MISSION STATEMENT

As a population and as individuals, we as a people have been salty since birth. Angsty teens gave way to frustrated adults; together we’ve developed a negative collective consciousness. Brine is our offering: a sweet relief from our own sour air.

Brine is a collaborative zine with contributions from all sorts of people. For the first year it has been issued quarterly, but moving forward it is now a biannual publication. With fiction, nonfiction, poetry, art and more, Brine has something for all of us.

EDITORS

Writing Editor - Tess Fahlgren is a writer, teaching artist and book festival director. In August she's headed out to get her MFA in Creative Nonfiction in Minneapolis, where she gets to try being a city mouse.

Insta: @tessiswho . Twitter: @tessfahlgren . www.tessfahlgren.com

Art Editor -Halisia Hubbard is a bitter journalism and art student, though it’s sometimes hard to tell through her relentless giggling. When she’s not biking around Missoula, you can find her still trying to finish her dishes, over and over again, forever, how are they never done??

Insta: @halisiah . Twitter: @halisia

Be on the lookout for all of the latest content from Brine the Zine here at Waste Division and also on their own website HERE! Check out some of the great content from their latest publication, the Spring Issue, below:

Life of Ivy

The Year by Hadrian Hubbard, Illustrated by Daniel Mrgan

I have good news for you: this is the year. Remember last year? Last year was supposed to be the year. It wasn't. You didn't ride your bike all over the place, you didn't get into the mountains except that one time when relatives were visiting, you didn't get a new grill and do a whole bunch of grilling, you didn't stay ahead of the yard work, and you sure as shit didn't "get out on the water". But you need to stop hating yourself, because it's Friday night again. That is a metaphor for you have a little bit of time to feel hope. You got through the week, which is a metaphor where the week is most of the time that you are alive and waiting for that little bit of a break from what a drag it usually is.

You better do some stuff, like take your bikes to the place where they fix up bikes. Don't say you'll do it yourself, you idiot. That's what you said last year, and that's why your bike never got fixed up. Take the bikes to the place where they fix up bikes, especially your wife's bike, because she will take any excuse to not go bike riding. Don't buy a new bike. The bike is not the problem. You are the problem. Take your old bike and get it fixed up by a grown man with an apron who knows how derailleurs work and can get your bike shifting right for that one sweet ride until it starts shifting weird again. It's fine. Just let it shift weird for the rest of the time, because life is short and stuff never works right.

Once you get your bike fixed up, it should be smooth sailing. Except for sailing. Don't do any sailing. It's the hardest way to be on a boat. Everything needs attention, and care, and knowledge. That's how you know it's not for you. Get some other kind of thing that helps you float, like a friend with a boat with a motor. That way you can buy some beer and some chips, or wine if you are like that, and you will have all the getting on the water at a fraction of the cost. If your friend has a bad boat with no thing that blocks the sun, keep an eye out for a better friend. They're out there. Start looking now, though, because the competition is fierce for those friends. One good place to start is with your personality. Would it kill you to be a little more "friendly"? A little more "fun"? Probably not. If so, this world is not for you and it's better to know now so you can end it and avoid another Sunday, which is a metaphor for that feeling when you know you blew another metaphorical weekend and here comes the week, which is a metaphor for most of the time.

But don't worry about all that just yet! It's still Friday and we already got you a good plan for the bikes and getting out on the water. Don't worry about it. The universe loves you and cares about you and is showing it by making temperatures that won't kill you. The universe is being super cool, so don't fret. You might want to get some exercise, though, because you look like you've been letting your clothes do the heavy lifting. And by heavy lifting, that means you. Stop eating so much and your other lazy habits, because you are looking a little heavy, if you get my drift, and soon you will be wearing less clothes. Get it together. It's Friday. You have some time, but not nearly enough.

This is so cool. This is definitely the year. Grow some plants, man. You can do it. Get a pet. Pets never turn into being a drag. Buy some shorts that are too tight, because you might fit into them soon enough. Learn how to tie ten useful knots, because you never know. Consider the option of getting a better life companion. It's possible like anything is possible on Friday. And lastly, which is a writing way of letting you know this is wrapping up, go buy a parka, which is a fancy word for warm coat, because they are heavily discounted and this is how you win at life: get discounts, and also prepare for Sunday. It's always just around the corner.