The Bobber Head & Fish Fry

Here's a few of my fishing cartoons that I can relate with. I spent a little more time on drawing them. Enjoy!

I can "kind of" relate to this cartoon. A few years ago on Valentines Day, my wife gave me some odd gifts, nuts and underwear, yep I said nuts and underwear. It sounds funny but, It was actually nice because I needed the underwear and I like nuts. Now, chocolate and roses are not the only things that show love, even nuts and underwear can. To be honest, you need to be married a few years before you start getting what you need on Valentines Day.

Again, I can relate to this cartoon. We've all been to a fish fry and ate too much, right? But have you ever been to a vegetable steam and ate too much? Do they even have vegetable steams? I don't think so because FISH RULE!

Fish Stration

A few of my cartoons to brighten this winter weather, Fish-stration. Enjoy!

Get away from the big screen and get on a big stream!

It was as if a motorcycle gang had showed up at the bird feeder.

Yesterday in the ten acre woods, the birds at the feeder started freaking out. I looked out thinking that our cat was playing hide and pounce with the birds. Luckily, I didn't have to run out and chase the cat away on a cold winter day.  

It was a Red Shoulder Hawk low in the trees eyeing the activity around the feeder. I was lucky to get a nice photo of him while he was on a low branch. It was interesting while watching the birds at the feeder when the hawk was near. The small birds, Titmouse and Chick-a-dees, were not troubled by the hawk, however the Cardinals, Blue Jays, and Crows quickly left as if a motorcycle gang had showed up at the neighborhood bar. 

Life is short, discover whats in your woods, river, lake, or bay! 

Our Neighbors!

Not far from the back of our home (about 25 ft. from our back door), My wife discovered this nest about 10 feet above the ground. Luckily, I didn't wander near the nest during the summer time, because I am allergic to bee stings. In fact, so allergic that one sting and I will end up in the hospital. Anyway, it's likely that the nest was built last spring and we didn't see it until the winter when the leaves were gone. 

I did a little research and found that it's built by a Bald Faced Hornet and there stings are pretty nasty. This hornet is aggressive and will attack if you approach the nest. They average about 400 hornets and eat insects such as caterpillars, fly's, but little nectar. You know, there were almost no fly's around the house last summer. At this time of year, they say that there's no hornets in the nest, we shall see, because my goal is to remove the nest and bring it inside. I will let you know how this goes.

What's in your woods, lake, river or bay? Get out and find out!

Flying Fish

When do you know that you have found your calling?

A few years ago, I got to follow my dream, a dream of having my own studio and creating the art that I love. After some wandering around on exactly what I wanted to produce, then putting all my creative and artistic ability in to it, I can now say that I have found it, "producing creative decor maps of places that folks love." I think this email below, from one of my customers pretty much sums it up, I have found my calling!" 

I received my custom, Hammock Lake decor map yesterday and was like a kid opening it on Christmas Day.  I could not wait to see it, and it definitely did not disappoint! It it stunning!!  Thank you so much for working with me to create this amazing focal point of my home. Your work is gorgeous and is just what I had been looking for!! I absolutely love the barn wood frame!! Thank you also for your promptness on answering your emails and for the super quick delivery.  Your business is more than 5 star and is so much appreciated!!! Thank you again and have a GREAT 2014!!

Have a very Happy New Year and remember "Life is short, get away from the big screen and get on a big stream."

Look Marge!

I haven't posted much recently because I have been so busy. Here's a quick cartoon that you may enjoy.

A lake with beautiful panoramic views!

Snuggled against the Blue Ridge Mountains, is a crystal blue clear lake with beautiful panoramic views. That lake is Rhodhiss Lake. Located about 1 hour away from Winston-Salem and Charlotte, North Carolina, making it just far enough to keep it peaceful, yet close enough for the urban amenities.

The lake is fairly small with a surface area of 3,060 acres and 90 miles of shoreline. Boating and fishing are the main recreational activities. Rhodhiss Lake is becoming known as a tournament lake by the increasing number of fishing tournaments being held. What makes this a special lake? Probably, the sandy bottom, which makes for some crystal clear water and the beautiful mountain views. The decor map above, is a custom map that I did for a customer who lives on Rhodhiss lake. I paint lake, river, and bay maps, both custom and personalized. See more at my website www.LeoLakes.com.

Life is short, get away from the big screen and get on a big screen!

Snowmen-Ology

Hey since it's winter, I had to pull out one of my old, humorous snowmen pictures, "Snowman-Ology." Well, I think it's humorous! Hope you enjoyed. 

Life is short, get away from the big screen and get on a big stream!

Wader Shorts

Hmm.... Wader Shorts?

Another one of my fishing cartoons. Not sure about wader shorts?

 

The Best Lake House Gift!

What's the best Lake House gift for Christmas. A beautiful LeoLakes Treasured Decor Map. If you have a Lake House or know someone that does, then a nice, vintage style map of your beloved lake will look spectacular hanging on the wall. Leo Lakes have many sizes and most lakes can be ordered right from the website with only a few days to deliver. We even paint custom lake maps for that small lake.

On our canvas prints, the waterfowl and other areas of the map are hand painted (touched-up). Also, Leo hides a tiny mermaid in the waters of every lake which makes an ideal conversational piece. See other interesting facts about our maps at www.LeoLakes.com

You can add a star to the location of your Lake House to give that personal touch and even add a label such as "The Johnson's House Est. 2006". Here's one of our curtomer comments:

"Leo, the Yough Lake print arrived safely yesterday! It’s beautiful, can’t wait to give it to my husband for his birthday! Found the fish and the Mermaid, great conversation piece! Thanks for all your help, I’ll definitely recommend your website! Thanks again"

If it's a gift for the lake house owner, just wait until you see there face when they open a LeoLakes Treasured Decor Map! See more at www.LeoLakes.com

Do fish have high Cholesterol?

Here's a few more of my cartoons, however I do have a question... do fish have high cholestrol? Enjoy!

 

Life is short, get away from the big screen and get on a big stream, or at least put one on the wall!

 Frame your favorite lake, river, or bay!

www.leolakes.com

This goose is headed in...

This goose is headed in for a landing! I took this photo of a goose that I painted on one of my maps. I add waterfowl to most of my decor maps pointed in the direction of the water. Normally, I place three Canadian geese somewhere cruising to the water, low and preparing to land.

My objective is to have them almost seem to float over the terrain. I also add other waterfowl like Great Blue Heron, Bald Eagle, Osprey, Sea Gulls, Pelicans etc... depending on the location of the body of water. My worst fear is placing a bird in a location that it doesn't belong, but I do research to help ensure this doesn't happen. 

On canvas maps, after printing, I actually (touch-up) hand paint the waterfowl on to the canvas to make them pop and give the map an original painting feel. These details help sets Leo Lake maps apart from others and give that personal touch. My ultimate goal is to provide a decor map that will become a treasured map. Remember: Life is short, get away from the big screen and get on a big stream, or at least put one on the wall!



Click Here to see more decor maps.

Beautiful Lake Charlevoix

What is the third largest lake in Michigan? Lake Charlevoix, a beautiful clear blue lake located on the southeastern shore of Lake Michigan near Charlevoix and Boyne City. The lake is over 17,000 acres and has 56 miles of shoreline, which much of it is lined with some of the most gorgeous, multi-million dollar homes around. Lake Charlevoix is often listed as one of America’s best lake. The lake is ideal for relaxation with great sunsets, sandy beaches, and wonderful restaurants. There are several great towns to explore or you could kayak, canoe, fish or take a sailboat cruise. Did you know that Ernest Hemingway was married on Lake Charlevoix? Interestingly, you may see a small kayak or the largest luxury yacht cruising the blue waters. I can understand why Lake Charlevoix is one of America’s best lakes, the folks living on or near this lake are truly blessed.

Here’s a vintage style map that I just completed of Lake Charlevoix. I added a small loon to the waters and hide a tiny mermaid somewhere near the shore. Also, you can add a small star to the location on your Lake House or special area, even add a few words like… Johnson's Lake house, Est. 2001 or be creative with the title. See a better view and learn more about the lake at my website www.LeoLakes.com    

Remember: Life is short, get away from the big screen and get on a big stream!

LeoLakes.com

Thank You, Veterans!

Floated, Pumpkin Stew, Bruised Banana...What is fall fishing!

About two weeks ago, my buddy's and I floated the Duck River. You may ask, what is floated? Well around here the technical definition is...to float down the river, in a boat while fishing from one destination to another, float. The crew included Buttermilk (Jeff Loudermilk) and Duck Master (Tim Oldfield). Duck Master knows this river like bananas know yellow. The weather was a typical fall day with the wind blowing lightly and about 60 degrees. Lucky for us, the leaves were just starting to fall from the trees, which was good because we didn't have to worry about leaves getting tangled in our lines. We actually paddled up stream and floated back down.

 

Here we have Buttermilk giving Duck Master, in his banana boat, a shove off to start the adventure. The water was amazingly clear for this river. Our plan was to fish for about four hours and catch a few bass or anything that would bite and paddle back to camp for a hot bowl of Buttermilk's Pumpkin Stew. More about Pumpkin Stew later! 

Right off the bat, Duck Master catches a small largemouth bass on a silver artificial minnow crank bait. Notice that smile, even catching small fish makes people gitty.   

 

Duck Master relaxing in his kayak. What a great day to be on the water with friends! As I always say..."Life is short, Get away from the big screen and get on a big stream." If more folks would do this, then there would be a lot more happiness!  

 

While paddling over to a nice spot to cast, I heard a loud sound. It actually sounded like my neighbor raking leaves at 6:00 am in the morning, next to my bedroom window. I looked up the steep bank and spotted a very chubby animal. It even looks like my neighbor. It was a woodchuck, also known as a groundhog or land-beaver. Luckily he was only foraging in the leaves and not chucking wood. 

Fishing was a little slow, but we did manage to catch a few more small bass. Here comes "Fancy Paddle" also known as Buttermilk. The reason I call him fancy paddle is because his paddles cost more than my Kayak. No kidding, they're a piece of art.   

Well, there is always an adventure on the Duck River and Duck Master found it. While paddling up fairly swift water he turned sideways and the banana boat leaned into the water and capsized. Not only did Duck Master get wet, he has a bruised banana (boat). We did find his fishing pole, bait box, etc... I'm sure glad it wasn't 30 degrees!

Do you feel the warmth? After the Duck Master incident we hurried back to base camp. Checkout our fire! There is nothing like a warm fire on a cool fall day, especially if someone is wet. Notice that large back log. Perfect for radiating the heat, in fact it was so hot I had to rotisserate to keep from getting burned. Stay tuned because we are fixing to eat. I know, you may ask what is fixing? Fixing, a southern term which means "ready to do something."

The perfect end of a fishing trip, Halloween Stew. Before we left, Buttermilk had prepared a pot of Halloween stew, dutch oven style. I asked Buttermilk what is Halloween stew and he said that he carved the carrots like little pumpkins. Hmmm....I'm not sure about that. Anyway, why does food taste better near the water after a full day's adventure?

Amazing, check-out those little carved pumpkin carrots! Hope you enjoyed the post.

 

Have a Happy Halloween!

It Was a Wild Halloween Party at the Old Field Studio. The characters from my other blogs stopped by for some fun. Boy, did things get out of hand. The folks from the "River of Oz", "The Worm Hole" and "Bait Dynasty" are a wild bunch. You may be able to figure out who's who from below.