Let’s all get super stoned and drive to Indiana, where a museum in Muncie has opened a permanent exhibit to the late, great Bob Ross—the patron saint of happy lil trees. We could not possibly advise you to get stoned in Indiana, where marijuana has yet to be decriminalized, but perhaps the addition of what is clearly a primo tourism destination for raging stoners signals the imminent legalization of weed in the state. In the meantime, CNN has lots of happy little details on the Bob Ross Experience, which opened last month in the historical Lucius L. Ball house on the Minnetrista campus in Muncie. The exhibit offers visitors a chance to view Ross’ artworks in a rotating display and attend painting workshops led by Certified Ross Instructors—a designation obtained only after instructors complete a rigorous three-week training session at Bob Ross Inc. in Florida.
One such instructor, Faye Fletcher, seems to be keeping the spirit of Ross alive in her teaching, per this extremely sweet anecdote:
At the kickoff event, Fletcher taught a class of students how to paint “Under Pastel Skies.” In one of the classes, a woman told Fletcher that she came to the class to see if she was worthy of purchasing paint supplies.
“You are worthy, even if you don’t paint well,” Fletcher said. “She did paint well.”
Tickets for the Bob Ross Experience can be obtained online via the official Minnetrista website. The exhibit currently has safety measures in place due to the ongoing pandemic, including a mask requirement and only allowing 15 people per hour.