Category: Digital Doodles

Plain & Simple

Digital Doodles

I have been doing a lot of contemplation about my 2026 project here so I thought I would do something plain and simple for today’s artsy. If I had perfect recall maybe I could remember making something very similar in my early years. But I think my mind is full enough without remembering EVERY detail of my life. In fact perfect recall might be very excruciating.

Speaking of next years’ plans, my last serious thoughts were to make line art the theme for 2026, but I have convinced myself that is too much too soon. I need to go down this artsy path some more before tackling it as an “essence of life” art project

Next week I will give you details on my new projects for 2026. I think I will enjoy them very much and I certainly hope you do too.

Doodling Has Been Fun, But…

Digital Doodles

I started my abstract digital doodling nine months ago. It’s been fun but I think the time to focus on it is past. I want to take my artsy to a higher level. I think that higher level is “Line Art”.

My fascination with Line Art has been increasing for several years now. I love how some art in that genre can give you a passionate story in just a few drawn lines using minimal colors. Maybe this goes along with my “2thePoint” brevity of words over at RJsCorner.

I’m still working through the “beginner” stage of this new project. I have a few ideas on how to make it happen. But I suspect it will take at least a month before I am ready to show you some of my creations. Until then I will continue with my other projects but focus my search for the essence of artsy.

DD53 – Remembering Arizona And My uRV

Digital Doodles

I kinda think of this post as being the beginning stages of my line art project for 2026. But it uses an abundance of colors, so it is not in keeping with my anticipated style for line art. Maybe I will make a simpler version of it for the Line Art (LA) category.

The inspiration for this image was from a 2022 uRV trip. It was one of the final trips I took before retiring my 30-year-old camper.

I had a lot of fun building it and was sad to see it go. But, such is life.

DD83 – Out Of Focus

Digital Doodles

In my youth I can remember when everything was out of focus. Dad barely made enough to put food on the table and a roof over our head. Eyeglasses were simple a luxury that we just couldn’t afford. I usually chose one of the front desks in my grade school and high school years. All the other kids thought I was trying to be the teacher’s pet, but in reality I just wanted to be closer to the chalkboards. Finally in my junior year I made enough money at 90 cents/hour putting up hay in the summer to be able to afford a pair. I knew I would need them for college so that was a top priority for me.

This doodle, like so many others didn’t get a title until it was finished. But I kinda think it fits.

DD81 – My Best To Date…

Digital Doodles

This is my most ambitious doodle to date so I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that it also brings up an ambitious story, or probably myth.

After I finished the doodle a story from my Bible investigation past came to mind. It was the story about how the mammoth curtain in the inner sanctum of the Jewish temple was torn from top to bottom immediately upon Jesus’ death. Other than the Gospel accounts that were finally published 400 years after Jesus’ death this story never became public except to maybe a limited few. There is no mention of this happening in any recorded Jewish or Roman text. Like the story about George Washington and the apple tree it is also likely a myth. But it did make a nice story.

DD69 – The Ultimate

Digital Doodles

This is one of those doodles that I started with a thought in mind. I kinda think the image give you an idea of what the future, but not too future, tennis shoe will look like. I guess they are called sneakers now. They used to also be called athletic shoes, but maybe sneakers is a more appropriate name as most of the people who put out hundreds of bucks for them now are likely playing their sports in front of a game console screen.

DD50 – By Any Other Name

Digital Doodles

I thought I would try a simple version of a sophisticated doodle. How it ended up is pretty much how it started. The thought was that while I was courting my wife 40 years ago I weekly gave her roses that numbered the same as the weeks before our marriage. Of course the one that stuck in my mind was the last single rose a week before our wedding. This doodle doesn’t actually look like that rose, but it is the thought that counts.

DD54 – A Bright Idea

Digital Doodles

This is my first attempt at Doodle-Abstracts. The difference between simple doodles and abstract doodles is that simple doodles start with nothing in mind, and abstract doodles start with a particular thought.

You could say this image is also a self-portrait showing that I am constantly surrounded by bright ideas, especially when I am in my morning shower.

I kinda like how it turned out.

LA3 – A Little Line Art, A Little Watercolor

Digital Doodles

My definition of a doodle is extremely broad it seems. With that in mind I give you some line art and watercolor for today’s doodle. The inspiration was taken from a hillside view from my third visit to Mount Vernon, which was the homestead of our first president. If you don’t know who that was google it to have a history lesson you missed out on.

DD58 – StarLight, StarBright

Digital Doodles

I kinda think that if there is a heaven for artists and doodlers this is probably what the stars would look like. 

After decades of study on the subject, I have come to the conclusion that, for the most part, our religious documents are made up of what people dream heaven will be like. So, why can’t I dream that it will be like peoples’ greatest passions? This one is for artists, and for the ones whose primary passion is hate, it will be called HELL.

DD6 – Chaos

Digital Doodles

Creativity requires the courage to let go of certainties.”

-Erich Fromm–

__________________________

Letting go of certainties are certainly disruptive and Chaos often follows. In some ways that is a good thing. It forces us to face the reality that we might have been wrong about things we thought were true and certain.

That is especially true for the current times.

DD9 – KY Bike Racks

Digital Doodles
DD9

_______________Stories, Quotes & Lessons of Life________________

The photo that inspired this doodle was of a unique bike rack I discovered in Louisville, Kentucky in 2010. Since our homestead was only a couple of hours away we made several long weekend trips to Louisville over the years. They have quite a few small museums there. I kinda like those types of museums better than those with Renoirs and millionaires’ names above the gallery doors.

DD1 – Baby Steps

Digital Doodles

_______________Stories, Quotes & Lessons of Life________________

How do I explain my fascination with doodling?

What about it makes it so enticing to me?

My doodling started out as an innocent attempt to fill some time, and now it is a full-blown passion that I have given its own blog space. I will have to think about the questions above for a while to try to discern those answers.

This doodle is one of the first doodles I made after I settled on a couple of apps that I would use to create them.

More on all this soon.

DD61 – Once And For All

Digital Doodles

_______________Stories, Quotes & Lessons of Life________________

This one is what I call an “Illustrated Doodle” in that it was made from an app that is specialized for that form of art. For those nerds among you it is vector, not raster, generated. You will soon be learning that my definition of doodles might not align with some. I am used to drawing outside the lines, so that is nothing new to me.

DD79 – Starlight, Starbright

Digital Doodles
DD79 – Focused Doodle

I kinda think that if there is a heaven for artists and doodlers this is probably what the stars would look like.

After decades of study on the subject, I have come to the conclusion that, for the most part, our religious documents are made up of what people dream heaven will be like. So, why can’t I dream that it will be like peoples’ greatest passions? This one is for artists, and for the ones whose primary passion is hate, it will be called HELL.

DD67 – Sour Grapes

Digital Doodles
DD67 – Sour Grapes

I have always wondered where the term “Sour Grapes” came from. To me it means putting things down because you can’t attain them. Here is what Wiki says:

The term originates from an Aesop’s Fable —The story concerns a fox that tries to eat grapes from a vine but cannot reach them. Rather than admit defeat, he states they are undesirable.

DD65 – Life’s Paths

Digital Doodles
DD65

Some people think that life goes in a straight line from birth to death, but I kinda think it is much more complicated than that. It is made up of twists, turns, and tangents of various flavors. That is what makes life so interesting. Here I am in my 80th year and I still don’t really know what lies ahead. That is exciting and scary for me at the same time.

DD48- All Wrapped Up

Digital Doodles
DD48-All Wrapped Up

I know for a lot of people, the Fall season is the most beautiful season of the year. But, as usual, I generally see it as a time when things are dying, or maybe I just see Winter with all the ice hazards just around the corner. Yeah, the very brief Fall colors are nice, but they quickly disappear.

I first thought I saw the doodle above as a bird, but then I quickly saw it as possibly a self-portrait of me wrapped up in an inescapable cocoon of many fabrics.

I look at these types of moods as reminding me that without some dark periods we would not enjoy the good ones as much.

DD45 – The Ultimate Boredom Buster

Digital Doodles

I try to fill everyday with challenges that make me think, but sometimes that is not enough and boredom takes over. In that regard, I am finding that doodles fit my current LOMO (Life On My Own) lifestyle very well. If I start feeling bored, all I have to do is to load up my doodle app and almost immediately the boredom disappears.

Doodling is my Boredom Buster

Starting with a blank page and just letting my subconscious fill it is an enjoyable event. What comes out is often surprising even to me. When I am done I look at what I have created and try to give it a name. The doodle #45 above is entitled “Everything Bagel”

DD59 – Flying Away, Plain & Simple

Digital Doodles
DD57 – Flying Away, Plain & Simple

Recently, I have needed an escape from my routine. It is there that I generated this digital doodle. I know I am in my RetCom apartment probably 98% of the week. That’s fine most of the time. LOMO (life On My Own) is where I generally want to be. But…

Maybe you could call this period of needing to escape pre-cabin fever, or perhaps because I recently gave up my car, it is a “No Car Dilemma”. Either is a possibility.

In the past, especially the last four years,I have always had the capability of just taking off whenever I wanted. I’m a little down because of all of this, but I’m sure it is a passing thing.