Joshua Hudson loved to ride his lime green motorcycle.
It was his favorite color, one of the many bright hues in his wardrobe. Friends recalled how he'd often randomly dye his hair so people never knew what color to expect next.
"He liked the shock effect, but at the same time, he said, 'Don't stare at me,'" step-father Don Bauer said. "He liked the individuality, but not the attention."
David Abbott said his roommate and high school friend talked often about riding his brilliantly colored bike, which he received from his uncle.
"He and his dad worked on the bike to get it going because it wasn't operable when they got it," Bauer said.
Hudson, a 22-year-old Ball State junior, died Friday night after his motorcycle collided with a car at the intersection of Riverside Avenue and Martin Street earlier in the afternoon.
Friends of Hudson gathered together at an apartment Friday night to share stories about their friend who they said will be greatly missed.
"I've known Josh for probably three years, and he always wanted people to like him," senior Adam Hafer said on Saturday. "It was amazing how [Friday] night, we had about 30 friends come together and share stories about him."
Abbott said the group sat in a circle and took turns telling their favorite memories of Hudson.
"I think it helped a lot," Abbott said as he recalled the conversation about Hudson. "We ended up laughing a lot. You can't stop yourself from laughing."
Hudson's step-father, Don Bauer, said Hudson was close to both his family and friends. Even people who didn't know Hudson that well showed up to share their memories.
"He had a lot of friends, and he evidently was a good friend because people came around, and he always had someone to see and go visit," Bauer said. "He never shut us out, and I guess, I see that with some kids - they shut their parents out. Josh was always very close, and it wasn't uncommon at all to get either an e-mail or a phone call from him on almost a daily basis."
Hudson's friends described him as "quirky" and "spastic." They said Hudson was always moving around and doing something because he didn't like to be still.
"You really had to know him to get the whole effect," Abbott said.
For example, Abbott said Hudson recently came home excited about a spur-of-the-moment trip that he was planning to California. Hudson flew to California, which is where he wanted to live someday, and spent all Labor Day weekend there visiting a friend.
While he was in California, Hudson started sticking his camera out the car window and snapping pictures of the landscape while in motion, his friends said. They said he liked the blurry result of the pictures.
Hudson had an interest in photography and was working on getting all his pictures onto his computer to make a slide show, Alison Williams, Hudson's friend of two years, said.
"Right now, as we speak, there are pictures downloading on his computer still," she said Saturday afternoon.
Abbott said he remembered that Hudson told him Thursday, "I think I found my calling," when it came to his photography, although his major was business administration.
"He hated [his major]," Abbott said. "He kept saying he was going to change it to graphic design."
"In fact, he had just talked to his counselor about changing his major to graphic arts, and he was all excited about that," Bauer added. Hudson wanted to start his own business of selling T-shirts with his own designs and photographs.
Hudson's friends said he also had a passion for music, movies and poetry.
"He would always tell everybody if there was a new song, and he'd start playing on his guitar or something," Hafer said.
Hudson got excited when he found a new song he liked, his friends said. He would make everyone listen to the song.
"He was emo," Williams said. "Josh equals emo. That was the big, long-running joke."
Friends who gathered around that circle Friday night, regardless of how long they had known Hudson, agreed that his outgoing personality and spontaneous behavior would be greatly missed.
"He wasn't religious, but he was, I believe, very spiritual, and as a result of that, he was just a good kid," Bauer said. "He had his own goals in life and the way he wanted things done ... He thought of others as well. He wasn't selfish about that."
See related article: Professor fails to yield, collides with motorcycle riden by student
WHAT: Viewing
WHEN: Tuesday, 4 p.m. to 8 p.m.
WHERE: Hinsey-Brown Funeral Home 3406 S. Memorial Dr., New Castle
WHAT: Vigil
WHEN: Tuesday, 10 p.m. (arrive at 9:45 p.m.)
WHERE: Riverside Avenue and Martin Street intersection
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