Christmas Caroling, 1991

In 1991, Janel and Brandon joined Todd, Jonnie, and Mel on a spur of the moment Christmas Caroling spree throughout Columbia City. The greatest thing about this night was the fact it was unplanned and entirely spontaneous. We were knocking on people’s doors and sharing the yuletide spirit with friends and strangers alike. 

Christmas Caroling, 1991.

The only outsider account I’ve heard regarding this night came from an acquaintance that lived in an apartment complex we had visited. They did not answer the door when we knocked, but we sang gloriously in the corridors of the apartment building anyway. We later asked this person why they weren’t home and they replied, “I was home. I was actually sleeping. I remember hearing what sounded like a bunch of drunks singing, Here comes Santa Claus, Here comes Santa Claus in deep voices outside. I did not answer the door and tried to go back to sleep.”

Once we had visited everybody in our immediate vicinity, we piled into a car and drove to the center of town where we spread joy to a handful of other homes and to the local Pizza King. The last house we visited had a full-blown Christmas party in effect!  We went in for some punch, Brandon spilled his all over the table, and then we left.

5 Johns in the John

Growing up, most of the jobs or classes I’ve been part of almost always had more than one guy named John. To keep things straight, we’d usually have to add the first letter of each John’s last name—John S., John M., and so on.

Things were no different in 1991when I was working at a fish camp in Valdez, Alaska. There were several Johns working there, and one day we found ourselves swapping stories about how common our name was. Note: I use the common pronunciation, “John,” but my name is actually spelled (correctly) - Jon, without the silent “h.”

That’s when we had a collective notion to take a commemorative photo of all the Johns on the crew. The setting of course was in the men’s restroom – also known as the John.

As a bonus, there was a Japanese man pissing in the background, though he almost certainly was not named John.

L to R: Big John, Blond John, Me, Bearded John, & Jon A.

[Originally posted on I'm Nacho Steppinstone, Feb. 2, 2004]

111 for 1

Probably the only existing image of the short-lived, homemade, 
campground bar. Valdez, AK; Summer, 1991.

One fishless day in Valdez, when work was slow, a few campsite entrepreneurs decided to make the best of it. Using old pallets and scrap plywood, they threw together a makeshift bar.

They stocked up on cheap beer, a couple bottles of whiskey, and a big tin of loose-leaf tobacco. Then they spread the word around the campground—and to any passing tourists:

One beer, one shot, one cigarette — One Dollar!

What a deal! Everyone was thrilled.

There wasn’t a real shot glass to be found, so enormous pours were served in a plastic cap that might’ve come from a can of shaving cream or spray deodorant. Nobody minded. You had to roll your own cigarette, too, but at that price, nobody complained. Some folks skipped the cigarette altogether, figuring a beer and a shot for a buck was already a steal.

It was a great time while it lasted—just a few hours—until the police showed up and shut it down.

Afterward, we tore the bar apart and tossed it on the bonfire.
The photo above is probably the only proof it ever existed.

[Originally posted on I'm Nacho Steppinstone, Apr. 15, 2004]

Vending Machine Rant

One night in the Nautilus Marine break room, a tall, bearded, drunken hillbilly staggered in to buy something from a vending machine. He was dressed in a camouflaged jacket and rubber boots. He claimed the change machine short-changed him 25 cents which triggered what can only be described as a complete reversion to savagery.

I recorded his comments in a journal I was keeping at the time:

"A tall bearded hillbilly...claims the dollar bill changer only gave him 75 cents back for his dollar. His initial comment was, 'Hey!...It only gave me 75 cents!! But, hey!...That's all I need!' After he finished his snack though, he started beating on the change machine and yelling for somebody to 'Call the fuckin' cops'. 

He tried to write on the wall that the machine owed him money, but his pen was dry; so he hurled it against a nearby table and sat down with his face in his hands. Soon, he started to demand that somebody, 'Call the fuckin' cops'!!"  

"He says, 'If I robbed a liquor store, they'd call the cops on me; but this machine can rip me off a quarter and the cops don't even care.'" 

"Now he's swaying a lot. He can barely hold his head up straight. He's saying, 'Fuck America' and 'God Damn America' over and over and over again. Now he just added, 'God Bless Alaska'!! He'll be asleep soon." 

"Oh! He got a second wind. He's raving (to nobody in particular, just in case anybody's listening) - 'I live like an animal!...I'm a savage!!...If you don't believe me, if you think I'm full of shit, just live with me for a year - I'll show you how an animal lives'!!! ... 'I've been sleeping by railroad tracks and under trucks for years, usually with no heat"! [Jonnie comments: "ha ha, "usually"?] 'We're living in the end times...and when the cities fall, I'll be thriving'!!"

Packing Crew, Nautilus Marine; Valdez AK, 1991.

[Originally posted on I'm Nacho Steppinstone, Sep. 27, 2004]