šæMatter doesn't disappear, it transforms. šæ
āMatter doesn't disappear, it transforms. Energy is the same way. The Earth is layer upon layer of all that has existed, remembered by the dirt.āĀ āadrienne marie brown, Emergent StrategyĀ
Itās hard to accept that everything can exist at the same time.Ā We canāt escape our history just by looking away. Itās still here, along with the present. And more than ever, I feel like every week is a wild mess of contrasts and layer upon layer of overlapping, conflicting realities. I always describe the United States as a mess. When Iām feeling generous, itās a patchwork quilt. When Iām feeling hopeless, itās a shitshow.
A few days ago, Ben and I went to Rooster Rock, a state park on the Columbia River thatās famous for its clothing-optional, gay-friendly beach. But for millennia before the state or park came into being, the river was a place of community for Native Americans. The river had a lot of names (Wimahl, Nchāi-WĆ na, swah'netk'qhu) before an American fur trader presumptuously decided to name it after his own ship a mere 228 years ago. Rooster Rock isnāt that far from the Wyam waterfalls that were the site of the oldest continuously occupied community in North America, where people met and fished for 15,000 years until the Army Corps of Engineers flooded the falls with a dam in 1957. Those waterfalls are still under the river, we just canāt see or hear them anymore.Ā
On this particular afternoon, the river was the stage for a drag show. Performers in long, see-through dresses, neon wigs, and mesh ensembles hauled speakers and snack coolers through the sand and across the shallow water to a sandbar island not far from shore. At the exact same time, in Portland there was a pro-Trump rally where right-wing supporters drove around downtown in massive trucks. They sprayed mace out the windows and drove through crowds of counter-protesters. By the end of the night, one of their members was shot and killedāshooter still unknown. Out on the river, as Madonna lyrics floated across the water, there was one speedboat flying a red-white-and-blue Trump flag, āTrump 2020: No More Bullshitā snapping in the breeze. The way the currents work on that stretch of the Columbia, long stretches of sand reach under shallow water into the middle of the river. Just beyond the Trump boat, I saw four figures who seemed to be dancing on top of the water. Their feet graced by just an inch or two of water, the four people boogied along the sand all the way to the center of the river. There was something unusual about their faces. At first, I thought they were wearing pandemic-friendly masks. But as I got closer, I realized they had ears and snoutsāthey were all wearing kinky leather puppy masks (and nothing else). There they were, four human pups frolicking as they walked on water across an ancient river while ā80s pop music played at full volume from a drag queenās speaker set on a pile of shifting sand, all as a Trump flag waved in the background.Ā
When people in the future ask what happened in 2020, Iāll try to explain it this way. All these layers upon layers: hope layered on fear layered on joy layered on pain layered on uncertainty layered on chaos. And through it all, weāre transforming. Ā
Stuff I Made
Guantanamo Voices - The book is here!! A big box of books arrived at my house last week. It was somewhat overwhelming to see the book in print after it was just an idea in my head for so long. Hereās a nice review from Pome magazine. Guantanamo Voices debuts September 8 and you can order a copy from me if you want.Ā
Be Gay Do Comics - I helped edit this collection of comics about LGBTQI history and identity from The Nib. It officially comes out September 1 and just got a really good review in Kirkus: "An utterly delightful and expansive collection of queer voices and truths." You can buy Be Gay Do Comics from The Nib.Ā
Interview with Joe Sacco - I got to talk to my comics journalism hero Joe Sacco for The Nib. You can watch or read the 30-minute interview at The Nib.Ā
In/Vulnerable comics series - This week, Reveal and The Nib co-published the final installment of this 15-comics series on inequality amid the pandemic. Based on interviews Reveal reporters did with regular people around the country, the comics show how the pandemic has laid bare existing inequalities in society. I co-wrote the scripts for these comics, which are illustrated by Thi Bui.Ā
Bonus History ComicsĀ
In 2010, I started writing a series of 10 comics about Oregon history. The Oregon History Comics series was published as a box set by the local nonprofit Know Your City. What started as a small project got bigger than I could have ever expectedāKnow Your City sold thousands of copies of the comics and 10 years later, people still ask me where they can get a copy. To help out parents and educators who are teaching classes online this fall, I decided to make the series available for free online. You can download free PDFs of the comics here.Ā
Upcoming EventsĀ
There are two release events for Guantanamo Voices, both are online and free. On 9/8, Powells is hosting a panel with me, introduction writer Omar El Akkad, and artists Hazel Newlevant, and Kane Lynch. On 9/15, LA bookstore Skylight Books is hosting a panel with me and artists Alexandra Beguez, Gerardo Alba, and Tracy Chahwan. RSVP to the Powells event // RSVP to the Skylight Books eventĀ
Stuff I Love
Mural artist SalomƩe - All of this artist's work is so, so good, but I especially love her gorgeous murals that cover the boarded-up businesses around downtown Portland.
Stickers by Vanessa Lopez - I just bought three of these awesome stickers. Farm workers have been at extreme risk during the pandemic and now thatās compounded by smoky air across California.Ā
Camping alone - I spent a weekend this month in the Wallowa mountain range in Eastern Oregon. Camping alone isnāt for everyone, but itās definitely for me. Hereās a little zine I made about the joys of being by myself in the wilderness.Ā
Community Country Radio - Besides all the nature, the best thing about the Wallowas is that itās the home of amazing community radio station, KWVR, which plays old country crooners like Waylon Jennings. Itās exactly the perfect thing to listen to on a long drive, admiring barns as they pass by.Ā
Disco - Iāve been listening to 100% more disco since listening to this Youāre Wrong About episode. I just canāt get āYes Sir, I Can Boogieā out of my head.Ā
Handsome Pizza - I forget whether Iāve included my favorite Portland pizza place in the newsletter before, but itās worth mentioning again because theyāre constantly donating a significant amount of their proceeds to racial justice organizations. Yum. (My favorite pizza is the marinara, if you happen to place an order).Ā
Tomatoes - My favorite food. Actually, maybe potatoes are my favorite food, but summer tomatoes are a close second! I make this recipe without the cheese and itās extremely good.Ā
Stamps, stamps, stamps! People are suddenly buying lots of stamps to support the USPS, so as a long-time snail mail aficionado, I want to share my favorite currently available stamp designs with you: coral reefs, spooky silhouettes, T-Rex.Ā Also I would buy an adult version of this costume in a heartbeat.
What Iām ReadingĀ
Caste - Isabel Wilkersonās new book on the systems of race-based power in the United States is making me wonder what we do from here. She makes clear that we donāt live in a democracy and we never have.Ā Ā
Mother Winter - I picked up this book sight unseen because it was recommended by Powellās staffers and it blew me away. This visceral, bloody memoir about being a mother, daughter, and friend travels from Russia to the Pacific Northwest, weaving in poetry and punk music along the way.Ā
Hatemonger - My friend Jean Guerrero wrote this book about Stephen Millerās rise to influence, but I would recommend it even if I didnāt think sheās brilliant! Jean very clearly charts how a guy who grew up in Santa Monica in the ā90s could become the countryās most politically powerful white supremacist.Ā
Loneliness of a Long-Distance Cartoonist - I bought Adrian Tomineās new book from Books With Pictures and I love everything about it, starting with the book design. It looks and feels just like a cartoonistās secret Moleskin notebook that you get to snoop around in.Ā
Something to Do
Make a Front Porch Snack Box - Iāve had a bunch of heavy boxes shipped to my house recently (books, books, books!) and have felt bad that thereās no way to tip the workers who speed-walk up the steps to deliver them. So I decided to make a snack box for delivery workers. I filled this insulated bag with Le Croix and single-serving chips. I was wondering if anyone would actually take advantage of it, but a FedEx worker who took a drink and some chips told us he really appreciates it and it saves him time on his route, so now Iām passing along the idea.Ā
P.S. If you are looking for updates on what the heck is happening in at Portland protests, hereās my recommended list of journalists to follow on Twitter: Alex Zielinski, Tuck Woodstock, Blair Stenvick, Sergio Olmos, Suzette Smith, Karina Brown, Zane Sparling. You can also pitch in to support the Portland Mercury.
I'll send out another update soon. In the meantime, you can follow me onĀ InstagramĀ andĀ Twitter. You can alsoĀ support my work on PatreonĀ and receive wonderful things in the mail.Ā TheĀ archive of past newsletters is right here.Ā