Oh to be in High School again

Oh to be in High School again. I'm not saying that I wish I could go back in time and be in High School but taking part in Career Day in Cooper High definitely brought back some memories. (pic to right-Senior Year prom with some of my closest High School friends) : )

First, I will say that I was impressed with many of the students and the unique questions that they had. Some showed genuine interest in the news business : ) and then others were just students that wanted their papers signed for a class assignment. It happens. What was fun was that I got to be on the other side of the questioning. Instead of me conducting the interviews...the students interviewed me.

From talking to students it sounds like many of them know exactly what they want to do once they graduate and then it was neat seeing some students at different booths (including KRBC's) decide that the job that was just explained to them might be something that they're didn't know before, but now are interested in.

There were also a couple of good laughs at Career Day...One student asked if my teeth were real and if I wore my jacket to match the color of my eyes. Clearly had nothing to do with my booth and a job in Broadcast news, but I told the students that they could ask away.

It's amazing how fast life passes us by...and being on the outside looking in (for Career Day) helped me realize how you really should not rush life...but merely go with the flow and enjoy the ride. I probably wished my way out of High School a little bit, wanting so badly to go and experience college. However, I wouldn't change the past even if I could. (below-HS graduation)

Anyways, I think Career Days are really beneficial and eye-opening for students. I am glad that I could take part in it too.

Interviewee Saves Reporter from Bee Sting

Most everyone I interview is a nice and caring person...but I thought I'd just share an experience with a recent interviewee. We're doing a serious story about suicides. I ask my question and my interviewee, Kirk Hancock, who is the Executive Director of the Mental Health Association in Abilene. He is responding to my question when all of a sudden I have a bee on my neck. I didn't even know and could have possibly been stung...had he not warned me. So while I thanked Mr. Hancock then, I want to thank him again now. This is an example of how you just never know what can happen during an interview.

A Wild Story to Tell

Big Country Cougars...Talk about a wild story to tell. When I first set out to find "Cougars," I didn't really know where the story was headed. But, sure enough I ran into two women, who wanted to talk about their lovelives, and just how much younger the men they were involved with are. Both women say that "age is nothing but a number." I'm sure you've got opinions of your own and I encourage you to leave your thoughts. Do you agree that "age is nothing but a number?"

We're not Bitter But...

We're not bitter but...Stephanie and I think we should have won a prize for a pretty creative-believable costume!

Before this picture misleads you...it's from last Halloween. Stephanie Harris and I dressed up like Wayne and Garth from Wayne's World! (to work). Stephanie was still on mornings at that time, so she was already done for the day. Me, on the other hand, I was on the clock, and my News Director looked at me, laughed...and said something along the lines as, "you better hope there's no breaking news, Brittany". Luckily, I already had most of my work done before I dressed in the grunge look.

I know Megan Dobbs recently blogged about the pressures to wear "sexy" costumes, but I think you'll probably agree that "sexy" wasn't what we were going for. It was a lot of fun dressy up as the guys from Wayne's World and unexpected for most people who see Stephanie and I dressed business-like most of the time.

Unfortunately, with Halloween falling on a Saturday this year...we didn't get to dress up to work! : ( I am excited to be home tomorrow for all of the trick-or-treaters though! Have a safe, but FUN Halloween, everybody! : )

Oops! Guilty as Charged!

Guilty...guilty as charged. So tonight on the 5 o'clock news...I made a mistake. We were talking about the annual Reading Rodeo event that goes on at Bowie Elementary School (which is an awesome event...getting to read to the kiddos) and of course, I had to go and mess it up on tv and say, Rod-eo (as in Rodeo Drive in California). I must have had shopping on the brain or something. No really...I don't know why the slip-up.

Of course, here in Texas it would be rodeo. I guess I'm becoming a Texan slower than I hoped...and I'm clearly not quite there yet. I'll have it be known that I've never actually been to a rodeo so that is on my to-do list. I've only seen them on television or heard about them through friends. I'm not trying to make excuses but maybe after I go to a rodeo, I won't mess up saying the word again. ; ) So to my fellow Texans, please forgive me for my mess-up!

Here's a picture from today's Reading Rodeo (I swear I said it right in my head this time).

This was a group of kindergartners that I read to. Such a great class. We had lots of fun reading Halloween stories and then they shared all of their costumes with me! Such fun!

Missing Mints at Abuelos

If you dine at Abuelos, one of the things you probably look forward to after a meal there are the mints (I know I do). So, I went there for dinner tonight with my co-anchor, Randy Turner after the 6 o'clock news and when the bill came, there were no mints. When the waitress came back to get the booklet, I asked her if they no longer gave out their mints and she quickly responded, "No, we still have them. They're now kept upfront because the waiters/waitresses were eating them all".
This immediately sent Randy and I cracking up. Apparently the mints have such an appeal that Abuelos servers can't control themselves. If I worked there, I might have the same problem too. They are addicting.
So sure enough, when we went to walk out. We asked the hostess for some mints. She gave us a handful and said we could have as many as we liked. I wanted to know if there were a lot of customers that asked for the mints when they don't show up in the bill...the hostess says most people forget that they even offered mints. But for those of you that don't forget (like me) you can get all the mints your heart desires on your way out! ; )

To Get the Flu Shot or Not to Get the Flu shot?!?!

To get the flu shot or not to get the flu shot...that seems to be the question for many Abilenians. I think we can all agree that not a day goes by where the flu, or swine flu is NOT mentioned.
So many are racing to get their flu shots, others are boycotting it, and others are debating. I think the most that I've heard of are people that have already gotten or plan to get the regular seasonal flu vaccine, feeling better safe than sorry.
I've also ran into others that say they've gotten sick (very sick) from getting a flu shot in the past and that they're not interested in doing it again. Some feel that the whole vaccine is pointless; that is not accurate.
Then of course, the Swine Flu scare. Ever since the H1N1 virus made headlines, many health clinics and doctors offices say they've seen an increase in patients even wanting the seasonal flu shot (despite the fact that it doesn't protect you from H1N1).
Now to the fear of needles...I am curious to know how many people cringe when they see a syringe. If you have any advice for those afraid of needles, leave it for them on my blog. Also, I'd love to know if there are any or many people that simply were able to get over their flu shot fears this season because of all the attention on the flu and the H1N1 virus.