Big Country Christmas

I’ve mentioned before how much I love the holidays and I’ve been having so much fun spending my first holiday season in the Big Country. What stands out the most is the generosity of the people here. I have a few examples.

I’d heard about Santa’s Helpers when I first got to KTAB and how full the studio would be of toys during the holidays. It sounded like so much fun! But I had no idea just how many toys we were in for!

When I walked to the set Wednesday, there was literally a small path I had to maneuver to get to the desk. The rest of the space was full of toys, games, dolls, bikes, balls - you name it. Everywhere you looked or walked there were toys!

We’ve been reading letters to Santa from the children in the agencies and what was really neat is seeing some of the specific toys the kids had been asking for. It warms the heart knowing that they’re truly going to have a magical Christmas.

Last weekend the KTAB crew participated in the annual Bell Ringing Battle with our sister station KRBC. We manned the Salvation Army Red Kettles in front of the entrances of the southside Wal Mart. My ears are still ringing!

But it was all for a great cause and I think everyone who shopped that day stopped to donate! Many people gave all the change they had. Others dropped in bills, some of them big. By the end of the day our kettle was completely full and we had to fold the bills into tiny squares just to get them in!

By the way, we won the battle!

So a big thank you to everyone who donated this year, not just to Santa’s Helpers or the Salvation Army, but to whatever charity you helped. It truly makes a difference in so many lives and that’s the best gift of all!

Room To Run At Camp Barkeley

If you’re a dog owner, you and your four-legged friend are in for a treat at Camp Barkeley! Abilene’s first dog park opened over the weekend and to rave reviews! Shelby and I got a sneak peak on Friday and we both loved it!

Dog parks are aplenty in Denver, where we lived before moving to Abilene and we made frequent visits so Shelby could run, frolic and meet up with friends. She didn’t get to do a lot of that in our townhome with no yard!

What’s great about Camp Barkeley is it’s size. Two whole acres are fenced off for large breed dogs. Another acre is next door for smaller pooches. Shelby’s about 30 pounds, so she could probably visit both. We’ll have to see which one fits us best.

There are benches for humans to lounge while the dogs run free, a water fountain for people and the canines and plastic bags and trash cans for easy cleanup.

Another great thing about dog parks is getting to meet other animal lovers. It’s fun to get to know the owners and their dogs and the pooches really seem to enjoy making friends.

Shelby and I are already set to meet up with friends at Camp Barkeley. I think we’ll visit a lot. Hope to see you and your pooch there!

Fall Fun In the Big Country

I love the fall. It's one of my favorite times of year. I love feeling a chill in the air, the scent of a fireplace wafting through the neighborhood. I love the rich colors that come with fall. Shades of brown, red, orange and dark yellows.

I've had a ball so far this fall in the big country. It started with a visit to Disability Resources Inc.'s Pumpkin Patch. I've never seen so many pumpkins! And they come in so many shades! Not just orange. I saw green, yellow, red, white, even pink pumpkins! I filled up a cart with about 10. I just couldn't help myself. I put a few of them on the porch with some mums, some smaller ones on the mantle and then a friend and I carved four of them. We used one of those pumpkin carving kits and made some really cool designs! It was a fun night!

Boo at the Zoo is another fun Big Country tradition that I experienced for the first time this year. I was a little worried it would be canceled because of weather, but it cleared up just in time. And what a turn out! The place was packed with all kinds of ghosts and goblins. My favorite costume was a young man who used purple balloons to dress as a slice of blueberry pie. I also met a couple of toddlers who came as Pebbles and Bam Bam.

Fall to me also means football. I'm a huge football fan and the Crosstown Showdown lived up to all the hype! We did our 5pm and 6pm shows from Shotwell Stadium. It felt more like a small college game than a high school game - folks tailgating in the parking lot, students painted up in their school colors. Such a fun atmosphere!

I love fall. Definitely one of my favorite times of year. But my absolute favorite is just around the corner - Christmas! I can't wait to see what the Big Country has in store for the holidays!

European Vacation

It's no surprise to the people I grew up with that I'm a journalist. I've always been curious, inquisitive and eager to explore. It's served me well over the years and now it's leading me in an exciting new direction. I'm obsessed with traveling! I want to see the world!

I'll have to do it a little at a time, though. Seeing the world isn't cheap. I just got back from a two-week European vacation that took me more than a year to save up for. But it was worth it!

I went to Germany, Austria and Switzerland with a group of friends who also have a passion for travel. We've sort of formed a little travel club. Over the last year we met several times for "planning sessions" to discuss our trip, book hotels, decide what tours we wanted to do and how much luggage we'd allow ourselves to take (I'm known as an over-packer, but I'm getting better!).

The first stop on our journey took us to Munich, Germany, where they were celebrating the 200th Anniversary of Oktoberfest. I'm from Louisiana, a state known for excessive celebration. I've survived several Mardi Gras weekends and Tiger Stadium on Saturday nights after big wins. But I've never seen anything quite like Oktoberfest!

To mark the occasion my friend Mike and I decided to dress in traditional German attire. We had so much fun shopping for his lederhosen and my dirndl. I think we looked great!

We mingled with locals and other tourists on the grounds of Oktoberfest. Huge wooden structures they call "Beer Tents" are assembled just for the occasion each year. They are packed and you have to get an early start if you want to get a table. Bands continuously play German folk songs. By the end of the day we'd either learned the words to most of them, or made up our own. They only serve beer and just one kind. For food, it's pretzels and wiener schnitzel. But the cuisine isn't really the attraction here.

We spent three nights in Munich. We also toured Nymphenburg Palace and spent at least an hour roaming the beautiful grounds. We made stops at Olympic Park and outside BMW Headquarters. The building is shaped like a 4-cylinder engine!

While in Germany we also toured the concentration camp Dachau. It was a somber experience to say the least, but well worth the trip. It gives you a better idea of the atrocities that happened there, a lesson you can’t learn in a history book.

From Germany we made our way to Austria. First stop Vienna. Our hotel was right on the Danube River, which is wide and blue.

One of my favorite stops in Vienna was St. Stephen’s Cathedral. It’s in the heart of the city and a truly spectacular piece of architecture, both inside and out.

We also visited two palaces in Vienna. The Belvedere and the Schoenbrunn. I love palaces. I love touring them thinking about the royalty that used to gather there. I also love exploring the meticulous grounds, their flower beds exploding with color.

Dining in this part of the world is always interesting. One night at dinner I told the waiter I wanted a traditional Austrian entree’. He brought me a huge slab of some kind of fried meat. We think it was pork. It was good, but I barely finished a fifth of it.

On the way back to our hotel one night, we stumbled across the carnival at Prator Park. On a whim, we popped in. We ended up taking a ride on the bumper cars and a spin on one of the tallest swing rides in the world. It took us up 300 feet. It was windy and cold, but probably the best view of the city we could have asked for!

From Vienna, we headed to Salzburg, perhaps my favorite stop on the trip! It's a beautiful city. I could get lost in "Old Town" for days with its cobblestone streets, cafes and endless shops. The Salzach River runs through town and is the most beautiful turquoise color I've ever seen.

Highlights in Salzburg included the Mirabella Gardens, Fortress Festung Hohensalzburg and another Oktoberfest Celebration! But the Sound of Music bus tour was the best way to see the area. Not only did it take us to several of the sites used for filming in the movie, it also took us to the Lake Region just outside of Salzburg. Stunning doesn't even begin to describe it.

But for fans of the movie, this was an exciting and informative adventure. We saw the lake where Julie Andrews and the children fell in and we learned the child who played Gretl couldn't swim! She nearly drowned while filming! We also saw the gazebo where Liesl and Rolf did "I am 16 Going on 17". They had to lock the doors to it, though, because so many people were trying to reenact the scene and kept falling and getting hurt.

We wrapped up our trip in Lucerne, Switzerland. We'd had perfect weather up until this point, so we were due for rain. And we got it. It rained most of the time we were there. Lucerne is still beautiful, even in a fog. The Chapel Bridge connects "Old Town" and "New Town". It's a beautiful, old, wooden pedestrian bridge flanked in colorful plants. White swans crowd around it hoping the tourists will toss them a treat.

We took a cog train up to the top of Mt. Pilatus, which we're told offers a breathtaking view of the city on a clear day. On the way up we saw lots of cows and goats with big bells around their necks. By the time we made it to the top, the rain had turned to snow and we were not dressed for that!

I can't say enough about this trip. It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. I love seeing other parts of this beautiful planet and can't wait to start planning for my next adventure!

A Few Thoughts On Katrina

If you’ve never been to New Orleans, I hope one day you’ll go. There really isn’t another place on earth like it. Along with a heavy layer of humidity, there’s something in the air there that gives you a sense of hope and pride. You breath it in and for the moment all is right with the world. Anything is possible.

A strange feeling seeing that five years ago this weekend very little was right there. But a lot has changed in five years.

As I reflect on one of the biggest news stories of my generation and certainly of my career, I don’t want to spend a lot of time dwelling on the things I saw the night mighty Katrina blew into town or the days and weeks after. It’s still a lot to take in. It’s still difficult to process.

The staggering loss of life haunts me to this day. The official death toll from the storm is 1,836. The majority of those deaths can be blamed on the catastrophic failure of a weak and neglected levee system. It’s hard not to be angry about that.

I spent the hours before Katrina made landfall outside the Louisiana Superdome. I had done the same thing a year earlier when Hurricane Ivan seemed to be on a direct path to New Orleans. Once again I found myself interviewing residents who’d come seeking shelter.

Like the year before, I met a lot of people in the line waiting to get inside. An elderly grandmother with her two young grandchildren in tow. A single mother holding tightly to her baby. A woman who helped her father push her handicapped mother up the wheelchair ramp. As I was talking to these people, it never dawned on me that some of them wouldn’t make it through the next few days.

I saw a lot in the wake of the storm. But that’s what I remember the most. The people I met that night who’d innocently come looking for shelter only to be lining up for what would become a nightmare.

Some of my dearest friends live in New Orleans and I’ve made several trips back to the city since Katrina. The recovery has been slow, but steady.

Many homes have been renovated or reconstructed, but they sit next to the shells of homes whose owners aren’t as fortunate or determined.

Many businesses have reopened but their customer base isn’t what it used to be. Thousands of their patrons never came home, opting or forced to start over somewhere else.

But there are people in New Orleans who are determined to see their great city rise again. They overcome obstacles and hardships everyday. They press on, though. And if they are scared or overwhelmed or feel defeated, they don’t let it show.

They are the ones who fill the air with hope and pride. They are the ones who make it seem like anything is possible. Like even in a place that has seen pain and suffering of the greatest proportion, all can be right with the world - even if just for a moment.

Something New Around Every Corner

I haven’t moved around a lot, but I have lived in a few different places and certainly, there’s always a period of adjustment that comes with moving. Especially if you move to a town you’re unfamiliar with and don’t know a lot of people. It can be a little frightening. But it’s also a lot of fun!

Fun, because it’s a time for discovery. When you’re new in town, you never know what you’re going to find just around the corner. Everything is an adventure and so far in my short time in the Big Country it’s been an exciting one.

A couple of weeks ago some friends at work asked if I wanted to go see a movie. We all work the evening shift, so it had to be a late one. When I checked listings online, I stumbled across the website for the Town and Country Drive-In. Who knew? So we piled in my car after work and headed for the 11p.m. show. None of us had ever been to a drive-in. In fact, my only experience with it was the scene in Grease where John Travolta sings “Stranded At the Drive-In”.

Since it was our first time there, it took us a few minutes to figure out the best place to park. First we were too far away, then a little too close, then just right. Then we had to angle the car a little so our friend in the back could see better. Once we were parked and the previews started, I realized I should have cleaned the windshield. That’s not something you have to think about normally before a movie!

What a fun experience, though! I can’t wait to do it again.

Another event I’m looking forward to attending again, Art Walk. My friend Laura and I went to the last one in Downtown Abilene. We strolled around enjoying the live music from the small bands set up along the sidewalks. It was so much fun browsing all the vendors’ tables checking out their handmade wares.

It was hot out that day, so we popped into Cypress Street Station to cool off and have some dinner. That’s one of the first places I visited in Abilene when I was here on my job interview. It was as good as I remembered!

Speaking of dining, I got a special treat last week when I met up with Katherine Lane in Albany for lunch. We went to Sander’s Drug Store. What a great place! I had a southwest chicken salad sandwich and some creole soup (it was like they knew I was coming!). So yummy! And what a neat place. The tables were filled with locals, all chatting away. It reminded me of the snack shop in the little town where I grew up.

I’ve got a lot more exploring to do. But I think I’m off to a pretty good start. Who knows what I’ll find around the next corner. I can’t wait to find out!

I Think My Dog Has Roid Rage!

I’ve been in Abilene a little more than two months now and things are going great. I’ve made some wonderful new friends. After a rather daunting move, I’m finally getting settled in to my new home. I’m even able to get around town without having to constantly check the GPS, although, I’m not about to leave home without it! I’m settling in just fine.

My dog Shelby, on the other hand, is having a little trouble. Shelby came into my life unexpectedly about a year ago. She belonged to my best friend who lives in Shreveport, LA. Shelby is allergic to fleas! To her, one flea bite is the equivalent of 100! You can imagine the flea problem in Louisiana. My best friend had been working hard to keep Shelby flea free, but it was a challenge, especially with a toddler and another baby on the way. So we decided Shelby should come live with me in Colorado. Fleas don’t flourish in the high altitude!

Shelby and I immediately bonded. She’s such a sweet girl. And so far, fleas haven’t been a problem for us here in Abilene. I’m very focused when it comes to giving her the flea control each month!

But after a few weeks here, Shelby developed a cough and was constantly licking and gnawing on her feet. It turns out she has allergies! Hopefully, they are seasonal. But for now, she’s on a steroid and it’s making her a little testy! She even growled and barked at one of the cats the other day. She’s never done that!

She’s not coughing or chewing on her feet anymore, though, so the medicine seems to be working.

In the meantime, we’re adjusting things at my house. Shelby gets her own room for now, so the cats won’t bother her. The steroids make her very thirsty, so she gets lots of water and lots of “outside” breaks! Her favorite activity is riding in the car, so we’re doing more of that, too!

Hopefully she won’t have to be on the medicine too much longer. It’s sad to see her fidgety and nervous. But underneath it, she’s still the sweet girl she’s always been, although my cats might not agree!

On The Road Wraps Up In Anson

I can't believe our On The Road Tour has come to an end. What a great week we have had. And what a great send off the town of Anson gave us Friday night.

We set things up at Anson City Park in front of the new playground. We had a huge crowd. Lots of folks who live nearby walked over.

The police chief was there with his new cruiser. It's got all the bells and whistles. We also got a visit from some of the organizers of the Anson Cowboy Christmas. They even wore their beautiful costumes.

My Anson Amazing Race Team was a good one. We won the Road Block and gave Manny (who was filling in for David) the yield. We found every item on the scavenger hunt list, but so did Bob's and Sam's. We ended up winning, though, because my team screamed the loudest!

Kaitlin Sprayberry took the stage first. She has a beautiful voice.

We finished off the entertainment part of the night with all the KTAB staff singing along up front with Zach Harmon!

Our On The Road 2010 Tour was a huge success. It took a lot of work, though. So a big thanks to our KTAB crew that put it all together. They were amazing!!!

I really enjoyed learning more about all the communities we visited and meeting the nice folks of the Big Country.

On The Road In Brownwood

I can't believe our On The Road Tour is almost over. We had such a great time at our 4th stop on the tour in Brownwood Thursday.

We were set up outside the Depot and had another great crowd!

Folks from The Turtle were on our 5pm news featuring lots of yummy menu items. Their homemade gelato was a big hit!

After the news it was game time. The Amazing Race Scavenger Hunt was a big success! Not only did my team win the Road Block (we gave the yield to Sam's team) we had the most items in the scavenger hunt!

Dinner was from Underwood's Cafe. It's a Brownwood staple and I now know why. The bar-b-que was amazing, but I think the peach cobbler was my favorite (I do have a sweet tooth!).

Wesley won Brownwood Survivor. He outlasted the other contestants even after eating fried crickets! They come in 3 flavors. Salt and vinegar, bar-b-que and sour cream and onion. No, I haven't tried any of them!

Local band County Road Nowhere took the stage first. Another fun Texas Country band. Then Zach Harmon and his band hit the stage before our 10pm news. I've heard them play every night this week and I'm still looking forward to tonight's show!

It was a fun ride home in our VIPSportsGetaway.com Coach. Bob, Sam, David, Austin, Laura and I watched Anchorman and laughed all the way home!

We wrap things up tonight in Anson. We're hoping for a big crowd for our last night On The Road!

On The Road In Sweetwater - Snakes & All!

Sweetwater! Boy do you know how to have fun! Our 3rd day On the Road took us to Newman Park - Home of the Rattle Snake Roundup! Have I mentioned I'm abnormally scared of snakes? More on that later.

Once again we had a great crowd. A lot of them came over from the pool in Newman Park that was packed when we pulled up.

I met brothers Dalton and Taylor from Sweetwater. They made me a beautiful red, white and blue bracelet. What sweet boys.

The folks from Big Boy's Bar-b-que stopped by the V.I.P Sports Getaways bus with tons of delicious ribs, chicken, sausage and brisket.

I had another great group for the Amazing Race Scavenger Hunt, but Bob's team beat us by 2 items. And Sweetwater Survivor was a photo finish! The winning time through the obstacle coarse was 8.7 seconds. The 2nd place finisher came in at 8.8 seconds!

Our live entertainment consisted of two great local groups. The Cory Bivins Band kicked things off with some great Texas country. Then Zach Harmon and the guys were back again. The dance floor was packed. I even got a two-step lesson from a sweet girl named Ashley and spun around a few times with a cute toddler named Cody!

We wrapped things up with our 10pm news. The Sweetwater Jaycees were on with their famous rattle snakes, but to keep me from running screaming to the bus, Sam did the interview about 25 yards from our set - just to be on the safe side!

Tonight we're headed to Brownwood. We're setting up at the Depot and hope to have a big crowd.

What a great week we're having!

On The Road In Eastland

Day 2 of our On The Road Tour took us to Eastland Tuesday. What a beautiful downtown square! And what a loud crowd!

Our hot dog booths, inflatable jump houses and games were all back. I might be in a little trouble with Bob. During The Amazing Race scavenger hunt my team won the "yield" and voted to give Bob's team the "road block"! Sam's team ended up winning. They found every item on the list!!! Even a mechanical pencil!

We met lots of fun people, including Francie from Francie's Fountain and Deli. She brought by some yummy sandwiches and some of the best homemade cookies I've ever had! Cafe Rico also dropped off some food at the V.I.P. Sports Bus. Their enchiladas and tacos were also delicious!

The Zack Harmon Band was great again. This time their opening act was the Leon River Cowboy Church Band and they were a lot of fun. There seemed to always be someone on the dance floor.

Once again the crowd stuck around the entire night and screamed all the way through the 10pm News!

Thank you Eastland for such a warm welcome. Can't wait to head to Sweetwater today!

On The Road In Albany

If our night in Albany is any indication, this is going to be a fun week! We kicked off our On The Road Tour on the grounds of the Shackelford County Courthouse. What a beautiful building and town square! And what a crowd!

It was great broadcasting our 5pm and 6pm newscasts, but the fun really started after that! Live entertainment, hot dogs and drinks, a scavenger hunt, Albany Survivor (Congrats Laura!), even one of those booths that blows money around and people have a minute to grab as much as they can.

Local singer Lindsey Roberts performed for the crowd first and has a beautiful voice. Then The Zack Harmon Band put on quite a show. (They have some great original songs and do a rendition of Purple Rain that would make Prince proud!)

I thought the crowd would thin out by our 10pm newscast but it didn't! It was such a fun night. I can't wait to visit Albany again and see the new friends I made.

The journey continues. Day 2 of KTAB On The Road takes us to Eastland!

Unexpected Road Trip

This week I got a chance to drive through parts of northwest Texas. It wasn't the way I had planned to see the sights. I had to make a return trip to Denver for the rest of my things the movers I hired didn't bring.

My sweet sister made the trip with me. We had a great time catching up on the way back in the Penske truck.

We stayed the night in Amarillo. It was a windy evening when we arrived. We could smell the stock yards in the air. We both got a chuckle remembering what my dad used to say about that smell.

"That's the smell of money, kids," he'd say.

We also thought about Dad when we drove through Lubbock and saw all the crops on the side of the highway, the irrigation systems parked idle on the side. So much rain had fallen. Dad would have been jealous to see all those wet fields.

It's great to be back in an area that reminds me so much of growing up. My dad grew cotton and raised cattle on our farm in northwest Louisiana. He passed away five and half years ago and now my brother is farming and raising cattle on the same land.

I know Dad would be thrilled that I'm here in the Big Country!

Settling In

What an exciting time in my life! I'm in a new city and have a new job at a great television station!

I've been in town for about three weeks and Abilene already feels like home. People are so nice here. And my new friends at work have been amazing helping me get settled in at KTAB.

My mom has been in town for a couple of weeks helping me get settled into my new home. I bought a cute little house in town and am really enjoying getting it decorated. It's been hard becasue so far the movers have only delivered half of my stuff from Denver!

I'm anxious to get out and explore the Big Country. I'll be sharing some of my adventures with you, so if you have any suggestions on things and places I should see let me know!