bayouana.

Day 2: 'Oh I get it,' Dawn said. 'Louisiana is one of those places like Alabama. It's right in between where you need to go and takes forever to get through. Little Beka says she wishes an earth quake would absorb Louisiana. Everything would be simpler that way. I mean, it's not even pretty.' That seems to be the prevailing sentiment among the people I've talked to about Louisiana. What is it with that state and Alabama? But despite Dawn's initial distaste of the place, we discovered some interesting and beautiful things in Louisiana. It was flat and dry and all the corn was dead. We drove past a field of golden something and far across the field we saw a train chugging the same direction as we and decided that the blue of the sky, the rust and black of the train against the gold somethings was one very pretty sight in the long state.

The disadvantage of being a photographer who is driving is that you have this *almost irresistible urge to whip out your camera and get just a few - because this place is really cool and the way the light is bouncing off that thing and we're going seventy miles an hour and there's only a little window of time to get it - but.

You're driving. So you can't. Handily, though, I happen to have a few extra pairs of hands and one of them was in the Co-pilot seat. All the pictures you see of the city and bridge were taken by Moriah Dawn, and if I do say so myself, she did a fine job.

With all of Louisiana's trains, fields, cities with murals on the walls of buildings and mentions of Bayous by far the most memorable sight in that state was at a McDonald's. We had stopped and were filing back towards that blessed sign with the letters 'WOMEN' in bold when, as I passed a line of booths, I saw two pairs of feet hanging off the side of the seats, longways. Slowing down, I passed that booth deliberately. Inside, I found a couple who forever changed my views of a good time at McDonald's. Pillow and book in hand, the woman stretched out comfortably while the man did the same with his nook. 'This' I thought to myself, 'Is how every person should enjoy a date to McDonald's.'

When we finally got to the Mach house, Uncle Dave waved from the deck and yelled to us that he had the remnant of the water from Texas in his pool. And the rest the day was wrapped fantastically day with swimming, running [I find I can only run half of what I do in Ga as it's 100+degrees here, but Jacob told stories to me about his crazy football coach, so we managed to make it further than expected]. We had hand churned homemade ice cream and watched 'Signs', during which I clung to poor Joseph who bore it like a saint, but I suspect came out with a few bruises. What I couldn't understand about that movie is why two grown men with little kids who they were supposed to be protecting did nothing in self defense! I mean, don't stand there waiting for the things to beat down your door - go get a kitchen knife or something because the ONLY thing they had in their hands were the kids, and I don't think you're supposed to use a kid as a weapon of self defense. I was glad when that movie was over, and I never plan to see it again.