return to blogger?

The eagle has landed and it's one small step to a small town newspaper but a giant leap for Phil's kind of adventure.


After a few months of madness busy beyond belief -- both from combination of finishing my internship up in Whitecourt to moving my life yet again and into another job as a full-fledged journalist in Ponoka.


I'll explain in a follow-up soon why I'm standing on a cat-walk over a bunch of cows, but for now, here's the article.


Six weeks in I'm loving even the high pressure nearly daily deadlines just to try to keep up with the flow of the new assignments hitting my desk. There's so much happening in town and as my role as roving reporter dictates, I've been everywhere between Red Deer and Edmonton and a lot of the time in little towns I'd scarcely heard in passing. All I know is I handed in 1,000 on my out-of-town mileage in one month.


It was like lifting weights and then realizing I picked a heavy one, requiring so much more concentration and effort, but totally worth it when I can finish the set of reps. I'm happy to report I'm starting to raise my writing stamina and even though I wrote four articles today and did half a dozen interviews, I'm still going strong.... almost.

Broke down and finally started texting twitter thingies and started to log some of the fun and insight I was having. As much fun as blogging was, I was doing over a dozen articles every week and my editor here in Ponoka is helping me to top that. I was excited to have my own desk when I was an intern, now I feel a tiny bit of cabin fever I spend so much time in my office. Not complaining because I get to write a ton of fun articles and photo assignments for whatever I can dream up and keep newsworthy.

So far, I've been nearly making par. Check-it if you want an time-line of how exciting my days got over the last few months. Don't worry, I rarely wrote more than one a day. It sounds odd that I finally tried out twitter, I just had heard such terrible repercussions with slander and job-dismissal over comments, that I went slow. Plus it takes a moment to come up with something that isn't lame.

Word of advice, avoid over-doing the caffeine. Withdrawal sucks without some ibuprofen and yoga does wonders too ^_^ Then again, yoga seems to work for everything.

It's just the Christmas special which has kept me busy since I managed to get through Remembrance Day special with a dozen articles extra to write in a week over my usual ten assignments. After this, it quietens down -- not until after I get through another dozen fun articles with way too much cuteness and Christmas joy.

Anyhows, here's a search result link to my three dozen articles that were posted on the website, I'll try to link a bunch later of my favourites over the past few weeks. Enjoy.

It's been quite an adventure and I wish I thought to twitter some of the more cool moments I've had. Such as culture shock of hanging out for assignments on the Hobbema reserves near Ponoka. Who knew it's possible to put up a stop-sign with a Cree translation on it. Learn something every day ^_^

As part of my return, I'll start rocking the cooking experiments. Admittedly, I've collected up a few over the last month and haven't had sufficient time to post them. Fun times for all. So time to sleep and I'll write the next time I slow down after production day, which I have a bunch of them coming up pretty quickly. Meh... fun times.

Glad to be writing too much to be able to write my blog. Working the writing lifestyle and still loving it.

Goodnight and stay classy or whatever.... Brain stops with a zonk.

-- plr --

trying to unplug from internets?

Development of paper-thin digital technology by people at University of Waterloo claim will become a cellphone. It likely will make it simpler to stay in touch. While I'm excited to see what newspaper will become, I hesitate about thoughts of a cellphone being so ingrained and small -- like a mp3 player can be shoved into the sleeve of a jacket.

Marketing competes with cellphones capable of Skype cameras, social networking and now even portable video game playing ability. Get it now fresh out of the box.... Hey wait, are we that bored without electronics?

Before I even get started, I have to admit, I play video games on occasion. A laptop is absolutely brilliant invention for me to be writing at a coffee shop or especially when doing interviews.

However, it's becoming the norm to be always connected. Why? It's easier to email details or proposal to read later; text instead because someone doesn't do phone calls. So what if it's urgent or an emergency? Voicemail?

To the point where people seem hard pressed not to compulsively check their email, facebook, twitter and everything else digital. Starbucks, hotels and everywhere else with free wifi are winning customers. I check my mailbox attached to my house a few times a day, email can wait too.

Some claim an iPad is essential for business clientele files and communication. Books and newspapers will never be the same if simply downloadable. Still wonder what will happen when batteries run out or if an electronic gets wrecked in rain?

Will business-people and everyone else be able to exist without their electronics? I was really apprehensive to completely rely on my work and appointment schedule being purely on my cellphone. Still have a paper day-timer and wall calendar. Am I becoming rare soon for thinking so?

Many people plug into their earbuds world and text message on their cellphones when they are done work or on the bus, and everywhere else - it's hard to have a conversation in the real with them sometimes.

It feels like a conversation lasting over five minutes is becoming a lost art. I couldn't start conversations on the bus anymore when I used to do that daily in college, mostly to practice my interviewing skills, but meeting really cool people. Not anymore for the past three years, even when I commuted daily to work.

Heard a recent survey of high-schoolers were unable to deal with not using electronic devices for just one day. One day only and they were overly lonely, depressed, anxious, absolutely bored and listless without their connections; some broke down halfway through the day.

Most probably even got all the homework finished and talked to their parents and friends in the real for the first time in ages. I didn't have a cellphone until the end of high-school. Only because I was training on a bike and out most nights with friends and I liked to check in with my parents. I doubt kids do that now unless forced.

Don't get me wrong, I'm glad I can check my email on my phone away from the house. It's convenient to text message someone for a few bits of info when I can't talk for long.

There's also an updated law in Alberta being passed for distracted driving -- with a $172 fine for grooming, eating and especially texting while driving. While driving? Is texting more important than safety? This is ridiculous that we're so multi-tasking in life. Can it not wait until a red light? Or ten minutes later when arriving, safely.... it's nuts. I admit I had to drop the habit of occasionally doing that stuff, but amazing to need pass a law.

It sounds dire and maybe I'm over-reacting, but it's becoming harder to stay in touch without computer and e-communication in this future now e-connectivity.

People will learn and adapt. Still, it's nice to actually talk in the real, use a land-line telephone or write a honest to goodness paper and pen letter. I keep meaning to dig out my film camera and shoot through a few rolls for old times sake.

Please do a favour and unplug from the internet and turn off the cellphone and texting once in a while. You never know what may happen or who you might meet. Then again, I guess my blogging would be unreadable, so come back occasionally ^_^

--PLR--

ps... want to hear the irony of the graphic? I found it on google images from a site called hackaday.com in a blog entry called cellphone jamming. apparently illegal and good to know....

Old Skool Movie Magic

It's May the Fourth (a Star Wars geek-out pun), so I'm watching Star Wars!!!

Laser-brain, scruffy looking nerf-herder, some-day you'll screw up and I don't want to be around to see it. So romantic.

Watching Star Wars, I'm feeling completely nostalgic to enjoying the movies with my parents who had gone to the originals when they were young.