It's springtime here in Upstate South Carolina so we're already hitting temperatures that are upwards of hot. When the weather starts to warm up like this, I like to roll the car window down on my way home from work so I don't have to run the A/C and have my gas mileage get eaten up.
Granted I was already kinda hot from having spent an hour or so running back and forth across campus right before I left to come home on Thursday....
So a few miles from work I stopped at a Little Cricket that I am starting to frequent to buy my standard Mello-Yello for the ride home.
This must be a stop for a lot of manufacturing workers or contractors because I see alot in there when I swing by there on my way home. Today, there were quite a bit more than usual and the line was about six or seven people deep.
But that's really beside the point and not really relevant to the point of this post, which I'm getting to.
OK - so here I am standing in line, right beside the ice cream treats case. I happen to look down and I see they have frozen Snickers ice cream bars.
I love Snickers. Second to Reese Sticks, they're my favorite type of candy bar. And to have it with ice cream -- that's some gooooood eatin'
"Oh, snap!," I said out loud with a big grin.
The lady behind me starts laughing. I looked back at her, and she just kinda looks at me, laughs some more, and says, "It ain't every day you see a grown man get excited about ice cream."
I like making people laugh. And that usually manifests itself in the form of sarcasm/smart-ass remarks, which in unknown company isn't always the best route. There are certain people I know appreciate my sense of humor or with whom I can get away with saying something smart and not being looked at like I'm a moron.
So I really felt good that I made someone laugh, even though I'm sure she was thinking I was acting like a child. Being laughed at in that type of situation isn't always that bad. It's actually rather enjoyable.
24 April 2008
23 April 2008
Wal-Mart Sucks
I really despise going to Wal-Mart. About the only time I ever go into one is late, late at night when everything else is closed.
About an hour ago I found myself in a Wal-Mart about 8 minutes from our place. It was late, the store is nearby, and I figured I could save a few bucks by going there.
Yeah, I did save a few bucks. But was it was really worth it? Not really.
This particular Wal-Mart is generally pretty nasty. Not only with dirty floors, but items from one end of the store are frequently found left on shelves at the total opposite end.
Who knew that antifreeze, feminine pads, and nachos all belonged on the same shelf together?
Adding to the nastiness of the store is the nastiness of the people. It amazes me how disgusting the average Wal-Mart shopper looks. Most seem to have no care or concern for their own appearance.
I just happened to hit the store at restock time.
So as I'm standing in the deoderant aisle, there is a flurry of stock people moving up and down the aisle (at one point literally six in the same aisle I was standing) and I'm trying to talk to my wife on my cell phone as all these idiots are yelling things back and forth to each other.
OK, well I'll come back to that aisle in a few minutes.
Went to the music and electronics section. I'm a Best Buy or Circuit City fan. I could literally spend all day in either of those stores. But Wal-Mart's excuse for a music and electronics section will do in a pinch.
I'm perusing CDs and find about six from which I want to listen to a couple tracks. CDs in hand, I'm looking for the CD thingamajig with the headphones. Can't find one, so I ask the nearest stockboy and he says they got rid of them. That really irritated me.
Went back to the deoderant aisle, found the closest thing to what my wife was having me look for, and grabbed a few other miscellaneous things from neighboring aisles. They also didn't have the ACT mouthwash I was looking for. So then I made my way to go check out.
Here comes the biggest irritation of the night --- with 22 checkout lanes in the store, only lane 12 was open. One lane. And two of the women out of the six people ahead of me have carts full of who knows what.
It took 15 minutes from the time I got in line until they opened up 2 additional lanes. Probably because at that point the line was backed up to lane 4.
We all bolted. It was like hundreds of mice all running for a small piece of cheese.
I'm happy to say I beat most of the other mice to the cheese. Except for the guy in front of me who couldn't speak English and kept looking at the cashier like she was nuts when she started asking him questions while she took her sweet-ass time scanning his 100 shirts made in Chinese sweatshops.
By the time I got out of the there, I felt like I was about to go insane. All the more reason for me to try to get out to the store before 9 pm when Target closes. At least their stores are clean, most of their items are in stock, and the shoppers are generally a little more plesant. Plus they have a Starbucks.
And at the end of the day, it will always hold true that Wal-Mart sucks.
About an hour ago I found myself in a Wal-Mart about 8 minutes from our place. It was late, the store is nearby, and I figured I could save a few bucks by going there.
Yeah, I did save a few bucks. But was it was really worth it? Not really.
This particular Wal-Mart is generally pretty nasty. Not only with dirty floors, but items from one end of the store are frequently found left on shelves at the total opposite end.
Who knew that antifreeze, feminine pads, and nachos all belonged on the same shelf together?
Adding to the nastiness of the store is the nastiness of the people. It amazes me how disgusting the average Wal-Mart shopper looks. Most seem to have no care or concern for their own appearance.
I just happened to hit the store at restock time.
So as I'm standing in the deoderant aisle, there is a flurry of stock people moving up and down the aisle (at one point literally six in the same aisle I was standing) and I'm trying to talk to my wife on my cell phone as all these idiots are yelling things back and forth to each other.
OK, well I'll come back to that aisle in a few minutes.
Went to the music and electronics section. I'm a Best Buy or Circuit City fan. I could literally spend all day in either of those stores. But Wal-Mart's excuse for a music and electronics section will do in a pinch.
I'm perusing CDs and find about six from which I want to listen to a couple tracks. CDs in hand, I'm looking for the CD thingamajig with the headphones. Can't find one, so I ask the nearest stockboy and he says they got rid of them. That really irritated me.
Went back to the deoderant aisle, found the closest thing to what my wife was having me look for, and grabbed a few other miscellaneous things from neighboring aisles. They also didn't have the ACT mouthwash I was looking for. So then I made my way to go check out.
Here comes the biggest irritation of the night --- with 22 checkout lanes in the store, only lane 12 was open. One lane. And two of the women out of the six people ahead of me have carts full of who knows what.
It took 15 minutes from the time I got in line until they opened up 2 additional lanes. Probably because at that point the line was backed up to lane 4.
We all bolted. It was like hundreds of mice all running for a small piece of cheese.
I'm happy to say I beat most of the other mice to the cheese. Except for the guy in front of me who couldn't speak English and kept looking at the cashier like she was nuts when she started asking him questions while she took her sweet-ass time scanning his 100 shirts made in Chinese sweatshops.
By the time I got out of the there, I felt like I was about to go insane. All the more reason for me to try to get out to the store before 9 pm when Target closes. At least their stores are clean, most of their items are in stock, and the shoppers are generally a little more plesant. Plus they have a Starbucks.
And at the end of the day, it will always hold true that Wal-Mart sucks.
11 April 2008
The Other Side Of The Coin
One of my co-workers is no longer one of my co-workers.
Just in case some random media person stumbles across this blog, I'm not going to go into any specific details about one of my co-workers no longer being a co-worker.
Today was my first experience being on the other side of the coin -- by that I mean from when I used to be the reporter asking the public relations/information representative why a particular person is no longer working at a particular place.
I used to hate getting the standard "I cannot discuss personnel matters" line. It drove me nuts -because you know there's more to it.
Then there's the 'knowing more to it' side. Despite the fact that I hated saying it because I did hate hearing it so much, I had to use the "I cannot discuss personnel matters" line today when talking to a reporter who called me to ask some questions about why one of my co-workers was no longer one of my co-workers.
From knowing at least some details about the situation involving this now-former co-worker, I now fully understand and empathize with my fellow public relations colleagues about why this line has become so standard and why it is the safest thing to say. You have to protect all the people involved, regardless of what side of the situation they are on, and who thinks what of whom or who allegedly did whatever, whenever. You have to protect the image of the institution. And you have to convey your message with personal and professional integrity.
So I apologize ahead of time to any of the reporters in the local newsrooms if I ever have to give you the standard "I cannot discuss personnel matters" line. But I'm on the other side of the coin now.
Just in case some random media person stumbles across this blog, I'm not going to go into any specific details about one of my co-workers no longer being a co-worker.
Today was my first experience being on the other side of the coin -- by that I mean from when I used to be the reporter asking the public relations/information representative why a particular person is no longer working at a particular place.
I used to hate getting the standard "I cannot discuss personnel matters" line. It drove me nuts -because you know there's more to it.
Then there's the 'knowing more to it' side. Despite the fact that I hated saying it because I did hate hearing it so much, I had to use the "I cannot discuss personnel matters" line today when talking to a reporter who called me to ask some questions about why one of my co-workers was no longer one of my co-workers.
From knowing at least some details about the situation involving this now-former co-worker, I now fully understand and empathize with my fellow public relations colleagues about why this line has become so standard and why it is the safest thing to say. You have to protect all the people involved, regardless of what side of the situation they are on, and who thinks what of whom or who allegedly did whatever, whenever. You have to protect the image of the institution. And you have to convey your message with personal and professional integrity.
So I apologize ahead of time to any of the reporters in the local newsrooms if I ever have to give you the standard "I cannot discuss personnel matters" line. But I'm on the other side of the coin now.
04 April 2008
Still a Journalist
One of my job duties for the college I work at is to produce our semi-annual alumni magazine. When I started in this job, I decided I wanted to take the magazine into a bit of a different direction and write some substantial articles for it. I'm in the midst of the next issue right now.
Yesterday I was talking with our new VP about his background, etc. for both a press release and an article to run in the magazine. He looks at me at one point in the conversation and says "You're good at this. Most people don't get this much information out of me. Have you ever been a reporter?"
I laughed. "Yes, as a matter of fact, I have," I responded. (Those of you reading this who know me from when I worked at that newspaper or for Internet Broadcasting Systems at WYFF obviously know this already)
So I shared a little bit of my background. Then he asked if I miss it.
I really have mixed feelings on that. There are days that I do and there are days that I don't, both for various reasons. Admittedly, I often enjoyed the byline. You won't find a journalist who doesn't to some degree.
I miss the adrenaline of it. I miss getting the scoop. I miss knowing things about situations or things about people that they don't want other people to know, whether you have found this out by them telling you or through other means; free food at various functions; or getting to talk one-on-one with Dan Quayle after a politcal rally. I miss the confrontation -- again, to a degree. I miss, although I did find this a little shocking to take in the first time, hearing other reporters talk smack about the governor, minutes before he walks into an executive press briefing.
There's a certain part of me that really enjoyed sticking the First Amendment in people's faces -- working your way into a county council, city council or school board meeting that they had no intention of letting anyone else into, only for them to realize they're against the wall, you're not leaving, and they can face some serious repurcussions both from a legal and publicity standpoint.
One of the elementary schools in our coverage area lost a student (Kindergartener, he accidentally became hung on a shoestring he was playing with when it became wrapped around a clothesline and died) and a teacher (died from from a burst brain aneurysm while she was giving birth) over the course of a school year. At the end of the year, I was sitting down with the principal talking about the year and what the school (it was new that year) had accomplished. He started crying as he was talking about these two individuals and how difficult their deaths had been on the school. I don't miss situations like that. That's one of the those situations where you can almost never find what you feel are the right words to say. I don't miss being in that kind of position.
I don't miss getting to the scene of a car accident before they've gotten the white sheet out. I don't miss being called at 8 am in the morning on a Saturday by an angry school superintendent.
I was at a professional development conference in Wilmington, NC a few weeks ago with colleagues from several dozen other colleges and universities. During one of the sessions, on new media and new techniques for news delivery, the speaker, Doug Fisher, a journalism prof from the University of South Carolina advanced to a slide saying:
You are a journalist
Whether you're writing a press release or an article for a magazine, working in public information for a college basically means you're a journalist - if you were brought up in journalism or not.
The big difference is you don't have to write about bad stuff all the time. Occasionally, yes, you have to do a press release or talk about something not real pleasant like a crime on campus, or the passing of a former faculty member. But it's enjoyable for a change to tell the stories about these kids and of the faculty and staff or the school's growth and plans for the future.
The students love seeing their photos or having their names appear in the newspaper or on TV; faculty and staff enjoy it just the same. It is so rewarding to see these kids' faces light up when they know that you're there to tell the world something about them or take their photo and put it on the website or in one of our publications.
So, yeah, I used to be a reporter. But I'm still a journalist. At least according to Mr. Fisher.
Yesterday I was talking with our new VP about his background, etc. for both a press release and an article to run in the magazine. He looks at me at one point in the conversation and says "You're good at this. Most people don't get this much information out of me. Have you ever been a reporter?"
I laughed. "Yes, as a matter of fact, I have," I responded. (Those of you reading this who know me from when I worked at that newspaper or for Internet Broadcasting Systems at WYFF obviously know this already)
So I shared a little bit of my background. Then he asked if I miss it.
I really have mixed feelings on that. There are days that I do and there are days that I don't, both for various reasons. Admittedly, I often enjoyed the byline. You won't find a journalist who doesn't to some degree.
I miss the adrenaline of it. I miss getting the scoop. I miss knowing things about situations or things about people that they don't want other people to know, whether you have found this out by them telling you or through other means; free food at various functions; or getting to talk one-on-one with Dan Quayle after a politcal rally. I miss the confrontation -- again, to a degree. I miss, although I did find this a little shocking to take in the first time, hearing other reporters talk smack about the governor, minutes before he walks into an executive press briefing.
There's a certain part of me that really enjoyed sticking the First Amendment in people's faces -- working your way into a county council, city council or school board meeting that they had no intention of letting anyone else into, only for them to realize they're against the wall, you're not leaving, and they can face some serious repurcussions both from a legal and publicity standpoint.
One of the elementary schools in our coverage area lost a student (Kindergartener, he accidentally became hung on a shoestring he was playing with when it became wrapped around a clothesline and died) and a teacher (died from from a burst brain aneurysm while she was giving birth) over the course of a school year. At the end of the year, I was sitting down with the principal talking about the year and what the school (it was new that year) had accomplished. He started crying as he was talking about these two individuals and how difficult their deaths had been on the school. I don't miss situations like that. That's one of the those situations where you can almost never find what you feel are the right words to say. I don't miss being in that kind of position.
I don't miss getting to the scene of a car accident before they've gotten the white sheet out. I don't miss being called at 8 am in the morning on a Saturday by an angry school superintendent.
I was at a professional development conference in Wilmington, NC a few weeks ago with colleagues from several dozen other colleges and universities. During one of the sessions, on new media and new techniques for news delivery, the speaker, Doug Fisher, a journalism prof from the University of South Carolina advanced to a slide saying:
You are a journalist
Whether you're writing a press release or an article for a magazine, working in public information for a college basically means you're a journalist - if you were brought up in journalism or not.
The big difference is you don't have to write about bad stuff all the time. Occasionally, yes, you have to do a press release or talk about something not real pleasant like a crime on campus, or the passing of a former faculty member. But it's enjoyable for a change to tell the stories about these kids and of the faculty and staff or the school's growth and plans for the future.
The students love seeing their photos or having their names appear in the newspaper or on TV; faculty and staff enjoy it just the same. It is so rewarding to see these kids' faces light up when they know that you're there to tell the world something about them or take their photo and put it on the website or in one of our publications.
So, yeah, I used to be a reporter. But I'm still a journalist. At least according to Mr. Fisher.
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