My oldest downtown Sacto-origins homie Claudia came up to visit me from Illinois this past Thursday and left early this morning. We hadn't seen each other in four years. She teaches kids how to make art at Southern Illinois University-Carbondale while she finishes her MFA. I had to work a lot during her visit but we managed to sneak in some great convos during the witching hour. Claudia was the first person to introduce me to zines, Bikini Kill/riot grrrl music and Gloria Anzaldúa. She was the first girl I ever saw in real life on a skateboard, whizzing by wearing cat ears. We started an artists collective together in 2000 and it's been wonderful to witness her progression as an artist. I remember when she was teaching herself how to silk screen on her floor in her apartment, using a drawing I made of a girl robot crying. Now she gets paid to teach university students how to do the same thing. She is incredibly talented and I can't wait until she has her first show in NYC. She told me she will kick my ass if I don't write my book by next June, so I better get on it. Below is a photo of Claudia when she came to support the Sacramento show I produced for Chicks in Arms in 2002. She drank a lot of Rock Star and handled ticket sales.