Independent Publishing Resource Center

We have much to learn from mushrooms, says the just-released zine, Radical Mycology.  Authored by the self-identified Spore Liberation Front, the primer states in its “call to sporulate:”

The complex life of mushrooms provides profound and novel examples of networking between different species and environs not exhibited by most other life forms.  These actions show a sentient concern for not just the mushroom involved but for the surrounding environment as well.  We believe that as one learns more about these habits, and the ways in which they can influence our own human behavior, one quickly begins to perceive the interconnectedness of life surrounding them all the more clearly.

Clearly, this is no standard field Guide.  Radical Mycology is a political and spiritual call to humanity to look down at the ground and learn from one of the most wondrous living organisms known. Most mushroom affectionados will have no difficulty comparing their mycological friends to human existence and sustainability, but this zine brings this concern more sharply into focus than most publications.

The “networking” that the SLF are referring to is one of the major forms and life stages of mushrooms: mycelium.  The mycelium is the “vast underground web-like structure” that is the hidden vegetative body that produces the mushroom “fruit.”  Many mushrooms you see above ground can be part of the same mycelium below.  In fact, one single mycelium network in Eastern Oregon has been identified as possibly the largest living organism in the world, stretching over 2,400 acres! Mycelium have recently been understood to act as kind of underground economy for their habitat, not only providing nutrients for surrounding organisms, but actually acting as a middleman between them!  Radical Mycology contains a “Mycorestoration” section that details the new science of using mushrooms to restore habitats.

The zine discusses species identification and culinary uses, but this is often where other written works end.  Radical Mycology goes further by offering cultivation tips and other interesting tidbits, like stories of hunters intentionally causing forest fires to produce a flush of Morel mushrooms.  It freely discuss the psychedelic properties of mushrooms, both for spiritual and medicinal use.  Along with using mushrooms to dye fabric and make paper, the zine reveals the often misunderstood fungi to have a history of use as old as civilization itself.



A few nights ago I was rifling through the “Work” section of the zine library and came across a little book I have always wished existed. It’s too good to be true: the compiled incident report log from Peterson’s convenience store.

I know Peterson’s as the crowded little store you stop in to buy chocolate milk and PBR from before Zoobombing, a straight up snack and beer establishment that Brooks Brothers thought was too dirty for downtown, the only 24 place for cookies and magazines in Portland’s central city. It has two locations, both on the MAX line, and in my brief sojourns into Peterson’s, I’ve always run into some slightly off-kilter folks. Peterson’s Incident Report Book is a transcription of the best of the noteworthy incidents the Peterson’s staff wrote down in a series of notebooks behind the counter, thanks to former clerk Ms. George Black. Most incidents involve the police and the reports are seriously gnarly stuff. It’s an awesome glimpse of Portland life.

1/23/01: A drunk fratboy came in and repeatedly did that annoying, infectious “WHAZZUP?!” from the Budweiser beer commercial. For this infraction I ejected him from the premises.

1/24/01: Some maniac tried to give me a single old grimy glove in lieu of cash for a can of Budweiser (16 oz) and one of those nasty Sausage N’Egg muffins.

1/14/00: Joe came in and bummed a smoke from me so I 86’d him. He threatened to “go upside my dumpling with a crack snack”……….. “And not one of those cream-filled soft ones either but one of those hard, old, expired granola bars on the shelf” if I didn’t “Get off his jock.” He excused himself and leaned his face against the window all staring out and everything. After quite some time I asked him what was wrong. He said he was sorry and was just upset about missing the “All-U-Can-Eat Sloppy Joe Friday” at the airport. —Jack

1/15/00: About mid-shift, one Karl “Fancy Boy” entered the store yelling, “I have the right to remain silent, anything I say will be reported.” At this point I opted to ignore him. Then he proceeded to holler “Keep playin’ Satan, gimme your shoes!” He was scaring customers… I approached him from behind and laid down a righteous headlock but this didn’t stop him. He ranted dementedly asking me if I was the man “with the peppermint flavored penis?” Then he asked me if I had beer flavored nipples. He broke my headlock and ran free telling everyone he was going to call security! I was scared! I locked the store.

4/27/98 A black man, aged 27 (approx) tucked two Hostess products under his coat and walked out. I stopped him and he gave me the products. I told him to leave and he refused and suggested I call the police. At this time a black woman, probably in her early 30s, walked in. She had been in earlier in the evening telling me that she had sickle-cell anemia and needed immediate attention. I tried to call her an ambulance but the folks at OHSU didn’t seem to think it was an emergency so I told her to leave. This time she refused to leave and proceeded to lay on the floor moaning. The shoplifter remained in the store eating beef jerky. I called the police and reported both of them… the police came 40 minutes later and directed the woman to where she could find some social service. The shoplifter is a regular and I’m sure we’ll see him later. I think he is probably a little crazy but he is a friendly enough guy.

Copyright lawyer  Kohel Haver stopped by tonight to talk us through the zine he made with his daughter, “The Law and the Zine Artist: Free Speech and Copyright.”

“I want to teach you how to protect what’s good and also the value of stealing everything in sight,” he said, launching into the basics of what’s legal and what’s not when it comes to pilfering others’ work for your own art. The law bascially comes down to protecting intellectual property but also protecting the right to free speech by allowing zinesters and others to reprint people’s work if they’re making some sort of scholarly commentary about it. The most fantastic song of my 6th grade year, for example, ws Aqua’s “Barbie Girl” which later won a copyright lawsuit filed by Mattel because their use of Barbie and Ken had been pure satire.

Haver also spelled out that you can use only as much of copyrighted material as you need to prove your point – including a picture of Mickey Mouse to talk about musophobia in modern society is fair game, but including an entire old Mickey comic in your zine would be pushing it.

To those that disparage copyright law as one of the many evils of capitalism, Haver acknowledged that some people and businesses exploit the system but that there are many benefits to copywriting your work – it’s insurance that someone (say, Disney) doesn’t rip off your brilliant idea. And a lot of brilliant ideas start small. “Giving people the tools to make zines is an important part of what makes this country work. Thomas Paine’s Common Sense was a zine,” noted Haver.

Stop by the library to read Haver’s little zine in full. As a quick copyright primer for those of you too lazy to read, Haver points to this creative cut-and-paste video a Fair(y) Use Tale.

For my first review, I am recommending Know Your Rights!: A Restaurant Worker’s Survival Guide.  This publication was recently published by the Portland Restaurant Workers Association (PRWA), which describes itself as “a community group of workers committed to promoting Solidarity, Support, & Education among food service workers in our city.”

The PRWA also recently teamed up with the Portland Central America Solidarity Committee to offer low-cost, highly interactive Spanish Language/Conversation classes, which you can learn more about here.

The small guide makes a handy resource to refer to, whether you’re unemployed, going through the hiring process, on the job, or getting fired.  At 1/4 page size, it’s also almost small enough to store in your back pocket.

Inside, the restaurant workers who wrote the zine present some resources for employment, legal services, and heath care, both local and national.  It also offers legal information that your employer is less likely to inform you of, such as your rights to be paid, and the terms for taking leave when you or a family member has a serious health condition or is the victim of a crime.  Of particular interest to restaurant workers is the issue of tips.  The guide points out that Oregon law does not address tips and even the U.S. Department of Labor fails to enforce federal regulations in the state.  The PRWA wants to hear more from restaurant workers about their experience with tips.  You can send your story to them at contact@pdxrwa.org.

Know Your Rights!: A Restaurant Worker’s Survival Guide is available to view at the Independent Publishing Resource Center.  You can also contact PRWA at contact@pdxrwa.org to get your own copy.  They plan to hold discussion forums this year to distribute, discuss, and receive feedback about the pamphlet.