I Used to be an Underground Comic Artist

 For many years, one of the things that I did was produce an underground comic strip titled "Urban Street Guitarist." The strip debuted in a Hartford-based free newspaper named "Bubcus." Through the years, it ran in several other newspapers, including the Hartford Undercurrent and the Willimantic Chronicle.

As the newspaper business began transitioning into the digital format, I began focusing more on writing articles, and USG has taken a long break. "Zap" comics, the "Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers", R.Crumb, Walt Disney, "Little Lulu" and "Archie" comics were big influences.

Here are four Urban Street Guitarist strips, from the early-2000s.

                                       

'The Iguana'..A character that I haven't developed enough. This strip was done more than ten years ago.

Sheb Wooley "The Purple People Eater" (Official Video)

At approximately 3:05 am yesterday, I was getting ready to go to bed. While standing next to a window, my peripheral vision suddenly saw some type of bright light low in the sky.  At first, I thought it was the moon, but when I looked out the window, the light suddenly made a rapid movement, then disappeared.  I wonder what it was. Hmm.

Way back in 1958, singer and actor Sheb Wooley was blowing peoples' minds with his Purple People Eater song. The exploration of outer space was becoming more of a reality every day, and this song looks at the topic with lots of imagination and humor.

       

The theme song for the Hee Haw TV show was written by Sheb Wooley, and Mr.Wooley appeared regularly on the program.

What happened to peoples' sense of imagination? Why can't music like this still be recorded and released?

Yes, Virginia, There Really is a Chain of Missouri Donut Shops Named "Strange Donuts"

Just tonight, I learned that in Missouri there is a chain of donut shops named "Strange Donuts." Strange Donuts operates stores in Maplewood, Edwardsville, Creve Coeur and Kirkwood, Missouri.

The Strange Donuts stores are open daily, and they make their donuts fresh every day. The chain's totally cool slogan is "Be Nice. Stay Strange."

Because this donut chain has such a totally awesome name, I had to learn more about it. Upon going to their Facebook page, I discovered that the chain appears to have donut menus that change monthly. The donut menu also features a selection of "Classics."

The "Classic" donut varieties at Strange Donuts includes cinnamon cake and glazed varieties, as well as "Pony" donuts, vanilla "Steves" and chocolate "Steves."

The monthly "Creations" donuts for July include French apple pie, Gooey Butter, Key lime, maple bacon and coconut cream pie roll.

On their Facebook page, Strange Donuts regularly offers special creations at fair prices. Yesterday, the chain posted a photo of someone holding a "Vegan Husky Boy." This big, creamy treat consists of a Spearhead? pastry stuffed with chocolate custard, then topped with an Oreo cream and Oreo fudge.

The Facebook post describes the Vegan Husky Boy as a vegan peace weapon, and its price is "around $5."

If I lived in Missouri, I would try to make a point of visiting each Strange Donuts shop. At each shop, I would try different types of donuts.

Established in 2013, Strange Donuts has consistently been moving forward, and is accepting inquiries regarding future franchising opportunities. This Missouri donut chain also maintains a nonprofit organization named Strange Care, which is focused on empowering the lives of children. 

Strange Donuts is currently offering takeout service and no contact delivery.

Hartford, Connecticut's New West Side Square Food Trucks and Marketplace is Brightening-Up the City's West End

If you've traveled along Farmington Avenue in Hartford's West End recently, you've probably noticed some changes with the longtime-vacant lot next-door to Burger King. After sitting empty for many years, this parcel of land has recently been the site of extensive activity. 

Creative New Attraction

The lot that I'm referring to sits on Farmington Avenue between Girard Avenue and Kenyon Street. A new facility named West Side Square Food Trucks and Marketplace is slated to open there sometime this summer.

The entire lot is framed with numerous recycled windows and doors, and there are plenty of handmade, wooden tables, where visitors will be able to sit and enjoy foods from a range of food trucks.

A married couple named Quan and Rebeca Quach are the creators of West Side Square Food Trucks and Marketplace. The park is slated to host several different food trucks daily, with a range of cuisines represented.

Being a longtime West End resident, I remember when the lot next to Burger King was the home of a Shell gas station. For years, I bought cigarettes and lottery tickets there, and often utilized their air pumps to fill my different Triumph motorcycle tires.

For many years, a family style Farm Shop restaurant occupied the space next to the lot, where Ichiban restaurant now exists. To this day, Farm Shop restaurants rank in my culinary memory as one of the very best restaurant chains.

Former Neighbor

Farm Shop restaurants used to call hamburgers "Abigails," and cheeseburgers there were named "Blonde Abigails." As I recall, the burgers were served in cellophane-lined plastic baskets that also contained a large amount of French fries. If I'm not mistaken, cole slaw was an optional side with the Abigails.

Farm Shop restaurants were somewhat similar to Friendly's eateries, and in the 1980s, Friendly's purchased the Farm Shop chain. I'm unsure of when the Farm Shop chain stopped operating, but it's definitely missed.

Moving Forward

As for the present, the West Side Square Food Trucks and Marketplace is really coming together. A couple of days ago, I stopped at Burger King, and I walked next-door to survey the progress being made. The area has been cleaned-up, and the surface appears to be graded. A large assortment of wooden outdoor dining tables are scattered throughout, and the venue seems like it would great for hosting community and/or entertainment events. 

It's great to see a positive addition to the Farmington Avenue corridor. I wonder if any of the trucks are going to serve tacos? Or, how about Italian sausage and peppers?

Better yet, how about having a truck that serves plant-based versions of the afore-mentioned items?

No matter what types of foods are being served, it's good to see the spark of excitement that the opening of a new neighborhood attraction in Hartford can bring.

Major Fire at Hartford's Sigourney Market Creates More of a Food Desert in the City

The FOX-61 10:00 pm newscast began a couple of minutes ago, and one of the opening images was that  of last night's fire at Hartford's Sigourney Market. Earlier today, I read the news story about the fire, and I've been thinking quite a bit about it.

Apparently, the fire started at approximately 3:00 a.m., and two firefighters were injured while fighting it. As a small food market in a densely-populated area, Sigourney Market was an important part of the local community.

Sigourney Market was housed in a historic building, and had been in business there for many decades. The Asylum Hill neighborhood where the store is/was located is basically another food desert; with very few retail food options available.

For many years, I drove Class II trucks for a local can and bottle redemption company. Every Wednesday afternoon for years, my route consisted of numerous small liquor and food stores in Hartford.

One of my longtime Wednesday afternoon accounts was Sigourney Market.

An Unusual Connection

The heavy plastic tubs filled with deposit glass bottles at Sigourney Market. were kept in the basement of the store.  Alongside the glass tubs were the plastic bags full of aluminum deposit cans and plastic deposit bottles the store had redeemed since its last pickup.

In order for myself  and my helper to access the empty containers, we had to go through the produce room and board a century-old, wooden elevator that went up and down with cables and a hand lever. Every time I got on board the elevator for the 12-foot ride below, I wondered how long elevators can safely operate. 

Once we got the empty containers upstairs to load on the truck, we had to carry all of the materials through the fresh produce room.

A few minutes ago, I was looking at news footage of the fire, and I saw the produce room door, where I used to park the truck. My thoughts are with family who owned the store, and I hope they'll have the opportunity to reopen.

It is hoped that residents of the Ashley Street area will be able to find the groceries they need without too much difficulty. As for the injured firefighters, the last article I read said their injuries were minor.

If You Really Dig Dynamite Donuts, the West Hartford, CT, Big Y Bakery is the Place to Go

                                                                    

The rainbow sprinkles donut pictured below is from the outstanding bakery department at Big Y-Bishops Corner, West Hartford. 

Every time I approach the fresh donut case at the Bishops Corner Big Y , I feel like the classic "kid in a candy store." Depending on the time of day, there may be just a few, or a large number of  donuts occupying the case.

Whether it be one of their glazed, cinnamon-sugar, old-fashioned, jelly or Boston cream varieties, the donuts made and sold at this Big Y store bakery really are some of the overall best I've eaten so far. Because I enjoy eating each variety so much, it can difficult to choose which ones to purchase.

The chocolate frosted, rainbow-sprinkled donuts are incredibly tasty and fun to eat. Sometimes, the talented bakers in the Big Y bakery utilize different-colored sprinkles for different occasions. On the Fourth of July, for example, red, white and blue sprinkles might be used, and to celebrate the Fall season, yellow and orange sprinkles accent the dark brown fudge topping.

 As for jelly donuts, I've tried their lemon, apple, blueberry and mixed-berry varieties, and each one has been excellent.

The donuts from Big Y are not only way more flavorful than those from a well-known, international donut chain, but they're actually bigger in size, and lower in price.

The last few times I've gotten donuts from that chain with locations everywhere, all I could taste was fryalator grease when I ate them. Not so with Big Y's donuts. Many times I've eaten their donuts, and I've never encountered any that tasted noticeably greasy.

At some Hartford-area supermarkets, the bakeries are only offering multi-packs of donuts. For single people like myself, purchasing packages of six donuts doesn't make a lot of sense. The donuts would probably go stale before they could get eaten.

At the Bishop's Corner Big Y store, the bakery department features a glass case where an assortment of fresh donuts and muffins are usually stocked. There are individual paper bags available for storing smaller quantities of donuts and muffins, and there are cardboard boxes for holding larger quantities of the sweet treats. 

There are lots of Big Y supermarkets in Connecticut, but I don't know how many of them have full-service bakeries, like at the Bishops Corner store. The muffins at Big Y are so good, another entire article will be needed, to describe the different varieties that are usually on hand.

If you really dig dynamite donuts, be sure to try the tantalizing treats that are available daily at the Bishops Corner Big Y bakery in West Hartford. 

The Roads in West Hartford are Dotted with Menacing Potholes

When's the last time you drove down Oakwood Avenue or South Quaker Lane in West Hartford? If you've driven down these roads recently, you've probably encountered some pretty nasty potholes.

A couple of days ago, I drove south on Oakwood Avenue from Crosby Street south to Flatbush Avenue, then reversed the trip, heading north on Oakwood Avenue.

Since the 1970s, I've driven a multitude of vehicles on that same section of road, and never saw potholes there like the ones there are now. Those vehicles include several Triumph motorcycles, two of which were awesome choppers. When you're operating vehicles like that, you become quite aware of pothole conditions.

There was one pothole in particular this week, near Layton Street, that made me think it could destroy my front wheel assembly and/or integral front end parts. The Miata is only a few inches off the ground, and the impact from hitting the pothole shook through my entire body.

West Hartford has long been known for offering a fairly high standard of living, and the public roads there have heretofore been maintained very well.

The Department of Public Works in West Hartford regularly does a great job. It is hoped that they can have a sense of urgency regarding the numerous potholes that are located all over town.