The Trail

 

I'm back from my Appalachian Trail adventure with the Venture Crew :)
It was... hard to explain
exhausting
challenging
aggravating
amazing
invigorating
beautiful
fun
miserable
wonderful

all at the same time!

I had a lot of time to think and reflect. I want to write it down before I forget it... but first,
it's back to the rest of the real life that I've let go while I've been off playing for the last few weeks.

I'll be back soon
after I get some stuff done
:)

Atlas Shrugged

 

This could be Atlas, with the weight of the world not momentarily resting on his shoulders
It could be Nick putting his dad on a pedastle
It was very, very funny to the folks sitting on their deck watching us pose
It is a very real photo
I really love this picture

Two variations on a theme

Sunset,
two different nights this week
two different places
Relaxing at the beach
and relaxing at home.

I like them both
But home is a little... sharper... isn't it? Meaner?
But it's still home sweet home
and it's actually more peaceful in someways
home is home, after all.

You can't tell by looking at the beach photo
but at my back
are hundreds of thousands of people
vacationing at the Jersey Shore

And you can't tell by looking at the home photo
but the neighborhood is very quiet
and crickets are chirping, and music is playing
and no one is home but me.

This is what I've been working on lately

 

I played with this for a long time before I figured out what I wanted to do with it. I really like the way it came out. I put actual pages of a book down first, and then painted on top of them. The quote is only me, I decided I wanted to just say something from myself, not try to look up something that someone else said. Not what I usually do, but I wanted to play... and I'm getting tired of trying to paint people, lol :)

This is a small one I just finished

 

It was a quick painting but I really like it. I like the idea of adding words... maybe it's trite or hokey, but I do like the idea...

This is the one I'm working on right now.

 

I like the idea and the vision I have of it in my head. I don't know if I'll be able to get that vision on paper. It's nowhere near that yet. But I plan on working on this one for a really long time, and I have a long way to go, so maybe I'll get there. It kinda matches the one I have already hanging in the dining room... But I am still terrible at people, and I still don't know how to get those cartoony people to look REALLLL...