Como......

If I had Clooney money I'd live there too.  There is something magical about being by water....at least for me.

 Not a bad view eh?

Was very easy to get inspired here.  I sat in this same spot for hours!

                                                   

Odo approved.

 It was awesome at night too.

 What's going on here?!  Very happy I didn't run across one of these in person.

Ok, now for some sketches........

In the distance I could hear the bikes roaring across the mountains - and my hand.

I've had this antler / horn / branch thing in my head for awhile.....hope I get something out of it soon.

Here are some birds.   Bet you didn't see that coming from me. I picked up a ballpoint pen for this.  I used to sketch only in ballpoint pen.  Not sure why I left it, but this was fun, will have to put in back in my arsenal.  

                                       

I like gulls, pigeons, any of those birds that aren't known for their beauty.

Dorking around here......

Haven't done these guys in awhile.  Used to draw them all the time.  Like the ballpoint pen, not real sure why I have been neglecting them.  There were some fantastic dragons in Como.

I was so happy to find a lizard in my bathroom.  Odo had been hunting them (unsuccessfully - whew) outside for days.  I love the way they move.  Fun shapes to draw too.

More gull shapes.

And last but not least - some head birds.  I like the way the blue and orange work in this one.  I may have gone too far with the green on the end - not sure.  I think the blue and green dudes look disgusted the the orange dude for being so cutesy.

I'd post more, but I'm sick of scanning for now.

The unheard of!!!!!!

I did something unheard-of..........I took a 3 week vacation (and I didn't take my work laptop!!!!).  I'll admit that the first few days were a little scary - not being able to check emails.  But I really think it was the best thing I could have ever done - EVER!  The last few years have been very challenging.  Rewarding, I have no regrets, but challenging.  I would take a foreign assignment anytime anywhere.  The knowledge you gain about yourself and the world in priceless.

My next few posts will show the doodles I did along the way.  First stop - Freiberg, Germany......

 Freiberg is right on the border of France and Switzerland.  It's a neat location and a beautiful part of Germany.  There's a cathedral (shocking, i know) in the town of Freiberg that has all these cool critters hanging off of it.  I can't get enough of these guys!

Yes, the sky was that blue :)

No idea what this guy is....but I like it!  Goat - dog?

First time I'd seen a fish grotesque - least I think it's a fish.  Neat shape.  Or maybe this one is a gargoyle - dunno, spout wasn't clear.

There was also no shortage of views like this.  I'm a sucker for old fences, paths, rows of trees, etc.  

Triberg was near by.  Located in the black forest, one of Germany's largest waterfalls is there.  I can see why so many stories originated from the black forest area.  It's a pretty magical place, easy for your mind to wander.

I took a small moleskine sketchbook and a small watercolor moleskine.  This one was Cathedral inspired.....duh.  

I put together a watercolor travel kit for this trip.  It had a bunch of colors I'd never touched before, so I was just trying to get in the groove with these first two entries in my watercolor moly.

Loads of ravens in the black forest.  My scanner really let me down with this one.  There is actually a really nice light blue wash that wanders onto the other page - stupid scanner (grrrrrr).

Next stop - Lake Como Italy..........