I'm back like the Maize and Blue in '10!
1) Welcome Back! I’m going to try and get back to writing more, even though it has been difficult. I got a text from my buddy Hecky that said “Hey, I noticed you don’t blog anymore.”
No! I’m still a blogger! I just haven’t written anything in…holy s—! I need to get back to writing.
The biggest reason for the lack of blog posts hasn’t been the lack of interesting events, but rather just finding time to sit down and write. During the end of July and thru August, I threw myself into the high school football scene here (more on that later), and sometimes traveled over an hour to get to all of the high schools. It’s been an amazing experience, but getting home at 2 AM after a 12 hour day isn’t ideal for trying to produce thoughtful writing.
But, that’s over with….I’m back…I think…We’ll see how this goes…
Greatest. Team name. Ever
2) Time Flies When You’re Having Fun: As of September, I’ll have been in Yuma, AZ for 6 months. A friend said moving out here would be an adventure, and he wasn’t kidding. I’m putting together a huge list of things I’ve done up to this point, as well as some of the stories I’ve worked on since I’ve been here. A few quick hits of what to expect:
- I miss driving in Detroit: I was lucky enough to lease a vehicle in Yuma that calculates my car’s average speed over the course of a set time period. Since I’ve owned the car, my average speed is 21 mph. Chalk it up to most roads having 35mph speed limits and all the “snow birds” that reside here (nice way of saying “old people who only live here in the winter”) I can only imagine what winter will bring.
- A friend of mine just moved away from Yuma, and said his one regret was not shelling out the $180 bucks and playing Torrey Pines just once (San Diego is two hours away). If I have any choice in the matter, I won’t be making his mistake.
-Best Place I’ve Visited: San Diego. A dream destination for yours truly.
- Best Food Since I’ve Been in Yuma: A small outdoor diner in Mexicali, MEX. No idea what I had (a friend ordered for me), but it was fantastic.
- Highlight of my experience so far? Too many great moments to count, but “Interviewing Coach Mike Krzyzewski while covering USA Hoops in Las Vegas” is definitely in my Top Three moments.
The lists aren’t complete, but look for that post in two weeks when I officially hit “6 Months in Yuma.”
3) Sept. 11th: We are nine years removed from September 11th, 2001. At work, we went around and recalled where each of us were when we heard the news. One person was rushing to get to his news station. One person was in college.
I was in 9th grade Spanish class at Notre Dame Prep. It seems like yesterday, but so much has happened between then and now. Since both Yuma and San Diego both have large amounts of military personnel, my thoughts and prayers go out to all those who serve.
Speaking of high school…
4) High School Reunion: It’s been five years since I’ve graduated high school. While I still look to young enough to get carded at an R-rated movie, I still have a hard time believing it has only been five years. To be honest, it feels a lot longer than that (which I’m not sure is good or bad). Recently, my five year class reunion was planned and, due to my location/work schedule, I won’t be able to attend. But this got me thinking: For those people who I haven’t talked to in five years, how much info do I want to know that Facebook couldn’t tell me? For people my age, Facebook really took the entire “reunion” process and made it digital. At a reunion, chances are you see a former classmate in this brief instance, exchange what I call “surface information” (school, job, location, and marital status) and then not see each other again until the next reunion. Isn’t this the stuff FB is supposed to provide you with? Anyways, at the slim chance someone I graduated with is reading this, hope things have gone well since we parted ways and best of luck in the future.
5) Body Of Work: Since I’ve arrived Yuma, I’ve had an opportunity to do a ton of great stories. Everything from World Cup interviews with friends in South Africa (Thanks, Coop!) to flying with the Marines and the famous “Black Sheep Squadron” VMA-214. They all have been great, but some of my best work has been the high school stuff I worked on recently. I don’t think I have ever been more proud to put my name to something than these stories. When I got here, my bosses told me that the story that got me in the door was “the feature you did on a high school coach (Former Lion Lomas Brown at Notre Dame Prep).” That story is the standard I compare all my stories to, and I can honestly say some of the recent stuff lives up to, or beats that standard. Thanks to all the photogs who have worked on the “FNL: Preseason Tour”series.
Below is a link to my personal page (click on my picture). Feel free to watch all the stories, but I recommend the “Preseason Tour” videos for Kofa, Yuma Catholic, Antelope, and the Central Spartans. Also, the newest FNL Mid-Week with Cibola is one I enjoyed doing. Let me know which is your favorite.
Here are the best stories so far
That’s it for now. I wanted this post to be like an “exhibition game” to get me back in the habit of writing and to get my “writing voice” back in shape. Now that NFL, high school, and Michigan football are all back in action, it should make for some good material. Keep checking back for more posts.
Until then…
Yes, THAT Yuma. Just like the movie
