Day 7 is our favorite word. This one conjures up so many different and wonderful images in my brain...
Adventure on the Atari 2600 was one of the very first video games I ever played. The graphics were so rudimentary that we couldn't really tell what some things were without the instruction book. Keys and castles were easy enough, but... was that a dragon or a duck? Do you kill him with... an arrow?
Seriously, for about 25 years I'd been picking up the sword the wrong way. You can kill the dragon with either end of it, so I just figured it was an arrow since that's what it looked like to me when I was 5 years old. I don't see how that's any more nonsensical than a plumber eating mushrooms and stomping on turtles. I just had to incorporate that silliness into my artwork. :)
The graphics may have been simple, but for me, it truly was an adventure. It had mazes, secret passages, hidden rooms, terrifying enemies popping out of nowhere, keys to unlock castle gates, and shiny treasure to discover. To this day I still love to play it. I've discovered new games in the interim, one of which inspired the top half of my picture. Sword & Sworcery gave me that same sense of wonder as I took control of the Scythian and got lost in the mountains of Mingi Taw.
Of course, I love going on real adventures too! I have fond memories of growing up and going camping, tidepooling, fishing, and travelling to all sorts of places with my family. Nowadays it's a little harder since I don't get summer vacation anymore. But Tommy and I try to take at least one vacation somewhere new each year.
Ultimately, to me, the very word evokes the discovery of something new, of stepping outside one's comfort zone and being open to experience something that could change your life. It involves risk, sometimes small, sometimes large. I generally prefer the smaller risks. One can have adventures without being reckless, after all :)
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