( CNN ) -- `` What does this thing do ? '' That 's what I asked the garbage man one afternoon many years ago when we had Truck Day outside Cherokee Elementary . At least I think it was Truck Day . There were lots of trucks . And our teachers encouraged us to look at them and ask questions . So , I 'm pretty sure it was n't sex-ed . ( God , I hope not . ) Anyway , the garbage man smiled and answered my question . `` Well , this makes the mechanical arm go down . Here , try it . '' Me at the helm of a steel hydraulic grabbing device in the vicinity of small children . What could possibly go wrong ? I pulled the lever . Things moved . Noises were made . Nothing went wrong . And to this day , it 's pretty much the highlight of my life . I should 've been a garbage man . Instead I became a journalist . ( I repeat : I should 've been a garbage man . ) Because big trucks are awesome . Especially when you 're a kid . Richard Janney knows all about this . The 42-year-old legal recruiter from the suburbs of Chicago has two boys , 9 and 3 . And the youngest is completely obsessed with trucks . Janney explains that his little one is over the moon when it comes to big equipment . `` Like , stop and pull over and watch an active construction site for 10 or 20 minutes kind of excitement . '' So , he does . That 's just being a good dad . But one day , back in early July while taking a roadside pause with his son , Janney looked out upon the broken land and saw an excavator in a whole new light . In this great , massive machine he suddenly saw beauty . Like Orson Welles slathered in baby oil . ( Bad comparison . I do n't know what just happened there . ) As Janney looked out over the construction site with this heightened appreciation for machinery , it was then that he decided he would go home and paint the excavator for his son . He could already picture it . `` I 've always been obsessed with van Gogh , '' Janney says . `` I had been trying to do paintings that emulated his style for about a year . '' So , in paying homage to `` Starry Night , '' he painted `` Quarry Night . '' And it was magnificent . Janney posted an image of his painting online and , immediately , people were enthusiastic . Hundreds asked him if they could buy prints . Not bad for a former lawyer with largely untapped artistic ability . You see , for years , Janney was a litigator for a big firm . And he hated it . `` I was willing to crawl through a sewer pipe like Tim Robbins did in Shawshank Redemption just to get out , '' he said . I ca n't even imagine . Or maybe I just do n't want to . But he made it out . `` I have a lot more time for my family , which is why I 'm able to pull over and watch construction equipment when my boys see one in action . We also watch trains a lot . '' ( Note : These are real things you can see when you stop clicking through cat videos on your iPad . However , be warned that doing so requires leaving the house and wearing pants . Just FYI . ) Of course , getting out of a busy law career also allowed Janney more time to further explore this passion for art , despite the fact that he has no formal training . When he was younger he drew a lot , eventually delving into the world of cartoons . In college , Janney even penned a strip called `` Pierre the French Guy . '' That one almost got syndicated . Painting came much later , about 10 years ago . Which ultimately led to `` Quarry Night . '' Soon after that , Janney brushed another truck-inspired masterpiece : `` Vincent Van Dozer . '' Once again he had an online hit . And it was another fine example of hidden artistic talent being discovered on the Internet . In all , it 's a small body of work -- there are only two truck paintings so far -- but Janny 's already getting commissions from construction companies , engineers , and manufacturers . He says , `` One guy told me that he was so happy to see that someone else saw those machines as works of art . '' Like Orson Welles slathered in baby oil . ( Nope . Still a bad comparison . ) Follow @ JarrettBellini on Twitter . See more content with questionable news value at CNN Comedy .
Year - old Michael Miller is a legal recruiter outside Chicago . He is making big paintings in the style of Vincent van Gogh . His artwork became a huge hit on the Internet .