Once again I found myself at Stardust Video and Coffee on the evening of the Audubon Community Market. As I ate dinner, I sketched people absorbed in the glow of their computer screens. Since I was sketching on my computer, I fit right in. Outside tents were going up in the parking lot for the weekly Audubon Market. The couple in the foreground remained focused for the duration of the sketch. Eventually a conversation fired up and the gentleman moved closer to talk. I was surprised that people could meet in person and have face to face conversations. She was an actress who had just arrived in Orlando. He had her laughing much of the time. They agreed that they should stay in touch before they both returned to their screens.
I was pleased with the warm glow of the sketch. I would never get such pure rich color with watercolor washes. As I was finishing up, my Coke bottle fell from the wobbly round table I was sitting at. It crashed to the floor making an insane racket as it bounced repeatedly, yet thankfully it didn’t break. I must have been beet red as I picked it up. I walked around the market and stopped for a moment to listen to a local musician but I decided against doing another sketch and I headed home. I keep selling the idea that sketching helps me become part of the community, but it also isolates me, making me an impartial outside observer. I’m fully engaged and alive as I’m working, but when the sketch is done, my mood slips and it feels like life is slipping by.