HOT TIME IN THE OLD BROWN TONIGHT...

by Erkuden Sakana, Company Secretary:
Chicago is calling. The Company is snaking its way North again, but not before stopping back in Louisville for a taste of hot brown -- a not so distant cousin, it would appear, of Pittsburgh's own turkey devonshire.

(Kentucky hot brown)

For the uninitiated, a hot brown is an open faced sandwich consisting of turkey, ham, tomatoes, pimento and shredded parmesan drowned in mornay sauce and topped off with bacon.

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(photo by Reverend Aitor)

The misanthropes checked into the cheapest motel room they could find in the greater Louisville area for another Sunday meeting of protocols, tour planning and infighting before bedtime. A fair amount of time also had to be put into preparing merchandise for upcoming shows and store visits, as inventory has been decreasing steadily along the way.

A Party, Spoiled limited edition assembled print by the M.S.Co.

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The final instalment in this season's Epistolary Subscription Service will be shipped out first thing Monday morning. Bowing to increasing demand, it was reluctantly decided this week that the number of available subscriptions for the coming season will be increased to ninety-nine.

portrait of the Company's beloved bailiff

Meanwhile, in an effort to tide the project's loyal followers over until service resumes in October the Company's Communications Officer will begin posting excerpts from T-Bone and Cotton's notes to Headquarters, here, on the web log.

(Route 66 map courtesy of playa.info )

The pair intends to break away from the main convoy after next week's congregation in Chicago. From there, they'll make the pilgrimage along their beloved Route 66 all the way to Los Angeles, where they are scheduled to deliver Screaming Hellhogs Eat Shit and Die to it's rightful owner.

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TWISTER ACT...

by Erkuden Sakana, Company Secretary:

(The great Renegade deluge of 2008)

Company morale began to sink steadily in the days leading up to Renegade Brooklyn. The weekend weather forecast looked grim, and growing increasingly bleak as Saturdays drew nearer. Once again, one side of the Company vocally begrudged the other side's decision to partake in an outdoor event.

(photo by Becky Johnson)

Luckily the predicted two straight days of thunderstorms turned out to be little more than five torrential minutes this afternoon, followed by another brief moment of light sunshiny drizzle. Braced for much worse, the members made short work of battening down the hatches.

Once it became obvious that the rain would quickly pass and that the floating rumours of a tornado watch for the five boroughs began to appear exaggerated, tensions finally began to lift. Members were promptly dispatched to the Turkey's Nest -- a nearby establishment known for serving potent margaritas in large to-go cups -- to procure celebratory concoctions from the Company.

(photo of margarita travel cup courtesy of Marmie's Weblog)

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In the evening the Company reunited at the new secret hideout after showering off what everyone had initially assumed to be suntans. It had been been discovered while packing up at the show that everything exposed to the MacCaren park air was now covered in a thin film of velvety bronze filth.


The Company sourly wiped park scum off its merchandise while conducting this weeks meeting.

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Today's drawing session was inspired by the surprising number purportedly unacquainted yet mostly German-accented patrons who stopped by the Company's tent over the course of the weekend. They all enquired about the Company's now out of print comics.

(excerpt from "Time to Die" by the men and women of the Company)

Indeed, it's been a long time since the release of a Misanthrope Specialty Co. comic book. Improvising comics as a group gradually fell by the wayside over the past few years, for no reason in particular. This weekend's reminder stirred up enough nostalgia within the ranks to set the originally scheduled projects aside in favour of cooking up a new comic book.

(detail from "The Adventure of Quad Part 2" by the Misanthrope Specialty Co.)

The results of the evenings' doodling include a twelve-page sequel to The Adventure of Quad, the promising first chapter of a psychological eroto-thriller, dubbed Time To Die, and a hatful of other strips to be completed at next week's meeting.

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SQUAT NIGHT IN THE CITY...

by Erkuden Sakana, Company Secretary;

Iconic shitty coffee in ironic pretty cups

Company members have been arriving in New York from their respective hiding places over the past few days. Some have found floors and couches upon which to rest their weary heads. A lucky few have even scored guest rooms, but many potential hosts are often overtaxed with all manner of visiting acquaintances during the summer months and there is no room at the inn for some of the misanthropes, let alone enough workspace to accommodate the entire Company. This is where the Company Location Manager steps up to the plate.

The Company's temporary Brooklyn offices

This anonymous individual is saddled with the task of arriving at Company destinations ahead of the pack; securing shelter, a base of operations, and often scouting out food and entertainment options for the collective.

Once again, she has proven her incomparable worth; gaining entry into an surprisingly inhabitable abandoned rooming house and single-handedly preparing a live/work space for the essentially homeless peers.

A little electrical handiwork

Though the gas remains shut off, she has managed to procure electricity and get the water running. It then befell on the Company's Minister of Acquisitions to furnish the apartment with some seating, work surfaces and sundry small necessities. Luckily, New York is a garbage picker's goldmine -- though it should be noted that any curbside treasure should be thoroughly examined for bedbugs. They've become something of a local scourge in recent years.

The Company's accommodations, all cleaned up and awaiting some furniture

With hardwood floors and the rat shit swept away, these free Brooklyn digs have become a a formidable base camp. The entire Company is celebrating by throwing a slumber party tonight.

BYOB.

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EATING HUMBLE MAGPIE...

by Reverend Aitor, Impresario;

Attention Massachusetts, The Misanthrope Specialty Co. is furthering inroads into New England, staking new territory in the city of Somerville.

An assortment of hand-made Company goods may now be procured Magpie, local purveyors of shiny things for your nest.

(photo courtesy of Magpie)

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