state fish: bluegill
I've never really liked Illinois. I don't have any problems with the people or anything, it just seems like every time I travel through the Land of Lincoln I have a bad experience in some measure. Construction is always terrible through Chicago, traffic in Chicago is even worse than the construction, on/off ramps seem to have been designed by M. C. Escher, the drivers are erratic, gas stations along I-39 take pleasure in not posting their prices within viewing distance of the highway... I could go on, but I will spare you.
(The whole tollway issue is a sore spot and I don't desire to tackle that matter at this time. Simply trust that I am understating my opinion when I say that I am displeased.)
Maybe Illinois doesn't like me... Anyway...
On my last trip through the "Prairie State" I discovered some things to do as I traveled the road:
1. Listen to approximately 5 Mark Driscoll sermons.
2. Catch up on some calling.
3. Think of as many clever synonymous adjectives as possible for describing Normal, Ill.
(average, ordinary, typical, standard, usual, plain... to name a few)
4. Wonder what "Illinois" means.
(Origin of state name: Algonquin Indian for "tribe of superior men." Interesting.)
5. Eat a bag of Pizzeria flavor COMBOS snacks, drink two cans of RC Cola, polish off a handful of grandma's cookies, chomp down a bag of Andy Capp's Cheddar Fries, graze on some Arby's curly fries, drink a couple travel mugs of coffee, etc... There was more, but I think you get the picture.
(For the record, I did not eat all of that food on one leg of my journey across the flatlands, but rather on the whole round trip which equaled around eleven hours.)
6. Sing along with a variety of CDs switching between lead and backing vocalist at my own discretion.
7. Ponder my future.
8. Admire the bleak brown and grey landscape as it stretches on for seemingly endless miles amidst the gloom of a routinely (another synonym for normal) overcast day as the only signs of life are the terrible drivers who have apparently lost all sense for the safety of their common (synonym) man as he just tries to get home safely for crying out loud! Oh... uhhh... yeah, sorry.
9. Marvel at the number of exits that display a sign stating that "NO SERVICES" are available in the town.
(No services? No gas stations? No rest stops? No restaurants? Not even McDonald's? I speak from experience when I say that this is not a pleasant sign to see after drinking a couple cups of coffee and some RC cola my friends. No, not pleasant at all.)
10. All this stated, I tell you that the best thing I did along the Eisenhower Interstate Highway System was to pray.
I am ashamed to say this, but I admit that it has been quite a while since I've prayed for such a sustained period of time. I don't exactly know how long I prayed, but that's not the point. The matter at hand is that as I was getting depressed about not having a traveling partner, I was reminded of God's presence with me. I shared a ride with my Savior this weekend and it was good.
I'm still not too sweet on Illinois. We're trying to work through our differences.
(The whole tollway issue is a sore spot and I don't desire to tackle that matter at this time. Simply trust that I am understating my opinion when I say that I am displeased.)
Maybe Illinois doesn't like me... Anyway...
On my last trip through the "Prairie State" I discovered some things to do as I traveled the road:
1. Listen to approximately 5 Mark Driscoll sermons.
2. Catch up on some calling.
3. Think of as many clever synonymous adjectives as possible for describing Normal, Ill.
(average, ordinary, typical, standard, usual, plain... to name a few)
4. Wonder what "Illinois" means.
(Origin of state name: Algonquin Indian for "tribe of superior men." Interesting.)
5. Eat a bag of Pizzeria flavor COMBOS snacks, drink two cans of RC Cola, polish off a handful of grandma's cookies, chomp down a bag of Andy Capp's Cheddar Fries, graze on some Arby's curly fries, drink a couple travel mugs of coffee, etc... There was more, but I think you get the picture.
(For the record, I did not eat all of that food on one leg of my journey across the flatlands, but rather on the whole round trip which equaled around eleven hours.)
6. Sing along with a variety of CDs switching between lead and backing vocalist at my own discretion.
7. Ponder my future.
8. Admire the bleak brown and grey landscape as it stretches on for seemingly endless miles amidst the gloom of a routinely (another synonym for normal) overcast day as the only signs of life are the terrible drivers who have apparently lost all sense for the safety of their common (synonym) man as he just tries to get home safely for crying out loud! Oh... uhhh... yeah, sorry.
9. Marvel at the number of exits that display a sign stating that "NO SERVICES" are available in the town.
(No services? No gas stations? No rest stops? No restaurants? Not even McDonald's? I speak from experience when I say that this is not a pleasant sign to see after drinking a couple cups of coffee and some RC cola my friends. No, not pleasant at all.)
10. All this stated, I tell you that the best thing I did along the Eisenhower Interstate Highway System was to pray.
I am ashamed to say this, but I admit that it has been quite a while since I've prayed for such a sustained period of time. I don't exactly know how long I prayed, but that's not the point. The matter at hand is that as I was getting depressed about not having a traveling partner, I was reminded of God's presence with me. I shared a ride with my Savior this weekend and it was good.
I'm still not too sweet on Illinois. We're trying to work through our differences.
posted by Gregg @ 10:01 PM
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