Chopper Hostel

Digital artwork by King $HIT

Things here at the Hostel are set on full. Finding time to spend in front of the computer has been something that I had to set aside until today. The forecast is callin’ for endless rain and the faithful told to start buildin’ an arc if the creek rises any higher

My patched together roof is holding better than it has in a while and a few strategically placed buckets and I’m set for the great wash. Plus, everything is easy now that we’re past that fuckin’ artic blast and the frozen Danger Hut that came with it, that sucked.

Now that we’re past the shock of that brutal weather I find myself newly invigorated. My passion for what I’m doin’ here has solidified my determination to get choppers crawlin’ around the local countryside and tents sprouting up all over the property like mushrooms after a morning dew.

The property works just fine for a few chopper jockies plantin’ stakes over the summer. I’m going to focus on makin’ my shitty little dive in the middle of it all work for my needs and the needs of the deviants on those two wheeled deathtraps I invited over to ride the incredible roads hidden from the goat fuckers and their ‘proper’ lives.

Unfortunatly, the big ass tent was an utter failure. It’s not like I didn’t give it my best efforts and try every configuration. It’s just an experiment that I spent way too much time working on. It’s too big, too old and needs constant attention. I’m using it for raw materials and moving on past it.

The original intention was to make the tent a big bike shop to hang out in after a day of riding but there’s not enough flat, dry ground for a structure with that big of a foot print. I’m movin’ the bike shop up to the house and makin’ it work where I’ve been workin’ on bikes and stuff since I moved in.

I’ve never really included the Danger Hut into the Hostel plans as I have considered it MY house and a place for me to escape to if the goings on on the grounds get to be too much for me. For now though, havin’ the bike shop where I always work on bikes make the most sense.

The best idea for the layout is to include the Hut in the operation of Chopper Hostel. By the break of the new season I need to have the final logistics for the house and what it will be used for in the grand scheme of Chopper Hostel.

The basic principle of this place is the same, a cool place to camp, ride choppers, work on your shit and relax with your boys. The shop will now be in the front room that I currently use for my bathroom/kitchen along with the outside porch and surrounding area.

My studio is set in the southernmost front room, and I have been comfortable working there for a couple of years now and have no reason to move it. I just need to add a gallery for dryin’ pieces, storing prints and lighted correctly so people can actually view my stuff in person and not just relying on social media to see the work. It’ll be a dedicated area to the presentation of the one thing I actually do well. It’s time to seriously think about people physically viewing my work in an area that will be dedicated to showing it in the best light. The shits pretty good and I’d like to show it to y’all

The next thing that is needed but no less important is an outdoor shower and facilities for those dirty show ups to use. Making the former kitchen/bathroom into the bike shop moves the plumbing out of that room and closer to the watermain in the northern most room as will the outside plumbing for the guests’ facilities. With proper planning I can remove all the freezing points in the plumbing that bit me in the ass this year. The house is just four basic rooms, the wet room is where I plumb it, so it makes sense to bullet proof what plumbing I do have with the outdoor upgrades.

Those are my scribblings in the dirt and that’s as close to planning as I’m willing to throw into the ring at this point. I’m much better at slingin’ hammers and breakin’ stuff so I’m getting right into it.

First thing I did was throw my bike off the porch…

Actually, I have had the Latowski in the house since the weather set in and moved it out for cleaning before work begins on it, nothing major, just sheet metal work this year.

I woke up to a beautiful day and after the mornin’ coffee and bowl I was ready to make some moves to get me riding instead of just battling the cold. I jumped on the bike, propelled it backwards out the door, across the porch and onto the ramp leading off of it. Just like I had 50 times before but this time I decided to stop halfway down, on the ramp and simply fell off of it. The bike and I hit the ground below with a disheartening splat. As soon as I got my wind back, I couldn’t stop giggling. Next time, smoke that bowl AFTER I move the bike.

It took a few minutes but I righted myself and the bike. A bent fender, some hurt pride and the day stumbled to a start. I’m damn near impervious to minor calamities after strugglin’ through a month or so of dangerously cold weather in a shack with the insulating characteristics of a plastic bag.

If you can pull that off, picking your bike out of a ditch by yourself ain’t nothin’ but a chicken wing. The further you push yourself towards adversity the simpler the ‘little things’ are to muscle through. Once you have wood in the stove and food in the fridge everything else is gravy and that includes the obstacles that appear along the way. It sure seems that way to me.

Even with the chaos of this season I have been busy in the studio. I have plenty-o-work to finish up, new small pieces to produce to pay the bills and some ongoing pieces that I want to have finished for folks to view when Hostel Takeover 2 kicks off in early June.

As much as I’d like to think otherwise, painting, will always be my main source of income. There has a been a little behind the scenes mental drama going on in my approach to the whole ‘artist’ gig. It’s been a love/hate affair with the whole painting situation but when the chips were down and the shack was frozen, I found myself painting in a frozen studio even before I got it up to operating temperature, which actually never happened until the weather helped the warming process. It got warmer but when I started my day in the studio the temperature was whatever it was outside and always below comfortable. For the first time in a long time, painting, once again, was what I went to when everything got too crazy. It’s been a while, but it seems like my priorities are starting to align with my lifestyle again. It goes a long way, and glimpses of sanity show themselves much more often if I just stop fighting them.

I’ve been givin’ it some thought and I’m thinkin’ of hittin’ a few events to meet some folks, show some paintings, sell some prints and let folks know about Chopper Hostel and what I’m tryin’ to accomplish with it. I’ve been off the road for a while and lookin’ at doin’ it in a vehicle besides my bike to do it has always hit a sour note with me.

These days are different and I’m not chasin’ that life on a bike as much as I did for all those years past. They say that it’s not the destination but only the ride that gets you there that matters. That sounds a bit too much like nihilism for my liking. With no offspring to carry on a the “Painter” legacy my biggest fear has always been to live a life that doesn’t inspire anyone and who’s final legacy led to little more than a memorial t-shirt and a vinyl sticker on the back of some rusted out minivan. No surprise that oil painting carried a lot of the load on the legacy front but man, the whole bike angle sure means a lot to me. The next logical step is Chopper Hostel.

I think I need to promote the Hostel. Just throwin’ some artwork in the back of the minitruck, settin’ up a booth and talkin’ up the Hostel at a few events this summer seems like a good way to do it. It’s also a good excuse to throw my ass back in the mix and wag some teeth with some likeminded folks.

So fuck it, yea. I’m settin’ the dates for Hostel Takeover 2 as June 6-8th and that’s right here in Mt. Hope West Virginia 25880. Start makin’ plans or excuses now and ridin’ your shit in the Appalachian twisties in early summer .

Havin’ my flag planted firmly in the seasons calendar year I can start taking suggestions on some events that I should consider makin’ it to promote my little disorganized convulsive sideshow. I might hit the Smoke Out if they’ll have me. I think I might have pissed off a few Hamsters and yes, it is as unintimidating as that phrase implies.

Anyway, I’m lookin’ for some solid advice for a couple of east coast events that I should check out on the tour. I think a solid 4-5 events over the summer will work for a start but I’m just goin’ to plan on that first event, wherever that might be, and figure it out from there.

It’s a new step and I’ve been thinkin’ about it for a while so dippin’ my toes in the current chopper scene to promote my shit and give me something to write about seems like a reasonable idea. I’ve almost got myself convinced and writing it down makes it gospel. If it really sucks I can always bail and hide myself back in the holler in a pinch.

That’s what is up ’round these parts up to now. THings are still cold but the majority of the winter is behind us, so things are lookin’ up. I’m goin’ into the new season very excited about gettin’ back ‘out there’ and rubbin’ shoulders with all you biker scum just like old times.

Be sure to subscribe either pay or non-pay subscriptions. Either way it’ll really help you navigate the Chopper Hostel site and you will be emailed with any new updates! It’s free and it will really help you and I both out.

I have a few ways for you to contribute to the Hostel movin’ forward. As always there is a donations form below where you can make a cash donation either monthly or just a one time donation.

Also, you can purchase your ‘Evel thinks you’re a Bitch’ prints’ which have been printed and arriving here by Wednesday Feb 12th. You can order you prints for $20 a print and only $13 shipping on each order not each print. Order as many as you want and shipping is $13 for your entire order in the lower 48.

Those who have already ordered will be shipped out as soon as they arrive here at the studio.

PayPal or Cashapp available:

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CashApp to $georgethepainter1340

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