The CLAW Open Swim is open to anyone who likes to draw cartoons, and hang out with the CLAW. In short membership is not a requirement for attendance. However, December’s Open Swim will require anyone attending to bring a gift for a White elephant gift exchange. If you do not bring a gift, you will be scornfully kicked out with much derisive laughter and catcalls.

Rules for the White Elephant Gift Exchange:

1. The gift must be “absurd”.
2. If you buy the gift, you must not spend more than $20.

Upon arrival your thoughtfully wrapped gift will act as your ticket of admission. All gifts will then be placed on the gift table. Numbers will then be drawn. Participation will be in order of number drawn. The first up will have free choice from the table. They have the option of leaving their chosen gift wrapped. The following participants can choose to steal a gift from those before them, or take a gift from the table. Those who have a gift stolen from them can steal a different gift, or take a gift from the table. A gift can only be stolen three times. A gift cannot be stolen back from a previous owner. Once the exchange is completed all gifts that are still wrapped must be unwrapped. The Trading, purchasing, bartering or auctioning of gifts after the exchange is allowed.

Location: The Mandolin Café in Tacoma
Date: Wednesday, December 30th 2009
Time: 7:30 p.m.

Issue No. 005, Courtesy of the…
CARTOONISTS LEAGUE OF ABSURD WASHINGTONIANS!

Available at these “REAL AMERICA” Tacoma business establishments:

• What Shope? (seems to have a real connection with our target audience)
• KING’s Books
• Mad Hat Tea Co.
• Tacoma Art Supply
• Urban Xchange
• Puget Sound Pizza
• Crescent Moon Gifts

coming soon….

• Red Hot
• Origins 21
• Comic Book Ink?

yet, AVAILABLE TO DOWNLOAD ON CLAW ZINE ARCHIVE!

Back issues of our “Terror of the CLAW” Halloween Zine Edition have been stuffed into the City Arts bin at the University Washington bookstore.
* Issue NO. 5 is carefully designed to offend everyone!

Being several months since the Tacoma Arts Commission formally announced their funding of my first TACOMIC BOOK, a collection of 100 of my editorial cartoon greatest hits, I thought I would check with this progress report:

Any serious fantasy book needs a Tolkien-style map lurking somewhere round the table of contents. Click to enlarge the rough draft sketch of my Tacoma map (above).

Other items my book will include:

1. Table of Contents – COMPLETE
2. FOREWORD by John Hathaway, aka THE NEW TAKHOMAN – COMPLETE
3. Map – IN PROGRESS
4. Intentionally left blank pages – COMPLETE
5. “Fun Facts” – NOT STARTED
6. 100 of the best TACOMICS from 2007 – 2009 – NOT STARTED
7. 1 page dedicated to the WORST TACOMICS – NOT STARTED
8. Sampling of the best TACOMIC COMMENTS – NOT STARTED
9. A behind the scene cartoonist statements – IN PROGRESS
10. SPELLING + GRAMMAR corrections by Todd Mathews – IN PROGRESS
11. Tide Tables + Venn Diagrams
12. A complete set of Tacoma Action Figures – COMPLETE
13. TBA, etc.

MEANWHILE, please enjoy the TACOMIC™ Political Cartoons every Tuesday Morning! Did you know you can get instant TACOMIC CARTOON updates via TWITTER?