c. scott andreas

Ethan and I have been on the road for about 8 hours now and are passing through Kansas City, Missouri. We’re getting to know each other pretty well, we’ve listened to quite a bit of music, and seen quite a bit of Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois, and Missouri, to say the least. But then again, what are road trips for?

leaving louisville, ky

Here’s a photo from Southern Indiana (which is, I admit, nothing particularly special):

The drive has been pretty uneventful so far, but we do have one funny story. I decided that a pit stop in St. Louis would be a good idea about forty miles out. After crossing the Mississippi and driving by the Gateway Arch, I decided that the time had come. I took the next exit off the highway. This decision could have used a bit of consideration by someone not desperately searching for a restroom.

the gateway arch (st. louis, mo)

It reminded me of the south side of Chicago; we pulled off the interstate onto a feeder road in a residential area that could have used a little money. After driving a few frantic blocks searching for a gas station, we found nothing. Squirming with an insatiable primal passion, I made the uninformed decision to continue down the feeder in the opposite direction (I quickly discovered that this was a one-way, though there was little traffic). Heh.

a word from our st. louis friends

A few blocks later, we drove by a construction site. Our saving grace: the port-a-john. Thank goodness for that.

thanks, guys.

Having freshened up and learned that Erica’s got gum breath, we hit the road once more.

Not much has happened since, save for a missed exit in Kansas City. It’s 82 degrees here, which is a nice change from Bloomington’s 60s. More photos, pictures, and stories later!

our bug collection thus far

regards,
- scott

note: I’ve decided to postpone the series I began last week until I can get settled in Portland and reply to Paul’s comment.

These are my last few days in Bloomington for the summer. I’ve been getting together with friends for coffee and meals quite a bit this week (in fact, I’ve eaten precious little while alone). Today, I’m heading up to Indy for work to shoot photos for a testimonial at a client’s restaurant at the Fashion Mall on Keystone Ave. near Carmel.

Hope to have more for you soon!

Until then, a photo from Dunn Meadow:

-c. scott andreas

Things have been pretty busy around here lately…but a whole lot of fun, too.

holy week ::
Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter Sunday were beautiful reminders of who I am, what I’m doing, and why. The Easter Barbecue (that is, the First Annual Meat Meet) was great, too; we still have a fridge full of burgers and hot dogs. Sorry, Neil.

the apartment ::
After posting an ad for my apartment to Craigslist and IU’s internal classifieds (”OneStart”), I received about eight extra replies from some colorful people. Fortunately, a friend of mine from class also replied, which I did not expect. Olaolu will be here for the summer - I’m incredibly happy that I’m able to get some money back for rent and provide a great place for a friend to live.

a place in portland ::
I’ve been talking with a guy I’ll be working with this summer quite a bit lately. Ethan and I (who both apparently tried for an internship with Mars Hill in Grand Rapids) will be road-tripping it up to Portland mid-May and hopefully living together, though the latter is to be determined. If you think of it, pray for a place to live for us…I’m looking at the situation as a choice of blessings, but it would be great if everything fell into place as we hope it will.

finishing the semester ::
I gave two presentations and turned in a substantial paper on Tuesday - glad to have that over with. I’m in the middle of writing two longer papers due next Thursday, followed by another of similar length due the Tuesday after that (May 2). There are also three exams to reckon with in the midst of all this, so you can expect to find a caffeinated me near a pile of books, notebooks, and a keyboard somewhere in Bloomington for the next two weeks.

three great papers ::
Look forward to these. I’ll likely be presenting them here at least in part.

1. An ethnographic exploration of the “testimony” as a rhetorical construction of selfhood and a form of therapeutic discourse.
2. An analysis of the relationship between evangelicals and ecology (or ecology and evangelicals, depending upon your perspective…and mine). I’ll be referencing Brian McLaren’s A Generous Orthodoxy and NKOC narrative series, Rob Bell’s Velvet Elvis, and Peter Illyn’s Restoring Eden, among other great texts.
3. A critical examination of the persuasive approach of Jim Wallis’ God’s Politics. I’ll be looking at it as an adaptation of “Invitational Rhetoric” and perhaps draw a few larger cultural conclusions concerning the nature/state of American political participation.

Oh, and I can promise you that these will contain a bit of subtle humor here and there…I can’t stand dry writing.

and, a treat ::
I first saw this over at BoingBoing. Perhaps we should start converting more tanks to wage peace. Or pink. Pink’s okay, too.