Karin Kristina Thorsen (September 17, 1936 Hudiksvall, Sweden – November 8, 2008 North Vancouver, Canada).

Today marks 17 years since my mother died from pancreatic cancer. I had an absolutely extraordinary mother, “Mamma.” My childhood was a typical 1960’s – 70’s middle class life and my brothers and I were lucky to be well-fed and well-loved. (As were her grandchildren. Mamma was an awesome “Mormor.”)

Mamma was the stable feature in the home and the safe haven. However, as I look through my Potato Nose: 1977 transcript draft, I read between the lines and see that things were starting to shift in my relationship with her.

(Photo by Fredrik Thorsen)

To be clear, until her death, we were all still well-fed every Sunday (oh, how I miss her cooking) and well-loved. Let’s change that, fiercely-loved. I came to understand that Mamma’s greatest fear (despite her working so dang hard to keep us fed, clothed and safe so we could grow) was that we would actually grow up and leave the nest.

Mamma navigated what I could not understand in my childhood – a woman living in a very “Mad Men” era. (If you know the TV show, you know what I mean). And she was undoubtedly impacted by the move to Canada (first in October 1968 and then again in August 1977) leaving her roots/community and best friends… (Mamma’s mother died when I was two. Her father in 1977.)

In 1977 onward, I was growing/developing, looking outward. That fear in Mamma grew exponentially over the years. (This would come to a heartbreaking climax in 1984. But that story would have to be told in future instalments in the Potato Nose archives!) There was a dramatic interplay between her fear of me growing up and her extreme worry that I wouldn’t grow up (as I underwent operations and radiation treatments over 7 years starting in 1977). The guilt I felt for making her worry about me is something I carry to this day. (Thus the therapeutic benefit for keeping diaries… a place to dump the stuff we carry.)

I love my Mamma but honestly, ours was the most difficult relationship in my life. We continued to be extremely intertwined until her death and really had many incredible adventures (I dedicated my graphic novel, Salt Green Death, to her and my dad). Our final year together was one of new understanding, release, joy and gentleness.

My goal for Potato Nose: 1977 is to explore visually through my mid 60’s lens (without altering the original text) the underlying unspoken shifts that were starting to happen in 1977.

Love, Katarina

My new Kickstarter Campaign is now live and runs Oct 24 – Nov 20, 2025

Potato Nose: 1977, the graphic novel

A tragicomic memoir of pubescent anxiety and ecstatic delusion

“If you read someone else’s diary, you get what you deserve.” ― David Sedaris