Bloomington | Alex Farris Photo Blog

It's been five months since a missing IU student spawned national coverage, community action and my most difficult assignment. Since that time, I've ended my time with the IDS, I moved back to Indianapolis, I became a substitute teacher, and I returned to my old job as an orthopedic research assistant at St. Francis Hospital in Mooresville. I come back to visit Bloomington sometimes, though, largely because my awesome girlfriend lives there. A visit with her brought me back to the story of Lauren Spierer.

Mary Ann Ryan, Christina Goveia, Lisa Sipes and Donna M. Gigli-Quick put posters inside sleeves to protect them from the weather during P.U.M.P. for Lauren Spierer on Saturday outside Smallwood Plaza in Bloomington, Ind. The event organizers cleared the poster push with Lauren's parents, Robert and Charlene, but the group said it was an independent effort.

With a heavy heart, I gave my house keys to my landlord at 4:15 p.m. yesterday. After two weeks of packing and cleaning (which explains the lack of posts recently), I'm ready to leave.

Not really. I've learned so much about photography and life in Bloomington, and I've had so much fun doing it, so it's a little hard to leave. I move on, though, in the hope that even better things will come. After finishing my stint as IDS web editor managing the Facebook page and Twitter account in less than two weeks, and after sending resumes to newspapers across the state, I will be ready for... well, for whatever comes and whatever I decide to shoot for.

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Before going to a friend's place to celebrate the birth of our nation (not The Birth of a Nation, because that's nothing to celebrate), I stopped by the Monroe County Fairgrounds. Amvets Post 2000 was host to a Fourth of July event, complete with live music, fireworks and the parents of Lauren Spierer. I didn't stay long enough for the fireworks; instead, my main focus was taking photos of Charlene and Robert, who were handing out fliers with their daughter's information to people entering the fairgrounds. In the meantime, I snapped some shots of Larry Morley and Friends and stayed for the 21-gun salute.

An updated Lauren Spierer post is far past due. That will come soon, hopefully within the week.

Larry Morley of Larry Morley and Friends sings a Marshall Tucker song during Fourth of July festivities at the Monroe County Fairgrounds. Amvets Post 2000 organized the event, which included free music and fireworks.