Seattle 1991 Continues:Bumbershoot

Aug 31, 1991,

I went to the Bumbershoot festival today in Seattle Center. It was quite fun, I had seen a number of local punk/rock type bands along with Booker T and the MGs. that was quite cool. It was seven bucks but worth it. I visited the Science Center which was a load of fun. I then came back after looking at some art. I was hanging out here for an hour and then went back. I missed BB King but saw a Cajun band and a wonderful folk band "Marley's Ghost" and various small bands around the festival. Bands like Skinyard, Mono Men and Love Battery at the Bumber Club. Alan Ginsberg was there but I didn't see him. I ate a lot of pretzels man.


2011 Update- I love Bumbershoot. It's a Labor Day weekend day festival that charges one price for a full day opportunity to see various acts in music, comedy, poetry and lots and lots of art. It is a great opportunity to catxch marginal acts that you might not pay full price to see by themselves. You can go from place to place all for one price. 1991 was the first one I went to and I was very open minded in checking out as much bands as possible. If you get bored you move to another act, another venue. Or check out art. 7 bucks was a huge bargain in 1991. It's 35 dollars a day in 2011 but much cheaper than your avegare cost for a concert.

Over the years I've seen James Brown, The Violent Femmes, Jimmy Dale Gilmore, Beck, Parliment, The Sex Pistols, Joan Jett, Sir Mix-a-lot, Tony Bennet, The Blind Boys of Alabama, And on one memorable occasion, on one day, one stage even I saw Roger McGuinn, Mel Torme, Mudhoney and the Ramones.

Sketches From the Past.

Here are some sketches I did in 1991 that was experimental for me. I kinda like them for its adventurous spirit. I'm thinking of adapting them for new color computer work.

Hostelling-Seattle -1991 style.

Aug. 30, 1991.


Yesterday, I checked into the downtown hostel in Seattle. I haven't done much, I tried to get in touch with my friend in the hopes to go out tonight. No such luck. Well, after writing some postcards I went to the Seattle Center to get a head start on the Bumbershoot weekend. I saw some really incredible works of art from women. It was intimidating, frightening, horrible and wonderful. There was media-oriented works that was cool




















I also went to the Pioneer Square area and spent time in a book store carousing the books for a few hours. I bought some beads (2011-yeah, I bought beads) but I can't seem to string them together. I finally met up with my friend and went up to visit him. It was uneventful other than his roommate who is an extraordinary craftsman with amazing skills with furniture and fixing up junk. It's a fine place with good view and my friend seems to have a good life. The tool shed was incredible.



















2011- It was weird to see an old school chum in the new city. I was hoping to lean on him a bit but felt we weren't close enough for me to take advantage of any favors. Plus I was hung up on trying to get my comic strip "Pipe Dreams" going and the idea of manual labor at the time for some reason I felt was beneath me. On retrospect I was definitely a snob and should have jump into developing new skills.

Lollapalooza-1991

August 29, 1991.

Yuck! I do not like this paper (2011-cheap thin paper) this damn sketchbook was shrink wrapped so I didn't know how bad it would be. Anyway, Yesterday was a day. I was easily able to get a ticket to the Lollapalooza show (2011-from From Frederick and Nelson's). It had six, maybe seven acts from Jane's Addiction, Ice-T to Siouxsie and The Banshees and Fishbone. (2011-Also Nine Inch Nails and Violent Femmes). I was hoping to get a ride from a friend of Justine, the girl I met in Portland.

Well, Of course that fell through and I had to scramble to figure out how to get to the Kings County Fairgrounds. I called buses and went to the Greyhound station and called the Metro again (2011-How easy it would be if there was a hand held cyberspace device to use) and finally was able to get a bus that got me to a mini-bus that dropped us about 3 miles from the fairgrounds.

Well, Guess what? It was raining, not hard but raining nonetheless. (2011-Believe it or not it was the first time since my trip began) Well, I met up with people and we got separated two by food, two by booth and finally when we got to the entrance I lost the last person because we weren't allowed on the grounds with a backpack. (2011-Yeah this ain't Woodstock) Since we both had backpacks we couldn't just walk in.

I wanted to go in but my man decided to screw the whole thing. I had to put the backpack SOMEWHERE since it was raining, I had to find a place as dry as possible and hide it from view.


So I went to a small group of bushes and tied it to a branch about six feet in the air. But I got discovered and had to find another place which also got spotted by someone but he too needed a hiding place so I threw caution in the wind.

When I finally got to the show, The Violent Femmes were on and they put on a solid performance. It continued to rain and there wasn't much shelter at all from the rain. When the Femmes ended I checked out the art show there and the political tables. It was the only decent retreat from the rain.

I wasn't able to find any of the people I met on the bus trip or Justine. (2011-My future girlfriend WAS there though, two years early) Man there are freaks at the show, It was a regular sideshow. (2011-The Jim Rose Sideshow as a matter of fact)

If you wanted to buy food you had to buy tickets and purchase the food with the tickets,so of course you have some left over at the end of the night.(2011-Try using the exact amount of tickets without having a little left over, It's impossible) I bought about 4 glasses of lemonade.

Okay I missed the first few acts because our mini-bus got stuck in traffic behind a farm combine. It was a half hour ride at a snail's pace.

After the Femmes, Fishbone came on and I had the best view of the stage. This was fine because they were exciting to look at. Ice-T was next and he put on a great show. His back up band, Body Count was great. Ice-T had the fans in his control. (2011- they did Cop Killer and the crowd went nuts) Owwwww! I didn't have have as good of a view because I sought shelter in between acts. During Siouxsie and the Banshees I walked around a bit since I'm not a huge fan though she was good and I was around for my favorite songs of hers.

I tried to get close when it was time for Jane's Addiction, It was getting dark and I wasn't able to find Justine. Jane's took a long time setting up and with the rain and the increased cold, It was quite uncomfortable. They were great despite my view wasn't good. The fans were obnoxious, pushing and trying to climb over people (I didn't know the term crowd surfing in 1991) The highlight of the set was when Ice-T came out to "duet" with Jane's Addiction on the Sly Stone classic "Don't Call Me N-----, Whitey" What a weird due that Perry Farrel. After "Caught Stealing" I started to saunter out away from the stage, first at the art tent where a bonfire was roaring, I then slowly found my way back to the entrance.When they were doing their encore I went to find my bag.

I then walked the 3 miles back to the bus stop, only to find out I missed the last bus and the next one wasn't until 5 in the morning. Well, Shit that was 6 more hours! Which made me wonder, There was about 18 people on the bus with me and I woindered what happened to them and how was I gonna get back to the Y. Some girls walked by and two guys walked by and said they were gonna hitchhike. I didn't know what to do, the nearby hotel had no vacancy. Finally, this dude walked by and we decided to hitch a ride. He was a dopey guy from Canada named Terry. Two other women walked by also from Canada asked us where we were going. They were going to Seattle for the night and had a car but it was parked further away. We walked about a mile before the girls decided they needed to hitch to GET to the car. A big guy in a VW Rabbit picked us up and drove abouyt FIVE miles till we finally got to the girls car.

Now the girl's car, A VW Bug was in piss poor shape (Like a Flintstone mobile) but we were driving. When we got to I-5 we were so sluggish to the point that a cop pulled us over. The girl driving didn't have a license on her and the other two people didn't even have a license at all. The only one with a license was me! And he shouted out "New Jerrrrsey" in the most red neck accent possible when he saw my license. So the cop does the usual routine and then says that I had to drive the car.

So sure enough I'm driving this Flintsone mobile (2011-Praying that I didn't have to brake Flintstone style) as it chugged up I-5 going a max. 35 mile an hour. Anyway I got off the right exit and was inb front of the "Y" and got out an bid goodbye to the girls. I reluctantly invited Terry to crash at the "Y" but was relieved that the "Y" doesn't allow it. They have night guards to ensure that. I quickly said "I'm sorry, dude" and entered the elevator and never saw them again.

P.S..- At 1AM the rain finally stopped.

Long Bus Trip Northward.....

Aug. 26, 1991.

Monday, Take-off day. Another dreadful bus trip. These bus trips start out fine, I had my own seat for the first stretch, which doiesn't last too long. The day started out saying good bye to all the people I met in San Francisco. It's sad even though I've only known them for three days and boy oh boy I wish the quality of the women that go to the hostels were regulars at Wilson's.

Man, they were beautiful and most were not traveling with anyone. and since they were foreign, They thought I was cool. Antony is an alright guy, amusing to a point and was lucky to have Demit as a companion to go to LA with him (2011-Definitely shoulda gone with them) even if she is a loon. There will be people coming up to Seattle in the near future. the bus trip was okay until two kids came on at Redding, California. One sat next to me which destroyed any hope of me getting any sleep.

We drove past Mt. Shasta National Park, a truly spectacular sight. the mountains were beautiful when the sun was going down and it got dark before the scenery got dull. the bus driver kept yakking away about the surrounding areas and this along with the frequent night stops prevented me from getting any sleep.


We made a supper stop in Williams, California at an A&W restaurant. It was classic junk food. I bought corn chips, apples and Sweet Tarts (2011-?) for a cheap price (2011-Once again with being cheap) I ate the whole bag --burp!--- I ate dreadfully in San Francisco and I'm gonna make up for it in Seattle again. Sigh! It seems that no matter what bus, train, and plane I take I'm surrounded by nothing but classless people who are boring. I mean, Where are the cool people? I never talk to people on bus trips, I get in a pissy mood and I don't want to talk to anybody.

Oh well, Now it's Tuesday morning and I'm still on the bus and my stomach is churning because we're getting close to Seattle and I'm not sure I'll get a hostel bed for the night. I've got to make some plans now.

Go Go Frisco!

Aug. 25, 1991

Saturday...actually I'm writing this Monday but it's actually about Saturday, Get it? Let's see....ah yes... Saturday I wake up before my roommate Antony. I was on the roof meditating a bit when this girl from Germany came up looking for a room. That room just happened to be the room where a girl I met Friday was. I struck up some small talk with her and though I felt somewhat unnerved by me. We talked for a half hour and I invited her to spend the day with me, Antony and Helen. It was a touristy day. We went back to Fisherman's Wharf. We rode the trolley which was cool. We had free passes from the other day from a guy I met in Portland. We spent too much time in Fisherman's Wharf which depressed the hell out of me. It's a lousy place to hang out. We did a little walking through North Beach and stopped at a cafe and at a park near a beautiful church. The German girl, Demit (I think) was a firecracker ready to explode! She turned out to be nuts. After a while we went through Chinatown and went back to the hostel. We hung out for a while and went to a dumb club with me, Antony, Helen, Demit, Remsy, and two German brothers and Karin. It was typical loud dance music with a yuppie crowd. We left looking for other clubs in the area but since half of us were underaged we had a hard time getting in. After a while Remsy and I got fed up and went back. End of evening.

2011 Update: the way I read this today I see that I was a killjoy at times. It usually happens when I'm hanging with a group larger than six people. It took me years to break that habit but I still slip up even these days.




















Sunday started out with the usual fumbling around and doing nothing. We had to catch a 10:45 boat going to Alcatraz. Man, What a trap! God! San Francisco worse than New York with its touristy junk and rip off sights. Alcatraz was dull, expensive and unauthentic. We weren't able to get off the regimented path. A little bit of history was learned here but I tell ya, there's nothing more frustrating than a tourist attraction that originally was used for a different purpose.





















Once we got out of there I decide I wanted to walk to Haight-Ashbury (Against Antony's wishes) It was on this walk I finally got an appreciation for San Francisco. I was finally able to see how the natives lived and saw some of the famed streets that you always see in movies and TV. Antony was somewhat perturbed at the idea of walking but I tricked him in thinking the walk wasn't gonna be too long. I've had to compromise more but dammit! this is what exploring a city is really like. We finally got to the Haight and took the obligatory picture at Haight Ashbury. Although we only spent about a half hour there, It made up for the other crap we did. The park, (Golden State) seems like a wonderful place to spend the day (2011 It sure as hell is!) but alas! no. It's back to the hostel. Maybe someday I'll spend a long weekend here depending on what job I get.





















I didn't do much in the evening. We got a new roommate. He's kind of a macho jerk. I was hanging out with him in the common room when he went up to get a beer. While he was away, I struck up a conversation with two British girls, both named Kathy and we were joined by another girl from Denmark. I was having a great time with them when whats-his-name came back. At first I thought he was gonna sit away from us and watch TV. But he joined us much to my dismay. It was no problem until it got late and we went back to our respective rooms. When he went into a misogynist rant to describe the girls.

















God!!!! And these girls were cool. One had the coolest face (2011-coolest face?) the other a cool voice and the third a nice plump body. If you think THAT'S crude? Hah!


P.S. I called the guys today.


I've periodically read my sketchbooks over the years but I don't recall when I last read this entry. It flooded me with the memories of that Sunday night in San Fransisco. I forgot that I didn't got out much at night at the time. It would be about another 6 months when I would go out regularly at night. Ugh, that guy who was my roommate. I don't know where Antony was that night. I liked hanging out with him and we would have done well with these women being each other's wing man.

Ahh, the days when you had to call using a pay phone. I actually don't recall whether phone cards were in normal usage in 1991, so it's beyond my memory how I called.

San Francisco Here I Come!

Aug. 23, 1991.

Oh boy, I am in San Francisco. I didn't impress me as much as I thought it would. after a torturous 18 hour bus trip, I finally arrived at 8:30 in the morning. I met someone who also was on the bus and we are staying at an unofficial youth hostel. It's not as nice an experience as the one in Portland. We have have a small room with me, Anthony and a guy named Ramsey? are sharing. I've been hanging out with Anthony who is from England. Id did the cliche things in San Francisco. I went to the Golden Gate Bridge and Fisherman's Wharf. Both were mild disappointments.

San Francisco is similar to New York in some negative aspects. There are plenty of homeless people milling about. I've taken the bus more here than I had in both Portland and Seattle.















Anthony is one who talks to anyone and we met some some girls who were going to the Golden Gate Bridge. One was really cute and was from England. We didn't hang out for long, they were jet-hopping to various cities in the US. I was so tired though because I didn't sleep much at all on the bus trip and didn't take a nap while I was here at the hostel. I was talking to more girls who were from Wales. Plenty of women here. I met people who were from Germany, Including this robust classic cliched German woman. She's got wonderfully playful eyes and I was flirting shamelessly with her. We went to a brewery and that was the extent of the evening.



2011 Update: I don't believe my first assessment of The Golden Gate Bridge is accurate. I may have been too tired and wanted to chill and maybe have some beer that day. Alos this was the first time I was hanging out with people whom it would be a problem getting into bars legally.

One thing I noticed that there were more foreigners at the San Francisco hostel than the Portland one. One interesitn thing was that the cities that they wanted to visit in the US were different from the ones that I liked and would like to go to. Las Vegas being one of the ones that's top on their list and near bottom of mine.

Portland to San Francisco

Aug 22, 1991

I am now on a bus bound to San Francisco. I didn't do much at ALL today. I got up at the usual time. I did laundry (2011 Update: I'm doing laundry today too) and when it was time to get kicked out of the hostel, A guy (Who happened to be a boyfriend of a girl I went to high school with) dropped me off at the train station. I put most of my stuff in a day locker and headed for the city to have some excellent bread and homemade stout. Ahhhh, beauty! I proceeded to a place called Hamburger Mary's and had a burger filled with lettuce and alfalfa sprouts. It was quite good but expensive!! $4.40 for just a burger! (2011-Again with my cheapness!) Anyway, a guy starts talking to me about Portland, art, and jobs in general. I don't know what motivated him to speak to me but we talked throughout the lunch and he gave me a number to call if I decide to settle in Portland and decide to work part time for UPS. Even though I has a better time in Portland, Seattle seems more to be the place to settle down. I think Portland would be ideal for someone like James Gribbon.




2011 Update: It's amazing that on a long bus trip I put so little into the fact that I ran into a woman named Jackie Swanson who went to Mt. Olive High School the same time I did. I didn't know her personally but knew her from appearance. When we had our first conversation at the hostel, I had to draw her out to see if she remembered me. She didn't. I looked quite a bit different at the time from my high school days and certainly had a different attitude. However, When it was time to get to sleep we were able to converse about Mt. Olive High. I was cool.

The UPS guy was a bit pushy but I had considered working there because it was part time, However at the time the idea of cutting my hair to get a job was out of the question. I wonder how much that stand hurt me job wise over the years. Anyway I would finally work at UPS and it was up there as being the worst job I ever had. Of course I was 40, And being paid squat to work harder than I ever did.

Another interesting thing I did was buy some microbrew beer for the first time. I read about the trend in Peter Bagge's "Hate" and I don't think I had had a beer at that point on my trip. It was really good and I wish I could remember the name of the place as I didn't write it down.

Portland 1991 Continues...Part III

Aug. 21, 1991,

Well, It's back to exploring by myself. I really didn't do much new today. I went to the museum of advertising which charged $3 dollars but I walked in without paying. It really wasn't worth it. It was good for being free but anyway. I spent most of the day in Powell's bookstore and at Ira Keller's fountain, Which should be considered THE Portland landmark. It's excellent and a load of fun. Powell's bookstore is even more excellent with the coffee shop. I bought a book there to compensate for the books I DIDN'T buy. It's an I.B. Singer book of short stories, Which suits me fine.

Some weird woman today approached me. She said "Did you know Jesus loves you?" I replied "Yes, He does." and she looked dumbfounded when I went on my merry way.


2011 Update: I realized that I have about a two to three day tolerance of visiting cities when I'm by myself. I felt I got all I could get out of Portland back then. I was wrong but felt that Portland was not going to be the city that I would move to.

Bad Poetry...

Another thing I did a lot more back in 1991 was write bad poetry. I filled my sketchbooks with tons of weird stuff.



Ah, the moon is bright
Such a comforting sight
I sit on the front porch
My light supplied by a torch

A girl whom I met
Me, She'll soon forget
I play the stubborn fool
I realize I'm not cool

My hands are full of tension
Wanting to commit sin
Not that I like to judge
But my brain is fudge

I should not be jealous
But I tend to make a fuss.
When I can't get my way
I wish for words to say

Oh, I can talk quite well
With a that's from hell
Talk too much about nothing
Words that I should not sing

Man, It has only been an hour
But I feel a drained power
Jealousy to make me insane
God please ease the pain

I know it's my fault
I can be a foolish dolt
But I am who I know
So goodbye I gotta go.

An Old Joke.

When I had moved to Seattle I had intended to conquer it with my comic strip, Pipe Dreams. It was in its infancy stage in 1991, And I would draw sketches and put down ideas in hopes it would make for a good comic strip. This is one that I never finished, Mostly because it was a bit lame and it didn't fit in the Pipe Dreams landscape. However, from a 2011 perspective it's a bit interesting.


Here is the crude sketch from my pad.













Okay, Anybody who knows me knows I don't like tattoos. In 1991, I saw the trend in its infancy in Seattle. Women were starting to get them and I thought it was a weird thing to be a fad. so I tried to make a joke that when tattoos get out of style, The people who have them will have to deal with being out of fashion. However, twenty years later the "trend" continues and I have to bite my lip every time I see an ugly tattoo on a woman I think is cute. That may explain why I go through long periods of time without dating.

New Pipe Dreams

Portland 1991 Continues...

2011 Refresher:It took almost a week for me to get a hang of my traveling and to relax and enjoy myself. Portland was where I first got the impression of what the 1990s would be like and I was happy about that. Although I thought it was going to be more "hippy" like, It wasn't too far off from that San Francisco ideal "Summer of Love" vibe.






















Tues. Aug 20, 1991.

A good day. (2011 whaaaa?)I settled into a hostel which is in a house in the middle of the bohemian section of Portland. I've spent nearly all my time with this girl from Australia named Justine. I think I'm falling for her. But it's probably just an initial attraction. She's really pretty and I spent the whole day with her. The problem is I want to kiss her and kiss her badly, often and everywhere. I haven't made any moves on her out of respect for HER feelings. (2011-hoo boy!)I feel a fraternal attraction to her. She's not a maternal figure nor am I a paternal figure (lotsa hippies around here) She's got pretty eyes, brown is color. a pleasant voice and is perhaps too good of a listener. anyways if nothing happens, that's fine because it was wonderful spending the time with her here in Portland.

We walked to the city center which is about two miles from the hostel. We went to a book store (A GREAT book store), Powell's. It had a cappuccino place where you can read (2011-unpurchased) books while eating. We then went to (Portland's) Pioneer Square and saw a reggae band. After that we sat at an excellent fountain that I waded through and watched kids at play. We then strolled through a college-like row of parks. We would swing on the swing set.



















We then went to a nice museum that focused on the history of Oregon and we went back to the hostel to rest and recuperate for a bar-b-q here at the hostel, Which should be nice.

2011 Update: Ahhh, Justine. She was great. I was really hoping to keep it going with her. She went up to Seattle when I went down to San Francisco. She gave me a number to contact her up there but for whatever reason I didn't hook up with her again. She told me about the Lollapalooza show in Seattle. I went to it but wasn't able to spot her in the large crowd. I wish I took a picture of her but I guess I woulda felt it intrusive in those pre-digital camera, certainly pre-camera phone days.

Seattle 1991 Continues:

Actually Portland:


Monday August 19, 1991.


Well, What can I say? I really came inadequetely prepared for a trip like this. the hostel have various and sometimes strange check-in hours. I stayed last night in a hotle called the Imperial. It was pretty good (I had to go here because the hostel was full.) The check-out time was 2 pm And I'm biding my time with all my luggage at Portland's Union Station.

DAMN! WHY IS THIS HAPPENING TO ME!!!!!(excuse the moment of outrage)

I was able to lighten my luggage load a little. It's not as bulky. the worst thing is my portfolio and all that's in it. It's at times like when I regret making this trip. I haven't been able to get in touch with my friend.

Portland so far hasn't impressed me, In fact it kind of scares me. The main reason being is that yet to settle down here. This hostel thing is a drag. Why bother? I mean, Here is an organization dedicated to housing the young people at a very affordable price but yet if they're full, You're out of luck. sometimes it could be so crowded that you need reservations ahead of time. Although you have to have a credit card! Ah, the bitter irony, I wonder why no one is even answering the phone. for God's sake it's 3 in the afternoon! So eight hours spent in train stations in two days and I still haven't made any economic progress.
(I always need to spend money on something or another.)

Later on....

Ah, finally at the hostel. And so far, so what. Before I got here I was approached by a girl named Bonnie who inquired about my art school tag. Well, our conversation was joined by another person who was wondering which of us was doing the hostel thing. So the three of us had a good hour long conversation. The girl named Justine is from Ausralia. She is quite attractive and a very nice person. We took a cab together to the hostel where I will be spending the next three nights, Unfortunately she'll be staying only two. So now I start saving money. Maybe somewhere along this trip I might make money. The hostel in Portland isn't as nearly as conveninetly located as the Seattle one is, But it seems like there will be enough things to do anyway.














More tomorrow...

P.S. Yes, On Saturday I saw a Mariners game.

Seattle 1991 Continues: Undated Entries.

2011: When I first explored Seattle, I thought documenting what I did would be useful. However, My memories don't square with exactly with what I wrote. I guess I was writing more about my feelings rather than my activities. Still, Enough was written to stir up my memories. I just wonder if it gels with reality.


(UNDATED) approx. August 17-19, 1991.


I went to the Fremont section of Seattle which is supposed to be the "hippy haven" of the city. I went by the address given to where "my friend" lived. The house was shabby and it looked unoccupied. "My friend's" phone no. changed so I assumed he moved out. It was a decent neighborhood full of houses and bungalows and the like. the bike ride was wonderful, If I move here Priority-1 is to get a bike. I have yet to confront the infamous Seattle rain. We'll see how bad it could be...

Some train station! What a fool I be. I didn't bother checking to see when the next train to Portland would be figuring that it would be a max. 2 hour wait. Well, I've been here almost 3 hours and I still have 2 more to go. I might not be able to shack up in the hostel tonight. It's expensive to be a bum. It will soon be a trend. When it becomes a trend (out of necessity), Some capitalist scum will make profits out of this lifestyle.





















1991 continues:

I always draw myself more extroverted than I actually am. I can be extroverted but I'm rarely whenever it involves strangers. Hoo boy! I have to look for work. Goddammit!!!!!! My pride will be shattered if I don't get at least ONE art assignment by December. My value as an artist would be diminished.


2011 Update: Weird entries. I was in transit most of that weekend, Either on a bike or on a train. Somewhat incoherent.

Seattle 1991 Continues:

This set of entries were written a bit haphazardly. It's transcribed in the order it's set in my sketchbook.

(1991)

Today was definitely a superior day to yesterday. I had two decent conversations, although one was someone who rented me a bike but the other person was a girl I met while riding my bike, which so far was the highlight of the day. $10 for two hour use wasn't too bad at all.

20111 Update: Funny that's more than TWICE the price of a ride on the Space Needle. Shows how much I regard bicycles.


















Aug 16, 1991

I haven't been doing too well at waking up early. I wake up early enough to get a good start at exploring the city. I found a few good radio stations but of course without Howard Stern, I don't take much interest in what's going on. I'm a little more comfortable here now but I'm only paid up till tomorrow at noon. I can either stay an additional day or head to Portland, I'll determine it with what happens when I call "my friend"



P.S. Every mall in the U.S. is a variation of the same thing.


2011 update: I eliminated some contentious things written that needed not be transcribed, The mall I was talking about was Westlake Center. Also I didn't write about it but the sketches are from the first place I ever had a latte, Burke Museum in the U-District. And I also paid a visit to the Seattle Art Museum on Volunteer Park that became the Asian Art Museum when they built the new art museum downtown.

My twenty year old diary continues...

I'm putting up my old journal entries to try to get myself motivated either in getting myself back to Seattle or at least try to spark my creativity. I will continue to post entries and drawings twenty years to the day I did them.

















Thursday 8:05 A.M. Aug 15, 1991.

Well, I've settled in at a "Y" in downtown Seattle. It's a nice room although it's $37 a night although I get to use the fitness equipment. I'm in probably the most popular section of Seattle. I'm walking distance from the Space Needle, the Kingdome, and Pike Place Market. I'm not sure what to do today.All I know is that I've got to unload some of the things I bought with me. I exhausted myself tremendously yesterday walking a mere 6 blocks from the bus station. I make take in the ballgame today. I'm near the library. I have to check out the market in jobs and everything. Get some business cards printed. This city is more expensive than I thought. I'll stay here through Friday night and then I'll hit a hostel.

I missed my initial flight yesterday. No excuse, except I nodded off and didn't hear the flight announcement. It really wasn't too bad, I was able to get another flight that made a stop in Denver. I had visions of one of the planes going down in a fiery crash. Everything went well until I got to the airport and picked up my stuff, That's when I first realized how heavy and bulky my backpack was. I also lost a crucial buckle that made if difficult to move. I think I might mail stuff back (particularly my comics) to unload some unnecessary bulk. I brought too many clothes. Too much to the point where I have to unload these too. I'm leaving some here at the "Y". Joel was right. I'm going to have to get used to not having conversations with people. Everything is a transaction with people. (2011 ed. ?)

the air is cleaner here and the sea air is evident even here at the "Y". there's a lot of similarity to this "Y" as there was in Sloane House except the rooms have rug and nicer furniture. It would be really nice to have our dorms here but never mind, my college days are over and soon I head to the library again when it opens at nine.

Hey! I did the Space Needle thing! Damn! What a tourist trap! Maybe this is a tourist trap city. $4.75 for an elevator to the top. Well, it was a magnificent view so it so it wasn't wasted. Well still, $4.75. I was able to see the sunset. I wanted to jump. The Worlds Fair was here in 1962 and the area surrounding the needle is well manicured. I wondered if the Flushing-Meadows Park (Worlds Fair 1964) is in as good shape. (In 2011, Not nearly) Yeah, right we're talking N.Y.(Queens)

In fact. Ahhhhhh! I needed to check the yellow pages (2011 ?) for something but I forgot!! I'm so irresponsible. the people seem hostile! Not because they're mean, it's just well, everyone is a stranger and faces look ugly when you're alone. I haven't been here 24 hours yet, Oh well, It's still early, Not even 9:00. I got to mail these books home. Sigh!!! I wish at least one of my friends had come but, Well I had an agenda and a plan if I were to come by myself but anyway I'm lost, I don't know what approach to use. Maybe I won't see a game today. I'm definitely going to Pike St. Market but not until later in the day. AAAAAAAAAAAAAUGH!

till later.


P.S. the sports report does not go beyond Seattle. THANK GOD! I don't need to see more highlights of Mets losses and I can't get away from it in New York. Hey, The New York Times is out here. 75 cents a copy.

















2011 Update: I forgot how anxious I was in those days being by myself for an extended period of time. Of course it was in the pre-Facebook days and so I was completely out of contact with people other than phone calls.

Twenty (gasp) Years Ago Today....

The reason I was posting a lot of videos from 1991 was because I had made the bold decision to move to Seattle on my own. I had gotten restless after I graduated from SVA and wanted to explore other parts of the country. It was hugely expensive to live in NYC and Hoboken and Jersey City hadn't revived itself into the hipster mecca it is today.

I had been wanting to head to a part of the country that would be the closest to what the Village in NYC was in the mid 60s and San Francisco in the late 60s. It had to somewhat cheap, On the cusp of a cultural Renaissance and had a major league baseball team. My plan was to explore the west coast, settle in the city I chose and conquer it with whatever creative explosion I could come up with. I knew I was going to chose Seattle, But I wanted to explore much of the west coast first.

I had documented my trip in a journal and I am transcribing it to my blog now. I wanted to try to recapture my goals and aspirations I had at 24. What follows is verbatum what I wrote with corrections only in spelling (Unless it's funny)and punctuation.



Aug, 14, 1991.

I'm finally in Seattle and I want to go home!!! Well, actually I haven't left the airport yet. It's been a "Duh! I'm so stupid" or a "Sob! I don't know what to do" day. My first task on this trip is to get to a "Y" to shack up for a few days. I missed the bus I needed to get only because I was waiting for it at the wrong spot. I got too much shit!! Oh well, moire incentive to get a job quick and an apartment. I've changed my agenda a little. I'll be here through the weekend. On Sunday I'll take a bus to Portland and spend the weekday(s) there and go to S. Fran on the weekend and stay a week there. I might do the hostel thing but later. I'm scared and alone. I hope things work out.

3:10 P.M. P.S.T.





















2011 Update: I had missed my direct flight to Seattle (I was just out of listening distance of the boarding flights)and had to rebook a flight that took me to Denver first. I was lugging two huge backpacks with too many unnecessary items. And I was alone to figure things out in a pre-World Wide Web world.