Fluffernutter Friday

It's Friday.
Well I got out of work technically on Saturday a little after midnight, and decided to stop at the grocery store to pick up a few things, (all I have in my fridge is a Brita and a block of gouda cheese).

I just made myself a fluffernutter wheat wrap, (peanut butter and Fluff).
It was delicious.
I've been trolling my YouTube channel, specifically the latest two videos I posted, Girls' Racist Rant Goes Viral, and Racist Teens Ousted.


I'm in genuine disbelief at the comments people have been posting.
Do these people not get tired of HATING each other?

Hate is like metal chains cinching your heart.
You can't truly experience the joys of life when you're holding onto the wrongdoings of others.

You think the arguments you make hiding behind your computer justify your hate?
It takes STRENGTH to love those who are hardest to love.

Peace comes when you learn to accept what you can't change, and let go of the past.
Some things aren't up to us to fix.
All we can do is be a light in the sphere of influence that surrounds us.

The comments posted under my YouTube videos have reminded me of the dark world we're living in.
However, I'm encouraged.
My heart is free from the chains that bind others.
Hate is not crippling me, or holding me back from chasing my dreams.
I'M FREE.
The sky's the limit.

GIULIANI

My Girl Scout Troop leading Rudy Giuliani in NYC parade

Rudy Giuliani, UF Accent Program, 1.26.12

Whenever I think of Rudy Giuliani two things come to mind- the day my Girl Scout Troop lead him in a New York City parade, and September 11, 2001.

When the towers fell, I was in my 8th grade classroom at M.S.172 in Queens.

I probably couldn't tell you if Giuliani was a Democrat or a Republican.

It didn't matter.

I was too busy processing what happened.

Trying to wrap my mind around the gravity of the situation- my classmates were crying-- many were lining up to use the telephone to call their parents who worked in the towers.

Everybody knew somebody who was there.


I'm not sure how many days later- or if it was the following day, but I was watching the news in the living room of our "Archie Bunker" Bellerose house when I heard my neighbors voice from the kitchen..."Moira is missing."



Moira Smith was the only female NYPD officer killed on September 11th.

Here she's helping Edward Nicholls before returning to the towers to help others.

This picture is the definition of heroism.

It takes me back to a summer afternoon, sitting on my neighbor's stoop.

I was just a kid... telling Moira my love for writing and dreams of becoming a news reporter.

I remember her saying I could do anything.

My best friend Giulia, (the girl waving her right hand at the camera) was killed crossing the street when we were 15.

We'd all live to see September 11.

I'm reminded of a verse, Hebrews 13:2:

"Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by doing some have unwittingly entertained angels."

We never know what obstacles we'll face, or what's written in the stars for those we stand beside.

All we can do is live, and learn from everyone-- embracing those opportunities God gives us; whether it's shaking hands with the mayor or a conversation on the stoop with the cop next door.

You never know how those moments will shape your life-- those moments where the only picture you have to remember it all, is the one you keep in your heart.

Sunset

Waldo, FL
1.4.12

Driving back to the station from my story, I watched a beautiful sunset.
I pulled over and took some video... to make it last longer :)

Hit-and-Run

Today I covered a story about a woman who was hit by a motorcycle while crossing a busy street. Her right foot was severed. The driver kept going...

The crash happened on Monday night, around 8:00 in front of the Taco Bell on US129, a few miles south of I-1O. Troopers were unable to locate the driver or the woman's foot.

I met a trooper at the scene late this afternoon. After our interview, I asked him to escort me to the median on 129, and "watch my back" as I got shots of the spot where the woman was hit.

On our walk there, we found the woman's right foot.

Victim's foot found along southbound lane of US129

Mic slip...

My mic slipped down my shirt on my run to the set this evening. Click here to see the aftermath of my shenanigans.

NO MIC MIC!

In other news, my good friend and former co-worker Robert Bradfield made a stop in Gainesville today. He's a reporter at WPSD Local 6, covering stories in southern Illinois.

Robert and I went to UF together. He was a year ahead, but I got to work with him at our school's TV station, WUFT, as well as on several ABC News on Campus projects.

Robert and I anchoring, 2008

It's crazy how time flies SO. FLIPPIN. FAST. I guess the lesson is: you don't have to run through life. It's not a race. There's no fire you need to get to. It's okay to stop sometimes, take a look around, and smile at what you see. You may even catch a mic issue in the process. If you don't, no biggie- at least you'll have something silly to blog about.

Fill-in

I had to fill-in anchor tonight. A few awkward moments...

Katie Tschopp, my producer for the evening

Special Delivery

It's 1:00 AM. I just got home from work. Long day... ecstasy lab story in Ocala. Check it out here (disregard mic issues in the beginning).

12.22.11

Before work, my former intern Chris Gilmore and I drove to High Springs and delivered presents to Mrs. Williams. Her daughters were at their grandma's house so we were able to sneak in and hide everything. Mrs. Williams said she'd take pictures of the girls opening the gifts on Christmas morning. Can't wait to see them.

Mrs. Williams is a trip! She had me PEEING in my pants talking about my co-workers and I. She said we all need to have a drink before we go on air. In our defense, I explained the challenges of one-man-banding. She listened, making jokes along the way.

Mrs. Williams had something to say about every A-block story we did in the past month- the woman had our rundowns memorized!

People really do watch. The stories we bust our asses filming, writing, and editing are affecting people. Yeah, we're the bright-eyed, bushy-tailed reporters making no money in market 160, (the bottom of the barrel according to Nielsen market estimates) but we're still touching people.

Sometimes it takes stepping out from the daily grind and doing something for a stranger to realize the true worth of your work.

We left Mrs. William's house with a piece of rum cake and encouragement to take on the world.

Fixin our rum cake :)

Chris Gilmore and Mrs. Williams

Hello again...

I haven't blogged in a year.

Why did I stop? No idea... it kind of just happened. I guess I could blame my friend Quan. He gave me a fancy leather journal and it seemed like a crime leaving it blank.


Random thoughts, overheard quotes, secrets, to-do lists, cartoons... the journal is now well worn, and believe it or not my second also has no vacancy. But before I can start a third, blogging has been laid back on my heart.


Today I produced a story on "layaway angels," people who are stopping in retail stores and asking to pay off the layaways of complete strangers.

Click here to see the story.

After the show I wrapped presents my friends and I gathered for two girls in High Springs. I met them when I interviewed their mother last month. They live on the other side of the tracks in the city's "poor" neighborhood. Great people, but just struggling like so many of us.

Whether or not you have a big family or lots of friends, there's always someone to give a gift to...and most of the time, it's not something you can wrap.

8 priceless words...

It was my mom's birthday on January 18.  I sent her gift around 1:00 AM, (January 19). I know, Tardy Tammy, but it took a few hours to put together... Happy Birthday Mommy on YouTube.

I guess the good thing about being in an "overworked and underpaid" season of my life, (particularly during celebrations like my mother's birth) is: I have no choice but to search my heart for a gift without a price tag. 

Eight words I'll never forget, spoken by my mother on January 19, 2011: "this is the best gift I ever got." 

I guess ballin' on a budget aint so baddd... 

Bound by Haiti

Check out Jon and Roman's website, BOUND BY HAITI.

My way...

As I sit and enjoy the last ten minutes of my birthday, I'm listening to Frank Sinatra's, "My Way."

Ol' Blue Eyes would have been 95 today; a man with "many sides" as described by Bill Gallo, in the NY Daily News,

"He was brash, good-natured, shallow, deep and poignant, angry, happy, funny, classy, unpredictable, steady and always on time, a slang-talking street guy, with diction so precise and clear that it complimented the English language."

Frank Sinatra is a legend. His songs are timeless. His voice is "The Voice." I can only dream of leaving such a legacy on the world.

I do hope that when I reach the end of the road, I can confidently say, "I faced it all and I stood tall; and did it my way."

How we live defines who we are and how we're remembered.

No one is perfect. We're all messed up, and we're living in a world that's just as screwed up as we are. But no matter what life throws our way, we must stay true to ourselves, never compromising what we believe in.

In the end, it's not the fall that makes us an inspiration to others, but our faith during the fight to get back up.

So, say the things you truly feel and show the world your "many sides." As Sinatra once said, "dare to wear the foolish clown face."

Birthday card from the parents

12.12.10

Living the dream

CBS News Correspondent Kelly Cobiella 

Miami, FL

12.10.10

Life's full of inspiring moments...

                   watching someone 

live their dream 

is one of them.