Five for Friday

 I can't believe it's already the weekend. Time flies when you're covering Little League, apparently.

1. Write on: The baseball teams I'm writing about both have a good chance to advance to the title games Saturday. So I may be doing double duty, championship style, which is scary and exciting.

2. Reservation for one: My mom arrives in Phoenix on Tuesday, and I can't convey the level of my excitement. It's been four months since we last saw each other, but it feels longer. I'm stoked to show her the townhouse and all the area has to offer.

We're planning a trip to the Grand Canyon, which I've dreamed about since I did my 4th grade state report on Arizona. It will be nice to just spend time together in person, too, something a lot of people take for granted.

3. Birthday boy: Bruce's Day of Birth is next Saturday, so I have to finish shopping for and creating his surprises. Happy early 29th, my love.

4. Thrifty recap: We did some bargain hunting last weekend and found a few cool local second-hand and vintage stores in our neighborhood. Post with pics coming soon.

5. Dressing room: Time permitting, I will experiment with the blog design again. I like how it currently looks, but there's always room for improvement.

 

 

[Source]

Return to journalism: Day 2

My thoughts and observations from the second day of the Babe Ruth Pacific Southwestern Regional Tournament. 

• Little League baseball has the equivalent of those toddler beauty queen stage parents. I saw their craziness first-hand in the opponent's dugout. Note to psychos who shouldn't have been allowed to breed: It's only a game.
• There's always a story to tell ... No matter how big or small you think it is. 
• Journalists touch people's lives as evidenced by the countless "thank yous" I've received from the Tri-Valley community for covering the tournament.
• Journalism is best experienced without office politics and douchebags.
• Sometimes the best interviews happen in the parking lot after the game when you least expect it.
• Covering this tournament has reminded me why I love journalism the past few days. 

Day 2 stories:

Tri-Valley 13s defeat Central California at regional

Tri-Valley 14s roll past Westchester

Hello, old friend. Remember me?

Well, it's good to be back. And by back I mean putting the pen to the paper [the keyboard to the screen] again. I stepped away from writing as I pursued and fell in love with the visual and editing sides of journalism. But as kindred spirits often do, I've reunited with my old friend, this time via a blog. I've wanted to start one for some time as I've been captivated by a slew of online interior decorating sites. Further motivating this new adventure is Facebook's ever-changing landscape. As much as it keeps me updated on people, the new profile format and looser grip on security are cause for concern. I'll still post on Facebook, but "Turn Up The Rad" will give me another outlet that, hopefully, will allow me to rediscover my passion for writing, sharpen my HTML skills and keep those non-Facebookers informed on what's happening in my life.

So what can you expect to find in my little corner of the blogosphere? A whole lot of rad ish. Topics will include, but are not limited to: music, the interior design of the townhouse, sports, current events, homesickness, pictures, my travels, discovering Phoenix, more pictures ... probably of my cat, and whatever else I think you should know about.

Contemplating the football team's Rose Bowl appearance next season at the top of Camelback Mountain. GO COUGS!