Coasting down a narrow leaf ridden road, my Honda Accord arrived at the base of a steep hill, at the top I could see an old colonial house with green shutters and a porch with nothing on it but a single pumpkin, on it a mischievous smile. I stared at the manor through the foggy windshield before turning up the gravel driveway leading to Odd’s home. I could see, glimmering like bubbly champagne in sunlight, a golden harp in the picture window adorned with holly wreath. Really the thing looked like a giant Christmas ornament!
I took both my Gibson guitars with me. My Grandfather’s 1944 Gibson Jumbo J-45 and his brother Ero’s Gibson 1939 L-50. Odds Bodkin greeted me at the door with a big smile and said “Welcome welcome come in come in come in”..... Candles were everywhere. This place was enchanting-like a Hallmark without the gifts and crap everywhere. We walked through a cozy little kitchen and dining room. It smelled really good too. He made us chicken enchiladas for dinner and we ate and drank Coronas and talked about the storytelling business near a candlelight meal.
The 2 and a half hour visit FLEW by! After dinner we went into the living room. Another cozy corner of the old house. He had a wood stove going and my feet were comfy walking on the plush blue carpet. I saw the harp. Then next to that, a banjo. Then a guitar, drum, violin, another guitar and a couple cases. For such a small space, and with so much in the room, Odd’s home had a very light, airy, enchanting feeling. Like walking through the different rooms in a museum. Not that he had a lot of stuff on the walls or anything, there were a few nice paintings here and there, but the mood was DEFINITELY created by the lighting and the smells of good food cooking and the wood stove. I felt welcomed and at home in this space.
He talked about his early days starting out in 1982 as a pro storyteller. He is a wise man. A teacher at Antioch for 7 years before, a father of 3 and traveling the country storytelling while raising a family appears to have the same woes and concerns as any other family whose father travels. -reminded me of my Dad. Anywho, he speaks VERY articulately. Almost like he is over enunciating his words and his face looks serious like a man in deep thought. He has the same look when he is listening. Very serious and almost concerned look but he is actually very acutely listening to you...it was kind of spooky. But then when he laughed his whole face lifted and his laugh bellowed loudly and he was Santa Claus without the long beard and Ho hos.
Odds told me about stuff he’d tried and failed at and about his biggest successes. It was a roller coaster ride of an experience that kept me on the edge of my lazy boy seat the entire time. He talked about playing on the White House lawn during the Clinton administration and about how he met Pete Seeger and Arlo Guthrie. So SO much stuff here, then finished up talking about his challenges at present as he tackles novel #4. He has 3 completed already-although not published quite yet and this is another story. It’s funny he told me that he is at the same place in the novel writing business as I am in the storytelling business. I chucked and asked if he had a good mentor.