Inspiration doesn’t just hit you. You have to go looking for it. I often find it with other people, in cafés or at public parks or in friends’ homes. There’s always an external source that inspires the idea that motivates the action.

In this case, the action is gluing things on top of other things. The inspiration is pretty obvious:

Rozz-Tox is my favorite local culture hub, and it has more-or-less been closed since March 18. They’ve adapted by expanding their already dank AF drink menu. They’ve also been able to put on some outdoor events. It’s not the same, of course. No more sweaty dancing with strangers in the dark. No more sardine-packed crowds appreciating the hell out of some innovative, experimental noise poetry.

So last Sunday morning, after missing out on yet another backyard balcony boogie the night before, I spent five hours or so hunched over this irregular 42”x50” collection of scraps I pulled out of my purse on Saturday and Sunday mornings from 2017 to 2019.

You got your program flyers, of course. Booklets, wristbands, discarded set lists, retired signage from the door box, band stickers, etc.

I started texting friends to see if anyone else had stuff. I figured they would have some flyers or stickers tucked away somewhere in a sketchbook or something. Then it hit me that most people don’t collect paper the way I do. Therefore, I’m expanding my search.

Here’s my idea: if you happen to have any Rozz-Tox paraphernalia laying around that you’d like to see incorporated into a giant collage, you can @ me on Twitter and Instagram. And on DeviantArt. Even the thought police.

I can send you my physical address or mail you a self-addressed, stamped envelope for you to return. We’ll figure it out. But I need your help. Now that public events are few and far between, who knows how long it’ll take me to collect what I need to fill the rest of this in?

It doesn’t have to be anything fancy. It doesn’t have to be from a show. It could be a receipt, pages from a zine, a bookmark from something you read there, a drawing you made while you waited for your tea to brew, etc.

Or if you just have something cool you think needs to be part of this collage.

Once the collage is complete, I’ll post photos. I’m not sure what its ultimate fate will be. Maybe we’ll auction it off and donate the $$? Or maybe I’ll find some billionaire’s senseless offspring and sell it to them for a hundred thousand dollars.

That’s my retirement plan, but the way.

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Links:

Sooke Writers Collective’s New Anthology features work from local writers living in Vancouver.

Gail Chavenelle uses paper-folding techniques to create metal sculptures in Dubuque.

Breasia Terrell, 10, was missing for six days before authorities issued an Amber Alert. She still hasn’t been found.