Onward Thru the Fog!
If you’re in Austin, Texas and you need a new screen for your massive multi-chambered bubbler or maybe you just have a hankering for some classic Crumb, the Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers or a good ol’ Zap Comic, you’ll find a new member to the Underground Classic’s shelf at Oat Willies. That’s right – the fabulous furry “Scam Bible” is now available at Oat Willies - Austin’s oldest and coolest head shop at 29th and Rio Grande.
This is especially sentimental for me, having spent a good deal of time in there as a kid ogling the many exciting smoking devices, not to mention the High Times and vast selection of underground comics - and of course, mohawked and slam dancing across the street at Studio 29 to the likes of the Dicks, Big Boys, the Offenders and so many other great Austin punk bands in the early 80's. After Hurricane Katrina, we washed up in Austin, where we’ve set up a satellite office for now. It’s New Orleans’ sister city, believe it or not, which makes perfect sense considering all the music and culture.
Another great spot to pick up a Scam Bible in Austin and have a cool experience is MonkeyWrench Bookstore at 110 E. North Loop – “an all volunteer book collective, specializing in new and used radical books and periodicals”. This is a really cool little place if you have a chance to stop in. The people are ultra-idealistic and friendly. They all work there for free, just to keep the place afloat and because they love to read. The place is regularly vandalized by Republicans, who spray paint obscenities with this type of acid that actually permanently etches the plate glass windows. What a bunch of a-holes, eh? I am tickled pink that their arrogant local pundit, Tom DeLay is going down for such a base crime as money laundering. They really are just a bunch of punks.
Anyway, this place comes across like maybe City Lights Books in San Francisco was in the old days, before they turned into a vapid tourist attraction. I’ll tell you, I have never been so disgusted with a bookstore as when I tried to get City Lights to pick up the Scam Bible. They were so f***ing pretentious, it was almost impossible to talk with them. I have to admit it was doubly disparaging because “Love in the Days of Rage” a short novel by its deceased founder, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, really changed my life. I’ll bet he’s spinning in his grave.
This is especially sentimental for me, having spent a good deal of time in there as a kid ogling the many exciting smoking devices, not to mention the High Times and vast selection of underground comics - and of course, mohawked and slam dancing across the street at Studio 29 to the likes of the Dicks, Big Boys, the Offenders and so many other great Austin punk bands in the early 80's. After Hurricane Katrina, we washed up in Austin, where we’ve set up a satellite office for now. It’s New Orleans’ sister city, believe it or not, which makes perfect sense considering all the music and culture.
Another great spot to pick up a Scam Bible in Austin and have a cool experience is MonkeyWrench Bookstore at 110 E. North Loop – “an all volunteer book collective, specializing in new and used radical books and periodicals”. This is a really cool little place if you have a chance to stop in. The people are ultra-idealistic and friendly. They all work there for free, just to keep the place afloat and because they love to read. The place is regularly vandalized by Republicans, who spray paint obscenities with this type of acid that actually permanently etches the plate glass windows. What a bunch of a-holes, eh? I am tickled pink that their arrogant local pundit, Tom DeLay is going down for such a base crime as money laundering. They really are just a bunch of punks.
Anyway, this place comes across like maybe City Lights Books in San Francisco was in the old days, before they turned into a vapid tourist attraction. I’ll tell you, I have never been so disgusted with a bookstore as when I tried to get City Lights to pick up the Scam Bible. They were so f***ing pretentious, it was almost impossible to talk with them. I have to admit it was doubly disparaging because “Love in the Days of Rage” a short novel by its deceased founder, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, really changed my life. I’ll bet he’s spinning in his grave.
posted by R.Chip DeGlinkta at 10:48 AM
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