Dust

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The Dog Powered Robot Fundraiser 2.0 was held at Stardust Video & Coffee (1842 E Winter Park Rd at Corrire Drive). I had donated 5 DPR prints for the fundraiser and two of the prints were sold! Whoo hooo! I was at the Dust to pick up the remaining three prints. The day of the fundraiser, there was a flurry of activity with the DPR army rushing about getting the stages ready. A projector was being hung from the rafters. Andy Matchett & the Minx were slated to play at the fundraiser, so there would be a wild time with confetti, fans and a huge parachute. Today the place was quiet in comparison.

The people seated in front of me were discussing some design work. She listened to his premise and then pulled up graphic designs that were similar in intention. The meeting went on for the whole duration of the sketch so they had a lot of ground to cover. The tables are made from old doors with a thick coating of polyurethane. Old windows were suspended in the plate glass windows. Single shoots of Mothers in Law Tongues thrust up out of old coffee cans on each table. Strings of Christmas lights and Oriental lanterns decorated the ceilings. Once in NYC, set designer James Yeomans asked me to go to Chinatown to pick up such paper lanterns for the play, “A Street Car Named Desire.” It seems a lantern is ripped down every evening in that play. So I brought several dozen large lanterns. It turns out they were too large so I was stuck as a lantern salesman for the next year to make my money back.

It had been several weeks since the fundraiser. Christie and Evan Miga were seated at several tables surrounded by DRR art. This fundraiser had been a huge success, giving them the much needed cash as they continue building more cardboard robots. One of the Dust staff was sweeping the floor and she was surprised that she was still sweeping up confetti. “Where does it keep coming from?” she asked a costumer. “It must be coming from underneath the stage.” he suggested. “It was cute at first” she confessed, “but this stuff just keeps multiplying.”

Dog Powered Fundraiser 2.0

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D-D-DOG POWERED ROBOT: UPLOAD DPR FUNDRAISER 2.0, tonight, Saturday, February 25th 2012 from 7:00pm-11:00pm. You have only minutes before the awesomeness begins at Stardust Video & Coffee (1842 East Winter Park Road.)

Dog Powered Robot is returning…and he is bringing the whole robot crew with him! To ensure mega-awesomeness, he has activated the ultimate upgrade of ANDY MATCHETT & THE MINKS! Prepare to have your mind circuits blown!

Join TEAM DPR as we celebrate and raise money for our 2012 full length Fringe show: DOG POWERED ROBOT AND THE SUBSEQUENT ADVENTURE.

Post script: Three prints of my sketches of Dog Powered Rehearsals and performances are still on display in Stardust Video and Coffee through March 15th. Prints sold help raise funds for DPR.

Flat Mountain Men

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Every Monday from six to ten in the evening, the Audubon Community Market is held in the parking lot in front of Stardust Video & Coffee. On this particular evening I was going to be able to see the first run of 2012 Ourlando Calendars hot off the press. Julie Norris who did an amazing job designing the calenders had yet to see the calendars as well. A table was going to be set up in the market to sell the calendars. I spotted Julie and her daughter, Maya, at the Big Wheel food truck. I ordered a stuffed avocado dish and then joined Julie and Maya inside Stardust to eat. The avocado was delicious. Emily Rankin entered Stardust carrying a heavy box. She split the tape seal and cracked it open. Inside were the first 50 calendars. Julie and I each grabbed a calendar and started flipping through. I was happy to see the final product but I felt uneasy. The colors were more saturated and darker than I would have liked. I held my tongue, then Julie said, “What do you think?” I had to admit my concern and she agreed.

We were on a tight deadline to have the calendars ready for the holidays. The rest of the printing run was on hold till the morning while the printer ran another job. An employee was at the printer so I drove there to be sure the rest of the print run wasn’t as dark. A sample calender had been printed 10% less dark. I decided it was good enough. I then drove back to Stardust to sign some calendars and enjoy the music. Julie was leaving because Maya was tired. Emily was at the table selling the calendars and I signed a few before sketching the Flat Mountain Men. The parking lot stage consisted of a card table with an inverted cowboy hat and a stool. The music was rustic home spun fun. Folding tables were set up in front of the band where people came to sit and enjoy their food and the music. The two women seated right in front had known the musicians ever since high school. The band played “Walking the Tightrope” as the sky grew dark and the evening cooled.

Grandma Party

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This was the ninth Grandma Party held in the parking lot of Stardust Video & Coffee. As I drove past in search of side street parking I could see at a glance that the lot was filled will more tents than ever. As I approached on foot I saw that there were even tents set up in a retention ditch next to the lot. Down in the ditch I saw Patrick Greene wearing a T-shirt with a marijuana leaf boldly crossed out and circled in red. He was selling marijuana free brownies. He joked with me later that some folks were honestly upset by his marijuana free campaign. He responded to them “Chill out dude.” “You’d think they would be more laid back.” he told me.

I did a full tour of all the tents knowing I wanted to pick up a Christmas gift. Dewey Chaffee and Douglas McGeoch were selling handmade bird houses. Dewey and Douglas had left town to bring their unique edgy comedy to larger cities on the East coast so I was surprised and pleased to see them. I found a spot under a tree on a parking lot island and started to sketch. The billboards announced, “Committed” and “My Comfort & Joy” which seemed appropriate for this event which truly celebrated local artisans and talent. It is an event that honestly brings together a tight Knit community of people. Yet there was variety and diversity to the crowds who shopped.

Anna McCambridge-Thomas was shopping for necklaces made from bent spoons. Many were shaped into bells and she tested them to find the perfect ring. Maya Norris was equally enchanted by the sounds and she gazed up and batted a few to listen. Emily Rankin was watching Maya and she braced the display to be sure Maya didn’t play to hard. There was delight in Maya’s young eyes. Across from me was Leah Fairchild’s booth filled with glass Terrariums filled with moss and small woodland sprites. Next to her was Misty Forest which had some jewelry for sale. Doug Rhodehamel stopped in his tracks in front of me. He always jokes about where I should place him in my sketch. We both agreed that this was a perfect warm day for a Grandma party.

I learned about an art party that happens in Winter Park every month so that is on my sketch wish list for next year. While I sketched I got to meet so many people as they shopped. When the sketch was done, I walked up to Leah’s booth knowing I had to have a terrarium. I picked one that was in a flask shaped coffee pot. A bright blue creature was inside but I couldn’t make it out because of the condensation. With the lid on the terrarium is a closed environment. Leah explained that it rains just like the Earth environment. Life and a complete ecosystem on a small scale, the perfect gift. Of course Ourlando Calendars are a good gift too for the new year.

Tiberius Rex and Pixie Duste

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Terry met me at Stardust Video & Coffee for Dustoberfest. The place was quiet and I had finished my first sketch. I warned Terry that Dustoberfest wasn’t exactly a wild party. She had gotten dressed and insisted on stopping by. The food was actually really good. I ordered a Kielbasa with sauerkraut which came with an egg sunny side up and mashed potatoes. Washed down with a Hofbrau beer in a tall beer stein it was the perfect German meal.

When Terry arrived she got in line to order some food as well. In line she met Tiberius Rex and Pixie Duste who ordered before her. Instinctively she knew I couldn’t resist sketching a vampire. She sent them over to my table. Tiberius introduced himself asking if I was the artist. I asked them to sit across from me and immediately started sketching. Tiberius’s eyes were white with a black line surrounding the iris. It gave his gaze an unnerving snake like quality. He was the most amicable vampire I’ve ever met and he smiled so I could sketch his fangs. He was very proud of their gentle inward curvature. I admired his casket ring and magnificent snake’s head walking stick.

Pixie Duste was far more demure. Her shock of jet black hair covered her eyes and her welders glasses had bold red Xs over the lenses. As I sketched her, Tiberius did a jig with his shoulders to the music keeping her amused. They were an adorable goth couple. When the sketch was done, Tiberius said, “Look, we truly are immortal now!” he laughed and gently kissed Pixie Duste. Pixie Duste unwrapped her blood red Tootsie pop and sucked on it. They reminded me of Terry and myself when we were first dating.

It was a crisp chilly October and we went to a Pumpkin Festival a few miles up the Hudson River from New York City. I was sketching the crew of the Clearwater, a Dutch Sloop and environmental group founded by folk singer Pete Seeger. The sloop still sails the Hudson River teaching children about life in the river. The Clearwater hosted a pumpkin sail every October sailing down river and selling pumpkins off town docks. Children crawled among the pumpkins playing and trying to pick the perfect pumpkin. Terry met me for this Pumpkin Festival and we spent a wonderful day together volunteering. For the first and only time in my life I painted a few children’s faces. That evening there was a square dance and we danced the night away. We were infectiously in love and one woman actually asked Terry to tone down her “public displays of affection.” I’m glad Terry laughed off the request, we kissed and hugged each other with abandon. Who cared what other people thought!

Dustoberfest

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When I heard about Dustoberfest my mind lit up with images of busty domineering German women serving tall steins of beer and bratwurst. I imagined a Tyrolean band with a tuba horn and accordion playing folk dances as a large crowd spun on the dance floor. When I got there, I did find Bratwurst on the menu but I was told they ran out of bratwurst and would have to substitute it with kielbasa. Being a homogenized American, I knew I probably wouldn’t know the difference. The Stardust Video and Coffee (842 East Winter Park Road) staff was scrambling around in the kitchen. Most of the staff was in liederhosen. I ordered a Hofbrau German beer. When served, Ich sacht, “Danke.”

I sat at the end of a long table made from antique doors with a thick layer of ocher varnish on top. Doug Rhodehamel, in liederhosen sat with friends and staff at a central table. Balloons and streamers in the colors of the German flag decorated the ceiling. One long yellow balloon with two red balloons at it’s base was a bit suggestive. A little girl was dancing and playing in the room. A staff member went to cut off the long thin yellow balloon at the base but the whole clump fell down. The girl was ecstatic with her large bouquet of balloons. She proceeded to pop them causing every one in the quiet room to jump and shout “Woe!” There was some German music playing on the radio but it soon degenerated into modern pop. After several hours, Doug and other staff members changed out of their liederhosen.

So there was little pomp and circumstance, no polkas or twirling crowds but the food was good and the beer delicious. Friends talked the afternoon away as I sketched. Life was good.

Waiting for Zombies at Stardust

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Terry told me about Zombietoberfest in the Audubon Garden District. I was working at Full Sail that Saturday so I drove to Stardust Video and Coffee straight from work. I arrived early. The sun was still in the sky. I spotted a female zombie in the beauty parlor next to Stardust but as I ordered a pumpkin beer, there were no zombies in sight. I sat in a small booth next to the bar. A child’s portrait grinned at me from behind. A few people sat stating at their laptops. Perhaps they were laptop zombies roaming the earth staring at screen after screen.

I watched the bar maid as she coached a new recruit. Then she sat at the bar and did paperwork in her blood red dress. I sketched her quickly. I savored my pumpkin beer which was stronger than I remembered. Terry was going to meet me here but she was running errands. When the bar maid got off the bar stool, a female zombie took her place. From behind she looked perfectly normal in her black dress suit. Her face however was bruised and bloodied. She ordered a red drink, perhaps brain juice.

Two college girls were having a lively conversation. When they left, a group of women zombies took their place. One woman had blood flowing from her mouth and staining her white shirt. When my sketch was finished, hoards of zombies began to crowd in. I met Terry in the parking lot and we decided to get some Italian food across the street…

Big Wheel Food Truck

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Every Monday there is a farmers market that sets up in the parking lot of Stardust Video and Coffee in the Audubon Park district of Orlando starting around 6pm. I stopped by right after work at Full Sail. When I got there vendors were still setting up their tents. The Big Wheel Food Truck was parked at the entrance of the parking lot. Several flimsy roadside dividers were set up to keep cars from trying to pull into the lot to park. I decided I should order dinner from the truck. Inside the truck the three chefs were busy cutting and preparing the food. I asked if they were ready to take an order, and they weren’t. They suggested I return in about 15 minutes.

I sat across the way leaning back against a road sign and I began to sketch. Sure enough, 15 minutes into the sketch people started to line up for food. The Big Wheel Food Truck is proud of serving fresh local food that is prepared in small batches, “because, frankly, we think it just tastes better that way.” Their slogan is “Local is Lovely.” Cars kept parking in front of me so vendors could unload their gear. One fellow backed up and knocked over one of the “no parking” dividers. I picked it up for him. The next woman to back out asked if I could take care of the divider. Suddenly I was the gate keeper. I left the dividers out of the way and continued to sketch.

Finally I ordered my dinner. I decided to try a meatloaf burger made from local grass fed beef. The burger was topped with house made bacon with local lettuce, garden herbs and a big wheel onion. The burger was juicy and delicious with a creamy sauce but a bit to salty for my taste. I ordered Captain Eli’s blueberry pop to wash it all down.

Chef Tony Adams who founded the food truck had a tent set up in the market to sell local produce and to promote the truck. The truck uses twitter to let people know where the truck is parked. These up to the minute updates called “Chase our Wheels” can be found at twitter.com/bigwheeltruck. I showed Tony the sketch and asked for a business card. He thought their might be some in the truck so he jogged over and into the truck to search for them. He gave me someone’s card with his info written by hand on the back. I often run out of my business cards so I found it comforting and endearing that this was a true small local business.

Bastille Day

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Bastille Day in the Audubon Garden District celebrated all things French. Falling on a weeknight this year, it was a much smaller event than last year. I went to Stardust Video & Coffee right after work to meet Terry. There was no hint of Bastille Day, or the romance of Paris, so I ordered a Coke and asked where the French might be found. I was told to look at a poster on the door. The poster offered no other clue. I was in the right neighborhood on the right day but other than that, I was lost. After Terry arrived we were finally directed to go across Corrine Drive to Bikes, Beans & Bordeaux. It was a hot muggy night. There were a few tents set up in the parking lot. In Brighton Boutique there was a black and white film being shown. Bonnie Sprung had a tent full of her French themed paintings. There was also chocolates and fine wines.

Amanda Chadwick, Sarah Austin and Wendy Wallenberg started chatting with Terry. When those women start talking, the conversation heats up like an episode of “Sex in the City.” I wandered off to sketch. A live band caught my attention but they stopped playing the second I put a line to paper. I shifted my attention to the people sipping wine and talking at the tables. One woman wore a dark beret. Night settled in quickly. When I finished my sketch, I re-joined Terry. She was seated in a lone chair and I sat beside her in my camping stool. Amanda convinced me I had to try the wine. When I got to the wine table I glanced back and saw that she had decided to occupy my stool. The wine required tickets. The guy standing next to me offered me his ticket since he had to drive home. He offered me a second ticket and I told him to offer it to Amanda. I asked him to have her get up to accept it and I would steal my seat back. He offered her the ticket. She hesitated at first, then when she reached out, he backed up. She caught on fast shouting, “You’re trying to get me out of this seat aren’t you!” What is the world coming to when we can’t accept the kindness of strangers?

The Skill Crane Kid

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As part of ArtsFest, Brian Feldman purchased a skill crane machine, stuffed it full of plush toys and then crawled inside where he remained for 16 hours. The machine was set up in Stardust Video and Coffee. When I arrived with Terry, Brian had already been inside for over six hours. Children especially loved the performance, often begging their parents for more change so they could try the skill crane again. Some people took pleasure in dropping the metallic skill crane claws on Brian’s head. For me the performance once again had a Kafkaesque quality reminding me of the Hunger Artist. Brian’s presence also reminded me of carnival barkers at the fair whose main objective is to keep the rubes from winning a prize. Brian acted as a sort of anti-carnie, actually placing a plush toy in the claws of the feeble skill crane to satiate each child’s greed and desire.

I seldom had an unobstructed view of the skill crane. More often than not families blocked my view as they took pictures and stuffed quarters in the machine. A friend of Brian’s named Helen Henny was shooting photos the whole time I was sketching. Sultana Ali, Brian’s girlfriend, was in the next room and she seemed to be updating Brian’s Twitter and Facebook accounts as the performance progressed. I heard the performance was streamed live. Terry and Sultana had lunch while I sketched. Several hours later when the sketch was finished, I walked up to the skill crane to say goodbye to Brian. He gestured from inside saying I had to try my hand at the skill crane. I refused, until Terry lent me the dollar to play. Several people in the room egged me on so I gave in and decided to play. I maneuvered the crane over a small teddy bear right near the exit chute of the machine figuring that if the crane didn’t grab the bear, it might just get knocked loose. I really didn’t need a teddy bear, and I didn’t want to play the game, but once the machine took the money, then the stakes were high. I had two tries and both times the poorly designed claw picked up nothing but air. With this failure I suddenly realized I was upset, not at the machine but at Brian. I had seen him coax the toys into the claw for child after child as I sketched. He even coaxed a toy out for Genevieve Bernard. Everyone was a winner but me! His passivity as I played made him just like any loud mouthed carnival barker who coaxed money from people at the fair using insults and dark sinister humor. I felt robbed.

As a child I once dreamed of getting a huge balloon that was for sale on an ice cream truck that wandered my neighborhood. Inflated, the balloon was larger than me . By the time I had convinced my mom to give me the change needed, the truck was long gone. I ran down the street for many blocks before finally giving up. I was devastated. The next day the balloon was forgotten. I had new obsessions. The night after Brian exited the skill crane, I met him in Stardust video and coffee to get my video camera back which had recorded most of his performance. Brian took me out to Sultana’s truck and presented me with the palm sized bear I had tried to win. I refused at first, but he insisted. At home my pet cockatoo was scared of the little stuffed bear at first, his crest rose in surprise, but then he ripped out its eyes and eviscerated its stomach playfully.