oil, or much as I love this I know there are bigger they can be used straight for opacity. I’ve things waiting, and have been waiting for also used pastels but they have to be set me to finally be ready. I’m excited to see with a high quality sealant like Mr. Super Clear, which is used on resin doll face-ups. what develops.

I don’t care for acrylics. They dry way too For the art nerds: Any preferred clays, fast. paints, tools or resources you go back Tools... everything and anything. I’ve to? made plenty of my own. My favorites are Yes! It’s all about what works for the art- these little silicone rubber shaper tools. ist. I’m happy to share my favorites and They are what I use the most. Ball stylus I like Instagram too but I’m not nearly as active as I should be. And Pinterest. That’s a real surprise. A lot of people discover my art there. It is a site I highly recommend.

Most people do the work for me by pinning my pieces. It’s also a great place to see a lot of my older works. I’m hoping to finally get an actual website up this year.

Again, I’m lazy...

Athena

tools, dental tools and exacto knives and of course classic clay sculpting tools. My favorite homemade tool is a sewing needle set in a polymer clay handle. Indispensable. I’ve broken and lost many, but they are thankfully easy to remake. A flat steel shaper is a handy tool for smoothing. They are thin and flexible which makes it easy to move larger masses of clay. A low temp heat gun is great too for setting clay in place before curing in the oven or spot curing paint.

Website/social media links: Find Nicole West Art on Facebook and eBay. Her Instagram handle is: nicolewestfantasyart C

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comet tales: reader submitted writings Lost River Road

By Faith Merz

I am not the best at writing beginnings.

This I know prominently as a symptom of my being - I guess endings have always just made more sense. Maybe it’s the potentiality, maybe it’s the blank page that stares at me in a silent taunting, “what will she do this time?” That makes endings feel more solid and stable.

It’s with this trepidation that I clumsily wish to recant a lesson that keeps playing in my mind’s eye. One so profound and real that if I closed my eyes I could, in vivid detail, be able to map out its intricate profile.

I’m not sure if lessons have homes or embody physical spaces, but in this particular case it came in the form of a cabin. Big and beautiful with chipping red paint and a green roof that matched the surrounding moss covered oak trees. It was this beauty that I pondered just 3 weeks prior- a Craigslist ad advertising a room for rent, off grid, in the rolling mountains of the Sierra Nevada’s. What, in my mind, made me think I was capable enough to go live on top of a mountain with virtually no experience, I’ll never know. But I do acknowledge the feeling of when my gut began screaming at me.

“GO,” it demanded, lest I regret it for the rest of my life. It was with this conviction that I packed up everything I owned in my little bean of a Ford Fiesta and set out to a little town known by the locals as Malakoff Diggins. Population, 178.

I recall seeing my new home for the first time, illuminated on its perched hill by a crack of lightning from the ensuing thunderstorm coming in. The pines whistled and whipped, great rolling claps of thunder gave way to the sporadic sounds of hooves from the resident horses nearby. My heart sank - 759 miles I had driven to star in my own personal horror film, the silent cabin loomed at me in the dark - yep, this is where I would surely die. It was there laying wide eyed late into that first evening where reality firmly had begun to set in and my frivolous ideals of frolicking like a woodland nymph soon came to an end. I was for intents and purposes scared shitless.

What have I gotten myself into?

In retrospect, there are things no one tells you about living away from the rest of the world. Likewise I’ve come to find there are things no one tells you about living life.

The ensuing months came on like waves, the rhythms and patterns quietly making themselves known. I quickly became adept at building a fire, more so out of necessity than novelty. Leaves of three let them be became almost a daily mantra as I began to understand that this was the land of poison oak. And I soon became accustomed to the night time scratchings of my possum friend (who I lovingly named Bernard) beneath my floorboards. Mainly, however, I learned how to be quiet.

It was in these months that I didn’t speak as much, as if the encompassing stillness held title over my tongue. The lack of which being so foreign to my usual extroverted demeanor that I became increasingly aware of my lack of practice in shutting the fuck up. I had learned the nearest town was a joyous 45 minute drive. A treacherous 1 lane winding road down the side of a canyon, an old mining highway designated for people who had decided to be in the boonies and now me. Trips to town were events and had to be planned, god forbidding you left your wallet at home. Days would pass one after the other and there came a time when I realized I hadn’t spoken to anything other than a tree or a horse in over a week. It was the complete antithesis of what I had known for most of my life. My childhood consisted of billboards and parking meters, concrete sidewalks and rush hour traffic - the lack of noise and companionship was jarring at first.

I began to feel a palpable homesickness that felt like some strange shedding of skin.

I was faced with the sheer understanding that I had just spent all of my money to upend my life for this experience and I was firmly alone. I had no idea what to do with myself, no idea what to do with all of that time. Internet and streaming were out of the question given the nature of my new habitat - if I wanted entertainment (I soon discovered) I had to be creative. It was this sense of forced immobility that drew me away from the confines of my cabin and onto the land of which it sat. 1500 acres of preserved oak forests, criss crossed with horse trails that disappeared behind great sprawls of manzanita trees. There was life here, not like the constant noisy deluge that I was used to, but a different more subtle teeming symbiosis that made its presence ever more known. I started to feel more comfortable with the idea of climbing a tree just for the sheer pleasure of feeling moss beneath my skin. I started noticing the mugwort that grew all around the trails on the north end of the property, and the mushrooms that peeped their way out in the golden fall afternoons. I had never known a piece of land as home before, never been able to see natural markers as anything other than a shrub or a bush. In that familiarity I began to feel a form of simplicity that I felt I had long been denied.

I sat on a bench lovingly placed between two great oaks one afternoon, a place from which the white caps of Donner could be seen peeking through the forest horizon.

The light was golden and warm, one of the last full days of sun before the impending late fall gloom. I recall sitting there and realizing that this place in fact was not silent, rather filled with choruses and symphonies that took a slight fine-tuning to be able to hear.

It presented itself in a vernacular that couldn’t be written or spoken, a language that came through the act of listening. It demanded respect, not without its tribulations of course. There were many times I fell asleep in front of my wood stove due to lack of heat, my car when the snow came couldn’t make it up the service road and hiking into the property became necessary. I painstakingly chopped and stacked wood, and realized that rotted oak only served to fill my entire room with smoke when burned. There were times that I wept in the sheer loneliness that I felt, to the alienness that I could no longer relate to my peers who were living such different lives so far away. There were times I felt like praying, there were times that I felt like screaming, there were times that all I could muster was a small whimper at the thought of having to deal with myself. An exchange was made I suppose, something made of blood and sweat and older parts of myself, which the land took and has held ever since.

And as I sit here writing this and reflecting on such an experience I realize that maybe I’m not as bad at writing beginnings as I thought. Maybe endings and beginnings are the same thing. Just one continual cycle that constantly refreshes itself like the slow growth of a forest or the changing presence of the moon. And maybe, just maybe that the reflection of those things observed hold more weight than we give credit to. That we constantly change and learn and try and those moments can have profound meaning like ripples in a pond. I am no expert, I am a twenty something year old who had the wise idea to experience something I was completely unprepared for. And maybe there’s beauty in that, maybe that’s enough. I now live in an apartment with central heating and neighbors who say hello when I get home. A new chapter built on a foundation of another, my new service road is a maintained gravel driveway. It still feels strange from time to time, to look out and see everyone so close yet so disconnected, as if this wasn’t all land that was sprawling and wide at some point. Still though if you were to give me the opportunity I would do it all over again, without hesitation. And maybe I’d buy a truck.

The beginning. The end.

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tales from the public domain

ORIGiNALLY PUBLISHED IN 1905 was a large castle in a green meadow, and at one of the windows stood an old woman with a very beautiful young lady by her side looking about them. Now the old woman was a witch, and said to the young lady, ‘There is a young man coming out of the wood who carries a wonderful prize; we must get it away from him, my dear child, for it is more fit for us than for him. He has a bird’s heart that brings a piece of gold under his pillow every morning.’ Meantime the huntsman came nearer and looked at the lady, and said to himself, ‘I have been travelling so long that I should like to go into this castle and rest myself, for I have money enough to pay for anything I want’; but the real reason was, that he wanted to see more of the beautiful lady. Then he went into the house, and was welcomed kindly; and it was not long before he was so much in love that he thought of nothing else but looking at the lady’s eyes, and doing everything that she wished.

Then the old woman said, ‘Now is the time for getting the bird’s heart.’ So the lady stole it away, and he never found any more gold under his pillow, for it lay now under the The huntsman thanked her, and thought to himself, ‘If all this does happen, it will be a young lady’s, and the old woman took it away every morning; but he was so much in fine thing for me.’ When he had gone a hundred steps or so, he heard a screaming and love that he never missed his prize. chirping in the branches over him, and looked up and saw a flock of birds pulling a cloak with their bills and feet; screaming, fighting, and tugging at each other as if each wished ‘Well,’ said the old witch, ‘we have got the bird’s heart, but not the wishing-cloak yet, to have it himself. ‘Well,’ said the huntsman, ‘this is wonderful; this happens just as the and that we must also get.’ ‘Let us leave him that,’ said the young lady; ‘he has already old woman said’; then he shot into the midst of them so that their feathers flew all about. lost his wealth.’ Then the witch was very angry, and said, ‘Such a cloak is a very rare Off went the flock chattering away; but one fell down dead, and the cloak with it. Then and wonderful thing, and I must and will have it.’ So she did as the old woman told her, the huntsman did as the old woman told him, cut open the bird, took out the heart, and and set herself at the window, and looked about the country and seemed very sorrowful; then the huntsman said, ‘What makes you so sad?’ ‘Alas! dear sir,’ said she, ‘yonder lies carried the cloak home with him. the granite rock where all the costly diamonds grow, and I want so much to go there, The next morning when he awoke he lifted up his pillow, and there lay the piece of gold that whenever I think of it I cannot help being sorrowful, for who can reach it? only the glittering underneath; the same happened next day, and indeed every day when he arose. birds and the flies—man cannot.’ ‘If that’s all your grief,’ said the huntsman, ‘I’ll take He heaped up a great deal of gold, and at last thought to himself, ‘Of what use is this gold you there with all my heart’; so he drew her under his cloak, and the moment he wished to me whilst I am at home? I will go out into the world and look about me.’ to be on the granite mountain they were both there. The diamonds glittered so on all sides that they were delighted with the sight and picked up the finest. But the old witch Then he took leave of his friends, and hung his bag and bow about his neck, and went his made a deep sleep come upon him, and he said to the young lady, ‘Let us sit down and way. It so happened that his road one day led through a thick wood, at the end of which rest ourselves a little, I am so tired that I cannot stand any longer.’ So they sat down, As a merry young huntsman was once going briskly along through a wood, there came up a little old woman, and said to him, ‘Good day, good day; you seem merry enough, but I am hungry and thirsty; do pray give me something to eat.’ The huntsman took pity on her, and put his hand in his pocket and gave her what he had. Then he wanted to go his way; but she took hold of him, and said, ‘Listen, my friend, to what I am going to tell you; I will reward you for your kindness; go your way, and after a little time you will come to a tree where you will see nine birds sitting on a cloak. Shoot into the midst of them, and one will fall down dead: the cloak will fall too; take it, it is a wishing-cloak, and when you wear it you will find yourself at any place where you may wish to be. Cut open the dead bird, take out its heart and keep it, and you will find a piece of gold under your pillow every morning when you rise. It is the bird’s heart that will bring you this good luck.’

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and he laid his head in her lap and fell asleep; and whilst he was sleeping on she took ers ran off into the court braying away. the cloak from his shoulders, hung it on her own, picked up the diamonds, and wished herself home again.

Then the huntsman washed his face and went into the court that they might know him.

‘Now you shall be paid for your roguery,’ said he; and tied them all three to a rope and When he awoke and found that his lady had tricked him, and left him alone on the took them along with him till he came to a mill and knocked at the window. ‘What’s the wild rock, he said, ‘Alas! what roguery there is in the world!’ and there he sat in great matter?’ said the miller. ‘I have three tiresome beasts here,’ said the other; ‘if you will grief and fear, not knowing what to do. Now this rock belonged to fierce giants who take them, give them food and room, and treat them as I tell you, I will pay you whatlived upon it; and as he saw three of them striding about, he thought to himself, ‘I can ever you ask.’ ‘With all my heart,’ said the miller; ‘but how shall I treat them?’ Then the only save myself by feigning to be asleep’; so he laid himself down as if he were in a huntsman said, ‘Give the old one stripes three times a day and hay once; give the next sound sleep. When the giants came up to him, the first pushed him with his foot, and (who was the servant-maid) stripes once a day and hay three times; and give the youngsaid, ‘What worm is this that lies here curled up?’ ‘Tread upon him and kill him,’ said est (who was the beautiful lady) hay three times a day and no stripes’: for he could not the second. ‘It’s not worth the trouble,’ said the third; ‘let him live, he’ll go climbing find it in his heart to have her beaten. After this he went back to the castle, where he higher up the mountain, and some cloud will come rolling and carry him away.’ And found everything he wanted. they passed on. But the huntsman had heard all they said; and as soon as they were gone, he climbed to the top of the mountain, and when he had sat there a short time a cloud Some days after, the miller came to him and told him that the old ass was dead; ‘The came rolling around him, and caught him in a whirlwind and bore him along for some other two,’ said he, ‘are alive and eat, but are so sorrowful that they cannot last long.’ time, till it settled in a garden, and he fell quite gently to the ground amongst the greens Then the huntsman pitied them, and told the miller to drive them back to him, and when and cabbages. they came, he gave them some of the good salad to eat. And the beautiful young lady fell upon her knees before him, and said, ‘O dearest huntsman! forgive me all the ill I Then he looked around him, and said, ‘I wish I had something to eat, if not I shall be have done you; my mother forced me to it, it was against my will, for I always loved you worse off than before; for here I see neither apples nor pears, nor any kind of fruits, very much. Your wishing-cloak hangs up in the closet, and as for the bird’s heart, I will nothing but vegetables.’ At last he thought to himself, ‘I can eat salad, it will refresh give it you too.’ But he said, ‘Keep it, it will be just the same thing, for I mean to make and strengthen me.’ So he picked out a fine head and ate of it; but scarcely had he swal- you my wife.’ So they were married, and lived together very happily till they died. C lowed two bites when he felt himself quite changed, and saw with horror that he was turned into an ass. However, he still felt very hungry, and the salad tasted very nice; so he ate on till he came to another kind of salad, and scarcely had he tasted it when he felt another change come over him, and soon saw that he was lucky enough to have found his old shape again.

Then he laid himself down and slept off a little of his weariness; and when he awoke the next morning he broke off a head both of the good and the bad salad, and thought to himself, ‘This will help me to my fortune again, and enable me to pay off some folks for their treachery.’ So he went away to try and find the castle of his friends; and after wandering about a few days he luckily found it. Then he stained his face all over brown, so that even his mother would not have known him, and went into the castle and asked for a lodging; ‘I am so tired,’ said he, ‘that I can go no farther.’ ‘Countryman,’ said the witch, ‘who are you? and what is your business?’ ‘I am,’ said he, ‘a messenger sent by the king to find the finest salad that grows under the sun. I have been lucky enough to find it, and have brought it with me; but the heat of the sun scorches so that it begins to wither, and I don’t know that I can carry it farther.’

When the witch and the young lady heard of his beautiful salad, they longed to taste it, and said, ‘Dear countryman, let us just taste it.’ ‘To be sure,’ answered he; ‘I have two heads of it with me, and will give you one’; so he opened his bag and gave them the bad. Then the witch herself took it into the kitchen to be dressed; and when it was ready she could not wait till it was carried up, but took a few leaves immediately and put them in her mouth, and scarcely were they swallowed when she lost her own form and ran braying down into the court in the form of an ass. Now the servant-maid came into the kitchen, and seeing the salad ready, was going to carry it up; but on the way she too felt a wish to taste it as the old woman had done, and ate some leaves; so she also was turned into an ass and ran after the other, letting the dish with the salad fall on the ground. The messenger sat all this time with the beautiful young lady, and as nobody came with the salad and she longed to taste it, she said, ‘I don’t know where the salad can be.’ Then he thought something must have happened, and said, ‘I will go into the kitchen and see.’

And as he went he saw two asses in the court running about, and the salad lying on the ground. ‘All right!’ said he; ‘those two have had their share.’ Then he took up the rest of the leaves, laid them on the dish and brought them to the young lady, saying, ‘I bring you the dish myself that you may not wait any longer.’ So she ate of it, and like the oth-

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THE COMET

rebel in the rearview mark pickerel’s new lp

by ron evans Mark Pickerel may be the Kevin Bacon of the Pacific Northwest music scene. Not only was he a founding member of one of the area’s most influential bands - The Screaming Trees, he’s also been in Truly and The Dark Fantastic, and over the years he’s worked with The Dusty 45s, Brandi Carlile, Neko Case, Duff McKagan, Mark Lanegan and a little outfit called Nirvana, just to name a few.

and atmosphere, and there’s plenty of both in this collection. Every song belongs in a David Lynch film or maybe some postapocalyptic love story set in the desert.

Especially his take on Lucinda Williams’ “Essence” featuring Star Anna, which has been on repeat for half the day here at Comet Headquarters.

Pickerel enlisted the help of many notable local and semi-local folks to work on the His current musical operation, Mark Pick- album including Jeff Fielder, Star Anna, erel and His Praying Hands has just re- Ian Moore, Drew Church, Johnny Sangleased a collection of cover songs and out- ster, and Jack Endino. takes recorded over the past decade, Rebel In The Rearview. The album feels quite When not in the studio or on the stage, cohesive in spite of being an assembly of Pickerel manages his records, clothing new works and old ghosts alike. Suitable and memorabilia boutique Roadtrip Rehomage is paid to these songs that clearly cords with a booth at the massive Thorpe mean a lot to Pickerel - but the eerie ‘dusty Antique Mall and some real estate at Jertrails and broken hearts’ arrangements and rol’s in Ellensburg. We sat down with the his trademark bass/baritone vocals feel so artist to chat about the LP, a little Screamat home in these tracks that you’d never ing Trees, and his life inside and outside of the music industry. know he didn’t write them.

Pickerel knows the importance of subtlety Tell us about the origin of this collection

of songs. Are they mostly one-off record- and my limited talents on display. Hearings as stand alone works or outtakes of ing collaborators like Jeff Fielder (Indigo previously released albums?

Girls, Mark Lanegan) add their talents and personalities to my songs gives the mateEarly on in this Covid nightmare, I was rial a dimension and an element of mystery trying to figure out ways to keep busy that and intrigue that I could never produce on didn’t involve getting into small rehearsal my own. spaces with my mates, and I started going through old recordings to see if there were How would you describe the Ellensburg any forgotten songs that might be worthy landscape, musically speaking - past of a release. After some digging, I came up and present? with around twenty songs, all in various forms of completion, some dating back a I find the terrain of this landscape so indecade or more, some from a session that spiring, and I can credit the old Yakima I started just about a week before Covid Canyon Highway alone with inspiring as lockdowns. I called Johnny Sangster, who many as five or six songs over the years. is an ace producer (Mudhoney, Posies) and During my younger years, I didn’t see the an incredible multi-instrumentalist (Neko beauty in most of my surroundings, save Case, Praying Hands), and asked if he’d for maybe the obvious majesty of the Casbe comfortable having me spend a few cades towering over the fields of hay. The days in his studio with him (masked ex- beauty of the sagebrush and basalt rock cept when stepping into the vocal booth), was far too subtle for me to capture my doing vocal and guitar overdubs, etc. We attention. I was preoccupied with a world spent a couple of weekends doing some re- on the other side of the Cascade Curtains, pairs to the original recordings and ended man-made architectural triumphs and up completing every song from my list. I street culture. I would have eagerly tradthen sent everything to Martin Feveyear ed this tumbleweed terrain for a concrete (Mark Lanegan, Shim, Dark Fantastic, jungle. But now I am awake to what it has Brandi Carlile) to mix. I decided that, from to offer, and I like to think that some of the a marketing perspective, it made sense to subtle beauty makes its way into my own release all the covers together. My think- songs, and much like nature, I’m willing to ing was that, since it’s been several years wait for someone to appreciate something since I released anything, this might be a I’ve created. Subtlety is a rare artform that good way to introduce myself to a whole I have become more acutely in tune with or new audience, on the backs of some of my on the search for, not just in art and music favorite artists: Townes Van Zandt, Secret but in cooking (another hobby), fashion, Sisters, Leonard Cohen, Amy Winehouse interior design, lyrics, literature etc. and more. I also wanted to familiarize myself with how to promote a record in the Alongside your music career, you have digital age before I get to work promoting been in the retail business since leaving my release of originals later this year. the Screaming Trees in the early 90s.

Mostly dealing in music and cultural As the lineup of featured performers on ephemera you seem passionate about. the LP will show, you have worked with Does the love of one gig trump the other many groups and artists over the years. these days?

Some musicians seem content putting out solo works for the most part but you Not at all. While it’s true that sometimes I clearly have an interest in group per- have to focus more attention on commerce formances and collaboration. How does than on creating music, it’s not for any lack that play into your creative output? of creative inspiration or loss of interest in performing but simply that it’s sometimes Right. You know, I could probably get easier for me to see the immediate results away with performing more of the parts of a day curating recent acquisitions, flipand instrumentation on my own records, ping thrift finds, etc., than to spend the but the truth is, I don’t think I would enjoy days working on songs while bills pile up. listening to them as much if it were just me At the end of the day, I feel that these two

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worlds that provide my livelihood are often informing each other. I listen to a lot of the music I sell. I also study the album art, designs, and careers of the bands whose product I handle, I contemplate the arch or trajectories of their individual careers, and I find myself doing a lot of casual analysis that goes on to inform my own creative process.

Tell us a little about Road Trip Records for the uninitiated.

Well, it’s pretty simple — I look for things I love that I can find for an affordable price, and then I sell them back to the public for a profit. Not just any old thing, of course, I look for things that may not appear very attractive on their own, but merchandised within the context of similar treasures, they start to tell a story or make a statement. The success of Roadtrip Records really came from a desire to survive and to provide for my family. I was lucky that a recent resurgence in an interest in vintage vinyl came along when it did, and I was able to quickly put about 40 years of experience as a vinyl vendor to use.

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of underpriced Frye boots at a thrift shop, the next week it might be a small but rare collection of records from an estate sale.

Maybe I’d get lucky one weekend and pick up an entire vintage wardrobe from a sale that none of the other antique dealers saw the value in. I just kept at it, and after two or three years, I found that I was starting to experience some flow, and was in a position to start making handsome offers on more valuable treasures. We’ve managed to expand four times in the last six years, and now we’re selling records out of Jerrol’s bookstore and we also sell direct to other record and vintage dealers out of a little warehouse space in downtown Ellensburg.

How many times a year would you guess someone asks you about a Screaming Trees reunion?

A few times a week. Maybe it’s not always in a question or comment directed at me, but because I was a member of the band, and many of my Facebook followers were fans, I’m often privy to conversations and comments suggesting that we put our differences aside and get back together. NOT. I don’t sell new products, so my inven- GONNA. HAPPEN. And for the first time tory changes a lot based on what’s avail- in twenty plus years, I might be more opable to me. Sometimes there might be an posed to the idea than any of us. emphasis on western wear, other times it’s the vintage vinyl selection that dominates We don’t need numbers of course, but… our floor space, then when those sell down, I love asking musicians about the actunext thing you know, I’m moving in some al business of music because there is a modern art that I picked up at an estate lot of mystery surrounding how things sale. Sometimes it can be a challenge to work. And only tacky people like me find the things that I’m especially inter- will ever ask. You are on a few tracks ested in, but often I find something worthy of the Nirvana box set With The Lights of repurposing.

Out - curious how those royalties compare to those of the Screaming Trees? Is I started Roadtrip Records out of necessity. one decidedly paying more bills than the When I moved back to the Ellensburg area, other?

I was financially destitute, and I was actually applying for every imaginable job. I Well actually, enough years have passed couldn’t even get an interview. I thought I since cashing my first sizable Nirvana might be able to sell a little bit of the inven- check that I don’t really mind discussing tory I still had in storage from my previous specifics. Within the first year or two of retail shops (Rodeo Records, Damaged the Nirvana release, I cashed about 75K or Goods). I had almost no money to play more worth of checks, a lot of money conwith, but whenever I came home from my sidering I only played drums on a couple busking gig at SeaTac airport with a few of songs that only represented two or three extra dollars, I would go out on a search days of rehearsals and recordings. By comfor anything cool that I thought I might parison, the Screaming Trees’ entire catabe able to flip. One day it might be a pair log has probably only netted me around

The first ever Praying Hands show. The Comet Seattle. Photo by Adam PW Smith.

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“Hey kids, y’all like Le adbelly?” A young Pic kerel behind the counter at Ace Reco rds in 1986. Photo by Caroline Rosevear.

Truly promo shot taken by Charles

1990 Screaming Trees promo shot taken by Charles Peterson.

Peterson.

with The Tripwires.

Pickerel on the skins on. rls Ca Photo by Anders

100k over thirty years. (Totally guessti- toire. Lanegan, knowing I was also a big fan, enlisted myself and Krist Novoselic. mating here.)

But you know, with two talented vocalMark Lanegan’s 1990 solo album The ists who were so used to leading their Winding Sheet features a cover of Lead- own bands, it seemed that neither Cobain belly’s “Where Did You Sleep Last or Lanegan wanted to appear to be stepNight?” performed by you, Lanegan ping on each other’s toes, and it led to a and Kurt Cobain and Krist Novoselic lot of indecision as to who should do what. of Nirvana. This ultimately (in a round- And next thing I knew, the two of them about way) led to Nirvana’s well-known seemed to lose interest. A couple of years performance of the song on MTV Un- later though, on a plane ride I shared with plugged in 1993. What do you recall of Cobain to LA, he expressed how much he loved my drumming on that session and these early recording sessions? would love to have me contribute some Well, it was a pretty exciting collabora- playing on what would have been the next tion that almost led to me playing on even Nirvana release. We exchanged our new more Nirvana releases, but due to Kurt’s contact info, and talked about carving out untimely exit, I was not able to enjoy what some time to rehearse after he got back could have led to a career on the scale of from the In Utero tour, but I suppose I that other drummer that spent a few years don’t need to tell you how the story ends. in Nirvana.

You have made it well known that Lee Lanegan and Cobain discovered through Hazlewood is a favorite artist of yours. their friendship that they both had a fas- His discography is quite eclectic and cination with Leadbelly. I was also a fan, maybe a bit daunting to some. Where having been turned onto him through would you tell someone to start if you Ace Records, a store in Ellensburg that I wanted to get them hooked? worked at while in high school.

I actually helped Light In The Attic (the The two of them quickly decided it would label that owns most of Hazlewood’s catabe cool to try and form a band strictly de- log) with the curation and content of one voted to repurposing Leadbelly’s reper- of the best Hazlewood groupings of songs.

A portrait of Pick erel’s beloved Ro deo Records, pa Tom Pickerel - M inted by artist ark’s father.

It’s called The LHI Years: Singles, Nudes and Backsides. It’s a great compilation, showcasing the versatility of his talents.

The Cowboy in Sweden is another good place to start.

Everyone always wants to know if the LP will come out on vinyl, myself included. Plans for that, or any other mechanical release?

Are you pushing people to your Band- It’s just a little ironic that a guy who is so interested in buying, selling, and collectcamp page to grab the new album? ing vinyl has become almost indifferent to I sure am. Bandcamp takes less of a per- whether his own releases become somecentage of sales than most platforms and thing that you can hold in your hands. But I literally distributes your share of sales, have a few reasons to be skeptical or cynialmost in real time, while tracking your cal about physical products in this day and age. For starters, without the opportunity customers. to tour, it’s unlikely that I’ll sell enough Bandcamp has made a major impact on copies to justify the expense of producing the music industry on all levels but for vinyl or cds. indie musicians it’s a total game changer. Has it been a big part of your latter And furthermore, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve worked my own merch music distribution? booth and fielded numerous questions conAbsolutely, for several years I really re- cerning whether or not a particular title sented the trend towards online streaming, was available on the one format that they listening, downloading, mostly because it don’t see in front of them. I do love vinyl, was just so difficult to track the results, or and I actually like cds as well, but because to make very much money. Bandcamp has I handle so many thousands of titles every really created a model that is much more year through my second-hand business, I generous to its artists than most platforms see how disposable it can all become, and and has actually created an environment considering how much garbage our society that is fun to operate within. It’s the first already creates on a daily basis, I someencouraging online opportunity I can think times have to ask myself, does the world really need another thousand copies of of in a long time.

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March Quarantinescopes What in good hell is even going on? This month marks a year of quarantine. A year of introspection and isolation and for many (myself included) a new sense of existential dread. Let these cheerful tidbits warm your heart like ice melting in Spring.

Aries - This month brings a time for you to rest. Cozy up, be still and let your mind wander.

Take a nap, set down the to-do list and just enjoy some quiet time daydreaming. That is, if you can force yourself to actually slow down from the constant slew of projects and distractions you create for yourself. Good luck.

Taurus - Oooooh looks like the social aspect of your chart is blowing up right now! You better get together with your one other safe household of 5 people or less and really get your socializing on! Or better yet, zoom calls with your friends to avoid having to actually socialize (if you’re too out of touch with socializing from a year of staying home in your comfy bed). Do what you gotta do to share your ideas and create a sense of community.

Gemini - This is a creative time for you, little air sign. You’re excited and full of inspiration!

This time brings a momentum to create some of your best work yet, not that you need any extra boosts in momentum. Enjoy the creative flow and bask in the inspiration… But also remember to do important things like pay your bills and file your taxes.

Small sampling of the goods to be found at Roadtrip Records in the Thorpe Antique Mall.

a release out there? Now with that said, should it become more apparent to me that people REALLY want me to release some of my new music on vinyl or cd, I will make it so, but as of right now, I’m just not convinced that there’s enough buyers.

I really like Laura Marling, David Bazan, Angel Olsen, Foxygen, The Crayon Fields.

I’d also like to have a chance to explore playing some jazz, I studied under a drum instructor who passed a lot of jazz and related chops and skills to me back in high school, and I’ve spent many years develAfter the year that never was, are there oping that side of my playing, but rarely plans to tour for this collection as ven- around other players. I’m also heavy into ues start opening up later this year reggae, and would love an opportunity to (hopefully)? play with Clinton Fearon or someone else who has a command of the genre.

I do have a show scheduled at The Seasons in Yakima on May 20th. It’s gonna stream, And in another life, I would have loved to complete with a virtual tip jar and all. I’ll have drummed for AC/DC. also be releasing that new full length of originals shortly after, and hope to get out Where can people follow your exploits and promote it as much as possible or per- online? mitabble. I enjoyed having a few months off from the constant hustle, but am now I’m happy just to have people follow me very anxious to start performing again. through Bandcamp (Mark Pickerel and his Praying Hands) or on Facebook. My As a longtime collaborator is there any- Bandcamp page is quickly turning into one you’d love to work with that you Pickerel central—I can sell merch there, haven’t had a chance to yet?

I can get the word out to followers when there’s shows to promote etc.

I would love to work with Brian Eno, Tony Visconti, Bryan Ferry, Paul McCartney, markpickerelandhisprayinghands.bandChrissie Hynde, Lucinda Williams, Tom camp.com Waits. I’d love to do another record with the Secret Sisters. I drummed on their Got some records or cool vintage items release You Don’t Own Me Anymore, a you’d like to sell? Contact Mark at few years back, and it almost took home roadtriprecords101@gmail.com a Grammy. It’s an incredible album, and they just really possess a unique talent.

An artist named Tom Brosseau and I are planning to collaborate on some recordings soon.

Cancer - This month marks a good time to do some shadow work…not that you don’t already pick yourself apart emotionally and mentally all the time. Tap into your subconscious and get comfortable in all of those big feelings that you try so hard to avoid. Really dig in, shine some light on those shadows and realize that you are so much stronger than you ever imagined. And adorable. You’re adorable too. Keep it up little crab, it’s big work.

Leo - It’s time to settle your debts and close the chapter on some aspects of your life. Maybe you’re walking away from a job that no longer serves you, or a relationship. Whatever the circumstances, level it out and move on. No need to cling or hope for the perfect ending.

Insert cliche about how when one door closes, another one opens or whatever. You don’t need closure, you’re a goddamn lion!

Virgo - Everything in your chart this month is pointing towards relationships and compromises and intimacy with your partner. I want you to take that sentiment and look at all of those aspects with yourself. How can you show up for yourself better? How can you love yourself more deeply? Get deep into your relationship with yourself and see what you need before latching on to a new partner or a new relationship. It will serve you to know yourself better before trying to meet the needs of someone else. And let’s be honest, it shouldn’t be too hard, after all, you are your own favorite person.

Libra - The energy coming in this month has you feeling motivated to tidy up your life, physically, mentally, etc. It’s also pushing you towards one of your favorite activities: helping others. Just make sure that you keep a healthy balance of personal and social space, or you may find yourself lost in your tendency for codependence and resenting everyone around you for taking advantage of your “kind gestures.” Don’t overextend your help while neglecting yourself, it makes you a royal B. Scorpio - It’s such a good time to be creative little Scorpio. Write some poetry, play some music, paint, start an OnlyFans for your feet, whatever you’re into! Just let it out and enjoy it. What better time than now, since you’re already unemployed or working from home. Dive into your artistic side; maybe even turn it into a side hustle.

Sagittarius - You may find yourself searching for what makes you feel like you, but you don’t have to look far. You’re family centric. You’re fun and spontaneous. Take those qualities and create something to look forward to… maybe a family vacay? Because nothing says “fun” like being out of town with family during a global pandemic.

Capricorn - The communication section of your chart is at the forefront this month. Great news, now you can vocalize all the ways you’re right and all the ways everyone else is wrong.

It’s also a good time to listen to your instincts and follow your gut. Use this powerful time to share your vast knowledge and wisdom with the world, Capricorn. Get it while you can!

Aquarius - Water Bearer, sometimes you’re so eccentric I just can’t get a read on you. Can we start by pointing out that you’re a gall durn water bearer, yet you’re an AIR SIGN?! Okay, we get it, you’re so unique (eye roll). This month I guess you’ll have some luck with money and gifts or something. Maybe you’ll come into a new fortune or maybe you’ll finish some boring paperwork that you’ve been putting off for months. Whatever you do, I’m sure you’ll do it in full whacky Aquarian fashion.

Pisces - Happy Birthday you charming little fish! You’re feeling dreamy and creative, which is a welcomed break from the tidal wave of emotion that you’re usually feeling. Ride the waves of inspiration and make those creative dreams a reality by staying focused and diligent.

But try not to get swept up in the waves and lost at sea.

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march 2021

THE COMET

brain dump: pomp and circumstance

by KRISTEN ACESTA

I was all for Law & Order: UK edition… until they got to the courtroom, when I realized they still wear wigs (also called a peruke btw). But for reals, grown adults with law degrees still wear wigs in England.

Not to continue bashing on the Brits, but I was listening to The Astrology Podcast not too long ago on the nation’s birth chart, it’s capricorn sun, and how they hold on to traditions. “It makes sense in a way” Tony was explaining “the tradition of the royal family is merely a representation of everything the British value. Not necessarily a productive totem, but useful nonetheless.” That was paraphrased by the way. Tony is too nice to directly jab.

But it brings me to the point of ritual.

I grew up in a home where we celebrated Christmas because people wanted presents and all other holidays were hearsay.

We had no traditions to speak of and the materialistic nature of it all had me detesting anything to do with ritual, formality, and the like. Not only that, but my skeptical nature made sure to point out the *obvious* fact that charades and dance, no matter the intention, are still just psychological stages to mask the wizard behind the veil. AKA, they aren’t doing anything.

It’s all in your head.

We see rules and regulations around this in both directions through various religions. Christianity tells you that it’s idolatry to put too much energy and praise into/ onto anything that isn’t God. Things like rosary beads, Jesus statues, and dare I say crosses can be considered idolatry if one is worshiping the piece of materialistic wood more than its intended representation.

Nicolas de Largillière’s portrait of Lambert de Vermont - WikiMedia Commons

Many Buddhists sects have opposite rituals of encouraging people to purposefully transfer energy, emotions, and thoughts onto materialistic objects. Things like the “weeping monk” (one of my favorite statues by the local Greenman Stone) that is supposed to represent a physical transference of grief and sorrow onto the rock itself so that you don’t have to hold onto it.

Let’s not delve too deep into religious crosshairs though. We all know where that leads. The point of the examples is to demonstrate the human capacity to

empower, process, and transform material objects as something special, that can then be used by the same individual to in turn empower, process, and transform themselves (good or bad depending your angle). Did you get that? Let me give a better example: Pinrolled wigs give a bunch of English (mostly) white males with a lineage of colonizing the world, a sense of power.

It only gives them power because they all partake in the ritual of wearing it, only when in a position that normally fosters empowerment, like in the courtroom.

They also believe in it. Just like they believe in the royal family, and what they represent.

Nevertheless, this article is actually supposed to be positive. Yeah I know, give me a break, I’m working on it.

So here’s the twist. You can create your own rituals. Want to do better in that job interview you got coming up? Then wear your lucky coat. Don’t have a lucky coat?

Go make one. Don’t want to make one?

Then pick up that nasty piece of dirty laundry in your corner and claim that as the lucky guy. The irony! It really doesn’t matter because it’s all in your head. And it’s so powerfully effective because it’s all in your head!

You know what the royal family means?

Absolutely nothing. They literally are a bunch of rich overly privileged white aristocrats that don’t have actual jobs. If you don’t believe me, watch any British documentary on them. And yet, they *do* mean something to the Brits. They are a source of pride, hope, honor, etc. that seemingly is reflected back to its people.

So what are your rituals? Where do you place your power so it’s easily viewed and reflected back to you? Maybe wearing a wig gives you that wonder woman vibe.

Or rocking a vest, tie, and overgrown sideburns brings a sense of self (Ron).

Perhaps all those crystals you got in your window remind you to speak your truth, and the incense you’re smoking your neighbors out with is somehow cleansing your apartment. Who gives a sh*t because it’s not their ritual, it’s yours. So own it. C

THE COMET

march 2021

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THE COMET

THE FUNNY PAGES Comics by Dan McConnell

COMICS AND NOVELTIES

THE COMET

march 2021

POPEYE’S origins and the WENATCHEE CONNECTION

BY RON EVANS

Did you know Popeye was based on a real life man? Did you also know that one of the original and most celebrated Popeye illustrators was born in Wenatchee? Tis a tale many folks don’t go a-knowin’. So I’ll go a blowin’. So to speak.

Popeye’s creator E.C. Segar based the comic character off of what many people have called the real life one-eyed, brawling, swaggerin’, mumblecussing, pipe-smoker named Frank “Rocky” Fiegel. Although, Fiegel was not a sailor, and there’s no sign that he was fond of spinach. Whiskey was another matter as Rocky was often spotted at one end of a local bar or another.

In the early 1900s, Rocky was a well known character around Segar’s hometown of Chester, Illinois, mostly for being a good fighter and having seemingly superhuman strength. As legends go, anyway. At one point Segar had made some sketches of the ol’ boy just for fun, and these would later end up as the basis for Popeye the Sailor Man. While Segar was working at King Features Syndicate, he began drawing Thimble Theatre for the New York Journal. The strip made its debut on December 19, 1919 and featured a myriad of wacky characters, including a man named Castor Oyl and his younger sister Olive. It wasn’t until about a decade into the strip’s run that Castor needed to hire a sailor to navigate his ship to Dice Island. They picked up a scrappy, wise-crackin’ seaman named Popeye to do just that. The character was so popular that he became a main fixture in Thimble Theatre and eventually the strip was renamed Popeye.

Sadly, Segar died of leukemia at the age of 43 but his flagship character had become so popular that it was being carried in newspapers and magazines all over the country so new artists were needed to keep the flame alive.

Enter Bud Sagendorf. Born in Wenatchee in 1915, Sagendorf soon moved with his family to California where he began an interest in cartooning and illustration at a very young age. When he was a teenager, Sagendorf got his first professional cartooning gig as E.C. Segar’s assistant. He spent most of his time writing and drawing for Thimble Theatre and was especially crucial in the development of the character Popeye. Upon Segar’s death, Sagendorf took over those duties full time and ushered Popeye from strip to comic book and eventually animated shorts, toys and films.

Sagendorf passed away in 1994 at the age of 79 and his legacy bears out that the story of Popeye as we know could not have happened without the involvement of this Wenatchee native. Known as the Carl Barks of Popeye - he wasn’t the only man to ever write and draw the Popeye strips and comics - but he’s regarded by most fans and historians alike as the greatest and most influential of them all.

As for Rocky, he lived to be an older man than many would have guessed with his hard-drinking, hard-fighting ways. But before he passed away in 1947 he was made aware that he’d inspired one of the most famous cartoon characters of all time, which he found amusing. As Rocky’s story became more well known in the mid1990s a group of superfans organized a fundraiser to add Popeye to his gravestone with the caption “Inspiration For Popeye The Sailor Man.” An amazing legacy for a man who by all counts simply ‘was what he was and that’s all that he was.’

Frank “Rocky” Fiegel Sun, Apr 8, 1979 – Page 33 · Southern Illinoisan (Carbondale, Illinois) · Newspapers.com

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