Hello Oddsters,
Our grand journey has been complete for quite some time now but the glow has not yet faded. As I try to make sense and create order from my daily missives and pile of photos, I still get a rush as the memories of days and moments are revisited. In the process of organizing the rather daunting pile of info and images, there are many thoughts about the overall adventure.
I am sure most of you have much better things to do than read this lengthy tome but as requested many of you asked for a "wrap-up" of some sort:
First the facts:
1. MUSEUMS - we visited 103 museums. A few were of the large institutional and/or non-profit variety. Many were small little locally supported repositories of oddly specific collections. There were also some focused on historic events, places or people. A not small number of these were very off the beaten path homages to art and artists that would not be considered "traditional" in any way.
2. OUTSIDER ART SITES - this being one of our main targets, we are grateful to report we saw 52 sites. This ranged from yard environments to homes/studios to parks and even garages. Though most sites featured the work of one specific artist, there were a few that featured the work of numerous outsider artists.
3. OUTSIDER ARTISTS - Being absolutely blessed by fortunate happenstance, we actually got to meet at least 20 "living treasures". These people are not only unique artists but some of the most inspiring human beings I've ever met.
4. ROADSIDE ATTRACTIONS - In the arena of absolute silliness, we searched for and found over 50 intentional "Roadside Attractions". From gargantuan fiberglass sculptures to mini-golfs and on to silly restaurants and motels. The only common ground was the desire that the creators of these destinations was simply to get the highway traveler to notice and stop the car. There was a consistent and undeniable local pride in such attractions as the "largest/smallest/onl-iest" held within their domain; be it ball of string, porch swing or giant armadillo/fire hydrant/Madonna.
5. MISCELLANEOUS SITES - There were many things and places that defy categorization. We went to cemeteries (large and small), asylums, abandoned structures, prisons, the architectural ruins of massive estates and long deceased drive-in theaters. Some of these spots were on our list and others were purely accidental. Our path was anything but a straight line and our itinerary had few deadlines. This allowed us to the freedom to simply "see what we might see" and this presented daily side trips and marvelous discoveries.
Insights and Ponderings:
This was truly the trip of a lifetime. It has changed, my view of art, America, politics, travel as well as opening new parts of my own head and heart. Though this adventure served up many surprises and compels us to plan future explorations, the most unexpected for me is how it has become so life-altering. It is hard to know where to begin. It seems the best thing to do with this flood of thoughts is to keep breaking them into categories. So, here we go.....
1. GRATITUDE - First and foremost comes how thankful I am for having gotten to take this grand adventure. Simply put, Susan made it all happen. Her willingness and commitment to sharing such a wacko journey with me can never be fully repaid. Not only was her spirit and tolerance of my "idiosyncrasies" vital, her financial backing for "The Oddasee" is the only way it even occurred. Without getting too personal but in the name of satisfying some of your curiosities, we owe it all in a significant part to Susan's mother and her generous contribution from the "Great Beyond." We did our best to keep to a budget with the goal of making the trip last as long as possible. That said, the choice to spend the moolah and the time for such a off-center trek fell upon Susan. For every one of the 112 days/nights (and the long term impact of those days as well) I will forever seek for ways in which to honor such an incredible gift. So, thank you Susan and thanks to your mother.
2. AMERICA - Having traveled through at least parts of 23 states, it's impossible to not have gained some new insights to what some call "The Heartland of the Good Old USA." Our path was dominated by back roads and small/smaller towns but we also spent time in Houston, New Orleans, Chicago, Philadelphia, Indianapolis, Washington DC and other far from rural locales. While there were many commonalities, there was much noticed that served to remind us of the uniqueness of even the smallest
towns/villages/burgs. The range from extraordinary wealth (Marland Mansion, Fonthill Castle, Winterthur etc.) to the undeniable poverty (Gee's Bend, parts of Chicago, much of Mississippi and the ubiquitous immigrant workers) made it impossible to not be deeply affected. Truthfully, at times, I felt myself slipping into some sort of Socialist mindset as the disparity seems only to be growing. Also we were increasingly nauseated by the generic-Stepford-Truman Show-like communities that have taken over America. These collections (can't really call them cities of towns) of consumers are absolutely interchangeable. Given telekinetic powers on a grand scale, one could switch one "strip mall community" in Kansas with one in Pennsylvania or Colorado and aside from a faraway mountain or the trees, no one would ever even notice the difference. It is the opposite of pride to experience such things about this great land. Our country's seeming indifference to losing local flavor/color/style and history is far from inspiring and a bit disheartening.
a. "Generica" - our desire to stay in small/non-chain motels and eat in local eateries/cafes/diners was improbable at best and usually impossible. The ever present Walmart was equaled by endless Subways, Dollar Stores, Family Dollars, Mac Donalds, Pizza Huts, Kentucky Frieds, Domino's, Motel 6, Super 8, Holiday Inns and the other big box/chain competitors in every speck on the road map except for but a very few small far from an interstate backwoods time warped lost in space little hidden rural towns. To be painfully brutal, it made us physically ill and spiritually sad. Where has local character and community pride gone? Where's the joy in being special, unique and interesting?
b. "Building Lust" - as a result of many communities losing local businesses, there were numerous towns that were virtually ghost towns. Street after street of abandoned buildings with a smattering of survivors in their midst. Some towns are working hard to revitalize their downtown and/or preserve the history of commercial buildings. Towns like Paul's Valley, OK are being creative (they fund and promote the "Action Figure Museum") at saving their neighborhoods and centers of commerce. Others have surrendered completely. Take Port Arthur, TX - this sad spectacle is indescribable. It looks like the set from the "Mad Max" post-apocalyptic movie fare. This genuinely haunted area is the hometown of Janice Joplin, Robert Rauschenburg, Jimmy Johnson and Babe Zaharias ; pity. One side result of this fact was how often your Oddaseers lusted after architecture. From former glorious estates to schools to churches and endless commercial properties, our imaginations ran wild with visions of what could be done with such appealing spaces. Even when we put aside our delusional thoughts and ideas for bringing back these architectural wonders, we selfishly dreamed of just moving in and setting up a "home" and studio. God..... When I looked into the windows of many of these empty unused spaces, I practically wet myself with uncontrollable desire. Note: there were hundreds of these buildings falling into total disrepair; what a waste.
c. The "News" - Along our travels we came upon a few unexpected redundancies. In motel lobbies and rooms that feature those highly nutritious tasteless "free continental breakfasts" (mushy mini-muffins, rubber hard-boiled eggs, caulking gun dispensed waffle mix, brown bananas or stale Cheerios) there was almost always a television muttering away in some not hidden corner. In many restaurants and even numerous retail establishments there was a TV blasting visual and audio information for all but the blind and deaf. Now comes the amazing (and scary) fact...... inevery situation, the TV was tuned to...... (wait for it)....."FOX News". Yes you read that correctly, on every single boob tube opportunity the FOX faces and yammering loomed. If there was a television in a public place (aside from sports in bars), that sucker was tuned into that network fountain of fact and impartiality. Just think about that for a moment........ that would be weird even if it were CNN or the Gameshow Network - the sheer consistency of it boggles the mind. Then add to that fact that this was the choice of America's proprietors as to what information and entertainment they deem worthy of sharing with their clientele. YIKES!
d. The "Illegals" - the immigration situation in our country is complex and offers many challenges to even the great minds of economists, politicians and social scientists. They possess far more information, data and knowledge than I but one can't help but wonder if they have actually seen this reality face to face. Putting aside political views, this issue is not one confined to California and Arizona. Our travels put us in some fairly remote rural locales as well as heavily populated major cities. The presence of these individuals and groups were to be found literally everywhere. The sheer number of these people (yes they are people not just statistics) was surprising. It is our belief that there are many communities that would be truly lost without these residents; be they legal or illegal aliens. If one were to simply remove them from many of these communities, the economic impact would be immediate and many cases, the death knell, for those communities; especially the rural ones. This possibility was frequent, surprising and then unavoidably obvious.
e. "The Construction Crews" - another constant reality was that in practically every motel we stayed in, we found numerous trucks belonging to construction workers. Assuming that the draw was not the allure of the "free continental breakfast" we were baffled at what was going on. How can there be so many workers of this ilk temporarily residing in these roadside crash pads? This was not limited only to small rural towns or locally owned motels but in virtually every place we stayed. At first my thought was that there was some nearby project that requires specialized skill-sets - like an oil well/pipeline or dam or alternative energy plant (dreamer) or ??? If that is not the case, why aren't local workers filling the needs? Well with a little research and asking around, the truth was very unexpected. The real story is that these guys (mostly) are working for large contractors that are based in faraway cities. These large companies have projects that in many cases are spread throughout the nation. They simply hire their own workers/sub-contractors and send them to wherever the job requires. We were told that these big companies prefer hiring and controlling their own workforce rather than hiring/interviewing/managing unknown workers that live near the project. Hmmm? The itinerant construction worker is apparently common in the world of the building business in America. Who knew? Not us.....
f. "God Bless" - the little white church is ever-present. Especially in small rural towns, there seemed to be more churches than the small populations of such areas warranted. There were times we would see ten or more places of worship in a place with very few residents. All I can say is that they must have some pretty hardcore softball and basketball church leagues. And, why 99 times out of a 100 are they white - must be one hell (oops! I mean heck) of a white paint lobbyist that made this some sort of law.
g. "Whirrrrrrr" - okay, let's talk....... In these times of economic stress and thinking "green", what is going on with so many of the mid-west homeowners mowing vast acreages of "lawn". I mean come on - many of these "yards" are so enormous that by the time they get to one end, the other end has grown and needs to be mowed again. It's as if these folks all (I mean every friggin family) want to live in the middle of a PGA course. Really, do these people (this seems to be a non-sex biased chore) actually enjoy this activity. If I ever feel the urge to get back into the business world, I will open a mower sales and repair shop in mid-America. Maybe we should try and get mowing into the Summer Olympics; we would be sure bet gold medal contenders.
Well if any of you are still reading..... That's enough. There are more thoughts that the artist in me wishes to discuss but I'll save that for another message. Thank you for reading my Oddasee thoughts and mental meanderings. At some point, Susan will also share her perspective. She's in the midst of Massage School and her plate is very full but look forward to her personal thoughts and feelings about our adventure.
Never the same shall I be..... Oh the things I have seen,
Rodney
Our grand journey has been complete for quite some time now but the glow has not yet faded. As I try to make sense and create order from my daily missives and pile of photos, I still get a rush as the memories of days and moments are revisited. In the process of organizing the rather daunting pile of info and images, there are many thoughts about the overall adventure.
I am sure most of you have much better things to do than read this lengthy tome but as requested many of you asked for a "wrap-up" of some sort:
First the facts:
1. MUSEUMS - we visited 103 museums. A few were of the large institutional and/or non-profit variety. Many were small little locally supported repositories of oddly specific collections. There were also some focused on historic events, places or people. A not small number of these were very off the beaten path homages to art and artists that would not be considered "traditional" in any way.
2. OUTSIDER ART SITES - this being one of our main targets, we are grateful to report we saw 52 sites. This ranged from yard environments to homes/studios to parks and even garages. Though most sites featured the work of one specific artist, there were a few that featured the work of numerous outsider artists.
3. OUTSIDER ARTISTS - Being absolutely blessed by fortunate happenstance, we actually got to meet at least 20 "living treasures". These people are not only unique artists but some of the most inspiring human beings I've ever met.
4. ROADSIDE ATTRACTIONS - In the arena of absolute silliness, we searched for and found over 50 intentional "Roadside Attractions". From gargantuan fiberglass sculptures to mini-golfs and on to silly restaurants and motels. The only common ground was the desire that the creators of these destinations was simply to get the highway traveler to notice and stop the car. There was a consistent and undeniable local pride in such attractions as the "largest/smallest/onl-iest" held within their domain; be it ball of string, porch swing or giant armadillo/fire hydrant/Madonna.
5. MISCELLANEOUS SITES - There were many things and places that defy categorization. We went to cemeteries (large and small), asylums, abandoned structures, prisons, the architectural ruins of massive estates and long deceased drive-in theaters. Some of these spots were on our list and others were purely accidental. Our path was anything but a straight line and our itinerary had few deadlines. This allowed us to the freedom to simply "see what we might see" and this presented daily side trips and marvelous discoveries.
Insights and Ponderings:
This was truly the trip of a lifetime. It has changed, my view of art, America, politics, travel as well as opening new parts of my own head and heart. Though this adventure served up many surprises and compels us to plan future explorations, the most unexpected for me is how it has become so life-altering. It is hard to know where to begin. It seems the best thing to do with this flood of thoughts is to keep breaking them into categories. So, here we go.....
1. GRATITUDE - First and foremost comes how thankful I am for having gotten to take this grand adventure. Simply put, Susan made it all happen. Her willingness and commitment to sharing such a wacko journey with me can never be fully repaid. Not only was her spirit and tolerance of my "idiosyncrasies" vital, her financial backing for "The Oddasee" is the only way it even occurred. Without getting too personal but in the name of satisfying some of your curiosities, we owe it all in a significant part to Susan's mother and her generous contribution from the "Great Beyond." We did our best to keep to a budget with the goal of making the trip last as long as possible. That said, the choice to spend the moolah and the time for such a off-center trek fell upon Susan. For every one of the 112 days/nights (and the long term impact of those days as well) I will forever seek for ways in which to honor such an incredible gift. So, thank you Susan and thanks to your mother.
2. AMERICA - Having traveled through at least parts of 23 states, it's impossible to not have gained some new insights to what some call "The Heartland of the Good Old USA." Our path was dominated by back roads and small/smaller towns but we also spent time in Houston, New Orleans, Chicago, Philadelphia, Indianapolis, Washington DC and other far from rural locales. While there were many commonalities, there was much noticed that served to remind us of the uniqueness of even the smallest
towns/villages/burgs. The range from extraordinary wealth (Marland Mansion, Fonthill Castle, Winterthur etc.) to the undeniable poverty (Gee's Bend, parts of Chicago, much of Mississippi and the ubiquitous immigrant workers) made it impossible to not be deeply affected. Truthfully, at times, I felt myself slipping into some sort of Socialist mindset as the disparity seems only to be growing. Also we were increasingly nauseated by the generic-Stepford-Truman Show-like communities that have taken over America. These collections (can't really call them cities of towns) of consumers are absolutely interchangeable. Given telekinetic powers on a grand scale, one could switch one "strip mall community" in Kansas with one in Pennsylvania or Colorado and aside from a faraway mountain or the trees, no one would ever even notice the difference. It is the opposite of pride to experience such things about this great land. Our country's seeming indifference to losing local flavor/color/style and history is far from inspiring and a bit disheartening.
a. "Generica" - our desire to stay in small/non-chain motels and eat in local eateries/cafes/diners was improbable at best and usually impossible. The ever present Walmart was equaled by endless Subways, Dollar Stores, Family Dollars, Mac Donalds, Pizza Huts, Kentucky Frieds, Domino's, Motel 6, Super 8, Holiday Inns and the other big box/chain competitors in every speck on the road map except for but a very few small far from an interstate backwoods time warped lost in space little hidden rural towns. To be painfully brutal, it made us physically ill and spiritually sad. Where has local character and community pride gone? Where's the joy in being special, unique and interesting?
b. "Building Lust" - as a result of many communities losing local businesses, there were numerous towns that were virtually ghost towns. Street after street of abandoned buildings with a smattering of survivors in their midst. Some towns are working hard to revitalize their downtown and/or preserve the history of commercial buildings. Towns like Paul's Valley, OK are being creative (they fund and promote the "Action Figure Museum") at saving their neighborhoods and centers of commerce. Others have surrendered completely. Take Port Arthur, TX - this sad spectacle is indescribable. It looks like the set from the "Mad Max" post-apocalyptic movie fare. This genuinely haunted area is the hometown of Janice Joplin, Robert Rauschenburg, Jimmy Johnson and Babe Zaharias ; pity. One side result of this fact was how often your Oddaseers lusted after architecture. From former glorious estates to schools to churches and endless commercial properties, our imaginations ran wild with visions of what could be done with such appealing spaces. Even when we put aside our delusional thoughts and ideas for bringing back these architectural wonders, we selfishly dreamed of just moving in and setting up a "home" and studio. God..... When I looked into the windows of many of these empty unused spaces, I practically wet myself with uncontrollable desire. Note: there were hundreds of these buildings falling into total disrepair; what a waste.
c. The "News" - Along our travels we came upon a few unexpected redundancies. In motel lobbies and rooms that feature those highly nutritious tasteless "free continental breakfasts" (mushy mini-muffins, rubber hard-boiled eggs, caulking gun dispensed waffle mix, brown bananas or stale Cheerios) there was almost always a television muttering away in some not hidden corner. In many restaurants and even numerous retail establishments there was a TV blasting visual and audio information for all but the blind and deaf. Now comes the amazing (and scary) fact...... inevery situation, the TV was tuned to...... (wait for it)....."FOX News". Yes you read that correctly, on every single boob tube opportunity the FOX faces and yammering loomed. If there was a television in a public place (aside from sports in bars), that sucker was tuned into that network fountain of fact and impartiality. Just think about that for a moment........ that would be weird even if it were CNN or the Gameshow Network - the sheer consistency of it boggles the mind. Then add to that fact that this was the choice of America's proprietors as to what information and entertainment they deem worthy of sharing with their clientele. YIKES!
d. The "Illegals" - the immigration situation in our country is complex and offers many challenges to even the great minds of economists, politicians and social scientists. They possess far more information, data and knowledge than I but one can't help but wonder if they have actually seen this reality face to face. Putting aside political views, this issue is not one confined to California and Arizona. Our travels put us in some fairly remote rural locales as well as heavily populated major cities. The presence of these individuals and groups were to be found literally everywhere. The sheer number of these people (yes they are people not just statistics) was surprising. It is our belief that there are many communities that would be truly lost without these residents; be they legal or illegal aliens. If one were to simply remove them from many of these communities, the economic impact would be immediate and many cases, the death knell, for those communities; especially the rural ones. This possibility was frequent, surprising and then unavoidably obvious.
e. "The Construction Crews" - another constant reality was that in practically every motel we stayed in, we found numerous trucks belonging to construction workers. Assuming that the draw was not the allure of the "free continental breakfast" we were baffled at what was going on. How can there be so many workers of this ilk temporarily residing in these roadside crash pads? This was not limited only to small rural towns or locally owned motels but in virtually every place we stayed. At first my thought was that there was some nearby project that requires specialized skill-sets - like an oil well/pipeline or dam or alternative energy plant (dreamer) or ??? If that is not the case, why aren't local workers filling the needs? Well with a little research and asking around, the truth was very unexpected. The real story is that these guys (mostly) are working for large contractors that are based in faraway cities. These large companies have projects that in many cases are spread throughout the nation. They simply hire their own workers/sub-contractors and send them to wherever the job requires. We were told that these big companies prefer hiring and controlling their own workforce rather than hiring/interviewing/managing unknown workers that live near the project. Hmmm? The itinerant construction worker is apparently common in the world of the building business in America. Who knew? Not us.....
f. "God Bless" - the little white church is ever-present. Especially in small rural towns, there seemed to be more churches than the small populations of such areas warranted. There were times we would see ten or more places of worship in a place with very few residents. All I can say is that they must have some pretty hardcore softball and basketball church leagues. And, why 99 times out of a 100 are they white - must be one hell (oops! I mean heck) of a white paint lobbyist that made this some sort of law.
g. "Whirrrrrrr" - okay, let's talk....... In these times of economic stress and thinking "green", what is going on with so many of the mid-west homeowners mowing vast acreages of "lawn". I mean come on - many of these "yards" are so enormous that by the time they get to one end, the other end has grown and needs to be mowed again. It's as if these folks all (I mean every friggin family) want to live in the middle of a PGA course. Really, do these people (this seems to be a non-sex biased chore) actually enjoy this activity. If I ever feel the urge to get back into the business world, I will open a mower sales and repair shop in mid-America. Maybe we should try and get mowing into the Summer Olympics; we would be sure bet gold medal contenders.
Well if any of you are still reading..... That's enough. There are more thoughts that the artist in me wishes to discuss but I'll save that for another message. Thank you for reading my Oddasee thoughts and mental meanderings. At some point, Susan will also share her perspective. She's in the midst of Massage School and her plate is very full but look forward to her personal thoughts and feelings about our adventure.
Never the same shall I be..... Oh the things I have seen,
Rodney
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