I survived!! I made it to Friday after a week of waking up at 1:30 in the morning, woohoo!
Now that I got that out of my system...on to more important matters. This weekend marks the first time in my television career that I'll have Saturday/Sunday off. I've gone big time my friends. So here are a few observations from my first week on the new shift...hidden perks of working from 3-11 a.m., obvious obstacles to living a 'normal' life, and other ramblings of a sleep deprived reporter. - PERK: when you drive to work at 2:30, there's actually music playing! no annoying ads or radio hosts who talk for hours about a prank they pulled on an intern the week before. also, I hate when they do those ads that you think aren't ads at first until you realize they're peddling a weight loss pill or laser hair removal. If my calculations are correct, every radio DJ in St. Louis has been stick thin and completely bald from head to toe since at least 2006. - PIT: sitting in a live truck at 4 in the morning makes you a prime target for ALL the remaining mosquitoes in St. Louis. Special thanks to the blood sucker who got me in the arch of my foot Wednesday morning. The gift that keeps on itching. - PERK: you always beat the lunch crowd when you get to restaurant at 11. Winning. I got to check out Bogart's BBQ in Soulard this week as well as Magpie's in St. Charles. The BBQ was pretty amazing (I had the pulled rib sandwich..yummm) and Magpie's patio is one of the best on Main Street. - PIT: it's just realllly hard to care about what your hair looks like in the middle of the night. Pretty unfortunate when you have to appear on TV either way. Okay, that's all I've got for now. Hope you weren't expecting anything profound. Now I'm off to enjoy my weekend...by taking a nap immediately. Have a great weekend and thanks for reading! -em
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I've known this schedule change was coming for about a month. I wished for it for much longer than that. But no matter how much I tried to prepare myself, the 1:15 alarm yesterday morning was quite the rude awakening. This time last week I was working in the bureau. Trying to soak it up but very ready for a change. Now I'm sitting at home, forcing myself to write so I don't fall asleep and ruin any chance of a good night's rest. Morning show problems. I learned SO much in this space. Obviously a great majority of that wisdom came from pure osmosis...directly from my friends Chris Nagus, Scott Pelley and the Big Bang Theory cast. But the rest of my personal and professional growth was hard-fought and sometimes very frustrating. I also fully acknowledge that my experience on North Main is probably the first and last time I will work in a newsroom with nice new furniture and windows. I soaked up every inch of that natural light. Unfortunately I think I only spent 10 minutes total on that couch in the 14 months I worked there. What better way to wrap up a legacy of localized beat reporting than a trip to Forest Park for the Balloon Glow! Honestly, I was exhausted by Friday after the six. But I was committed to plans and realllly excited about the possibility of some quality fair food. Yes, the hot air balloons were pretty cool. The corn dog, however, was epic. I won't even torture you with a picture. I washed it down with a gallon of kettle corn, grease dribbling down my hand and wrist. It really was beautiful. Always something I've wanted to see, not to mention the sweet fireworks show at the end! I've never been so close before-- we literally watched them shoot off the ground. Any malfunctions and I would have taken a bottle rocket to the face. Looking back now, not such a good idea. That's what happens when you're in the midst of a corn dog coma. To my surprise, the next afternoon, I got to see the balloons again. This time from a very different vantage point. I was filling in on the nightside shift (my last weekend shift before I my Mon-Fri schedule kicks in!!), covering some Illinois highway closures. My photographer pointed out those weird looking UFOs floating over the skyline. I had Sunday and Monday off and attempted to relax before the big switch. Lots of anticipation and because I wasn't sure how to prepare, I decided to drive out to my hometown. Makes sense right? Only an hour and totally worth it. Even for the awesome yoga class I went to with my mom. Third floor of an old building, with the windows wide open and sunshine pouring in. I feel more zen just thinking about it. Before we went to lunch, we stopped by the city park to check out the Moving Wall-- really cool. It's a scaled replica (half the size) of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Very moving. A lot of people worked hard to bring it to Washington and I'm so glad I got to see it. Thousands and thousands of names, each who left behind a family wishing they could be together on every Christmas, birthday and special occasion. I just realized that the title of this post suggests a recap of first week on the morning show and I technically still haven't gotten there. My apologies. I blame the sleep deprivation even though it's only been two days.
Anywayyy...Tuesday morning arrived VERY quickly. I was actually pretty awake that day and excited for the new adventure. I'm still working on getting a desk in the downtown newsroom, but everything else (minus exhaustion) has been great. I've really enjoyed working with the morning team in the past, and this week has been no different. It takes a patient group of people to come to work between 12 and three every day and I'm lucky to be working with them. Two more days...no naps so far. My sleepy tea has helped and my morning show friends say melatonin is a lifesaver. I will report back. For now I'm off to run errands and pinch myself to stay awake until 5 o'clock rolls around. Ah, the glamorous life of TV! |