Joe came to Olympia in 1974 after dropping out of college at Gonzaga in Spokane. He was looking to join a commune like the ones he’d visited in San Francisco on several hitchhiking trips. Here in Olympia he found Cold Comfort Farm with its cows, goats, and chickens, and its sauna, and geodesic dome. Perfect! He set up shop as a sign painter (Buffalo Sign Co.) and got involved in a variety of civic and artistic projects. His public art pieces are on view around Olympia if you know where to look. There’s a carving of an Orca on the boardwalk, and the mural reproduction of Hokusai’s wave, not to mention several surviving wooden signs.
- Whimsical and Creative Names of Group Houses and Collectives 1960 – 1989 – By Joe TougasOne of the interesting practices that was characteristic of the Olywa local culture in the 1970s was the naming of the various houses and households . . . The number of houses with names ballooned over time. Recently, when a request went out for people’s memories of those named households, the response was huge. Here is a list of over a hundred names dredged up from peoples’ memories and documents.
- Smokin’ on the Dock of the Bay – By Joe TougasThat day I was walking through a trashed-out industrial part of the old downtown . . . I saw a rusty fire escape going up the side of one of the rough concrete buildings. I climbed the stairs, noticing how one tread was hanging loose, up to the landing where I could sit and have a look around. I immediately saw that this was a bitchin’ spot. You could see a long way in all directions. Across the street there was a row of sheds or warehouses hanging over the water. Much of the corrugated metal siding had been ripped off, and it was obvious that most of those buildings had not been used in a long time.
- Making Hay While the Sun Shines – By Joe TougasCold Comfort Farm took the “Farm” in its name seriously. We thought of ourselves on the model of agricultural co-ops. We wanted to be independent, creative, revolutionary. We were pretty smug about our agrarian accomplishments. Although our knowledge of small-scale farms was spotty and romanticized (not to mention borderline illegal) we were proud of our worn-out overalls and home-grown strawberries and broccoli.