Live Life

My thought for the day:

I came home in a crabby mood yesterday. 1. I was tired of driving and sad to be back in Kansas again. 2. I had convinced myself that I will not be getting the job in Lexington. I mean, I think I have a good chance for this job, but lack of experience is holding me back (all it takes is a more experienced candidate -- and trust me, there's plenty! -- and I'm out).

So I moved my luggage in and promptly took a nap before I could affect my family with my bad mood -- no one deserves to deal with my crabbiness. :) Now it is time to face reality. I'm hopeful, but just in case this job in Lexington doesn't work out and the one in CA doesn't work out, I need a Plan C.

Hmmmm. Maybe I should expand my horizons. The Middle East? Africa? France? How cool would it be to be a journalist in another country!! ha, as long as I have all the luxuries I'm used to, it'd be great! ;)

On that note, there's an internship in Topeka, KS, I am applying for. So much for leaving the country, let alone my state. :( But I need lots of experience...and I'm SO not getting it while I'm spending my days writing cover letters and laughing at our three adorable kittens...

Speaking of which, it's time to awaken the kittens for some playtime! Oh the life of a jobless college graduate :)

Ugh...So much for exploring Lexington today. I'm stuck in my hotel room with a bout of crazy sickness. No idea what happened, but I started feeling sick right after the interview was over. By the time I reached the hotel, I didn't think I was going to make it up the elevator to the 4th floor to my room. Ugh...I hate being sick. It's not the usual sickness tho -- just achy muscles, queasy stomach, and an intense headache. My muscles hurt like crazy and no amount of pain reliever is helping. :/ bleh. But it's OK because I'm working on the editing test for this position at HF. I have a week to complete all the papers, but I'm going to try to finish them tonight...(got to be an overachiever in this job market!!)

OK, back to the editing test...and the Tylenol. I've got to make copies of the editing test at Staples before closing time.

hey all you bloggers,

After 15 long hours (with some serious phone conversations, a lot of music, and a couple close calls [every roadtrip has them]), I am finally in Lexington, KY ... and in desperate need of a hot shower and a massage for some serious back and neck therapy. The hot shower will come tomorrow but the massage will have to wait until all this world traveling is over. ;)

I am eagerly anticipating my interview with Thoroughbred Times tomorrow. But for now I'm going to plunge into my King-size bed (the sheets look divine -- I am so obsessed with comfortable sheets -- sateen are my favorite!) and do a quick review for tomorrow's interview. 10 a.m. tomorrow will come soon enough!

"Dreams are like stars...you may never touch them, but if you follow them they
will lead you to your destiny."

I love this quote, because I don't expect all of my dreams to come true, but I do think it's OK to follow them as much as you can!

Job development

Good news!!

I am driving to Lexington, KY, for an interview with the editor of Hobby Farms (a part of Thoroughbred Times) on Wednesday! I interviewed with Karen (the editor) over the phone last Friday, and now she wants to meet face to face. I'm so excited! The position is an associate editor of Hobby Farms and Hobby Farms Homes and will include work on the print and the web -- which is great because I am ready to hone my web skills!

While the magazine's subject matter is not my passion, I am very familiar with farming, agriculture, equipment (John Deere all the way!), and, ha, of course horses. (Anyone who knew me as a 10-year-old will remember that I was obsessed with horses). But I am excited because I am passionate about magazines whether I am writing about interior design (check out March/April issue of Southern Accents when it comes out at the end of this month -- I guarantee it will be fabulous!!), fashion (Ken Downing says this Spring's skyscraper-high stilettos and wide banding look great with ankle length pants and I can attest to that) or tea (yeah, I applied for this magazine called Tea Time in AL. The interns never let me forget that).

So where does this leave Porterville? I have decided if I am not offered the position with this magazine in KY, I will accept the job in CA. However, the catch: is the newspaper willing to wait for me?? I've told Glen and Anita (the editors) my situation so now the decision is in their hands.

Magazine jobs are highly coveted and highly competitive, so pray for me next week -- I will need it!

Ha, and if I don't get either one of these jobs, I will always have a job at Bath and Body Works. Yay for retail!

This morning Anita and I attended the world's largest ag show in Tulare to shoot photos for the paper. No matter where I go, I cannot get away from farming. ;)

Thoughts so far: LOVE California (check out the photos and videos below!!)!! The newspaper is like any other but the staff is phenomenal. Porterville is small but cute (see downtown Pville clip) and is 3 hours away from LA, 2 1/2 hours from the beach and 2 hours from the mountains. Bottom line? Still have a lot to think about!

The city of Porterville!

Orange groves are all over in CA

WOW! I experienced a dose of Mayberry with a Western spin today. Just as I finished that last post, Anita, the assistant managing editor of the Porterville Recorder, came by my room and drove me to a concert by a local country band. I thought I came from the cowboy central of the world but Poterville makes Dodge City seem somewhat civilized. Not a single man in that room was without wrangler jeans, a cowboy hat, and a beer. While the band was performing, a bunch of couples started square dancing! ha, I was about to grab three of the single cowboys to dance with me. ;)

After the concert, Anita and I toured the newspaper office and met Hugo, the newsroom assistant (such a sweet guy!!). Hugo grew up in Porterville so he drove me all over the town to see the sights. Tomorrow I'm going to a farm show with Anita and then lunch with the editors. Plus a trip to the police dpt, city hall, and the library, then to top it off, dinner with the publisher.

Thoughts so far: Great town, great people in an amazing state!! But still not sure...we'll see how tomorrow goes!

Hey, Hey.

I'm in Cali! Specifically, I'm sprawled out on the bed in a Porterville hotel room attempting to organze my lavender portfolio (fyi, lavender CAN be professional -- the color is thought to inspire creativity) with my favorite magazine and newspaper clips. Tomorrow I'm modeling journalism at its best to the Porterville Recorder!

OK, great. But why the random post/blog? I started blogging as a freshman at DCCC but stopped my junior year of college...errr...didn't intentionally stop, more like kind-of forgot and kind-of got too busy. But due to the personal advice of the Southern Living travel editor (great guy! lots of talent and very inspiring!) during my Time Inc. internship, I decided to hone up on my multimedia skills. After all, the web is the "new" journalism and I intend to keep up (ideally, stay ahead of) the trend with posts, video clips, and photos focused on my journalism endeavors...and keep tabs on my ultimate goal to become editor of a magazine.

My first tab to achieving my goal? Visiting the Porterville Recorder office to meet the staff! If there's time, they're even going to show me around the town. (*cough,* that shouldn't take long).