My sister was kind enough to sacrifice her Saturday night (and sanity) to watch our kids and allow for Cherie and I to actually get out of the house together. This typically only happens once, maybe twice a year and was an incredible evening. The only complaint I may have is that it went by too fast.
It started out with dinner (*IN A ‘No Minors’ LOUNGE! WooHoo!) at a pretty nice restaurant followed by a few games of pool at a sports bar/brew house. Then it was off to a clubhouse turned musical recording/rehearsal studio to hang out with a bunch of people while watching a local band prepare their sets for a show they had the following night.
I was actually able to have a few conversations that didn’t end with something along the lines of: “and that is why you don’t push the pedestrian walk button with your tongue!” (an unfortunate but true story/occurrence) or: “…so, yes, you have to get off the dogs head now!” or even: “for the love of god - next time just ask if there is more toilet paper!” (instead of… ugh… improvising.)
For Cherie and I, it was an overdue reminder of how much we actually enjoy each others company. I really am lucky to have married my best friend and am so happy that, when you strip away all the clutter and chaos, it is still her that makes my world go around.
But on a bit more of a personal note; while to most of the people at the rehearsal it was just another Saturday night spent hanging out with friends at the studio, it was quite a bit more to me. Here are these guys in their early twenties that are gearing up to take on the world and the positive energy was so thick you could almost bottle it… There was zero talk of ’recession’ or complaints about politics. There were no expectations only ambitions. For the first time in what I was reminded was far too long - I was in an environment free of blame and baggage… And, let me tell you, it was contagious!
I was more invigorated by this environment and these musicians than I have been in quite some time. Not only did it relight a fire inside - but also reminded me how much a positive atmosphere is not only necessary but can also be extremely beneficial. Now I’ve just got to figure out how to make it more of a regular occurrence… I’m not exactly sure how or where - but it is definitely going to be more of a priority in my future.
I hope you’ve had a good week! And Happy Thanksgiving to all!
Rod
P.S.
I’ve finally got my coffee table repaired, finished and assembled! I had planned on displaying (and hopefully selling!) it at a local bike shop but Cherie is pushing me to go more of a gallery route. Either way, I’m just quite happy to finally have it done.
My birthday on Sunday was nice… I was a little bummed out with Cherie being out of town but my parents and sister came over and it made for a really nice evening. My mom even made me dinner and baked me a cake! I may not know much of anything (and will get into that later) but I do know one thing for certain: there is nothing as precious on this planet as a loving and supportive mother.
As a Dad I try to help pour and mould the concrete that will hopefully become the bedrock of my children’s future decisions. I try to show them that integrity, honesty, and dedication will help guide them through life. That there are things in life that can be black and white, right or wrong - regardless of how much more appealing and easy a life lived in the grey areas may appear.
But comfort and compassion, acceptance and support, and, well, the pat on the head above all others undoubtedly comes from a Mom.
So with another year under my still-growing belt… It is odd that I often find myself more confused and confounded than ever. We live in a world that celebrates and rewards greed, frowns on tolerance and denounces compassion. Society seems to be on a path counter to it’s best interest and the continued downward spiral seems inevitable. Ignorance and intolerance is not only rampant - but also being taken advantage of by immoral leaders looking to herd people in whatever direction best serves their interests.
With this in mind, I think we’d all do a little better if we source a little more of what typically comes from the maternal influences. I think we would be much better off listening to a ‘Silver Cross Mother’ (or Blue Star Mother) about foreign policy than a politician who’s neck deep in oil-based campaign financing. Maybe treating sick people instead of judging them (and just sitting back to watch them die if they don‘t measure up to some non-existent standard). Maybe simply helping to build people up instead of constantly finding ways to tear them down. Compassion as an alternative to comparison and condescension.
It might not be much in the way of wisdom… but, after another year on the planet, it’s the best I’ve come up with so far. Oh well… maybe I am just getting older and wider.
Thanks for reading!!!
Rod
P.S.
As I typed this my Mom sent me a joke email about going to Jamaica and smoking dope… hehehe
I’m not pulling out the rocking chair yet - and am still doing my best to gather ye my share of rose buds. There has, however, been a rather significant shift in my hopes, dreams and even fears over the last few years.
I haven’t completely abandoned the romance of a life of artistic contribution or impact on the bigger artistic picture. I may not be in a relentless struggle for fame or vast fortune - stability is the main quest lately, but that doesn’t necessarily mean I have lost my ambition. It’s just that my equation has become a little more complex with the addition of a wife and kids into it.
Gone are the three day and night long ‘artistic benders’… (Not that I ever went on them too often - you tend to get kinda stinky by the end of those.)
And my most substantial fears have gone from the typical ‘getting old’ and ‘inconsequence’ - to the more simple things like catching my son with my toothbrush in his hand. And while there is considerable relief in finding it still in his hand and not seeing the dog running away in a panic with the handle protruding from it’s ass… you still do have to wonder where it had been before you found him with it - and, trust me, that is scary enough. And you don’t want to get into the mind game of wondering how many times he may have had it that you didn’t know of. There’s just no way of winning that.
There are days now a big project or new technique doesn’t even remotely bring the satisfaction that knowing that, at least at the moment you dropped them off for school, every part of the kids and their belongings was 'booger free'. Although that victory dance is usually a short one when you find something hideous had been wiped on your sleeve…
The trade off being that I get to volunteer to help out with ‘Clay For Kids’ day at school. And my son, beaming with pride, proclaiming (at full volume): “My Dad knows all about this stuff - He is a artist.” It almost makes the days of cleaning up body fluids, the projects that had to wait until midnight to get started, the runny noses, fighting over the $%^ * Wii and CONSTANT talking worthwhile…
So Yes… There are many days that I’m not sure what the hell I am doing - even more days I am not sure what the hell I am and where exactly I fit in to the big picture. But at least my kids seem to know and can remind me: “I know all about this stuff - I am a artist.”
Thanks for reading - sincerely,
Rod
P.S.
I just have to make a quick product ‘plug’ here… This week, along with several others, I pulled out my “Pocket Graf-X” stencils designed by Scott MacKay. I firmly believe that, next to my airbrush itself, they are among the best, most used, most valuable tools I own. I use them all the time and, without fail, find myself saying “These things are awesome!” when they speed up a process and/or add a cool effect. So… Scott - Thank you!! My customer was quite pleased with my project this week and it was largely due to the effects I added using your stencil set. (I don't have pictures of that project yet but will be going back there soon to take some - and then this 'plug' will make a lot more sense.)
One of my 'pick gaurd projects' before clear:
The past few weeks have been difficult (the working title for this blog entry was 'Being an artist can really fucking suck.') Though there are enough jobs to keep myself busy with - the pay scale on the majority of them is in the basement end of three figures and has often required any semblance of dignity be stowed. I’ve been making jokes (mostly to keep from crying) about how I’ve gone from painting guitars for CMT to painting pick guards for some dude from Pleasantview (he's a great guy - but just saying...). Then that begins a cycle of feeling like an ungrateful prick who should just be happy people are willing to pay me to paint at all.
I still realize that when I decided that my life would be dedicated to being a ‘creative’ (or as recently referred to by a friend: “All artsy and shit.”) even early on I knew it was not going to be an easy, or stable, road. I saw that fortune was rare and fame could often depend as much upon which way the wind was blowing as often as it did upon actual talent. You could pour all of your time, heart and talent into a project only to have it passed over for the latest ‘Hello Kitty-esque’ gimic or ‘not-so-creatively borrowed rendition’… Again and again. And again.
In the past, Cherie has always swept in and comforted (or kicked my ass in gear) when I’ve been floundering inside my head. But her career has taken off over the past few years and she has really become a force to be reckoned within her field. She is finally surrounded by people who recognized and foster her amazing potential - and it has allowed her to soar. So, after she has put in a long day of decision making and high budget coordination, it seems incredibly petty for me to approach her complaining about how people aren’t buying my paintings of dead things…
So this week, it was quite nice that a few timely conversations with friends have served to fill that role of getting my head back in the game. I’m not claiming any significant divine intervention and neither friend blew much of measurable quantity of sunshine up my ass - but rather just served to reset my mindset back into a productive and/or ambitious direction. And I feel incredibly fortunate to have people genuinely care and enjoy my company enough to help me knock the funk back a little and let some good vibes in. Now it didn’t hurt at all that one of these friends bought a painting… But even that gesture was as much a way of saying “What you do has value. I appreciate and want to support that. ” as it was a help to boost the ego (and wallet) a little.
So with that in mind, I say: “Cheers” to those who helped me out in my recent time of mental bambi-on-ice-edness… As well as an ongoing ‘Thank you’ to those who have supported me in the past.
I gotta go paint some dead stuff now on a pick guard now… and will be doing it with a smile.
Thanks for reading. Sincerely,
Rod
