I recently embarked upon the traditional college experience of
changing my major! Not that I didn't have fond memories of supply and demand curves, I just realized they were not what I wanted to do with the rest of my life! (P.S. Dad, I
know business isn't just about supply and demand, but if you don't like the basics, then what will you like? C'mon!) So I decided that I would go the Communication route, and that is how I wound up in my first
ever college writing class, emphasis on the reporting! The day before, I was chatting with my mom, joking that I was going to wear my black bowler hat with the the "press" written on the rim. She said no. Bummer. No worries though, I still had lots of jargon going for me! "Hot off the Press! Get 'em while they're hot!" "Wire that, stat!"
So the day I had my Reporting and Writing class I walked across the street all bright eyed and bushy tailed, ready to take on the world. Well as most people know in comedies, especially in Sex and the City (Carrie Bradshaw = my ultimate idea of good journalism at the moment! Is that twisted? Never.) whenever someone makes a wide sweeping declaration of confidence, that usually means everything they have going for them, is going down the drain in the next scene. When I got to my class my professor gave a brief intro, stating what he has accomplished and such and such, he was a pretty well versed journalist, still writing freelance pieces while teaching. Then he made a comment about wearing the "press hats" and showed us his legit NEWS notepads. You know, the kind that flip from the top and you have to look frantic while copying down every word in an interview. He then told us one of our assignments was going to be keeping up on current events, which I was so eager about, I always wish that I knew what was going on in the world! The only down point of the class was that he crushed the stereotype that a press pass gets you into anything your little heart desires. Well there goes the Carrie Bradshaw-esque red carpet premieres and hot club openings! Dang!
Never the less, I left class with spring still in my step, determined to get ahead in the class, I was not to fall victim to the Sex and the City stereotype! So I walked the two blocks to Border's hoping to get my very own flip notebook. I found one that looked pretty classy, it was small and could fit in my back pocket. I had visions of flipping it open at a moments notice and interviewing people, man-on-the-street style. I went to check out but couldn't find the newspapers, I figured they had been bought out for the day, strike one. Then the lady rung up my little notebook and to my surprise it was $15! Too embarrassed to admit that I thought that was OUTRAGEOUS, I paid for it and vowed to come back that next day to return it. Then I went outside on the street and thought about buying a newspaper from the street vendors, strike two, I had no change. So I decided that ING Café, in the bottom of Baumhart was sure to sell the newspaper. I walk in there, but all they have is copies to rent and read while you sit in there. I wasn't about to sit in the coffee shop alone, I wasn't a real journalist yet or anything! So again feeling embarrassed, I forced myself to buy an ice tea pretending like that was the reason that I stumbled in there. I don't even like iced tea. Strike three.
I bumbled back to my room and retold the story to my roommate who offered me some change to go get the newspaper from a vendor. So later I walked downstairs, got a paper and went back to my room to read it. I had just bought the paper from yesterday. In the span of about two hours I went from having more energy than a cheerleader on Speed to having my pep balloon completely deflated. But it's ok, because the best thing about having Carrie Bradshaw as a role model is that after every fall she always stands back up - in really
fabulous shoes.
