Road Trip

After I established my second blog, now known as Convolution, I decided this blog, now known as Hot Water Sandwich, would have its own unique purpose. When I wanted to write at length about things that happened in my life or things that make up my personal philosophy, this would be the place for it. Since the writing would occasionally be autobiographical, the blog's primary motif would be highway travel. Like many people, I often think of my life in terms of road metaphors: The people I've known are fellow travelers on the highways of life, the mistakes I've made are wrong turns into dead end streets, and so forth. I chose artwork for the blog's design to reinforce the travel theme, e.g., the old pickup truck and a slice of pie on the counter in a roadside diner.

In earlier posts I've mentioned my daughter, the artist. As a frustrated artist myself, I've watched with pride and some degree of envy as she polished her skills with pencil, pastels, and paint from the time she was a little girl until she graduated with a degree in fine art and eventually became an art teacher in the public school system. She and I have discussed our shared interest in art in late evening conversations, and we both admire the technique known as photorealism. Recently R gave birth to her first child, my third grandson, and although the baby takes up most of her time, she still found a few hours to complete the painting in acrylics shown above. She gave it the title "Roadtrip" and I think it represents an homage to the photorealists we both appreciate.

She's promised to give me the original painting later this year, and agreed to let me put a digital reproduction on the blog since the subject matter fits my preferred metaphor of life as one long road trip.