AprilDudash Keeping it on the record.

Pizza and windy weather: The Big City

Posted July 5, 2010 at 17:05 in blog

The trek to Chicago from Indianapolis takes about three hours. You pass cornfield after cornfield while trying to suppress the urge to pull off onto the side of the highway and take a bite into the first husked ear of goodness you see.

Then there are the windmills. They take up miles of farmland and spin in lazy yet productive circles. I felt like I was sucked into an alternative energy commercial.

If I had a time machine...

Posted June 21, 2010 at 00:12 in blog

SPJ Headquarters got a letter in the mail last week from a middle schooler who said she was interested in becoming a reporter. The membership coordinator looked at the letter and handed it to me, saying I should write her back.

I had to think about it for a while. I didn’t want to freak her out…telling her about the state of the industry would certainly do that. I could just imagine her eyes going wide as she read the letter and then saying, “Er…nevermind. I’ll stick with becoming a lawyer, thanks.”

Multimedia: The Butterfly Hunter

Posted June 19, 2010 at 21:09 in clips

Senior Collections Manager Andrew Warren talked with me about the millions of butterflies stored at the University of Florida McGuire Center. He invited me to spend part of an afternoon hunting butterflies in a field behind the museum.

A 'Lost Boy of Sudan' Dreams of Medical School

Posted June 10, 2010 at 00:12 in clips

During the spring semester, the University of Florida ABC News On Campus bureau was told to work on a final group project. We found a Jacksonville man with an incredible story.

He is a Lost Boy of Sudan, which means he is a survivor of the Sudanese Civil War. His father was murdered before his eyes, and he fled with thousands of other boys from their villages, searching for safety.

Graduated, Moved and Settled

Posted June 9, 2010 at 22:10 in blog

So much has happened since we last chatted, blogosphere. I have a four-year degree now! Hooray! On April 30, I walked down the aisle, got to sit on the stage and was given a B.S. in journalism. I hugged some great mentors and role models during my walk from college into the real world.

I was also awarded the journalism college-wide Dean’s Cup for Service and the Society of Professional Journalists department award, which was such an amazing honor.

Then I went to Disney World for four days and braved the Tower of Terror. (Can that thing drop any faster? Gravity, yeesh.)

Cold Weather Tough on Florida's Manatees

Posted February 23, 2010 at 03:03 in clips

Part of the ABC News On Campus bureau (Vic, Vanessa and myself) traveled down to Crystal River last week to document manatees getting released into the wild.

A Town Hall with Pizazz

Posted February 14, 2010 at 18:06 in blog

Seven panelists. Dozens of students. Delicious subs. Questions, musings and advice on the future of journalism.

All of these things came together to create a town hall forum at the end of January. The theme of the forum was Integrating New Tools with Traditional Journalism, and students got the chance to ask questions about their future careers.

The UF Society of Professional Journalists, The Fine Print and Campus Progress co-hosted the event. Lydia (co-editor of The Fine Print), Travis (Fine Print’s web guru) and I (president of UF SPJ) met up a bunch of times before the event to discuss what we wanted it to be. What did we want to create?

Univ. of Florida Awaits Tim Tebow Ad

Posted February 1, 2010 at 01:01 in clips

I had an article posted to the ABC News Web site last week regarding Tim Tebow’s controversial Super Bowl advertisement. It was linked on The Drudge Report, the story generated more than 1,200 comments and it was the most e-mailed story on the ABC News site for a few days. Pretty exciting stuff!

'Tis the season

Posted November 30, 2009 at 18:06 in blog

The TV station recorded my voice for a commercial today while I was at work! That was strange. And I talked about health foods as gifts for the holidays.

So if all goes well, these pipes will be on cable. It still feels like a random, weird achievement.

Speaking of the holidays, there’s only one more semester left until I graduate, and that fact is rapidly sinking in. Friends and fellow journalism majors are starting to plan their “real world” fates. The intense search for internships has gripped the entire journalism college. It’s starting to feel like an episode of Survivor.

Blogging from the Back Line

Posted October 5, 2009 at 01:01 in blog

Making things up on the spot. Being center stage. Playing with invisible props. Sound crazy?

It can be. Most of the time.