The name of the blog derives from the fact that I proudly hale from St. Louis, Missouri, also known as the “Gateway to the West” or simply “the Lou.”
Despite some bad publicity about the City in recent years, St. Louis remains a great place to live, work, and raise a family. It is also an excellent choice to pay a visit; there’s Forest Park and Washington University (the site of the very first Olympics held in the United States), a plethora of top-notch FREE attractions (such as the St. Louis Zoo, Missouri History Museum, Art Museum, Science Center, and Anheuser-Busch tour), the Arch (the tallest manmade monument in the Western hemisphere), the St. Louis Cardinals baseball team (its 11 World Series Championships rank second only to the New York Yankees) and several unique and eclectic venues (like the Loop, the Central West End, the Hill, and Cherokee Street).
But most importantly, St. Louis has many remarkable people. Thanks to the writings of nearby Hannibal resident Mark Twain, locals have long been considered to be decent and humble folk who possess a good deal of common sense and a healthy dose of skepticism, giving rise to the expression that in Missouri “you’ve got to show me.” No, that’s not because we are slow; we just want to see the evidence before we adopt something as a fact.
In that Missouri spirit, it is my hope that this blog will provide some common sense and insight, be informative, and spark you to think from a fresh perspective. But if I can get you to laugh I will have accomplished my primary goal. Laughter makes the world more enjoyable in the best of times and more tolerable in the darkest hours.
An alternative reason for this blog’s moniker is that it shares the name (if not the spelling) of the English word for the restroom or the john- i.e. the Loo. Many of us do our best and most creative thinking there so the name seems appropriate for that reason as well.
I plan to write periodically about a wide variety of topics: my observations about life, my passion for sports, the law, and anything that I find interesting, insightful or just humorous.
Hope you enjoy. Cheers!
Mark
Photo Copyright of Busch Stadium: Gino Santa Maria, 123rf.com