The Road goes ever on and on (I hope...)

I have finally returned to the Eastern Time Zone. I'm currently back in Louisville, KY, staying at the Galt House (courtesy of Hotwire). Since last I posted, I came through some very beautiful country. I traveled through the states of California, Nevada, Utah, Wyoming, Colorado, Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana and Kentucky (in that order).

During my high speed eastward trek, I passed through some very different parts of the country. In Utah I went through an area that upon first glance might appear snow-covered, but is in fact salt-covered. I encountered this almost immediately after crossing the border from Nevada. If anyone is familiar with the Bonneville salt flats, that was the part of Utah that I passed through. I also had the chance to visit the site of the completion of the trans-continental railroad at Promontory point, about an hour north of Salt Lake City.

From there I continued on into Wyoming and Colorado. As much as I had wanted to drive into Denver to see the radical left wingers who were protesting, the city streets coming into Denver were almost completely blocked of to outside entry. So instead, I continued on south to Colorado Springs. I was able to drive up to the summit of Pike's Peak. It was an awesome experience. The summit of Pike's Peak sits at 14,110 feet. The drive up was breathtaking, especially when I was descending the mountain and had the chance to look out on the surrounding valley. I didn't have the chance to stay long in the open at the summit as a thuderstorm was coming in, and the summit of a mountain like Pike's Peak is nowhere to be during a thunderstorm.

After I left Pike's Peak, I paid a visit to Focus on the Family. Among the many ministries that they have is a weekly radio drama called "Adventures in Odyssey." I've been a fan since I was in elementary school. While marketed primarily at kids, it has a lot for adults as well, and it continues to hold my interest even to this day.

Upon leaving Colorado Springs, I drove east to Grand Island, NE where I spent the night. I chose this town to stay in because my family and I broke down in the town 12 years ago on a family vacation and thought, at the time that it was a nice little town that I wanted to go back to at some later point. In Grand Island is located the Stuhr Musuem of the Prairie Pioneer. This museum is somewhat unique as very little of the museum is a tradional indoor exhibit musum. Most of the museum is living history exhibits. These consist of a Pawnee earth lodge, several farms, a church, a one room schoolhouse and a small railroad town. Unfortunately I didn't have as much time as I wanted to spend at the museum; in fact I probably could have spent the whole day there.

On the drive between C. Springs and Grand Island, as it was well after midnight when I pulled in to Grand Island, I had a chance to really see the stars. I was hoping to get a similar view of the stars in Arizona/New Mexico, but the moon was too bright. However, parts of western Nebraska were almost as dark as the AZ/NM desert. I have never seen stars like that before in my life. It was dark enough that I could see the halo of the Milky Way. The sheer number of stars was striking. It gave me a much clearer understanding of the verses in the Bible that reference the vastness of the heavens. Back in Maryland, there is so much light polution that I have never been able to see more than a relative pittance of stars when compared with what there is to see.

I got back to Chicago on thursday and spent a few more days with my sister and brother in law. Having had my second helping of Giordano's pizza I feel the need to plug it. It may have become my favorite pizza of all (provided it's warm). If you're in Chicago, you really must make a point of trying it. It is excellent. If you aren't going to Chicago anytime soon, you can order the pizza and have it overnighted to you from Chicago (http://www.giordanos.com/main.php).

While I was in Chicago, Senator McCain announced his choice for VP. As I'm sure many of you know by now, he selected Sarah Palin, Gov. of Alaska. I only started looking at her as a possible VP in last week or two, and it was immediately apparent to me that she was who Sen. McCain should select, which was why I was so surprised that he actually picked her. She is a committed evangelical Christian Washington outsider who is pro-life, pro-family, pro-gun, pro-drilling, anti-tax, anti-corruption. She is everything that I wanted in a VP candidate and will go a long way toward McCain winning the election (which I maintain he will do, as I have maintained ever since Obama secured the Dem. nomination).

After leaving Chicago, I went back to Louisville, where I am now. Tomorrow I am traveling south to Chattanooga TN. Hopefully, I will continue my journey south to Florida. Provided that there are no unforeseen circumstances stemming from Gustav refugees that prevent m from going further south (no gasoline, severe traffic congestion) I will continue on to Jacksonville.

Wagons East

This trip has taken more of my time and energy of the last week than expected. As a result, I have not been able to journal as I had intended. As the title of this entry suggests, today, I have begun my return toward the eastern time zone. However, it was quite a journey between the last time I posted and now.

I had the chance to go to the Grand Canyon. Grand is certainly the right word, though perhaps it understates the matter slightly. The Grand Canyon is almost incomprehensibly big. I was at the Canyon a few days before the flooding, though it did rain quite a bit on the way back from the canyon. My visit to the Canyon allowed me to cross off two life goals. The first was to visit the Grand Canyon. The second was to visit and eat at a Harvey House, or rather at a former one (since the Fred Harvey company was bought out in 1968. The El Tovar Hotel, a former Harvey House, is owned and operated by the company who bought it out and maintains the traditions of the Fred Harvey Company, though the waitresses don’t wear the original uniforms anymore. I’d been wanting to eat at a Harvey house ever since seeing the movie “The Harvey Girls” (a great MGM movie Musical). Had I been looking to stay at the Grand Canyon, I would have tried to get a room at the El Tovar, though I would have had to reserve a room 6 months out. After I left the Canyon, I passed through Williams, AZ, the last city to be bypassed by the interstates. It still maintains a strong relationship with the Mother Road.

The Following day I drove the most mountainous part of the entire route on the stretch from Kingman, AZ to Oatman, AZ. It was absolutely beautiful. The high temperatures for this stretch of the Route were somewhere between 105-110 degrees. However, because of the lack of humidity, it was not unpleasant at all. In fact, 110 in AZ felt more pleasant to me than 90-95 degrees in Maryland. Oatman is an interesting town. It has two main claims to fame. First, it is the site where Clark Gable and Carol Lombard came for their honeymoon. Second, and more importantly, it is the town who’s most famous citizens are the wild burros who wander through town on a daily basis. They are the descendants of mining burros who were released into the wild when the mines no longer needed them.

After leaving Oatman, and then Arizona, I moved on into California. I made it from the border with Arizona to Los Angeles. The drive to LA is a very pretty drive, though there isn’t much to see, once you get past the Colorado river crossing, until you get to the outskirts of San Bernardino. San Bernardino is where the first McDonald’s was located and is the beginning of the Los Angeles Megalopolis.

During my time in Los Angeles, I was able to visit a bunch of places that I had heard of but had never seen. These places include Pasadena, Beverly Hills, Hollywood, Sunset Blvd., Wilshire Blvd., and Malibu among others. I also had a chance to visit Disneyland for the first time. For those who have been to Disney World, I thought that individual rides such as Space Mountain, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad were better at Disneyland, but the whole package was better at Disney World. I also thought that the Disneyland Castle was kind of small.

At the end of my three days in LA, I drove out to Santa Monica where the end of the Route is located. I went by way of Simi Valley, where the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library is located. If you ever go out to Southern California, this is a must see, if for nothing other than getting to go through President Reagan’s Air Force One.
I can’t say enough about the weather in southern California. It was never anything less than beautiful while I was there, clear skies and temperatures in the 70s. The water, however, was a bit colder than I’m used to when swimming in the ocean in August. It took a bit longer than normal to adjust.

I then drove from Santa Monica to San Francisco mainly by way of the Pacific Coast Highway. This is a must drive route for anyone who loves to drive, though, I have to admit that I was glad that I got to use the inner lane.

Upon getting to San Francisco, I made it a point to visit Ghirardelli Square. I had hoped that I would get to see them actually making chocolate. I did, though not on the scale I was expecting. They had a small amount of Chocolate being made as a sort of demo for people in the café. However, the big factory is out in San Leandro. I still had the chance to have one of the best brownies and biggest and best chocolate chip cookies (on two successive days, I should point out) I’ve had in a long time. I also got to attend a San Francisco Giants game. The ballpark is very well done, especially with the way it makes use of the cove out beyond right field.

I’ll be traveling through Nevada and Utah tomorrow. Hopefully, it won’t be another week before I’m able to post again.

Oh Lord I've never felt so small…

"And the Mountains Sing your Glory Hallelujah. The Canyons echo sweet amazing grace. My spirit sails, the mighty gales are bellowing your name. And I’ve got nothing to say…"


For those who don’t know, those words are the line to a chorus to a song penned by Andrew Peterson entitled “Nothing to Say.” Having had the chance to spend time in the southwest and in Arizona specifically, I have a much deeper understanding of what Andrew was saying. But I’m getting ahead of myself.

On Monday, I had a Chance to hang out with Brian Cannon. Brian was in New Mexico on a trip with his family. We met in Las Vegas (N.M.) and went over to Santa Fe. We had a chance to walk around the old town area around the plaza. Santa Fe is a very beautiful city. It definitely has a different feel than most cities I’ve experienced. It was a very artsy town. The architecture is gorgeous, especially the churches in town. One of the churches has a staircase that is fairly well known. The staircase has no supports. It is attached at the top of the stairs and on the floor, but is otherwise not supported. No one has been able to figure out how it works.

After leaving Santa Fe, I drove to Gallup, NM where I had a chance to stay at the El Rancho Hotel. The El Rancho bills itself as the hotel of the stars. Most of these stars were from the golden age of Hollywood. Among the many stars who stayed at the hotel were people like Errol Flynn, John Wayne, Humphrey Bogart, Jimmy Stewart and Katharine Hepburn, among others. I, however, stayed in the room where Ronald Reagan stayed when he was in the hotel. The room was something of a splurge, but I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to stay where President Reagan stayed when he was here. In more recent times (read: one week prior), it was also the room where Sir Paul McCartney stayed when he came through the Route. After I left Gallup I drove on to Holbrook, AZ where I stayed at the Wigwam Village motel. For those who have seen Cars, the Wigwam village provided much of the inspiration for the Cozy Cone motel, except that instead of giant road cones, those who stay at the Wigwam village spend the night in a teepee; concrete, of course.

Next, I had the opportunity to see some real Indian dwellings in some of the most ancient places in this country. The indigenous cultures in the southwest have been here for over 1000 years. I’ve had a chance to visit sites that were inhabited more than 1000 years before Columbus arrived in the western hemisphere. I also had the chance to see the oldest continuously inhabited settlement in the Country – Acoma Pueblo. The Pueblo sits atop a mesa in the New Mexico wilderness. It is an amazing site to see. Other native sites that I had the chance to visit were at Mesa Verde, Canyon de Chelly and at the Petrified Forest.

However, as impressive as these sites were, they couldn’t compare to the natural wonders of the Route. I hadn’t been in the Rockies in over 12 years. I’d forgotten just how massive they are. The mesa that Acoma sat atop gave a spectacular view of the surrounding valley. My trip to Mesa Verde finally answered why the site was called Mesa Verde. In Spanish, Mesa Verde means “Green Mesa (table).” Upon entering the park, the first thing one’s eyes are drawn to is a large wooded mesa towering over the surrounding area. From there, the drive to reach the visitors’ center and the cliff dwellings winds through a long mountain path that goes up over 7000 feet, offering spectacular views of the surrounding areas. The next day I had the chance to visit Canyon de Chelly. Canyon de Chelly is the second largest canyon in the United States (the largest being the Grand Canyon). It isn’t as spectacular as the Grand Canyon. However, in some ways it seems to me that it allows one to appreciate it more. I was able to go down into the canyon. It was my first time down in a canyon like this. To quote Andrew Peterson, I've never felt so small.

If anyone ever needs to gain a clearer understanding of their place in the world, they simply need to come out west and see just how big everything is out here, from the mountains to the canyons to the vast prairies that sit between the mountains. I was able to visit the Painted Desert today. It certainly lives up to its name.I came away from the last few days with a sense of awe and wonder at the creation, but more so at the Creator.

While it is appropriate to marvel at how amazing God’s creation is, it is still only his creation. There is a tendency to see the creation and forget the Creator, though I don’t understand it. I certainly didn’t come away from what I saw thinking “Look how great I am and how much I matter to the universe. One certainly does not come away from seeing such majestic sights with an overestimation of his or her place in the universe. I came away from the past few days humbled. Considering that the Grand Canyon is still upcoming, I expect that this will continue. Talk to you soon.

Deep in the Heart of (North) Texas

The last few days have been long and tiring. As a result, I haven’t been able to keep the journals I was hoping to for the last few days. Accordingly, this will be an extra long post.

Much of the last several days have been spent concentrating on going to places that have been icons of Route 66 for much of the last 50 years or more. I’ve had a chance over the course of the previous several days to do so as well, but there were other things beside the Route. The last three days have been spent almost exclusively doing Route 66 centered stuff.

Many of these icons are in small towns along the road. For those who have seen Cars, this will seem familiar. The story of Route 66 for many of these small towns was that during the heyday of the Route, from its inception in 1926 to the time when the interstates began being built (different times in different places), it was a golden age. The various restaurants, motels and other attractions would get more than enough patronage to make the businesses go. However, as the interstates were built many of the towns were bypassed, causing many of those businesses to close. Getting bypassed even caused some towns to disappear almost completely. Some of them, such as the Rock Café in Stroud, OK, or the Eisler Brothers’ Store in Riverton, KS were able to remain open because of their popularity both within their communities and with people who would be willing to go out of their way to patronize the places. (The Rock Café actually burned down in May, but Dawn Welch, the current owner of the Rock, was insured and is committed to rebuilding the Rock Café, if you are interested, her blog is http://rockcafert66.wordpress.com/). Of those who were not lucky enough to remain in business, some were able to sell their business to others. However some simply abandoned their property, while possibly with intent to return, and never came back. While I have been immensely enjoying driving the Route, I get a bittersweet feeling when I pass a closed business, be it a motel, restaurant, pharmacy, museum, etc. that closed down, when it’s obvious that it had a rich history in serving the people on the Mother Road.

Among the many places that were thriving at one point, but have now been closed and/or abandoned, two stand out most immediately to me. The first is a swimming hole in Catoosa, OK, a suburb of Tulsa, the centerpiece of which is a large blue whale. It was initially a private gift of a man to his wife. The wife collected whale figurines. Eventually it was opened to the public, along with several other accompanying attractions. Eventually it became too much for the family to run and it was closed. The second is a Gas Station in what used to be a vibrant little town called Alanreed, TX. However, once the interstate came through, the town was bypassed and no one stopped there anymore. The town effectively died as almost no one passed through anymore. I don’t wasn’t to come as looking like I hate interstates. They certainly have their purpose; I have used them several times since I’ve been on this trip. However, there is so much more of this country to see than can be seen from the interstate highways. I would encourage occasionally taking trips that you make regularly on interstates on non-interstate roads. You might be surprised what there is to see that you never knew was there.

However, not all is doom and gloom. With the resurgence of interest in the Route since it was officially decommissioned in 1985, many of the businesses that had once been left for dead have been bought and are being restored. I have had the chance to meet several of these people in the last several days. One of these people, whose name escapes me, bought a row of stores in a tiny town in Missouri named Spencer. The row of stores basically constituted the town and has been abandoned for years. Just in the last few months he has made serious progress on restoring the Phillips gas station and I understand that the intent is to restore the rest of the stores as well. This could end up being a big draw as it happens to be stationed on an original 1926 concrete road. It has never even been asphalt paved and considering its age, looks absolutely gorgeous. Another, one Gary Turner, has set about to restoring an old Sinclair station which was named (yes, at least some of the Gas stations on the Route actually had names) Gay Parita outside of Paris Springs, MO. The job Gary did on the station is phenomenal. The third person I met on the route (I met others, but for the sake of time, I’ll limit myself to three) was Laurel Kane, a lady who was originally from Connecticut but moved down to Afton, Oklahoma to open a visitors’ center/museum on the route. She settled on restoring an old service station in which she also stores her collection of old cars(though because of the size of her collection, she only keeps a portion of them on display at any one time and rotates them in and out of the station), all in gorgeous shape. These are just a small number of people who have worked to keep the spirit of Route 66 alive.

Today I was able to indulge my love of American military history and visit the site of a military engagement during 1868 with the Cheyenne tribe in what came to be known as the Battle of the Washita. For a recap of the battle, check out: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Washita_River. In short, the U.S. Cavalry under Gen. Custer was ordered to fight an engage the Cheyennes, he did so, but was unaware when he did that the band he was attacking was not the band of renegades, but a peaceful band of Cheyenne. Needless to say, the battle did not last long, though Custer did lose 21 men in the fight. I was struck by how gorgeous the country was, as well as how peaceful it was. Especially when considered against the violent history upon which it, as well as much of the rest of the west, was built.

I also had the chance, yesterday to visit the Oklahoma City Memorial. It was gorgeous. I’d urge anyone who goes to Oklahoma with even a minimum of free time to take some time to visit.

I finished out my day today (before heading to Amarillo, TX) by visiting the largest cross in the Western hemisphere. Route 66 is renowned for having giant things of many different kinds. The Cross, in Groom, TX, is a relatively recent addition to the Route. And it is big. It is hard to find words to communicate the immensity of this cross. Pictures won’t fully do it justice, but they will have to suffice.

Tomorrow, I’m meeting Brian Cannon in Santa Fe. Catch you all later.

Getting my kicks

I got up this morning to get on the road to head south. I went over to Charlie Parker’s Diner (Another place on D, D-I & D) for breakfast. It did not disappoint. The food was excellent and the people were friendly. I then got on the road to head south. My day today could be largely broken up into three segments: the road to St. Louis highlighted by a trip to the Cahokia Mounds; in St. Louis, primarily a Cardinals-Dodgers game (baseball for those less athletically inclined); and the road from St. Louis, the main attraction being a trip to Meramec Caverns.

Upon arriving at Cahokia, I was amazed at what I found. I had an understanding of what would be there, but to see it in person was another matter. It was a city of giant mounds built by a group of American Indians between 700 and 1400 AD. It was the largest native pre-Columbian settlement north of Mexico. The tallest of the mounds was over 100 ft. high. I could see St. Louis clearly from the top of the mound. It amazed me what mankind, even in its primitive pre-European state, could accomplish. It also made me wonder what would have happened to the Aztecs and Inca if the Spanish had not come to the new world and conquered them. It wouldn’t surprise me if a similar fate had not befallen them and they would have just fallen apart.

I went on to St. Louis and was able to park right across from the stadium and go into the game. The seats weren’t bad; I ended up in left field, about 5 rows from the front. Since the Dodgers were in town, this gave me ample opportunity to observe Manny Ramirez up close. I ended up rooting for the Cardinals, as they were the home team, though as a Yankees fan, I didn’t care a whole lot for either team. As I was leaving St. Louis, I stopped for White Castle (quite good) and stopped to get ice cream at a St. Louis icon, Ted Drewe’s Frozen Custard. If you’re spending more than a day in St. Louis, you really must make time to get out there. I’d never had frozen custard before but I was very impressed. It’s thicker and heavier that ice cream, but just as tasty. I had a chance, while driving through town to see the Gateway Arch. The Gateway Arch, for those who don’t know, is part of a westward expansion museum centering on Lewis and Clark’s expedition. The Arch is an impressive building, as is Busch Stadium (where the Cardinals play) and much of the rest of St. Louis.

My final major stop was at Meramec Caverns in Stanton, MO. Much of what I saw there took my breath away. Part of the attraction of the cave is

history. It was the hideout of Frank and Jesse James during their crime spree; and before that

it was a Union Gunpowder factory. These parts of the caverns have been accessible for over 150 years. However, the rest of the Caverns were just gorgeous. Stalactites(Cave formations hanging down from the ceiling) and Stalagmites(Cave formations growing up from the ground) flowing like water from the ceiling and the floor. The cave contains the third largest stalagmite in the world. The cave’s drapery formations were immense and astonishing. The cave had a formation that so far as is known, there is only one other like it in the world. The thing about it is that these parts of the cave were only discovered about 60 years ago, while some of the formations in the cave have been growing for hundreds of thousands of years (leaving aside old earth vs. young earth creation theories). It got me to thinking about the caverns, and cave systems like it. It’s amazing when you compare what was in that cave to the mounds of this morning or the city of this afternoon. The other two can’t compare. God’s been working on that cave for hundreds of thousands of years, for nothing other than just to enjoy. No one else could see it but Him, yet He continued shaping and fashioning it into something that is something that is absolutely gorgeous. It gives me hope that if he continues to work on things that are, arguably, inconsequential that no one sees but Him, how much more will he work on what he has promised to work on and bring me and all others who are saved to completion.

Off to Joplin.

On the Road

Tuesday began with a trip to the Museum of Science and Industry. Among the many holdings in their collection, what stood out to me the most was the U-Boat. They actually have an intact captured U-boat. The Navy captured it in 1944, just two days before D-Day. Eventually it was transported to Chicago and is currently on display in the museum. Later that night I had the chance to go to see my first White Sox Game in Chicago. My brother in law and I went to watch the game. We got seats several rows back right behind home plate. We stayed for a full nine innings. We didn’t get to see the game end because the game ran 14 innings. By the time we got back to the house after nearly an hour on the L Train, the game was still tied. Yesterday morning I left Chicago for California. My first stop was to get breakfast at a restaurant in Chicago, the White Palace Grill. I first heard about the restaurant on the Food Network show: “Diners Drive-ins and Dives.” It more than met expectations and I would recommend it to anyone who is staying any length of time in Chicago.

Getting out of Chicago proved a challenge. Illinois does an excellent job of posting signs for the route. However, it was still difficult navigating the streets of the Chicago the suburbs the route runs through. Eventually I found my way back to the route and went west. My first stop came in Joliet at the Rt. 66 visitors’ center. The thing that must be understood about Route 66 is that it has appeal beyond just American motorists. I met a couple of guys in Joliet who were driving the route on motorcycles, one was from Boston, one was from the U.K. I also saw people at the visitors’ center from France and Italy.

For the many small towns that I passed through and will pass through, their identities are inextricably linked to Route 66. These towns are very proud of their association with the route; whether it’s the Route 66 visitors center in Joliet, or the Illinois Rt. 66 Hall of Fame in Pontiac. Additionally, the locals, especially the older residents of the route are very knowledgeable about the Route. A person could talk to many of them for hours at a time, if one had the time to do so, about almost any subject, from license plates (in some places during WWII they were made of soy products, to save metal for the war) to architecture along the route (such as a police station in Illinois that was shaped like a handgun).

I ended my day in Springfield, IL. I was able to visit Abraham Lincoln’s home in Springfield and his tomb. The house is in an old neighborhood in downtown Springfield that has been very well preserved. The house is very plain, nothing overly special about it, aside from its famous owner. The tomb on the other hand was very impressive. For dinner, I had the chance to visit a Route 66 icon in the Cozy Dog Drive-in. The restarant is owned by the Waldmire Family who are themselves fixtures on the Route. The food was decent, though the fries were very good. However, much of the restaurant is the atmosphere. The place just exudes Route 66.

Later today I’ll be visiting the largest pre-Columbian native site in the United States and attending a Cardinals game in St. Louis. Hopefully there will be another update forthcoming this evening.

It's a Twister, It's a Twister...

Well I arrived in Chicago today to visit my sister and brother-in-law, just in time for a severe thunderstorm complete with tornado warnings. Once we heard the tornado sirens we decided to head for the cellar. Thankfully, my trip has been otherwise uneventful thus far. I left Maryland on Saturday and arrived just outside of Lexington, KY later that evening. For anyone reading this who does not know, Kentucky is my home state. It was nice to be back for the second time this year. The next day I drove on to Louisville where I had the chance to visit a number of places I used to visit frequently back when my grandmother still lived there. Most of what I saw in Louisville was stuff I had seen before. However, once I crossed the Ohio River into Indiana, it was all very different, which is to say very flat. It was basically corn for miles in every direction. Ultimately, beyond the weather at least, there was not much to write home about from today. Tomorrow I will be going to my first game at the White Sox Stadium, and going around Chicago. Then the day after tomorrow I will be starting down Route 66, which is the main objective of the trip. Should be interesting.

Bar Review

As I sit in front of my computer thinking about just how long a summer this is going to be before get to embark on my road trip across the country. It seems like it might be interesting to put a Bar Review word of the day feature on the blog. Even if no one else is interested, this will help me to learn the law for the exam coming up at the end of the summer. None of this should be construed as legal advice (a phrase I find myself using an increasing amount of time). Anyway, this will at least allow me to mark the time until the bar. Word of the day will begin tomorrow after class.

New Attitude, Bar Review and Beyond

Well, now that I'm in bar review, having just returned from my first post law school excursion, it seems like a propitious time for my first post. I just got back from New Attitude in Louisville, KY on Tuesday afternoon. For those who don't know what New Attitude is, it is a Conference geared towards Christian singles and young married couples who are looking to grow in their faith. The topics vary from year to year. This year the topic was, in short, God's Word and how we are to respond to it. The speakers at the conference were: Eric Simmons, Singles Pastor at Covenant Life Church in Gaithersburg, MD; Joshua Harris, author and Senior Pastor of CLC; C.J. Mahaney, author and President of Sovereign Grace Ministries; Mark Dever, Author and Senior Pastor of Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, D.C., John Piper, author and Senior Pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, MN; and Al Mohler, President of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, KY.

For me personally, it was exciting to go to New Attitude in Louisville. I'm from Louisville originally and it was fun to go back to my hometown for the conference.

The topic for the conference was excellent and well needed, if only for myself. I find myself all too often neglecting the scriptures, irrespective of the importance of the Scriptures and indifferent to the cost required for me to have a readable copy of the Bible. The worship was powerful. It was humbling to see Bob Kauflin playing under his son's leadership.

As for the preaching, there was much to take in from the four days. As a friend of mine described it, it was like drinking from a fire hose. My personal favorite from the weekend was John Piper's Monday night message. I'm still processing much off what was said during the weekend. If anyone wants to listen to the messages, go to: http://www.newattitude.org/liveblog/.

Over the coming months I will be in Baltimore County studying for the Bar which is being administered on July 29th and 30th. I will be moving out of the apartment the day after the exam and will be leaving on August 1st on a 5 week odyssey across the country. I can't begin to express how much I'm looking forward to that, especially after the first day of bar review.

Over the course of the next two months I will be learning a firmer reliance on the protection of Divine Providence as I prepare for the test that will determine the course of my life.