While traveling across country in Argentina you can find oodles of little decorated sanctuaries to a saint by the name of Gauchito Gil. He's the protector of travelers with truck drivers especially fond of him. I have found myself also in favor of him after some of the roads we traveled on. There's a reason the Andes are known for being the second largest mountain range in the world. My experience looking over the edge of the road as we drove some of the windy roads hit this fact home for me.

For good luck and safe travels you beep as you go by him. When you stop, you're supposed to leave him some food, alcohol, and drink and eat with him. As it would turn out, our muffler broke on a gravel road. With a hammock strap and what I like to call good 'ole hillbilly engineering, I was able to fix it long enough to get to a mechanic. We were pretty close and we had everything fixed within a day. Also gotta give a shoutout to my dad for all the mechanical knowledge he gave me throughout my life.

This is particularly abundant offering to Gauchito

Just doing my duty and drinking with Gauchito after some harrowing roads.

For anybody in the Fayetteville, West Virginia or in the area I'll have an exhibition of work close to the end of March 2025. The work shown will be many of these pieces from my Hollers, Hills, & Buckshot | Anthologies of Appalachia show. However, I'm working on new work here in Argentina. This exhibition will be an exploration in to mountain folks and their communities. A chance to highlight two distinct cultures across hemispheres the Appalachians and the northern Andes of Argentina.

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