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.
- 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.
- Ela Alvy House – By Daniel FarberHOUSEHOLDS The Ela Alvy House By Daniel Farber