New Beginnings

I am from Oklahoma and I expected to have to get to used to a new way of doing things when I moved here to DC. I have always thought, because I had never been out of OK prior to this, that my home state was behind the times (so to speak) but I was wrong. OKC is just as modern as any other city in the US. Except, maybe with tattoos, since they weren't legal until about two years ago, and the conservative liquor laws.

So, I thought it would be interesting to look at the similarities and differences between the two cities: DC and OKC.

Here in DC,I hate not having a car, but I wouldn't want to drive in this city (and I don't say that because of driving laws and one way streets, we have those in OKC). I say that because the drivers here are insane! No offense to anyone, but sheesh! It is a much more aggressive driving situation.

I work at hyper speed back home and it is nearly impossible to get anything done in one day here as I could there. That is due to two differences: the reliance on public transit and the difference in store hours in Washington DC. OKC has many 24 hour stores, so you can get whatever you need, whenever you need it. It is not like that here. But, that's DC, I guess.

Other than that, the cities are pretty much the same. So, it really wasn't that difficult to get used to. Though, I really loathe walking...

All of that aside, I am glad I am here. There are more opportunities here for a career in journalism than there are in OKC. Back home the biggest paper there is the Oklahoman, owned by the Gaylords. They are very conservative and very Republican... here I am interning at Market News International and I love it. It is a wire service and I love the fast pace and turn around time. I love doing something different every day and meeting so many new people. It is a real challenge and I love challenges.

I am slightly nerve-racked on account of I graduate in December and have to find a job...but I am less nervous now that I have something like MNI on my resume. Also, I get to go out and cover stories everyday, so I will get a lot of material for my portfolio.

Changing gears a little, there is a song by One Republic that I love and it has become something of an anthem for me...it's called "Stop and Stare" and does a wonderful job describing how I feel at this point in my life. I look at everything I want to do in my career and I see people doing it and I wonder how long it will take until I am finally there, too...

Anyway, no more insight. Back to being in DC. I am very grateful for the opportunity to be here and if anyone reading this ever gets a chance, you should take it. If it seems like a once in a lifetime opportunity, it is and you won't get another chance, so take it and run as far as you can with it. I read a book, "Who Moved My Cheese?" I don't remember who wrote it, but it poses the question, "What would you do if you weren't afraid?" I try to keep that in mind when I have to make big decisions.

I hope you enjoy reading this...have fun where ever you are.

Winding down!

Whew! Another cold day is almost over. YES!
I compared yesterday's weather, Jan. 27th, to today's and it's a little better.
The weather here is nothing like GA. It's always cold and it seems like the sun stays hid all the time. Down south it's like you want the sun to stay hid for that extra second. But here, it's totally different.
Once again I took the metro to my internship. I miss Diesel, my car, so much. I hate walking to the metro then walking to where I have to go. So much walking here and there. It makes you realize just how blessed you are t have a car. Even if you have a pinto for a car, walking everyday would make you realize just how lucky you are to have a pinto.
While at my intern, I did my usual, looked up business headlines. It started out kind of slow for me, being that sports is my best area, but everyday I'm getting better at it.
I arrived back to my place that I now call home, City Hall, around 7:30 and got settled in. I washed and dried my clothes. Something else that I kind of dislike. Why? Because I'm used to having the washer and dryer in one place along with the detergent. I walked all the way down to the laundry room to only realize when I got down there I had forgotten my washing powder. So of course I had to walk back upstairs to get my box of Tide.
Afterwards I chatted with my mom. I miss my family, church family and close friends like everything. It's not the same without having them around. My friends, especially Rico, knows exactly how to make me laugh. I always have a blast with him and my cousin Ticket (James).
Oh well, guess I'll get myself together and get ready to work on our project that's due Friday.
Our first project was about President Barack Obama's Inauguration. For our project we based it around then, Inauguration Day, and then afterwards, meaning after everything was over. It turned out nice.
Until next time take care & be blessed!

Introductions

My name is Jen Bischoff and I am from Oklahoma. I attend Creighton University.

This semester I am at GW and interning at the Salt Lake Tribune Washington Bureau.

I love my internship and the SWIJ program.

Amos, Susan and Andrea have been great teachers and friends. From lectures to field trips, we have already learned so much from them and the journalists who work in the city.

I already have a couple bylines for Sltrib paper and the two guys I work with are great!

They are both from Utah and very much into politics.

They have a lot to teach and I have a lot to learn during my time with them.

For the 2009 Inauguration, I covered the Utah Marching Band, who performed in the Inaugural Parade. I spent twelve hours in the cold, but it was worth it just to be there (even though I didn't vote for Obama.)

Within the two weeks I have been here, I have fallen in love with the city and can't

wait to experience all it has to offer! I just hope I have enough time to experience it all.

Take a minute to check out sltrib.com to see some of my work.

Inauguration Day!

Events of January 20, 2009

12:00 am: Go to bed

1:24 am: Fire alarm goes off in dorm; whole building is evacuated and all occupants stand outside for 30 minutes while they check for the "fire"

2:00 am: Defrost and return to bed.

4:55 am: Regular alarm goes off. Time to get dressed and grab video camera to head out.

5:15 am: meet SIW friends, Jen and Laura, to have a quick breakfast and head to the parade route.

5:45 am: Walk out of dorm and cheer because we're so excited! We followed the crowd on the streets who were all walking toward the mall. We didn't really want to go to the mall, but all the streets were blocked off, so we kinda ended up at the Washington monument by accident. Also: I ran into one of my HS friends' dad on the way. What are the chances?!

6:00 am: By now we're getting frustrated that we're still walking near the mall and have been told by 3 separate officials to go a different way to get to a parade checkpoint, all three of which were dead ends.

7:00 am: Finally find a parade route entrance. We're about 200 yards from the security checkpoint. I don't think I've ever seen so many people at one time in my life. Ever. Except for the few complainers in the crowd (about the weather, bad direction-giving, confused volunteers, crabby secret service agents, etc.) everyone is really happy, excited, and randomly shouting Obama! or singing/cheering, etc.

8:00 am: It's light out now. We walked about 100 yards closer to the checkpoint at 10th and Constitution but are definitely not going anywhere anytime soon. Amos assigned a 3-minute film about the Inauguration for class, so we start shooting quick snippets of what we're up to. Spirits are still relatively high although we're getting realllllly cold.

8:30 am: Strongly consider returning home due to the weather and the fact that we've barely moved closer to the checkpoint in the last hour. We probably would have except for the fact that a.) my mom would have been so disappointed! b.) we had no idea how to get home due to all the crowds/road-closures, c.) Jen has to write an article for her Internship about the Salt Lake City marching band (this was our most persuasive reason, I'd say).

9:00 am: Things start to get miserable and we still haven't moved. The three of us start singing patriotic songs, and then move onto hymns, motown, camp songs, other misc. church songs, Disney classics, you name it. We were taking requests from the crowd in no time. They were pretty shy about joining along, but we had a few additional choir members from time to time.

10:00 am: The singing has made the time pass amazingly! Our spirits are raised and so are those of the people around us (we'd like to think, anyway). Unfortunately, we still haven't moved and we receive news that the checkpoint at 12th and Constitution is nearly empty.

10:05 am: We RUN to 12th and Constitution.

10:15 am: Get in line amongst new checkpoint crowd (yes, there's a crowd. We learn the hard way that "nearly empty" means different things when we're talking Inauguration day.) We meet our new standing-neighbors, include them in our video, and discover that this crowd is packed so tightly that we can purposefully fall in any direction and not even move! Great fun!

10:16 am: We've got a vast majority of the new checkpoint crowd joining us in The Star Spangled Banner and God Bless America. We like this new crowd!

11:15 am: We're in!!!!! Very cold, but very happy!! Parade starts in 3.5 hours.... what to do?

11:20 am: We begin interviewing parade-goers about their Inauguration day experiences. We ask: Where are you from, What are your least and most favorite parts of the day, and, If you could ask Obama one question, what would it be? (stay tuned for link to the video!) It was very interesting to hear everyone's varying answers.

12:00 pm: We stake out a spot on the bleachers (yes, we get to sit for the first time!) and realize that we've somehow made it into a tickets-only area where they aren't letting in anymore parade-goers. Although this is very exciting news, we're getting QUITE chilly again.

12:05 pm: We begin, along with 90% of the nearby crowd, to dance to the music being played over the loud speakers in order to keep warm! Great fun!

12:20 pm: Obama is sworn in! Cheering, yelling, rejoicing, and dancing everywhere! Everyone is SO happy! We sit down to listen to his speech, which is great and distracts us from the fact that our toes are turning purple and may fall off. The whole of the parade route goes eerily silent while listening to what he has to say.

12:45 pm: Return to dancing and notice the police standing nearby making fun of us. This does not bother us.

1:00 pm: Trying to keep busy. We're not allowed to leave our "exclusive" section so we don't loose our spots, but this means no bathrooms, food, warmth, or change of scenery!

2:00 pm: All hapiness is gone. Extremely cold and contemplating leaving, except for Jen's damn story. humph.

2:30 pm: Parade was SUPPOSED to start now.... we get a clue that this isn't happening anytime soon when they start sharing inauguration trivia over the loud speakers.

3:05 pm: I give up and leave my "exclusive" spot to go inside (which is outside the security checkpoint). I know what you're thinking. Yes, I did wait for over 9 hours to go inside RIGHT before the start of the parade.

3:10 pm: I've gone to the bathroom and am watching the parade on a giant screen with a decent crowd inside the Historic Post Office food court eating a delicious gyro and french fries.

3:15 pm: Parade has begun, but has not yet reached our previous standing post. I notice Jen and Laura inside getting hot chocolate, also having exited the secure parade area. We watched the start of the parade inside and cheer along with those outside while we defrost. I decide to head back because I cannot get the idea of sweatpants, sweatshirt, a couch, a chai, and CNN out of my mind (where I am right now!)

So, I left Jen and Laura there and took the metro (no small task due to the crowds... but it was helped by the fact that I found a metro ticket worth $13.50 on the ground!). I'll be very interested to hear if they made it back out for the Salt Lake marching band.... the thought of being back out there gives me nightmares, but they seemed determined! I'm so impressed!

Even though this was a long, cold, and draining day that didn't result in me seeing the parade, I don't consider it a failure. This whole entire city looks like Mifflin street in Madison after the block party, only all the beer paraphernalia is replaced with hand-warmer wrappers, styrofoam coffee cups, Obama trinkets, and Inauguration information guides. It was AMAZING to be among all the "party people" this morning and this weekend who have come from all over the US and world to welcome Obama into the White House. It sounds weird, but one of the coolest parts of the day to me was to observe all the people who were dancing to do ANYTHING to stay warm, or peeing in satellites with no toilet paper, or standing in line for hours and waking up at 5 am all to show Obama that they are overjoyed and inspired that he is our new president.

Basically, even though the people who stood on the mall or waited along the parade route were certainly uncomfortable, they we're still astonishingly excited and cheered louder than ever when Obama walked (!) past. This morning was a perfect combination of an incredible and horrible experience. I'm so glad I was here to experience it, but I will NEVER do it again!

I'll post our video once we make it, and I'm going to go back to watching the parade while I'm nice and warm on the couch!