Thursday, September 25, 2008
Announcement
In the coming weeks, I'll be removing all content from Blogger and starting over with a new journal on this site.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Saturday, August 11, 2007
Monday, July 30, 2007
Speechless....Just speechless...
Man arrested after alleged sex romp wearing kilt may not escape scot-free
Associated Press
Published Saturday, July 28, 2007
FARGO - A man was arrested on sex charges after an early morning escapade while wearing a kilt.
Police say Nathan Blair, 24, of Moorhead, was wearing a black kilt when he exposed himself to motorists near a busy street and had sex with a woman in the backyard of a home.
“In 17 years in this job, I've seen a lot of different things. This is a new one,” Fargo Police Lt. Pat Claus said Friday.
Claus said Blair and a 20-year-old woman from Fargo were arrested about 3:30 a.m. Friday after police found them having sex behind a home. The couple first ignored orders by police to “cease and desist,” and then refused to cover up, Claus said.
Both of them had been drinking, Claus said.
“We've caught people engaging in amorous behavior before, but usually, they stop when we ask them to,” Claus said.
Blair was still wearing a kilt and “FOR SALE” T-shirt when he appeared by video Friday morning in East Central District Court. He pleaded not guilty to misdemeanor charges of fornication in a public place and indecent exposure.
Blair's lawyer, Tanya Johnson Martinez, said Friday she was still gathering information on the case.
“We haven't seen any of the police reports yet, so it would be premature for me to comment,” she said.
The woman had not been formally charged.
Police received two complaints within a minute of each other about a man exposing himself near the 1000 block of North University Drive, one of the city's main thoroughfares. One of the complaints involved a sex act, police said.
While investigating the incident, a friend of the couple directed police to the backyard of the home, Claus said.
Associated Press
Published Saturday, July 28, 2007
FARGO - A man was arrested on sex charges after an early morning escapade while wearing a kilt.
Police say Nathan Blair, 24, of Moorhead, was wearing a black kilt when he exposed himself to motorists near a busy street and had sex with a woman in the backyard of a home.
“In 17 years in this job, I've seen a lot of different things. This is a new one,” Fargo Police Lt. Pat Claus said Friday.
Claus said Blair and a 20-year-old woman from Fargo were arrested about 3:30 a.m. Friday after police found them having sex behind a home. The couple first ignored orders by police to “cease and desist,” and then refused to cover up, Claus said.
Both of them had been drinking, Claus said.
“We've caught people engaging in amorous behavior before, but usually, they stop when we ask them to,” Claus said.
Blair was still wearing a kilt and “FOR SALE” T-shirt when he appeared by video Friday morning in East Central District Court. He pleaded not guilty to misdemeanor charges of fornication in a public place and indecent exposure.
Blair's lawyer, Tanya Johnson Martinez, said Friday she was still gathering information on the case.
“We haven't seen any of the police reports yet, so it would be premature for me to comment,” she said.
The woman had not been formally charged.
Police received two complaints within a minute of each other about a man exposing himself near the 1000 block of North University Drive, one of the city's main thoroughfares. One of the complaints involved a sex act, police said.
While investigating the incident, a friend of the couple directed police to the backyard of the home, Claus said.
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
In five months....
...I will be living somewhere else.
The question is, where will I be living? Before I met Trevor, I was considering the Japanese Exchange Teaching Program, or possibly getting my "Literature for Teachers of English" MA at the University of Washington. However, in between, I've gotten closer to my family and friends in North Dakota, and I'm feeling very resistant to thought of leaving. I'm also very resistant to the thought of staying.
I know my mom would love to have me move home for the spring semester. I know it's tough to find a teaching job in January, so I know that might end up being my only option for the time being, no matter where I decide I want to live. If I stay in North Dakota, I'd like to be in Grand Forks or Bismarck. I have little desire to ever live in Fargo. It's a neat place, but I don't want to live there.
I would love to move to Atlanta, but I'm not really sure I'm ready to make the jump to a major metropolitan area right away. There are times when Grand Forks seems just a little too much like a big city to me. For example, on Sunday night, Martina McBride and Little Big Town played a concert at the Alerus Center. Two hours before the show began, traffic was backed up from the Alerus parking lot to Demers. I hate crap like that, even though it only happens once in a great while. Unfortunately, it's happening again tonight with the Nickleback concert. I spent my day working at the Comfort Inn, and I turned away probably 50+ people wanting rooms in town tonight. Of course, these event-related nuisances are also things I wouldn't even notice if I lived in Atlanta or Minneapolis. It's more routine there. You come to know what to avoid the night of a Braves game. Realistically, you'd be living in a suburb, and you'd probably stay in your suburb most of the time. Event traffic probably wouldn't stop me from getting to the nearest Target on a regular basis, which is currently the case when there are events at the Alerus Center.
Basically, what it boils down to is that I can see the pros and cons of any living situation. While this should be helpful, it's not. It means that it doesn't really help me narrow down the job search by location at all. I need to figure out where to start with the whole job search thing this fall, and it's going to be tough enough as it is. I'm student teaching, working another job on top of that, finishing up my thesis, and tying up all the other loose ends before I graduate. When am I going to have time for an intensive job hunt?
I think these frustrations are why European students take "gap years."
The question is, where will I be living? Before I met Trevor, I was considering the Japanese Exchange Teaching Program, or possibly getting my "Literature for Teachers of English" MA at the University of Washington. However, in between, I've gotten closer to my family and friends in North Dakota, and I'm feeling very resistant to thought of leaving. I'm also very resistant to the thought of staying.
I know my mom would love to have me move home for the spring semester. I know it's tough to find a teaching job in January, so I know that might end up being my only option for the time being, no matter where I decide I want to live. If I stay in North Dakota, I'd like to be in Grand Forks or Bismarck. I have little desire to ever live in Fargo. It's a neat place, but I don't want to live there.
I would love to move to Atlanta, but I'm not really sure I'm ready to make the jump to a major metropolitan area right away. There are times when Grand Forks seems just a little too much like a big city to me. For example, on Sunday night, Martina McBride and Little Big Town played a concert at the Alerus Center. Two hours before the show began, traffic was backed up from the Alerus parking lot to Demers. I hate crap like that, even though it only happens once in a great while. Unfortunately, it's happening again tonight with the Nickleback concert. I spent my day working at the Comfort Inn, and I turned away probably 50+ people wanting rooms in town tonight. Of course, these event-related nuisances are also things I wouldn't even notice if I lived in Atlanta or Minneapolis. It's more routine there. You come to know what to avoid the night of a Braves game. Realistically, you'd be living in a suburb, and you'd probably stay in your suburb most of the time. Event traffic probably wouldn't stop me from getting to the nearest Target on a regular basis, which is currently the case when there are events at the Alerus Center.
Basically, what it boils down to is that I can see the pros and cons of any living situation. While this should be helpful, it's not. It means that it doesn't really help me narrow down the job search by location at all. I need to figure out where to start with the whole job search thing this fall, and it's going to be tough enough as it is. I'm student teaching, working another job on top of that, finishing up my thesis, and tying up all the other loose ends before I graduate. When am I going to have time for an intensive job hunt?
I think these frustrations are why European students take "gap years."
Sunday, July 22, 2007
I love/hate Grand Forks
Last summer, my friend Dan and I would talk on AIM a lot about this girl who was playing mind games with him. During every conversation we had about her, he would type "ooooo....I love/hate her so much."
That's exactly how I feel about Grand Forks. I love/hate this place so much. I love it because there's just so much potential. Downtown is charming and wonderful by day, with all the artwork and cute little shops. Dakota Harvest Bakers is the hippest bakery in North Dakota. By night, it's the hot spot. College students in Grand Forks simply can't go out to Joe Black's, Gilly's, O'Really's, or the Crosstown without running into someone they know.
The parks all over town are gorgeous. Nearly every Friday and Saturday in the summer months, you can see weddings happening, or wedding photos being taken, at University Park by the foot bridge. I've spent a lot of time wandering around the parks taking pictures, and I've got some great memories of grilling shrimp and drinking mojitos in the park on reading and review day this spring.
I love that in Grand Forks, the night before reading and review day in May usually means grilling out and drinking a few cold ones in a very laid back way. I love that it's perfectly acceptable to spend a day floating down a river in an inflatable tube. Where I grew up (150 miles away), tubing means being pulled by a boat or pontoon at water-skiiing speeds. It's just not the same as floating down a river tied to 20 of your friends.
What I hate about Grand Forks is the lack of culture. It's gotten better, yes, but it's still not great. It's not like other cities where there's a theatrical performance every night. My boyfriend and I cheered when L'Bistro opened -- finally, there's a classy restaurant in town besides Sanders 1907. Don't even get me started on how bored I've gotten with Applebees, Green Mill, etc. Even the Blue Moose is starting to lose its charm for me.
Don't even get me started on the shopping. Yes, the Gap is great. However, I can't afford their clothes. Old Navy is nice too, but not very good quality. While my college budget can afford $15 shirts, it can't afford $15 shirts that fall apart/fade/wear out quickly. I want H&M in Grand Forks, and I want it now. Maybe that's unreasonable, but I don't care. I just want to be able to buy affordable, quality clothing in the town I live in without having to order 3 different sizes online and pay return shipping on the two items that didn't fit me.
And I've forgotten where I was going with this....
That's exactly how I feel about Grand Forks. I love/hate this place so much. I love it because there's just so much potential. Downtown is charming and wonderful by day, with all the artwork and cute little shops. Dakota Harvest Bakers is the hippest bakery in North Dakota. By night, it's the hot spot. College students in Grand Forks simply can't go out to Joe Black's, Gilly's, O'Really's, or the Crosstown without running into someone they know.
The parks all over town are gorgeous. Nearly every Friday and Saturday in the summer months, you can see weddings happening, or wedding photos being taken, at University Park by the foot bridge. I've spent a lot of time wandering around the parks taking pictures, and I've got some great memories of grilling shrimp and drinking mojitos in the park on reading and review day this spring.
I love that in Grand Forks, the night before reading and review day in May usually means grilling out and drinking a few cold ones in a very laid back way. I love that it's perfectly acceptable to spend a day floating down a river in an inflatable tube. Where I grew up (150 miles away), tubing means being pulled by a boat or pontoon at water-skiiing speeds. It's just not the same as floating down a river tied to 20 of your friends.
What I hate about Grand Forks is the lack of culture. It's gotten better, yes, but it's still not great. It's not like other cities where there's a theatrical performance every night. My boyfriend and I cheered when L'Bistro opened -- finally, there's a classy restaurant in town besides Sanders 1907. Don't even get me started on how bored I've gotten with Applebees, Green Mill, etc. Even the Blue Moose is starting to lose its charm for me.
Don't even get me started on the shopping. Yes, the Gap is great. However, I can't afford their clothes. Old Navy is nice too, but not very good quality. While my college budget can afford $15 shirts, it can't afford $15 shirts that fall apart/fade/wear out quickly. I want H&M in Grand Forks, and I want it now. Maybe that's unreasonable, but I don't care. I just want to be able to buy affordable, quality clothing in the town I live in without having to order 3 different sizes online and pay return shipping on the two items that didn't fit me.
And I've forgotten where I was going with this....
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Hanging up the little red skirt....
It's official: my final day at Tavern United is Saturday. I put in my notice today.
Don't get my wrong. I loved working at the Tavern, and I really enjoyed chatting with the customers. It was super exciting to feel like I was part of something new to Grand Forks. The only problem was, the new and exciting thing wasn't very enjoyable if you were an employee. Employees cannot consume alcohol in the Tavern if they have worked at any point during that day. Considering that my only days off were usually Sunday and Monday, it meant that I was never going to have a chance to actually visit the Tavern and fully enjoy it.
There were also some concerns about my student teaching this fall. What does the Tavern's uniform make me look like to the parents of my future students, or the the future school administrators who would be hiring me down the road? These concerns about the uniform were in addition to the fact that several students at Central High School work in the Tavern, and I knew I had to remove myself from that working environment before I began student teaching.
I've now accepted a position at the Grand Forks Comfort Inn as a front desk clerk. It's much better pay, and I know I'll never be scheduled to work 11-2 p.m. and 6 p.m. to midnight on the same day. My shifts will usually be either 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. (much like a regular school day) or 3 p.m. to 11 p.m. (which isn't horrible, either, because it allows me to sleep in and still be home early enough to hit the bars with friends if I want to). I'll never again lose tip money because the bartender didn't have clamato for a caesar, and I'm very, very happy about that.
I'm going to miss walking around with wads of dollar bills, though...
Don't get my wrong. I loved working at the Tavern, and I really enjoyed chatting with the customers. It was super exciting to feel like I was part of something new to Grand Forks. The only problem was, the new and exciting thing wasn't very enjoyable if you were an employee. Employees cannot consume alcohol in the Tavern if they have worked at any point during that day. Considering that my only days off were usually Sunday and Monday, it meant that I was never going to have a chance to actually visit the Tavern and fully enjoy it.
There were also some concerns about my student teaching this fall. What does the Tavern's uniform make me look like to the parents of my future students, or the the future school administrators who would be hiring me down the road? These concerns about the uniform were in addition to the fact that several students at Central High School work in the Tavern, and I knew I had to remove myself from that working environment before I began student teaching.
I've now accepted a position at the Grand Forks Comfort Inn as a front desk clerk. It's much better pay, and I know I'll never be scheduled to work 11-2 p.m. and 6 p.m. to midnight on the same day. My shifts will usually be either 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. (much like a regular school day) or 3 p.m. to 11 p.m. (which isn't horrible, either, because it allows me to sleep in and still be home early enough to hit the bars with friends if I want to). I'll never again lose tip money because the bartender didn't have clamato for a caesar, and I'm very, very happy about that.
I'm going to miss walking around with wads of dollar bills, though...
Thursday, July 5, 2007
New job!
Got hired today, two apps still out -- but either way, I have a new job! Full details coming soon!
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
I keep thinking I'm going to give Trevor heck for not updating his blog, but then I realized that I haven't updated since three days after his last update. Opps.
I finished my senior year of college with a 3.4 GPA. Since student teaching is a pass/fail 16 credit course, that means I should be graduating in December cum laude. Pretty exciting stuff, I guess. I'm not sure if it's good enough to get into graduate school, but I'm not sure I want to go to graduate school, either. I'm really indecisive about that right now. On one hand, I'd be really happy to stay at UND and work on a Masters in Educational Leadership. On the other hand....I'm freaking tired of living in Grand Forks, being a poor student, and taking my work home with me each night in the form of homework. I'm ready to teach and have prep periods for doing my "homework." I rocked at using study hall time in high school, and I'm pretty sure I'm going to rock at using my prep time as a student teacher.
I've been working a lot this summer. I'm the full time day server at Tavern United, but my schedule has been kind of wonky lately. With so many coworkers taking time off for the summer, I've found myself working a lot of weird schedules to accommodate for their weird schedules. It's a really fun job. My customers run the gamut from cute young married guys playing wingman for their unmarried friends to the adorable little old ladies who think the plaid skirts are just darling. I've never had a customer I've hated, and I've only had a few customers who seem to have hated me. Of course, two of the three were women who I believe were annoyed by the short skirt I was wearing while serving their husband/boyfriend/son.
I was out of town in the middle of June for a week to celebrate my grandparents' 50th wedding anniversary in Bismarck. We took an extended family weekend trip down there for a nice dinner at Jack's Steakhouse, and then we all visited the zoo together the next day. While the trip wasn't horrible, it could have been better. One of my cousins was acting like someone half her age, and it was muggy and hot the day we went to the zoo. Most of the animals were hiding or sleeping while we were there, so it wasn't really a fun trip to the zoo. A pair of wolves really got into it while we were there, but we couldn't see it. We did see a cougar that tried to attack a family through the fence, though.
That's pretty much it for now. I promise I'll check in again before another two months passes.
I finished my senior year of college with a 3.4 GPA. Since student teaching is a pass/fail 16 credit course, that means I should be graduating in December cum laude. Pretty exciting stuff, I guess. I'm not sure if it's good enough to get into graduate school, but I'm not sure I want to go to graduate school, either. I'm really indecisive about that right now. On one hand, I'd be really happy to stay at UND and work on a Masters in Educational Leadership. On the other hand....I'm freaking tired of living in Grand Forks, being a poor student, and taking my work home with me each night in the form of homework. I'm ready to teach and have prep periods for doing my "homework." I rocked at using study hall time in high school, and I'm pretty sure I'm going to rock at using my prep time as a student teacher.
I've been working a lot this summer. I'm the full time day server at Tavern United, but my schedule has been kind of wonky lately. With so many coworkers taking time off for the summer, I've found myself working a lot of weird schedules to accommodate for their weird schedules. It's a really fun job. My customers run the gamut from cute young married guys playing wingman for their unmarried friends to the adorable little old ladies who think the plaid skirts are just darling. I've never had a customer I've hated, and I've only had a few customers who seem to have hated me. Of course, two of the three were women who I believe were annoyed by the short skirt I was wearing while serving their husband/boyfriend/son.
I was out of town in the middle of June for a week to celebrate my grandparents' 50th wedding anniversary in Bismarck. We took an extended family weekend trip down there for a nice dinner at Jack's Steakhouse, and then we all visited the zoo together the next day. While the trip wasn't horrible, it could have been better. One of my cousins was acting like someone half her age, and it was muggy and hot the day we went to the zoo. Most of the animals were hiding or sleeping while we were there, so it wasn't really a fun trip to the zoo. A pair of wolves really got into it while we were there, but we couldn't see it. We did see a cougar that tried to attack a family through the fence, though.
That's pretty much it for now. I promise I'll check in again before another two months passes.
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
The Job Hunt....
I've been searching for a summer job over the past few weeks. So far, not much has turned up. Radio Shack turned me down; Famous Footwear hasn't called back, and neither has Starbucks. The one job offer I did get turned out to be offering so few hours for such bad pay that I had to turn it down.
Today I finally got an interview — and a second interview — with a new sports bar opening in Grand Forks. I never actually thought I'd want to work in that sort of environment, but lately, the thought of working with food has started to be more appealing. So, when the interviewer said she'd like to offer me a job, I decided to accept the second interview.
Then I saw the uniform: plaid mini-skort, black baby doll tee, and knee high hooker boots. It's sort of a naughty English school girl look.
It can be degrading, I know, but I'm truly torn at this point. The job seems fun. The uniform isn't that bad. It's going to be interesting from a societal experimentation aspect as well. It's not like I'll be a Hooters girl. Plus, I think everyone needs to work in food service to really understand what they're getting when they eat out, and my time as an undergraduate working at a non-professional job is running out. It's this summer or never, I suppose.
Plus, working in a bar almost definitely ensures free drinks, right? ;)
Today I finally got an interview — and a second interview — with a new sports bar opening in Grand Forks. I never actually thought I'd want to work in that sort of environment, but lately, the thought of working with food has started to be more appealing. So, when the interviewer said she'd like to offer me a job, I decided to accept the second interview.
Then I saw the uniform: plaid mini-skort, black baby doll tee, and knee high hooker boots. It's sort of a naughty English school girl look.
It can be degrading, I know, but I'm truly torn at this point. The job seems fun. The uniform isn't that bad. It's going to be interesting from a societal experimentation aspect as well. It's not like I'll be a Hooters girl. Plus, I think everyone needs to work in food service to really understand what they're getting when they eat out, and my time as an undergraduate working at a non-professional job is running out. It's this summer or never, I suppose.
Plus, working in a bar almost definitely ensures free drinks, right? ;)
Monday, April 9, 2007
St. Louis Trip -- The Quick Version
I'm hoping to have a chance to write a longer post later that goes more in-depth into the St. Louis trip, but for now, here's a bullet-point version:
Wednesday, April 4
Wednesday, April 4
- Leave Grand Forks
- Stop at creepy truck stop by Nebraska City
- Stay in a hotel just outside of Kansas City
- Drive from KC to St. Louis
- Run all over Hyatt Regency trying to figure out where the hell we get our media passes
- Rush to Scott Trade Center to get our press passes, and catch the first game
- Sioux game
- Lam-o visit to Maggie O'Brien's bar
- Long walk to the Gateway Arch
- Long lines at Gateway Arch
- Super scary trip to the top of the Arch
- Gatorade fountains
- Hobey Baker announcement
- Barhopping for five hours
- Surprise visit from Trevor!
- Shopping at St. Louis Union Station
- Driving home
- Stop at Sioux Falls, SD's amazing shopping mall
- Arriving home around 2 a.m.
Friday, March 30, 2007
I'm going to St. Louis!
Being a student newspaper editor has its perks: all-expenses paid conferences in Minneapolis, free tickets for reviewing the Black Eyed Peas concert, and a trip to the Frozen Four in St. Louis. I'll be leaving next Wednesday afternoon for St. Louis. I'm excited for the 900 mile drive. It's going the the furthest I've been from North Dakota, with the exception of one terribly boring trip to West Virginia that didn't really feel like it actually happened.
The plan is to stop for the night in Omaha, Nebraska on Wednesday, drive the rest of the way on Thursday, and probably go straight to the first game of the day.
Wednesday is also the day Trevor will begin his trek to Atlanta, stopping first in the Twin Cities to drop some things off and visit his parents for a day or two before driving down to Atlanta. He does get a few days off two weeks after he begins training, so with luck, he's going to be able to come visit for a couple days.
In other news, I got my first piece of hatemail today. :)
The plan is to stop for the night in Omaha, Nebraska on Wednesday, drive the rest of the way on Thursday, and probably go straight to the first game of the day.
Wednesday is also the day Trevor will begin his trek to Atlanta, stopping first in the Twin Cities to drop some things off and visit his parents for a day or two before driving down to Atlanta. He does get a few days off two weeks after he begins training, so with luck, he's going to be able to come visit for a couple days.
In other news, I got my first piece of hatemail today. :)
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
Another reason not to teach...
I hate authority. I like having sort of a nice equilibrium where my duties are equally assigned by someone else and generated by myself. I don't want to be anyone's boss. I want to just do my job without having to tell other people how to do theirs, but that's exactly what teachers have to do. Teaching will essentially make me The (Wo)Man.
But it's too late to back out of student teaching. Yikes.
But it's too late to back out of student teaching. Yikes.
Thursday, March 22, 2007
At the crossroads of communication and education ...
I have just seven issues left in my tenure as the Dakota Student Opinion Editor. When I first came to UND, I had no idea I'd ever be in this position. Somehow, the Dakota Student staff seemed like this cool, elite crowd that I couldn't touch. I thought there was probably some measure of talent and experience required to be part of the newspaper staff. I didn't dare walk in the office, let alone return with an application, until the middle of my sophomore year. I didn't get a call back.
The following summer, I interned at The Pierce Co. Tribune back home. I did all sorts of work, and I sort of figured things out as I went along. Having been an avid reader since childhood, I instinctually knew how a news story should sound. I found that I enjoyed writing the stories as much as I did doing the interviews. I was hooked.
I applied at The Dakota Student as soon as the first issue came out that fall with an inhouse ad calling for writers. I was pretty much hired on the spot. I loved the stories that I did, and I started to think about being an editor. In the spring, I took the chance and became the Opinion Section editor.
It's amazing how much more you know about what happens on campus when you're part of the newspaper staff. Little tidbits come our way that aren't going to become stories, but they're still interesting. We have had a broad range of people coming through our office, from those who worked on the newspaper in their college careers to The Biggest Loser's Adrienne Kortesmaki.
Being an editor also meant that I had to write the occaisional column. Columns don't run without mug shots, so my picture has appeared in the newspaper a number of times. I've been recognized from my mug shot before, and it's a strange experience for me. There's always this little voice in my head that tells me that the girl in black and white isn't really me, and no one will connect that photo to the real me. I just assume that no one reads my columns or notices my picture. It's just a shock to be recognized.
And yet this fall, I'm going to miss that recognition. As a student teacher in the high school setting, these students won't know anything about me. They won't know that I once wrote a column jokingly asking Student Government to allocate $12,000 for Kevin Federline to come to UND for an appearance. They won't know about the long hours I put in producing the newspaper that many of them will one day be reading ( and that some may even work at). I'm going to go from an editor/student among students to just another crabby old teacher among high school students. It's going to be a shock to my system, I'm sure.
I know this probably sounds a little conceited, but it's not meant to be that way. It's more like The DS has become a way of life for me. I like the fact that something so important to me is visible to the UND community. From here on out, the things I hold near and dear to me won't be so visible to my surrounding community. I'll be passionate about teaching, yes, but few people recognize that teachers have a passion for their work. More often, parents notice the grades their children receive, and that's it. My students won't care about my passion for teaching, either. Most of them will probably wish they could avoid my class altogether.
I'm at this crossroads where I'm trying to decide what I really want to do for a living. Do I want to teach? Do I want to work in the news business? I guess I'll figure it all out in December.
The following summer, I interned at The Pierce Co. Tribune back home. I did all sorts of work, and I sort of figured things out as I went along. Having been an avid reader since childhood, I instinctually knew how a news story should sound. I found that I enjoyed writing the stories as much as I did doing the interviews. I was hooked.
I applied at The Dakota Student as soon as the first issue came out that fall with an inhouse ad calling for writers. I was pretty much hired on the spot. I loved the stories that I did, and I started to think about being an editor. In the spring, I took the chance and became the Opinion Section editor.
It's amazing how much more you know about what happens on campus when you're part of the newspaper staff. Little tidbits come our way that aren't going to become stories, but they're still interesting. We have had a broad range of people coming through our office, from those who worked on the newspaper in their college careers to The Biggest Loser's Adrienne Kortesmaki.
Being an editor also meant that I had to write the occaisional column. Columns don't run without mug shots, so my picture has appeared in the newspaper a number of times. I've been recognized from my mug shot before, and it's a strange experience for me. There's always this little voice in my head that tells me that the girl in black and white isn't really me, and no one will connect that photo to the real me. I just assume that no one reads my columns or notices my picture. It's just a shock to be recognized.
And yet this fall, I'm going to miss that recognition. As a student teacher in the high school setting, these students won't know anything about me. They won't know that I once wrote a column jokingly asking Student Government to allocate $12,000 for Kevin Federline to come to UND for an appearance. They won't know about the long hours I put in producing the newspaper that many of them will one day be reading ( and that some may even work at). I'm going to go from an editor/student among students to just another crabby old teacher among high school students. It's going to be a shock to my system, I'm sure.
I know this probably sounds a little conceited, but it's not meant to be that way. It's more like The DS has become a way of life for me. I like the fact that something so important to me is visible to the UND community. From here on out, the things I hold near and dear to me won't be so visible to my surrounding community. I'll be passionate about teaching, yes, but few people recognize that teachers have a passion for their work. More often, parents notice the grades their children receive, and that's it. My students won't care about my passion for teaching, either. Most of them will probably wish they could avoid my class altogether.
I'm at this crossroads where I'm trying to decide what I really want to do for a living. Do I want to teach? Do I want to work in the news business? I guess I'll figure it all out in December.
Thursday, March 15, 2007
Summer Vacation Plans + Netflix
Well, it looks like my summer getaway plans are set in stone: I'm going to Atlanta.
Trevor got hired by Atlantic Southeast Airlines today, so he'll be moving to Atlanta the first week in April. While I knew he would be leaving in April if he got the job, I wasn't expecting it to be quite so early in April. He has to be in Atlanta on Easter Sunday to start training the following day. Yucky, huh?
I'm glad he's moving to Atlanta, as opposed to any other major city (I'm not glad he's moving, just that he's moving to ATL). My mom's cousin Jill and her family moved there last spring. Last time I talked to Jill, she was absolutely loving everything about the area. She will probably be thrilled when she hears I'm coming to visit this summer, so I'm pretty excited to talk to her again!
Trevor should be landing in Minneapolis in about an hour, and then he's taking the train from there to Fargo so he can pick up his car and drive back to Grand Forks. He should be getting in around 5 or 6 a.m. tomorrow morning. It seems like this standby crap really sucks -- and it's how I'll probably be flying to visit him this summer. :(
I never did buy a DVD player yesterday, so I didn't rent any movies. However, I did sign up for Netflix last night ( 1 DVD at a time, unlimited monthly rentals, for $8.99/month). My first movie, Stranger Than Fiction, should be arriving tomorrow. I figure that as long as I watch three or more movies a month, I'm doing better than going to Blockbuster. Plus, as long as I mail movies on Monday, I should almost always have a new movie by Friday night, which is the universally recognized "crappy TV and no homework night." I think closest distribution center is actually in Fargo, so turnaround time on the DVDs should be about two days.
You're probably wondering why a 20-something girl doesn't have a DVD player, right? Well, let's just say I had one...and it mysteriously broke while I was living in the old apartment with the girl who had no respect other people's things. The DVD player's mysterious breaking was discovered shortly after the shelves it had been on disappeared into the awful roommate's bedroom. My best guess is that she didn't realize the DVD player was on the shelves, and she dropped it - hard - when she was moving the shelves. Rather than say anything, she rather unconvincingly played dumb when I mentioned the DVD player didn't work any longer.
Yeah...That's why she's referred to as Awful Roommate. She's just an awful person in general.
Trevor got hired by Atlantic Southeast Airlines today, so he'll be moving to Atlanta the first week in April. While I knew he would be leaving in April if he got the job, I wasn't expecting it to be quite so early in April. He has to be in Atlanta on Easter Sunday to start training the following day. Yucky, huh?
I'm glad he's moving to Atlanta, as opposed to any other major city (I'm not glad he's moving, just that he's moving to ATL). My mom's cousin Jill and her family moved there last spring. Last time I talked to Jill, she was absolutely loving everything about the area. She will probably be thrilled when she hears I'm coming to visit this summer, so I'm pretty excited to talk to her again!
Trevor should be landing in Minneapolis in about an hour, and then he's taking the train from there to Fargo so he can pick up his car and drive back to Grand Forks. He should be getting in around 5 or 6 a.m. tomorrow morning. It seems like this standby crap really sucks -- and it's how I'll probably be flying to visit him this summer. :(
I never did buy a DVD player yesterday, so I didn't rent any movies. However, I did sign up for Netflix last night ( 1 DVD at a time, unlimited monthly rentals, for $8.99/month). My first movie, Stranger Than Fiction, should be arriving tomorrow. I figure that as long as I watch three or more movies a month, I'm doing better than going to Blockbuster. Plus, as long as I mail movies on Monday, I should almost always have a new movie by Friday night, which is the universally recognized "crappy TV and no homework night." I think closest distribution center is actually in Fargo, so turnaround time on the DVDs should be about two days.
You're probably wondering why a 20-something girl doesn't have a DVD player, right? Well, let's just say I had one...and it mysteriously broke while I was living in the old apartment with the girl who had no respect other people's things. The DVD player's mysterious breaking was discovered shortly after the shelves it had been on disappeared into the awful roommate's bedroom. My best guess is that she didn't realize the DVD player was on the shelves, and she dropped it - hard - when she was moving the shelves. Rather than say anything, she rather unconvincingly played dumb when I mentioned the DVD player didn't work any longer.
Yeah...That's why she's referred to as Awful Roommate. She's just an awful person in general.
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