Greetings to all the C.L.A.W.’s watchers, followers, friends and disturbed on-lookers!  It’s April and that means showers and taxes and Fools!  But it also means that the C.L.A.W. will be participating in the annual Wayzgoose Letterpress and Book Arts Festival hosted by King’s Books on St. Helens in lovely downtown Tacoma!  It’s a wonderful celebration of printing and Tacoma artists and creators, and of course, people playing with a steamroller!  The C.L.A.W. is scheduled for a Sunday (actually the 1st of May) steamroller time, so come out and watch us smash out our tribute to Tacoma’s own futurist, Frank Herbert, creator of the Dune saga as well as many other classic tomes from the heyday of science fiction!  The event is 2 days, April 30th and May 1st, so come on down and enjoy the merry-making and print-making!

A few days before that, on Wednesday the 27th will be the monthly C.L.A.W. Open Swim meeting!  This event will also be taking place at the traditional site of King’s Books!  Yes, we hang out at King’s Books a lot!  The meeting is, as the name suggests, open to the public!  Come down at 7:30 that evening to hang out with cartoonists, draw absurd things and meet local celebrities…like R.R. Anderson and Mark Monlux and James Stowe–all founders of the Cartoonist’s League of Absurd Washingtonians!  If you have no earthly idea who they might be, now’s the time to drop by and find out!!

Oh, just thought I should mention, as an afterthought…there’s a little comicbook orientated convention happening in Seattle this month as well.  Just an intimate affair, hardly worth noticing, but just in case you might be interested, a few C.L.A.W. members will be there to give it some heft (well, the ones that could get tables anyway.)  The name of this little gathering escapes me at the moment, but it takes place at the Seattle Convention Center from Thursday the 7th until Sunday the 10th.  Emerald…something something ComiCon.  Anyway, check it out if you haven’t got anything important to do.  ^0^

Until next month my friends!  Keep noodling and doodling!

On Leap Day, February 29th, the Cartoonist’s League of Absurd Washingtonians held it’s annual GREAT YEARLY CEREMONY, wherein the Talons of the CLAW gather to celebrate another year of existence, recognize our friends and initiate new Council members and have cake.  As always, the GYC was held in the Commencement Hall of the Pythian Temple on Broadway in downtown Tacoma, and we extend our gratitude to the Knights of Pythias for the use of their beautiful facility!  In other aspects, however, this year was a slight break with tradition.

First and foremost, there was no cake!  Secondly, instead of the usual painfully elaborate, poorly executed ceremony with swords and lime green robes, performed before a gathering of friends and loved ones, this year’s meeting was a REVIVAL!  It was a closed meeting among the Talons and Official Friends of CLAW, during which Brother Stowe, (Member #4) played Master of Ceremonies and delivered a spirited address about the loss of our goals and direction, and encouraging the membership to think of ways in which the CLAW can be more driven and effective!

The new Council of the Four Eyes was announced for the coming year:  Mark Brill (#9) as President, James Stowe (#4) as Vice President, Steve Garvin (#25) as Treasurer and Larry Erhardt (#8) as Secretary.  In a final bit of business, a new Official Friend of CLAW was announced, being Christina Wheeler, formerly of the Nearsighted Narwhal, for her support of the CLAW in the precious year.  The company was then removed, after the closing ritual was performed solemnly by the President and Keeper of the Semi-Sacred Box of Things and Props, to the dining room upstairs for sandwiches and veggie platters where we discussed the sharpening of the CLAW!  More will be discussed on that point later!

In other business, Brooks Dental Studio will be having an art show reception for artwalk onMarch 17th, 5-7 pm.  “Brooks Dental Studio presents the Art of CLAW”  Come down and see what the Talons have been creating in their secret studios!

On Saturday, March 19th, Destiny City Comics (right next door to King’s Books) Will be hosting an event called Local Artist Bazaar!  It will feature a number of CLAW members hawking their wares and doing sketches!  You don’t want to miss that!

The Open Swim for March will be on Wednesday the 23rd at 7:30pm at King’s Books on St. Helens in Tacoma.  The theme will be “CLAW ex Machina” and it will be a team-based event where everyone will be drawing up a Rube Goldberg-esqe machines.  Unlike most OS events in recent times, no voting or prizes will be offered.  We’re just going to have some fun!!  So come be a part of it!

Finally, Brandon Pierce (#17) would like you to know about his webcomic called “Pet Projects”!  He will be among the CLAW members at the Local Artist Bazaar, selling bookmarks that feature characters from his strip, such as Notle the Witch.

Happy March…ing everyone!