I really love St. Louis. I love being a St. Louisan despite the fact that I have never actually lived in the city.
It took a while for me to get to this point. I grew up in an eastern suburb and had the same affliction of many youngsters in the area. In medical terms, the condition is called theres-nothing-to-do-here-itis.
One of our student writers for Old Newsboys Day touched on that complaint in a column we used in the special edition. Alyssa Knowling of Lafayette High School wrote that she hears people say, "There is nothing to do here. I can't wait to get out of St. Louis."
"I still feel dumbfounded every single time I hear it," she wrote. "Why? Because I have always lived in this city, because I love this city and mostly because I know I will never have the time to experience the surplus of daily happenings in St. Louis."
You can read her full column "St. Louis abounds with adventure" here.
Other people who love St. Louis also came to my attention recently.
Amanda E. Doyle (with Kerri Bonasch) recently released the book "Finally, A Locally Produced Guidebook to St. Louis, By and For St. Louisans," which was published by Reedy Press. The publishing company has released several books of local interest, including "Hoosiers and Scrubby Dutch: St. Louis's South Side" by the Journals' own Jim Merkel.
Doyle has compiled a wealth of information on landmarks, dining, shopping, entertainment and history for the entire area, including the city, St. Louis County, St. Charles County, Illinois and beyond. The book has everything from iconic venues like the Fox Theatre to directional landmarks like the big Amoco sign off Highway 40 at Clayton Road. When I was in college, my friends and I would look for the Amoco sign to know to exit the highway on our way to see "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" at the Tivoli Theatre in The Loop.
In her preface for the book, Doyle writes: "This is a love letter to St. Louis, one I've been working on now for more than a decade."
Another advocate for our area, D'Anne Gastorf Weber, has created a line of St. Louis-inspired images for sale at Bed Bath & Beyond Stores. One piece of her work, a collage of several images from the city and county set on a bulletin board, is titled "I Love St. Louis." She promotes it as "a love letter" to her favorite city.
It seems more and more people are proclaiming their love for St. Louis. So say it once and say it loud: "I'm from St. Louis and I'm proud."
The topic of this week's trivia is the St. Louis region.
1. Who is interred in a mausoleum at the Missouri Botanical Garden?
2. What colorful nickname is given to the Holy Spirit Adoration Sisters at Mount Grace Convent?
3. In which local city is the Brooks Catsup bottle water tower located?
4. What three historical figures are depicted in a 15-foot tall statue in St. Charles' Frontier Park?
5. On what area street is the St. Louis Walk of Fame located?
6. In what year was Soulard Market founded?
7. What area bridge was used in filming the bridge scene at the end of "Escape from New York"?
8. How tall is the Gateway Arch?
9. What area attraction uses the spiral-horned head of a male lesser kudu as its symbol?
10. What former city is the current location of Route 66 State Park?
ANSWERS: 1. Henry Shaw. 2. The Pink Sisters. 3. Collinsville. 4. William Clark, Meriwether Lewis and Lewis' dog, Seaman. 5. Delmar Boulevard in The Loop. 6. 1779. 7. The Old Chain of Rocks Bridge. It's now used for Eagle Days and other outdoor activities. 8. 630 feet. 9. The Saint Louis Zoo. 10. Times Beach.
Shawn Clubb is managing editor of the Suburban Journals for St. Louis and St. Charles counties. You can contact him at sclubb@yourjournal.com.
