Hey guysā¦happy Wednesday! We are slowly but surely making our way through November. These past few weeks have been filled with work, catching up on reading, going on fall drives and cozing up with warm drinks and lots of baking…all my favorite things!
As we get closer and closer to Thanksgiving I want to take some time share what Iām thankful for. I do this kind of post every year and while the list stays the same itās always a good reminder and it puts things in perspective of whatās important.
I could spend all day working on this list, from my loving family, supportive families, a great job, food on the table, my faith etc, but I wanted to highlight a few specific things Iām thankful for this year.
-Covid-19 vaccine.
After being in this pandemic for almost two years, I was so thankful I was able to get my vaccine as an extra layer of protection against the virus.
Such a milestone this year.
-Seeing friends
Thanks to vaccines, Iāve been able to see more friends this year, from high school and college. Weekly coffee dates are back, traveling for day trips were a big hit this summer and being able to be in one of my best friendās weddings this summer was the cherry on top.
Seeing friends in person has been huge!
-Growing in my job
Iām so thankful I was able to learn and grow in my role at work. Iāve seen a change in myself with how I tell stories and in my confidence. I am always looking for ways to grow and Iām so lucky to have so many wonderful mentors and co-workers to help me grow and learn every day.
I’ve grown a lot in front of and behind the camera.
-My Health
It goes without saying but Iām so thankful Iāve been able to stay healthy amid the pandemic. In these trying times Iām so grateful for my good health and for the good health of my loved ones too, from family to friends, co-workers and neighbors, these past few years have taught me whatās important in life.Ā
I’m so grateful for my health
-My Support System
From my incredible family to my friends, my co-workers and relatives, there have been so many times this year that Iāve been reminded of how lucky I am. Whether itās my family moving around dinner times to accommodate an early morning wake-up, my friends who listen to me when I need to talk or take me on an adventure when I need to clear my mind, or my co-workers who help me grow in my job. Not a day goes by when Iām not thankful for all the incredible people in my life.
I wouldn’t be here without my family!
I do these kinds of posts every year to remind me how lucky I am and how grateful I am for all my blessings. I have so much to be thankful for in my life.
I hope you and your families have a wonderful Thanksgiving.
Hey guys, a little bit of a different post for today.
I use my blog as a fun creative, outlet outside of my work and family life.
But, my work is a big part of my life. I sometimes spend more time at work than I do at home, which I love, but it shows that itās a big part of whoĀ I am.
Today, Iām sharing a little bit about why I chose the field I am in now. If you know me, you know I am a very organized, structure and routine loving girl, so why would someone like that dive into a job and career that is the complete opposite?!
Getting behind the desk has become a new adventure that I’m loving
One of my favorite things about my job is that every day is different. No two days are ever the same. Some days, I am talking to local businesses, other days itās about Covid-19 vaccines, on a Monday I could be in another town 45 minutes away and on Wednesday, all my interviews could be on Zoom.Ā You never know what you are going to get.
Speaking of Zoom, one of my latest stories was about how much Zoom has changed our lives this past year.
I love that Iām constantly learning every day. If I wasnāt in news, I would probably be a teacher. I have always loved school, from the schedule to learning new things and advancing in what Iām learning. I also tend to ask a lot of questions in my life. Clarifying questions were always my favorite in school. If you gave me a group project with all the directions in front of me, I would still ask a few follow-up questions, just to be safe. Those traits are just part of the reason why I am a journalist.Ā
I love that very day takes me someplace different for a story.
I also love stories. I love to read and write. Getting lost in a different world through a story is one of my favorite things. As much as I love reading stories, I love telling them just as much. Telling peopleās stories, every day, no matter big or small brings me so much joy! You never know how much of an impact a story can have on someone until you tell it.
I enjoy working and learning from my co-workers every day.
I get asked a lot why I chose this field and profession. I am a fairly quiet girl, I like structure and routine and Iām a homebody, so why would I ever want to be in a field that encourages me to use my voice, have a constant changing schedule with lots of uncertainity? Because, I care about others and their stories and I like answers. But most importantly, I want to make sure peopleās voices and stories are heard. Thatās why I love what I do every day.
What brings you joy in your career? What makes you smile every day?
I hope your week and year is off to a great start! Now, that the holidays have calmed down, I wanted to reflect on my first year as a reporter. I did a recap in the summer about what I have learned 6 months in. You can read all about it here. In the past 6 months, I have learned even more. Every day I continue to grow and learn and get stronger in my skills as a reporter. I try to learn something new, I know not every day will be a slam dunk story, but I always try to take something away from it, whether it is a new editing skill, a better way to write something, or different way to be creative with my storytelling.
It’s always fun getting to share stories that are important to me
I have loved to tell peopleās stories in my own hometown. From big to small stories, whether it was an event going on, like a toy distribution for Christmas, talking to local businesses about struggles of the past year, covering historic events like the first Covid-19 vaccines arriving in Erie, following the election, and everything in between. I have travelled to other states, neighboring counties or even just down the street to talk to people about their lives.
I also have got more opportunities at work too.Ā Ā I have been able to fill in and anchor some of our shows. Itās something I have dream about doing for a long time and the fact I am anchoring them and producing them on my own is a huge accomplishment for me.Ā I have covered for different shifts during the holidays, helped out to make sure things go smoothly and worked more on my craft through the year. I also love getting to work on our digital team and learn more about the art of producing and stacking shows, both skills that are helpful for anchoring.
Working the anchor desk on Christmas
When looking back on these past 12 months, I have learned a lot about the job, but some of my best memories are of conversations with co-workers or laughs when I was preparing for a story, from early more shifts, to late nights, working weekends or holidays when no one is there or when it’s all hands on deck. It has been a year of change and excitement. I have truly learned that itās the people that make any job worthwhile. I am so lucky that I have such great and supportive co-workers and mentors to learn from every day. Especially working long days and hours, it helps to have co-workers that make the days go by fast.
In the middle of a live interview
I have worked long days and shifts, but I covered winter weather, tornado damage, breaking news, things reopening, things shutting down, back to school, new events and opportunities for the community, exciting and happy stories, and ones that break your heart. In the end, I love what I do. I love that I get to find stories and tell them, meet people and get their message out. Itās so special and surreal that I get the chance to give people the news.
Covering the presidential election
It’s also been too fun to have my family and friends watch me and send me pictures of it and supporting me. It’s such a humbling experience that I don’t take for granted.
Getting pictures from friends and family that watch me never gets old.
Overall, I couldnāt have asked for a better first year in news, it truly was a monumental time to get, I canāt wait to learn more and grow and see where I am a year from now.
Itās been an incredible first year, letās bring on year two!!!
Hi everyone, last week I gave you a look into my work life, so this week I thought it was time I give you a look into my daily work life.
No two days are the same, every day is different and things can change hour to hour, hereās a little look into what a day in the life looks like for me.
Let’s begin…
Here is what a wake up time looks for me, 7:25 to start the day.
Gym time at 8:00 am
After the gym, I had to make a stop to Target to buy a new fit bit since mine bite the dust after 3.5 years, new fit bit review coming soon.
Doing some reading and journaling after I hit the gym.
Doing some blog work, checking emails and getting ideas for stories before I go to work
Lunch time…leftovers from the night before, chicken, lettuce, tomato, salsa, cheese and rice, homemade taco bowl
The next few hours were very busy so I don’t have any photos, but here’s what it looks like…
After lunch comes getting ready for work, most of the time, how I look when I live the house is how I look for the 11:00 news. Once I get to work, we have a meeting about story ideas and who’s covering what, on this day, I went to a news conference about grants and a tax give back program for the city. I got interviews and video for my story following the news conference, I came back to the station to listen to the interviews and get ready for live shots in the early show.
I had two live hits, one at 5:00 and one at 7:00, so I was prepping lines before I went live.
Following both live hits, around 7:30, I got called to check in on a boating accident, which turned out to be nothing, but it shows no day is ever quiet…haha
Back at work around 8:15 I spent time cutting sound and listening to interviews for my news package and putting it all together.
After I finished my writing my story, I go to track it.
Around 9:00, I finish putting the final touches on my story before putting it up on the web. Around 10:00, I get ready to work on live hit for 11:00.
Here’s a look at my piece, at 11:00, once I wrap doing it, I cut video for my story and close up shop for the day. I leave at 11:45 and typically head to bed by 12:30…and that’s a day in the life.
Every day is different and no two days are ever the same, but it’s all part of the excitement and fun.
Well, thatās a wrap on my junior year of college! This year flew by, I canāt believe that the next time I will be back at school, I will be a senior. It seems like just yesterday I was walking on campus for the first time, now in August, I will be moving in for the last time. College is an interesting concept, itās amazing in a few years how much we grow, change, learn, and live. I can honestly say that I am a completely different person now than when I moved in 3 years ago. I canāt wait to celebrate and enjoy my last semester of college in the fall.
My mood though Junior year…well most of the time.. haha!
Todayās post is my favorite types of posts. Another semester has gone by, which means itās time for another recap. To see what I was up to last semester, you can read about it here. I love to do these recaps to show you what I have been up to, as well as reflect on how much I have accomplished both in an out of the semester. This semester was a busy one, but filled with so many fun memories. The best way to describe this semester is the fact, I typically go to the gym on Saturdayās and Sundayās, I always had things going on during the weekends that it wasnāt until the last weekend of the semester in May that I made it both days, I honestly wouldnāt have it any other way.
As I was preparing for this post, I realized how many things I did, that I didnāt take pictures of. Although, I wish I had pictures to document the fun times and moments, it is nice just to be present in the moment and enjoy who I am with, without capturing it all for social media. So, letās recap this semesterā¦
First day of the spring semester…cold and quiet
January started out with freezing weather, a few cancelled classes (which was unheard of for our school) and lots of working weekends. The cancelled classes did result in some spontaneous adventures with my friends, whether it was brunch, going thrift shopping, or heading to the mall. Iāve learned this semester that some of my favorite moments were the ones that were unplanned and spontaneous, whether it was grabbing dinner with my friends, seeing a school musical, or shopping whether it was at the mall or the comic book store.
Heading into February, classes and work were on my mind, I spent a lot of time working on my Capstone biography video, which you can watch here.
Hard at work on my Senior Capstone
I also was able to have weekly lunch dates with my sweet friend Sharon, who graduated in December and weekly dinner dates with my friend Bailey, who spent this semester student teaching. It was so special to be able to see my friends even with their busy schedules.
SO thankful for this friendship
I love getting lunch with my sweet friend Sharon
I was able to sneak home for a quick visit before I left for Rome.
No shame in admitting this is my only photo that weekend at home…what can I say…I’m a dog lover
Moving into March, I spent the first several days in Rome. If you missed my recaps on the eternal city, you can read part one here and part two here.
Take me back to simpler days…
I came back to school after an incredible trip and got back into the swing of classes, work, and friends. I had one of my most memorable weekends of the semester with my friends at our Semi-formal dance, which you can read about here. The weekend included dinner, hanging out with friends, dancing, grilled cheese at midnight, sleepovers, hitting the gym and brunch.
One of the BEST weekends of the semester
I jetted home for another visit with my family which was much needed after returning from abroad.
Are we really surprised that my only picture from being at home is with my dogs?
April brought lots of the end of the semester activities. In between school work, I was able to head to a bowling outing with my friends, get dinner, go on some fro-yo dates, spend a day volunteering, and get Inducted into a Communication Honor Society.
A day spent volunteering with my best friend Danielle
Lambda Pi Eta
A more up close picture of the outfit
A quick picture with my parents who came out to support me!
I also got the opportunity to tour our Library at school which is under construction and interview our schoolās president about the renovations. You can watch the interview here.
Interviewing the President of my school in the new Library
Our school also hosts a spring family weekend which as so fun, I got to see and hang out with some of my closest friends, watch a few bands perform and got pied in the face for charityā¦definitely a messy moment of the semester.
With some of my close friends Sharon and Bailey
Spring family weekend
It took a long time to get the whipped cream out
Like I mean three showers later…it was finally all out
April ended with Easter ended at home.
Surprise…not a picture of me and my dogs at home, but with my brothers for Easter
I finished out the last few weeks of April and May with end of the year dinners, from Honor Societies, to Department dinners, and senior celebrations as well as finals, Iām so lucky I was able to participate in these senior festivities since so many of my close friends are seniors. Next year will be different without them.
One last DQ and catch up session with this girl!
Laughing our way into Senior year…
Celebrating senior year with my friend Olivia!
Thankful for her friendship this year, my girl Bailey, always there through thick and thin.
It wouldn’t be the end of the school year without a trip to one of our favorite places, the SP…a hidden gem near our school
The year ended with working the last few days after finals and attending graduation. I was so happy I could watch all my friends graduate, although it was sad to see them move on I know they are going to do amazing things.
Gonna miss these girls next year!
Working graduation with my sweet friend Danielle, we are up next!
Whewā¦and thatās a wrap. Junior year was by far one of the best years and I think a lot of that has to do with a mindset. I called junior year my year of joy and I wanted to find joy in every day. Even on the days that were rough, emotionally and mentally draining, or I wanted to go home, I still looked for the joy in every day.
Although, itās so good to be home and not think about school for a bit, Iām going to miss my friends and being at the same place with everyone. I do have some pretty exciting plans for this summer and next semester, so stay tuned!
To everyone who made this year and semester the best one yetā¦THANK YOU! Have a beautiful day friends! Sending love to everyone near and farā¦xoxo!
I hope you had a great weekend. I just got back from a packed full summer vacation. It was great to be off the radar for a while, but now itās back to business and school mode is in full effect!
Today I am sharing what Iāve been up to this summer. As you know, I have pretty busy working between my internship and summer job. I couldnāt have asked for a better summer internship. I interned at one of my local news stations. As a communication major, there are so many areas to work in. For several years, i have had an interest in journalism and the news. As my graduation gets closer and closer I thought it would be a good idea see if working in the media is something I would want to dedicate my career to.
View from the control room, watching the magic happen
Last January, I spent a day shadowing the news station and loved it. I learned about internship opportunities and by the middle of January I had my summer internship lined up.
Flash forward to May, I was home for less than 48 hours and I was already starting my internship. I worked two days a week from 9:30-5:30. I was able to set my own schedule. I loved going to my internship every day and learned so much.
Practicing my reporting
There is no set āday in the lifeā as a reporter. Every day is different and new things are constantly going on.Ā When you walk in, you get assigned a story and by 5:00 that night when the news airs, the story is done. There is always a deadline to meet. Most reporters told me they want the days to go by slower not faster. Thatās one of the things I liked so much about my internship. Through the two months i was there, i learned about reporting, producing, editing, and anchoring.
Practicing my anchoring
My internship included shadowing different reporters every day, conducting a few interviews, watching that editing of news packages get done, andĀ my favorite part, writing and editing my own stories. I even got to practiceĀ anchoring too. I worked with producers putting in commands for the rundown, I got to help write stories with reporters. When it came to editing, a few of the photographers let me help edit the news packages, and then the anchors gave me tips on how on how to anchor best.
Covering a stand off, after doing a story on beach erosion, every day is truly different
This was a hands in experience, I got to help cover several different types of stories, from a stand-off with the Police, a murder, the mayor’s weekly news conferences, a political figureās death, beach erosion, a cancelled concert, and the death of an inmate on work release. These were just a few of my favorite ones. I got to meet so many people from different walks of life and I learned so much about the city I have called home for the last 20 years.
Getting behind the camera
After completing my time at the news station, i am certain that this is the field I want to go in after graduating. It would be even more special if I could come back home and work for the same news station.
Getting in front of the camera too
I couldnāt have asked for a better summer or experience. I learned so much and i loved going to work every day to see what itās really like being a news reporter. Hopefully, you can see me on air one day and just not online. Haha!!!
Happy Tuesday!
