Martha presents us with a zine focused on "hate" though it's really not as detestful as you might think. Really, it's about some bad experiences throughout her life. She dosen't really hate cats but it was sure difficult when a cat got caught in a tree and they had to cut it down or her dog licked a cat to death. It's equally entertaining to hear about how she hates rich people - or at least had some terrible times on a cruise ship where she only got a great deal but the other guests' livestyles were just unfathomable and insulting to her. She may claim to despise Christianity but it's a lot more compelling to read about her imposing mother and private schooling experiences where she was exorcised (!) and was told that dancing to a strobe light was satanic (!). Other entries include submissions from all of her family members which are hilarious and provide great depth. Ironically, one of her sisters seems to detest the realities of poor people as much as Martha detests the wealthy.

Somnambulist #10 is Martha's usual blend of stories, perhaps fiction and non. This issue focusing specifically on Portland Oregon, where she lives. "Nice White Girls" is a true story about a day spent reflecting on gentrification in Portland. Rents going up, and beloved establishments being evicted. It subtly touches on that sentiment of "gentrification sucks" while at the same time realizing that by comparison, the author can't fathom the scope of having been displaced by gentrification decades ago. Also, this issue is almost entirely stories about bars--going to them and the things that happen inside them.

This issue is a series of oral interviews with Martha's grandfather, someone whose history was largely unknown to her. He talks mostly about the many jobs that he walked out on in his life but also talks about doing drugs, selling stolen televisions to stores, and generally just having strange ways of making money. He was propositioned as a boy to be a man's lover. He trades off telling the stories with his wife and they build off of each other, with each story being more fascinating than the last. Definitely an eye opening and fascinating read.

View All 7 Comments

Picking up where the last issue left off, we are now treated to Martha's own series of employment of late. When we begin she cleans houses with a particularly drama laden company and has plenty of time to spend with her thoughts. "I found that house cleaning services like the one I worked for, contrary to assumption, attract no busy, affluent snobs but an unusual amount of anal and underemployed people with delusional standards of perfection." On that note, she eventually quits and becomes a deli worker in an organic grocery store serving many of the same clients. Another entry is about being a mental health therapist , being a rogue liason to psych patients to steady them. There are many stories of patients who were particularly interesting and worth recalling if not just to wonder if they were pulling a fast one by living in the mental health ward when they seemed to be perfectly competent other than when they were being reviewed. Throughout the text are interspersed notes from managers with ridiculously petty requests "take only one piece of candy", "don't flush the toliet with your foot", "take pride in cleaning the deli", and so on.

View All 5 Comments

A document to Martha kicking the cigarette habit, we are now treated to stories and interviews of Martha's family and their history of smoking. We get a little sketch of each person as well as a little testimony from that person about smoking or family history with smoking. The elders ponder why all of their kids smoke and how to make them stop. It's a great little case study as to the meaning and depth and smoking psychology as well as the rationale from different people behind the behaviors.

Somnambulist #9 has a few stories by Martha and one by her friend Kyle. She's a strong writer, especially in the story Dr. Jones. The dialog perfectly captures the frustration of going to a doctor and being told that although something is wrong, it's not serious enough to treat. It's the kind of detail only someone with chronic pain would include and it's that attention to detail that brings her stories to life. I'm sorry she didn't get accepted into grad school. It's their loss.