JUST SAY MO & A TIE DYE TENT

       This is a story about the Reagan era, when circle, slash, no signs and just say no, were being propagandized and spread all over the nation. My talent for putting a play on words, was in full force around then. Just Say Mo', as in just say more, was mine. I claimed it! The capitalistic part of me was out to make some scratch on this one. After all, this is the way I was able to hustle my way through life, by taking advantage of opportunities, when they arose. I drew up a couple of designs for these bumper stickers that said...  JUST SAY MO'. First, I incorporated a caricature of Jerry Garcia, then, I inserted a triangle in the background, to represent the area near Humboldt county, where the best pot is grown. That was one design. For my second design, I used a skeleton, smoking a joint. I then had a thousand of each printed up and was getting close to being ready to hit the Laguna Seca show, which was still two weeks away. The Grateful Dead were playing with David Lindley and this would be a great time to sell some bumper stickers.
        I was down near Corvallis, swimming on the Willamette River, when the idea to construct a tie dye tent came to mind. It would attach to the side of my van where the doors opened. This would add another room to the side of my van. Nice!..... Then, to make it a tie dye.......awesome! I then drove to the hardware store, where I picked up all the lengths and fittings of PVC pipe that I would need, I then assembled a shell that the tent would go around. After hours of testing my ingenuity through trial and error, I came up with an awesome design. Now, I needed to figure out, just how to get this canvas sowed up, so it would fit the shell. I found an industrial tent sowing outfit with a real cool owner. He helped me finalize my design and then had his sowing masters, piece it all together for me. This was going to be amazing, a tie dye tent, with the dimensions 8x6.5x5ft, Wow! I can't wait to dye this monster. 
          I had a friend who lived in Corvallis that was a tie dye artist and a jazz singer. She would be the main cog in getting this project rolling. That was the start of a 13 hour tie and dye party. We tied and dyed all night and into the early morning. Then, it was time to assemble our masterpiece, and a masterpiece it truly was. The vibrant colors, still wet and glowing, mixed with the morning sunlight, was like being on an acid trip, one that Technicolor movies couldn't come close to equaling. There it was, a hippie dream come true and this hippie was ready to get truckin' down that road to the Grateful Dead show, at Laguna Seca Raceway, just east of Monterey. California here I come. So the key hit the ignition and I was off to see the show, to sell some bumper stickers.
          I had never been to this venue before and was cheerfully guided to a great spot on a hill. Lots of rolling hills, made for quite the spectacle, there were Dead Heads everywhere. I set up my newly designed tent and invited some of the neighboring tribe to come on in and burn one. The tent was a real hit and I got lots of praise for my accomplishment. Show-time was getting close, so I loaded up all the bumper stickers I could carry and was on my way to take in the music and dancing.
           The next few days were more than gratifying, I danced through the crowd on my tippy toes, yelling, " Just Say Mo, a buck a throw, send one to Nancy, Jerry Mo, Skelly Mo, don't say no, just say mo." I never had so much fun and sales were constantly taking place. Dollars and stickers were flying through the air. I wound up selling over 1,500 of them on that trip. The tie dye tent, the bumper stickers, the people, the music, the dancing through the crowd, this was an amazing trip and a monster success that would pave the road for my next five t-shirt designs. I still had a month before my next show in Eugene,Oregon at Autzen Stadium, this would be enough time to design my first t-shirt that said, Just Say Mo'. then, I was off on another adventure, just keep truckin' on an' on.

             Stay Truckin' my friends                 Wizzzmo