Daily Doodle #3

Outpour
Recommended listening: Rescue by Seabird

"I'm pushing up daisies, I wish they were roses.
I feel like I'm drowning but nobody knows it."

Daily Doodle #2

Overly Protective 

I had this idea about how we can be overly protective in our lives and how that protection can turn against us. Like a bird that builds a nest in a thorn bush only to have the vines grow to shut her out.

A Doodle a Day

I'm trying to kick up the creativity. So every day of this my 30th year, I'm going to do a doodle or other creative work and post it here (and on Facebook) every day.  

"I soak up the air here like I have been dry my whole life." - quote from an Asheville artist

 I grew up in the foothills of the Ozarks and spent a lot of time camping there. So I love visiting the mountains. Especially the Great Smoky Mountains. It feels like coming home. The air seems richer, crisper, and full of life. I like the smell of old forests, of waterfalls, and of mist. I cant breathe in deeply and it seems to soak into my very bones.

Notes from the Road: First stop Atlanta, GA

If there is one theme that developed over the course of the road trip, it was rushed. At times it was exciting. But as the trip went on, the lets-do-as-much-as-we-can-in-one-day got tiresome. You can't sprint for an entire marathon. Atlanta, GA was one of the quick stops on the trip. I spent just one night there.

My first stop was Ikea. And as I mentioned, it felt as though i was running through the place in an attempt to see everything and stay on schedule. I really didnt need anything from the store but I bought a package of small glasses that looked perfect for whiskey.

My other planned stop was the High Museum of Art. It was beautiful inside and out. "We're walking. We're walking. We're walking.... and stop." This was the monolog in my head at the museum. There was so much to see and I had about 2 hours to do it. I saw a roaster exhibit on display which seemed fitting as I was on a road trip. Which reminds me, I was pleasantly surprised by the much higher MPG that my Volvo wagon got on the highway. I drove from Memphis to Atlanta with a quarter of a tank to spare. In fact, I made the nearly 500 miles and 8 hour drive from Cincinnati, OH to Memphis, TN on one tank of gas. The wagon got about 33 mpg.

Pretending to have a Simpler life

On my road trip, I'm going to pretend that I'm living a fantasy that I've had for some time. In my fantasy, I have a much simpler life. No 3 bedroom, 2 bath house. No pets. Just an RV and the road. Each day an adventure.

How did I catch this travel bug? My immune system was down. We've all got a metal immune system for crazy ideas. Voices in our heads that automatically shoot down our 'crazy' creative desires because "Oh be serious. You can't do that and you'll starve/throw away your live's work/be seen as a failure/etc." But take a life changing event, such as a divorce, and suddenly you have fewer fears. I've already lost a lot. I've felt failure. I've survived a tougher situation than I ever expected to live through. Now I'm starting to hear a different voice and it says, "well, why the heck not? what do i have to lose?"

So let me share with you some of the infectious materials that have led to my roadtrip:

A Million Miles in a Thousand Years by Donald Miller (urges you to live a more interesting story)
Through Painted Deserts by Donald Miller (a journey from Texas to Oregon)
Travels with Charlie: in Search of America by John Steinbeck (his roadtrip was 10,000 miles)
The Lost Continent: Travels in Small-Town America by Bill Bryson (about 14,000 miles)

And then there are the countless blogs that modern day Steinbecks are keeping about their great American journeys. They even give you practical advice and encouragement so you can do it yourself.

http://tosimplify.blogspot.com
http://www.happyjanssens.com/
http://roadtripnation.com/

I guess i got tired of reading about everyone else's roadtrip adventures. Even my own sketchbooks have seen more of the country than I ever have and I was having to write about their journeys!

Painting of the Week Sale - Week 4

At the end of May, I'm headed on a long roadtrip. Also, I'm working on a lot of new work, but I've got quite a bit of old work sitting around. So to free up some space in the house and have some money for roadtrip souvenirs, during May I will be posting a PAINTING OF THE WEEK with a lower price on that piece for that week only. Shipping is extra.

Week #4

Serene - 24"x30" - Richard Fudge 2007 - acrylic medium

Normally $400. This week it's $325.

You can email me at richard.fudge@gmail.com if you're interested. Thank you!