Is this thing on?

In a little more than 24 hours, I will check my black Samsonite at the ticket counter, navigate the airport security march and park my rear end at the gate where the airplane is headed for Washington, D.C.

Honestly, I'm getting kind of excited just typing about it. You see this isn't just another opportunity to earn frequent flier miles and pay $5 for a bag of pretzels. This is going to be different. Much different.

Cathy Lucas, the College's communications ace, approached me six weeks ago about taking on this project. The goal was to have me spend a few days walking, walking, walking and documenting, documenting, documenting the 17th edition of a two-week summer session in the nation's capital with Political Science Professor Norm Provizer and a handful of adventurous college students.

Sounded like fun to me.

I'll be staying in the same dorms. I'll be eating the same food. I'll be wearing the soles off my sneakers just the same. I'll be seeing, hearing and experiencing the same grand history. And, I'll be loving every minute of it.

You might be wondering who "I" is? I'm Chris Lawson and I spend my days (and occasional sleepless nights) working with a talented and creative team in the Office of College Communications. I am a 2002 graduate of the College. Photojournalism and Technical Communications is what it says on my transcripts. After graduation, I spent a few years telling stories with pictures as a community journalist for a group of weekly newspapers. I am definitely thankful for the many experiences I was blessed enough to witness as a full-time photojournalist. I left the newspaper world last May. And, somehow, all these years later, I find myself back at Metro State. Still telling stories. Still really blessed. Life's great like that.

I look forward to helping tell the story of D.C. Experience 2008. Thanks for being the audience--one of the most important aspects of any story.