Split Second Staccato: April 2009

Monday, April 27, 2009

i spent some time in howell, which is nestled in a valley near the idaho border, with a population of about 250 people. they turn 100 this summer. so we did a story. it was raining like crazy all day and not a soul was outside. i found my way into two homes -- where I interviewed a dairy farmer and the oldest man living there. they fed me ice cream and talked about the olden days and were just so content living tucked away miles from even the next small town that the rest of the world seemed to fade behind the foggy curtain of clouds. video is here.

kids playing military

a fake deployment at the afb so the military offspring can understand what their parents do. and maybe so that one day they will join as well.

Sunday, April 26, 2009

fla pt2

fresh eye: what is it about seeing more when you're in a new place?
a wonderfully carefree weekend and so good to see andy again.
he organized j-day like a big shot event planner and after i got over the fear that i really didn't have to say much to the students, it was great to talk to them and i felt inspired too, about pursuing what you truly want to do.

pork chops

apart from the alligators, pork chops made a great impression on me. he didn't like me too much and tried to bite me when i touched his wiry bristles but his giant nose was in the way. oink oink.

journalism students

need i say more?

gun control

is there something weird and morbid about ucf young republicans handing out toy guns during lunch break with questionable statistics on them...in light of all these crazy campus shootings over the last couple of years?
i thought so. sorry.

fla pt 1

i finally made it to the alligator state where beautiful girls ride roller skates in bikinis all day long and your car screeches to a halt so crocodiles can cross the road safely.
it smelled sweet like swampy brush fire and red flowers, and the number of retirement and near-retirement estates was pretty mind blowing as was the colony of gators yawning and digesting fish by the river.
did i say i saw alligators?
anyway. here.

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

iron bodies

i'd never seen bodybuilders competing and was pretty busy soaking up that culture behind the stage. it seems that here our obsession with the perfect body somehow reaches its peak. i somehow had this moment that once i forgot about the sport and heard their stories, saw a little deeper, it made the whole body image thing both comprehensible but at the same time obsolete.

little sleepyhead

box elder ranch

life moves slow up in that corner of the state -- deliciously unpretentious it chews its way through generation after generation.
i also branded a bull, who luckily didn't seem to care much.

feature

for a feature story.

bye snow

it's the last week of sliding on slush at snowbasin. they still have plenty of snow up there, but for most folks down in the valley spring has started and their skies and boards will be collecting dust for the next six months.

because they know i like fruitsies

i've been getting all the veggie assignments lately.this one was for a story on unusual fruits. so unusual we couldn't get all of them into the studio at the same time. so unusual we had photos of them sent to us. namely the pluot and the spiky kiwano melon. i tried the purple potatoes though, which disappointingly just tasted like potatoes...