J-School Reunion

I graduated from Drake, and I love the Bulldogs (that's me sitting on a bulldog outside Olmsted), but if someone asked why I went to Drake I will always say it was for the journalism school. There was a J-School reunion this weekend and even though I'm only 3 years out of school and serve on an alumni committee, I was still proud to go back for a panel on the changing media and learn about the future of the school. I loved my time there. It prepared me in so many ways for the what I'm doing today, what I'm passionate about, but there's something more than the learning that draws me back. It's the people, the professors like Prijatel and Renkoski who invested in our ideas and taught us how to create magazines and write and be informed journalists. It's the classmates who I spent countless hours with dreaming up a magazine and filling its pages with stories and people. I take it for granted that I still get to do that today.

Walking in Des Moines

I walked home from work today. I actually wore my winter coat for the first time this morning, but it was sunny this afternoon and I figured it may be one of the last times I can walk home. After daylight savings this weekend it will be getting dark a little after 5 and if we move (like we're hoping too) I won't be close enough to walk home anymore. So I headed west on Grand under the glowing trees, walking through the crackling leaves and enjoyed some quiet time. Sometimes when I walk home I use the time to make a phone call. I love catching up with a friend or talking to my mom about the day, but instead of multitasking I let myself just walk and think and pray. It was kind of nice for a change. Something I should probably do more often. But I'm such a good multitasker (Ask Adam. It drives him crazy when I fold the clothes, talk on the phone and have the TV on in the background) Sometimes it's OK to do more than one thing at once. Like when I finally take time to iron and watch TV to distract myself from the task. Or listening to NPR in the morning on the way to work. But there aren't many times in the week when I do nothing. It goes against my nature. So if (and hopefully when) we move into this adorable house on Kingman Blvd. I will miss my walks to work. Even if I give Adam a hard time that I have to walk and he can't pick me up. So today, I enjoyed the walk. Now Adam's working late so I'm camped out on the couch, finishing Beneath the Marble Sky (my first bookclub book) and waiting to take banana bread out of the oven. Life is good.