There were times in the womb - seven months to be exact, when I wondered - are they going to give me pencils, crayons, paints, paper and a guitar? Born premature, how was I going to blink my eyes without eyelashes, and there were no protective fingernails if I needed to scratch off some paint, or strum a guitar. Nature has it that a "preemie" is later gifted with all those things we need in life to survive. The fingernails and eyelashes developed nicely after spending some time in the incubator.
That was almost 60 years ago, and after emerging screaming and kicking, had childhood dreams of becoming a musician or an artist of some sort. One of those dreams was lived in high school when seven of us gathered to form a band. I played lead guitar on my 1965 Jaguar Fender (which I still own). I could not sing, but have to say, that I was not too bad on the guitar. We played gigs at weddings, battle of the bands, and any place we could gain exposure. The experience was short lived, since the military draft was alive and imminent.
Military Service was not an option for many of us single guys just getting out of high school. Many were drafted. I joined the Air Force, spent most of my four years in Spain. Have every bit of respect for the service guys and gals that served Nam.
The band broke up and everyone went their way, never to reunite after returning from the service, college or whatever other endeavors were being pursued.
My next dream to become an artist actually began on a computer about ten years ago - never having experienced brushes, paints or canvas. Do remember that those stick figures I drew as a kid excited my parents. They were proudly displayed on the refrigerator.
For the last ten years I have been designing graphics on my computer. It started out as a hobby. Made a few cards, bookmarks, business card logos. People noticed and made some rather encouraging comments. With this bit of encouragement, I spent my spare time experimenting with my Corel 8 program. Someone suggested that I might want to consider selling my designs and products.
As I ventured out with my bookmarks to the local museum, (Harvey House Museum), they quickly said they would stock my bookmarks to sell in their store. That was the beginning of my graphics business which I still have -called Just 4 U. I then moved into other products - desk guides for government, business card designs, and greeting cards.
I have been creating designs for print on demand products on Zazzle.com. This is an opportunity to experience how designs will appear on products. Living in the Southwest inspires many of the designs that I create.
That was almost 60 years ago, and after emerging screaming and kicking, had childhood dreams of becoming a musician or an artist of some sort. One of those dreams was lived in high school when seven of us gathered to form a band. I played lead guitar on my 1965 Jaguar Fender (which I still own). I could not sing, but have to say, that I was not too bad on the guitar. We played gigs at weddings, battle of the bands, and any place we could gain exposure. The experience was short lived, since the military draft was alive and imminent.
Military Service was not an option for many of us single guys just getting out of high school. Many were drafted. I joined the Air Force, spent most of my four years in Spain. Have every bit of respect for the service guys and gals that served Nam.
The band broke up and everyone went their way, never to reunite after returning from the service, college or whatever other endeavors were being pursued.
My next dream to become an artist actually began on a computer about ten years ago - never having experienced brushes, paints or canvas. Do remember that those stick figures I drew as a kid excited my parents. They were proudly displayed on the refrigerator.
For the last ten years I have been designing graphics on my computer. It started out as a hobby. Made a few cards, bookmarks, business card logos. People noticed and made some rather encouraging comments. With this bit of encouragement, I spent my spare time experimenting with my Corel 8 program. Someone suggested that I might want to consider selling my designs and products.
As I ventured out with my bookmarks to the local museum, (Harvey House Museum), they quickly said they would stock my bookmarks to sell in their store. That was the beginning of my graphics business which I still have -called Just 4 U. I then moved into other products - desk guides for government, business card designs, and greeting cards.
I have been creating designs for print on demand products on Zazzle.com. This is an opportunity to experience how designs will appear on products. Living in the Southwest inspires many of the designs that I create.
