Wapatusset, Greyotes, and the Death of Scrim Shaw

The Tiny Mind Gazette is not only a blog filled with humor and satire, it has been a virtual laboratory for exploring social media.

It still gives me great pleasure when I ‘Google’ either ‘Wapatusset’ or ‘Greyote’ and see Tiny Mind Gazette float to the top of the search page.

Wapatusset (Alqonquin for – “White Goat on the Rocks.”) is a fictional New England town that has an uncanny resemblance to my current hometown of Cohasset Massachusetts. Like my town, there is the inherent village charm that was portrayed in the major motion pictures, ‘The Witches of Eastwick” and ‘Housesitter’ – both filmed on location in Cohasset. However, just like a Stephen King novel, there is a quirky, and too often whacky, underbelly.

Both towns are inhabited by wonderful people, but just like Angela Lansbury’s Cabot Cove, there always seem to be bizarre circumstances that bubble to the surface. Trust me, these bubbles are welcoming targets for the Tiny Mind’s left-handed attempts at ridicule and silliness.

As for the Greyotes, I am not sure if they really exist. I first realized the possibility of a half greyhound, half coyote inhabiting our local forests, after enjoying a couple of perfectly chilled martinis at a local watering hole. I was so inspired, then upon returning home, I immediately registered the URL, greyote.com – a project candidate for another day.

The Tiny Mind suddenly percolated to the surface in a similar way, and was quickly acted upon. Through this blog, and Facebook, I met local copywriter Sally Sisson. In a quick Facebook conversation, we discussed the possibility of setting up a humorous weblog, that besides spewing myths and hearsay, would act as a test laboratory and think tank – allowing us, as marketers, to experience firsthand – social networking through blogs, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Tiny Mind has given us a plethora of insight into the behavior of social networking and the humans that move it forward. Quite often we embark on a virtual fishing trip, tossing out slightly offbeat gossip as bait – waiting to see what kind of social networking responses we can reel in. Usually, these comments lead to some sort of reader engagement. However there are occasional entries that we deem brilliant –  that totally fall flat and die. Generally, it provides a quick peek at patterns of human social networking behavior.

For me, the Tiny Mind allows outside-the-box creative thinking and most of all, just plain fun. There are also times when writing a column can relieve some of the stress of everyday life. This includes a recent column entitled ‘Ask a Deli Meat Slicer,' which was a knee-jerk reaction to finding that my pound of Buffalo chicken deli meat had been sliced so thin that the deli zip-lock bag contained nothing but a shredded glob of poultry meat.

Sally and I also manage several flavorful characters including: Scrim Shaw, flamboyant (and creepy) Glenn Denver, out-of-touch Dot Rossi, and the snobbish Jane Peyton. These characters are regular contributors to the Tiny Mind and often comment on posts through the Tiny Mind Facebook Fan Page. I sometimes picture myself as Jim Henson, simultaneously living the lives of several Muppets.

I first met Scrim Shaw while editor the Cohasset Yacht Club newsletter, The Binnacle. Scrim is a well-seasoned and slightly over-salted curmudgeon, who offered sharp wit, most often directed towards the more colorful and interesting yacht club members (especially those that appreciated a good joke). Our collective tenures as coeditors of The Binnacle lasted two years, ending when our comic-cohort, the club’s Commodore, left office and a more serious administration took over. The new Skipper inhabited a more black & white world and preferred more fact over fiction – causing Scrim and me to ‘shove off’ and ‘clear the deck.'

Is Scrim Shaw really dead (as rumored in a recent Tiny Mind News Flash)? I don’t think so. My guess is that he is currently reinventing himself as either a roadie for Jimmy Buffett, a galley cook on an oil tanker, or perhaps, as the first mate of a barefoot cruise ship. Only time will tell.

The life expectancy of the Tiny Mind Gazette is something that Sally and I occasionally discuss. This is especially true, when we both find ourselves too busy with actual paying projects to post a Tiny Mind entry. With this said, there is plenty of opportunity for contributions from the audience. We welcome all articles large and small.

Please feel free to send us your content. Remember, in a cash-strapped world, content is the new king! The Tiny Mind Gazette is a great creative outlet and a fun way to keep in touch with our futuristic present.