Leaving Barstow

In a perfect environment, an object at rest will remain at rest forever, waiting to be acted upon by an outside force. This is a property of inertia. Andrew, a bright high school senior, lives in Barstow, California-a place known for little besides being on the way to Los Angeles. Though he does not have much else to do-few friends, no girlfriends, and a dead-end afterschool job-Andrew did not bother to send in his application for college. He's been too busy taking care of himself and his imprudent, widowed mother Sandra. Recently, Sandra's been missing her shifts as a waitress at a Chinese restaurant to shack up with her new boy toy, a 22-year-old aspiring country singer named Cody. When all seems hopeless-Andrew has even resorted to calling a late night talk radio show for guidance-he meets Jenny, a new waitress at the Chinese restaurant. Ultimately, Andrew must decide if he will start to take action for himself or continue to wait for something to happen. – E.J.B.