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Song: A Happy Man







like an old sailor
who's drawn to the sea
the voice of the highway
whispers to me
i can't give a reason
for why i must go
the life of a drifter
is all that i know

i worked at the factory
the office, the store
i gave it my best shot
couldn't take any more
you can't stop a tiger
from chasing its prey
and you can't stop a drifter
from going away

every day is a road movie
every night is a new story
everyone you touch you hold forever

my kids call me crazy
but they understand
they know that i'm doing
the best that i can
you can't stop the ocean
from meeting the land
and you'll never reform
a happy man

like an old sailor
who's drawn to the sea
the voice of the highway
whispers to me
you can't stop the ocean
from kissing the sand
and you'll never reform
a happy man

whoa...that's all i am
whoa...a happy man

(c) douglas brent smith

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Density

  Density by Douglas Brent Smith

Lighter Than Air

  Lighter Than Air - acrylic painting by Douglas Brent Smith, November 1976. Notes: I don't have every painting I've ever painted. Some years ago I purged many of them. I like this one, though, and have it hanging in my apartment. It's whimsical. It's a painting in a painting. It has a top hat. It has balance, a candle, even a drop of blood.  What else could you want in a painting?

Creating on Illusion

  Creating on Illusion - collage by Douglas Brent Smith Where's the illusion? What sleight of hand do we focus on? I think that I made this collage in 1989. That was so long ago and yet, in terms of illusions, not long at all. What do you think?

Back Inner Cover

  Back Inner Cover of Journal #33, Life In Progress, by Douglas Brent Smith, A collage that's not exactly a typical collage. It's what I often do with the back inner covers of my journals -- simply randomly put stickers, stamps, name tags, and other sticky objects. 

Deep Thinker Thinking

  Deep Thinker Thinking, drawing by douglas Brent smith, December 2001, from Journal #35, Mission Control, Volume Two, 2001 - 2002. Drawing helps me think. Thinking, sometimes, draws me to draw. It amazes me how few adults draw at all. Somewhere along the line in childhood they just stopped.  We should all draw more and more often. Pencil, pen, crayon, whatever you've got. Instead of scrolling tonight, spend that time drawing a picture. Instead of wasting your time and feeling bad about it you've have a picture you can feel good about. It doesn't have to be great, it just has to be yours.

Note to Self 20230423

If you keep working your craft you will be amazed at how much you've learned and how much more there is yet to learn. -- doug smith  

Gears of Joy

  Gears of Joy, collage by Douglas Brent Smith This is page 305 of Journal #33, Life in Progress. 

Under The Hood

Under the Hood I wanted to be a gear-head. I just never had the tools or the chops for it. But cars have always been fun and I've usually been a Chevy guy. Oh, I've wandered into lots of interesting cars and owned a few. What was your first car? Did you name it? This 1966 Chevy Impala SuperSport was my first car. I'm sure that I paid too much for it because I paid what the guy was asking. I didn't know any better and I really wanted that car. It was fast. It was sporty. And, gasp - it had an 8-track stereo. You have to imagine the joys of listening to "Dark Side of The Moon" on an 8-track that had to fade-out and click-thru to the next track even if the song wasn't finished. Not the medium for Pink Floyd, that's for sure. But Elton John and Rod Stewart and Jeff Beck sounded just great, tooling down the road. I've had other great cars, too: 1966 Volkswagen Beetle (this was my dad's but he was willing to trade cars wh...

Problem Players

Every problem has at least two players and both must embrace change. If you want to fix a problem, something must change. If you want to achieve a goal, something must change. Every player in every situation must deal with that, whether or not they know it. -- doug smith  

Collage: In Whispers and Visions Unending

Collage by douglas brent smith, created 4 November 1979 from the book and performance piece: "the path of destiny takes the scenic route" You may use this image if you provide attribution.