Photos of us at Tue. and Thur. Storytime by Annie Bosworth Foley

Party Clowns! photos by Jennifer Carlson Loomis

I love it when the Dads enjoy as much as the kiddos!:)

"Participants in the kids race please follow me Dingo D. and Olive Rootbeer carrying the "Staff of Victory!" to the start line of the big kids race!"

It was a great honor for us to be chosen to start the big kids race at the brews to Bridges 10K run last Sunday in Portland. Our main jobs were being mayors of the kid zone. We entertained the kiddos while hundreds of parents drank amazing beers then ran 10K!
But first Rootbeer and i gotta get the kid race started.

It's nice to see you all out here today, It's a great day for a good old fashioned Foot Race!

3.....2....1........GO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I wore some flash chicken feet so i would be slow enough to pace the kids...turns out it made me faster. I actually won the kids race but nobody counted my victory.

Every kid that crosses the line gets me cheering for them like they won.The may not remember it was me but they will remember the feeling of accomplishment and approval from non-family members.I couldn't stand there at the finish line knowingly wasting the opportunity to help create some winners.

Rocking the Laurelhurst Cafe

We did a fine gig that ended way in the black for a change. Now we have all day to enjoy each other. Most of our favorite things to do together are free, strolling hand in hand is one of them. Today we noticed a familiar profile crossing SE Powell Blvd.It was Laurel Jones! You may remember her from that video we did in the opening of Portlandia. We ran into Laurel just in time to also run into Extremo the clown. He was out hustling window paintings and decided to stop and have a disco inferno with us.

After the dance party we walked Extremo to his truck. Yes that is Olive on the door.I'm so glad her amazing personality and cartoonishly beautiful figure is forever immortalized in VAN. This woman and I put each other through ALL the gears EVERY day and I always needed that. We are tight emotionally, spiritually, mentally and of course physically.

It's a blessing that one of my oldest friends (Extremo) gets to know my partner...HEY Where Ya'll goin???

That was great running into a couple of friends and having some fun on the street. The great part is that busy people should never be too busy to get their bootay shakin on.

How could this rumpus on the bus have started? Well I will tell you

We went out on a hunter gathering mission the make a small living on the streets of the big city as troupidores.  Upon entering a bus, the driver declared that our money was no good ! she needed a spirit lift so our fare would be to entertain all with some G rated fare. "Yes Mam glad to help!". I know that her line is full of very difficult people so I was so glad to be there for her. Just another night for some clowns in the big city.

.That fella stared at him like that the entire time! um...awkward :)

The denizens of SE 82nd. were so happy to see us!

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OH this is the pic i was looking for.

We sang some sweet songs, told some jokes, taught babies to shave...Y'know normal stuff. We are after all healers.  I asked wook and Sarah to join me because they are sharp, awake, not all messed up emotionally or chemically. That's perfect oxygen to earn us some daily bread and make tons of folks happy at the same time. Nice Flower Sarah.

Our Manager Madam Rootbeer was so pleased with us she got us another gig at another bus on 82nd and Powell. It was really cold while we waited for the venue to arrive.

We called ourselves "The Binz" because we were cheap and nothing we did matched. 

One of our fans was so taken by seeing us that he borrowed my guitar and played it better than any of us.

OK what do we play for this captive audience?    We decided to change the format to a more eclectic offering.

He did a straight Irish murder ballad about a unicorn that drank too much, She yelled "I am real therefor i feel" through a ta mbourine over and over. I did a song about a DIY manual for replacing a water heater thermocouple that i put to music.This is exactly what we sounded like.

Soon as we got off I noticed we were still on 82nd. I was shocked. I can still see the last bus stop. WTF? tough crowd on 82nd. street? weird.I wish we would have remembered to ask for donations.

Warning: If you see us ride by and you yell "Hey I'm a fan of you guys!", the chances of us picking you up and keeping you for ourselves is extremely high...even higher if for some reason you are also rocking a roll of toilet paper.

binz workin hard on giggin and chicken

click here for prints

working on some new old stuff "plague doctor"

I like him kind of a happy face, kind of distorted rubber chicken.

he would get 30 florens a month to treat plague victims near the harbors of Italy. The brass cone tied to his face is full of herbs.