BALTIMORE – For the past couple of months, when the topic of how I do laundry came about – usually in passing – people usually are surprised when they hear me say either I have to drop it off or pick it up.  At that point, people ask me what am I talking about?  Then I explain that I use a wash and fold service.

“You pay someone else to do laundry?”

Yes, I pay someone else to do laundry.  Because I spend a good deal of the week coming up with journalistic hotness, I don’t really have the time to sit in a laundromat.  The closest Laundromat to me these days is in Catonsville (I moved to the city late last year.)  Driving to Sudsville takes about the same amount of time for me to drive to Charles Village to this wonderful place where there is a wash and fold service that is comparable to the one I used in Baltimore County when I was living near Randallstown.

Also allow me to make something else clear, I am not monetarily well off.  It is one of those situation a where I can afford something that is equal in coat if I did it myself.  I suggested a wash and fold to someone equally as busy and it has changed their life.  Now if they can only not take 50 pounds worth each trip.

At that point, I was brought back to fulfill a role that I had before the economy went down, Saturday director.  Some would say all I do is push buttons…well in some aspects, they are right but even that takes talent sometimes, particularly when you are dealing with talent and a clock so the affiliates can happily fill their ad inventory.   By the end of 2010, I was brought back to the same full-time position I held, only slightly modified.  I was off on Sunday and Monday and I worked in the afternoons (read: do not have to deal with rush hour traffic.)  Granted, I was still commuting from Baltimore County, Md. which is an hour away but it was more money than what I was making at my then previous employer.

I was still looking for something closer to my home which came in March of 2011 when I joined WNAV full-time.  I have been happily commuting to Annapolis ever since.  I still held on to Radio America on the weekends because I needed the money.  The one hour commute to Virginia was worth it because I would make something at the end of it and it was a good situation in regards to people.  It was also nice to be behind the scenes.  At some point, I would have gotten tired of the commute.

That happened one day last year, I woke up in my apartment in Windsor Mill and said to myself, “I really don’t want to drive to DC today.”  At that point, the drive got to me.  Not that I was dealing with traffic on Saturday that DC normally has during the week.  It was a 50 mile trek from Baltimore overall (I live in the city now) to the Radio America studios in Arlington, Va.  I knew that I would need to get something closer to home (more on that at the appointed time).

So as I look back at my time at Radio America I can take away a couple of things.  For starters, the fact that God can take away and restore.  Why I was fortunate to have been returned to the same job I held with everything still left in tact (and I mean everything down to the files in the cabinets,) I cannot answer.  Professionally, I learned the importance of leaving as the good guy and why you don’t want to give anyone a reason to throw a going away party after you go away.

In regards to my next step, I did find something close to home and a step up overall.  Why I have been blessed with this particular position is above my understanding, let alone my pay grade.  I am thankful to God for opening the door.

As of today,  a long commute to DC will only happen once in a blue moon.  I can’t say that DC will no longer be in my vocabulary because I still have family down there and it’s in my DNA, growing up in Prince George’s County.  However, I can embrace being a full-time Baltimorean starting tomorrow.  That also includes only needing to fill my gas tank once a week (Lord willing.)

There have been two big news events that happened in the past couple of weeks – gay marriage in Maryland and the death of singing sensation Whitney Houston.  After following these two stories on twitter, there is one thing in common between the two.  Yes, I in my finite wisdom…FINITE wisdom…have found something in common between gay marriage and Whitney Houston.  The one common thread after following these two stories on twitter is that…people are very, very disrespectful.

Let’s start with the death and funeral of Whitney Houston.  People were going nuts because New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) decided to lower the state flag at half staff to honor her contributions to society as a whole being a native of the Garden State.  People were outraged because of Houston’s personal demons and that she is not a soldier who died while defending the country.  Christie defended his decision while highlighting that he has issued an executive order for flags to be lowered for each soldier from New Jersey who has died on the battlefield.

There were two people who criticized coverage of the funeral; I literally challenged them to walk on water and make sure that I am there to see it.  Yes, Whitney made bad choices – no Bobby Brown did not help matters any but he is not to blame – but she is still a human being, her negatives should not outweigh her good, but at the same time you have to talk about the two Whitney’s.  There is 24 hours in a day and news networks did the right thing in airing this because of the strong public interest in it.  Yes there is important things to cover, but you can only repeat the same stuff but so many times.  Above that, no one is perfect.  If you say you are perfect, you are not perfect.

Now let’s get to gay marriage in Maryland.  Both sides had passionate arguments, but at times that passion got the better of both sides at times.  To that point, State Senator Richard Madaleno (D) had to tell a tweeter in favor of same sex marriages to be respectful.  Not that the opposition at times was all that respectful.  Overall, watching these two stories over the past couple of weeks makes me all the happier to be a story teller once again.

Yes, my commentary was biting and I profited from the very thing that I am criticizing.  I could be sanctimonious and say that the difference between me and THOSE guys was that I went with my convictions and I was trying to bring people to see what I am saying; I would be full of it at that point.  The one thing that I can say is that I tried to be intellectually honest whenever I had a comment and would not tolerate spin, even from those in which I agreed with.

Do not twist this entry.  Debate is good; discussion is good.  However, when it is at a point where both sides refuse to agree with each other for no reason but to keep their side looking good, I cannot nor will I participate in the madness.  In fact, i refuse to participate in the madness.  As Jim Morrison would say, “the time to commentate is through.”  I am saddened when I watch FOX News Channel and MSNBC which is relying on its editorial department and not it’s news reporters.  CNN is OK, but I missed the days when I can tune in at any time (except at 9:00 p.m.) and expect to see a newscast.  I really miss tuning in to Headline News knowing that I can get a regular newscast and not some woman who plays prosecutor, judge, jury and executioner to the point that it led one woman to kill herself.

Yes, reporters are not sexy…well except for Peter Jenning.  He was referred to as “Stanley Stunning” after all – but he knew his stuff.  Reporters are not as boisterous as talk show hosts or commentators.  As much as it is not realized, we are paid to report the truth and nothing but the truth.  As you may not be aware, reporters have gone to jail – even in these United States.  Before you start with the “journalists are no better,” I say yes we are.  If there were no TV journalists in particular, the rest of the country would not have known how the south was treating black people.  Reporters have been killed abroad for simply doing their jobs – reporting the truth, separating fact from fiction.

If there is a discussion and everyone is respectful – which includes my blackness not being questioned and/or my viewpoint not being ridiculed – I am there.  From the looks of things, I do not think that will be the case.  With all of this in mind, I am happy to be a full-fledged reporter once again, where the only thing I have to worry about is getting the story straight.  I don’t have to worry about defending myself from those who choose intellectual dishonesty.

I know it’s been a while since I have write an entry on this blog.  I will be sure to do so more often this year.  It’s not a resolution, but it’s something that I should probably do more often.

Since we have last…errr…ummm…since I last wrote something for my blog, I have moved from Baltimore County to Baltimore City.  For those of you who do not live in Maryland, the city of Baltimore has been independent of Baltimore County since the mid 1800s.  So to distinguish the two, we refer to the city as “Baltimore City” and the county as “Baltimore County” (duh.)

Truth be told, I have always wanted to live in Baltimore.  I probably grew up watching Baltimore TV more than I did DC TV.  I remember aiming my antenna towards charm city in the morning to get WJZ-TV (Channel 13) to watch Don and Marty, when Don’s hair beard was darker and Marty had a sort of mullet a la former New Jersey Governor John Corzine (D).  I remember being a member of the Captain Chesapeake club on WBFF-TV (Channel 45) and the Fox 45 Clubhouse with Steve and Kenny (and later just Kenny.)  I grew up an Orioles fan…because Washington did not get Major League Baseball again until 2005.  I assure you that Peter Angelos has pissed me off enough times that I proudly wear my Nats gear along side my O’s gear…and my Nats gear when the two teams play each other.  I’m still from Prince George’s County and every bit of the uppity Washingtonian that I am expected to be…

Let’s stay with the sports theme for a minute.  I do not know if it is because I am living in a city that I have always dreamed of living in, but there is something about Baltimore that came out to me during the Ravens most recent run towards the Super Bowl.  I have been in the metro Baltimore area for two and a half years, but how this city has pulled together behind it’s football team, how all of the hopes and dreams of this city which gets dogged at every turn, I saw a spirit of pride that I have not seen in DC.  I saw a city with heart, a city that passion, a city with a determination that despite it’s problems, it will survive and it will show the world that it can make it.

Yes the Ravens lost; it was a big let down.  I was one of the many who saw the game and was heartbroken when Billy Cundiff hooked it.  The city was still proud about what the team did in making the run to the Super Bowl.  Members of this year’s team will be heroes for the time to come.  I have only been a resident in Baltimore City for four months.  My memory of this most recent football season, watching the Ravens in the post-season, will remain with me for life.  The Ravens not only lifted the pride of the city, but the spirit of the city as well.

New Nersey Network 1971-2011

For those of you who missed it…and you probably did…New Jersey Network went off the air June 30, 2011.  That means no more NJN News which gave a state who is in the great shadows of New York and Philadelphia it’s own nightly newscast is silent.

This was precipitated by Governor Chris Christie (R) who wanted to no longer fund a state-run public television and radio network.  The state has been taking bids on who will take over the television operation.  It should be noted that NJN Radio, which never had full state coverage, was sold off to two entities.  WHYY in Philadelphia took over the southern tier stations of NJN Radio.  From the looks of things, they will do nothing but simulcast it’s main signal on those stations.   The northern tier stations, including Trenton, was taken over by New York Public Radio and will form New Jersey Public Radio.

The television operation was not sold, but the management rights were contracted out to (wait for it) WNET New York (ok, this can be nerve racking, but go on.)  WNET will set up a New Jersey based operation with decisions and productions based in New Jersey (feeling a little bit better.)  We will run things economically (not surprising, the way of the industry thanks to technology and other factors.)  They will have to have a nightly newscast and carry important speeches such as State of the State (good.)  There will be increased coverage on state government (awesome!  I’m a political reporter and analyst, I cannot help but be excited.)

As you can tell with my “innermonolouge,” I am glad to see that this new entity know as Public Media New Jersey, who rechristened NJN as NJTV, was going to be committed to New Jersey…then WNET topper Neal Shapiro did a great job of smashing that.

From Current.org:

Shapiro said NJTV’s nightly newscast, New Jersey Today, will be modeled after PBS NewsHour. Its in-depth coverage and interviews will contrast with NJN News, which has more field-produced packages…Shapiro said field-produced reports are no longer high priority for public TV newscasts in places where local cable newscasts are satisfying viewers’ need for “rat-a-tat” stories.

(AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!)

Keep in mind, I have no problems with the PBS NewsHour other than the fact that it is on when I’m at work (or sleep from working the entire day), but there is a unique set of circumstances here.  For starters, not everyone has cable.  Next step, New Jersey receives about a third of the attention AT MOST from their respective major markets.  Public broadcasting is largely seen as a place that picks up where the commercial broadcasters are not able to continue on.  For Shapiro to downgrade the necessity of a newscast like NJN News on public television is unfair and should be a slap to every journalist.  In essence, it’s like saying that your work in informing people is irrelevant.

Granted, he has some heavy hitting credentials under his belt, including a long run at NBC News, but I believe that he is sorely mistaken and under estimating such a need for a conventional newscast on public broadcasting.  He believes that 15-20 people with partnerships can make a successful newscast.  This is disheartening knowing his credentials.  The number of people he is referring to can certainly cover a city and county well, but not necessarily a state.  Personally, if I want to see video from the Newark Star-Ledger, I would go to their website, I would not necessarily clamor to watch it on “NJ Today.”

So here comes July 1, and they have the Summer Edition of “NJ Today” (OK, I understand, things take time to set up…hold that thought).  If the first summer edition is an indication of what the newscast is, they are probably better off NOT airing a newscast until the fall.  There was only a short news segment with the big chunk of it covering the state passing the budget.  Then a long interview with Gov. Christie and a long interview with Shapiro, who I guess was on there trying to smooth things over with former NJN viewers.  Then the end of the newscast was the ultimate filler piece…they went to the boardwalks and the streets to find out what you like about New Jersey (UGH!).

This is the first time I have ever been insulted by public television, as a viewer and a professional.  I hope that during the next few months this new entity will take the time to hopefully reconsider this PBS News Hour cloning process and give adequate news coverage to state so often ignored…not as much as Delaware, but from the looks of things, it looks like it is heading that way.

Yes, the Bible says that no man knows the hour (Matthew 24:36 and Mark 13:32).  However, in the midst of the fun, someone on facebook wrote something that caught my attention.  As I mature more and more, I’m finding myself taking certain things more seriously…especially when its a call to prayer for those who “left their jobs, sold their goods and STOPPED LIVING.”

As I read that, sitting here in my office in Washington, 45 minutes after the predicted time of the end, I started thinking about those who really did believe that we would have been caught up in the rapture by now.  Knowing how flimsy the beliefs are of some people in this world, the reality is that some did put their trust, their weight and their lives behind this belief that the world was going to end at 6:00 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time on Saturday, May 21, 2011.  I read one Reuters story where the guy paid more than $140,000 of his savings in advertising to promote something that the Bible clearly says is unpredictable.  In Baltimore, that’s the price of two or three row homes or three nicely equipped whips (that’s cars for those who are not acclimated to slang.)

By way of background, the guy who made the prediction is Harold Camping, leader of a group of religious stations known as Family Radio (DISCLAIMER: Family Radio owns WFSI-FM in the Baltimore Area.  Due to the signal being licensed to Annapolis, Md. they are considered competition to the radio station that I work for.)    Camping made a prediction that the end of the world, Judgement Day, is coming May 21, 2011, using some number crunching and Biblical references to come up with the date and the time.

People listen to these stations and people bought in to this and have done exactly as my friend had said, stopped living and threw their lives to the wayside.  The more that I think about it, the more that scares me because no one is willing to check the truth for themselves.  The Bible does say study and properly study the word of truth (2 Timothy 2:15).

To further that point, I was thinking about this today.  What if the end of the world really did happen?  Am I really prepared?  Have I have presented my best as a believer?  Have I caught up in the areas where I have fallen short?  Am I ready?

First and foremost, we should pray for those who were misled by Mr. Camping, who I propose needs to do more research…although he doesn’t have to use number crunching, it’s plain as day.

My prayer, in addition to that, is that this will push those who believed that the rapture would be coming today to a closer relationship to God.  I also pray that for those of us who knew that the rapture would not be coming today, we start thinking about making sure we are ready for when it really does come.  Since we do not know when that is, we should be working towards that mark everyday.

I know this seems kind of odd considering my comments and one liners over the past week, but like I said, as I mature, and come across things that make me go “hmmmmmm,” I cannot help but to do an about face in some areas in order to stay consistent with my aim of becoming the person I believe God wants me to be.

Yesterday, I had a field recording for a weekly public affairs program for the station I work for, WNAV-AM Annapolis.  This is one of two recorders that I keep in my go kit (the other is a Tascam DR-07).  Once I realized that passing an ENG Microphone was not going to work, I pulled out the Zoom H-2 and used the built-in microphone.  It was able to record everyone at normal level.  I did not have to do a whole lot of post production with the actual recording.

The one thing I would recommend if you do use an external mic with this recorded is to use a 1/8″ adapter that is L-shaped.  I believe that is part of the reason why I wound up buying the Tascam.  However, this recorder will give you a lot of bang for the buck.  In fact, you can also use this as a USB Audio device.

The best package deal that you can purchase for this is from BSW where they also throw in an extra 1GB SD chip.  For $139 with free shipping and a free memory card, it’s nothing to frown upon.

Zoom H-2 from BSW

If you are a journalist or an aspiring journalist, please take care in how you word your leads.  Take for example this from Saturday’s CBS Radio Feed for the morning.

SLUG: FEDERALLY FUNDED CIRCUMCISIONS

VOICE: Gomez, Joe Reporter
LENGTH: 32
LEAD: As the debate continues over reducing the nation’s budget, one group thinks it’s high time to put federally-funded circumcisions on the chopping block. Joe Gomez reports from Houston…
OUTCUE: for CBS News, Houston.

That is all