Pigeon Racing

Well the long-awaited pigeon masterpiece has finally aired. Check out the story on our website:

http://www.okcfox.com/players/news/special_reports/video.shtml

It turned out quite well...I've got some extra stuff so I think I'm going to put together a weekend package that tours the Pigeon Museum in OKC. Also, I finally got put on the station's website in the talent section. When you visit the site, click on "Station Info" for me.

Cheers,
Phil

So I'm done with a long day at work. Severe weather coverage, plus getting screwed by NASCAR again. I just want to go home and relax. Too Bad! I get to my apartment and the lock is broken. It will turn to lock it, but will NOT turn left to unlock. I don't have the maintence number so I have to walk around the complex until I find someone on their porch. He doesn't have it...but luckily his neighbor does. I call...and wait. Nothing. There is a special line for lockouts that promises the on-call maintence person will be notified "Immediately."

For those of you concerned about what the defintion of "Immediately" is...let me let my friends at Princeton explain: "without delay or hesitation; with no time intervening."

So imagine my surprise when 20 minutes goes by. I leave another message. Again with my name, apartment number, cell number, a detailed description of what is wrong. Another 20 minutes later, I was pissed. This message started with "This is Phil Cross...I'm a reporter with Fox 25 and I live in apartment 1728 and I still can't get inside." I then left a message on the line for non-lockout emergencies...those involving property damage. Almost an hour from my original call...I am opening my personal cell to start leaving messages for other apartment complexes under the same ownership...half of Edmond, Oklahoma was going to know I was pissed. Finally my phone rings. It's the guy for the non-lock out line. He said he was sorry no one answered the other line. The message he heard was also me identifying myself as a reporter and ended with how they could find me "the guy in the suit pacing in front of apartment 1728." He arrived shortly and got me inside.

The apartment management is going to hear about this. I don't complain about much. I understand things come up, I didn't say a word the half dozen times I've been getting ready for work and there's either no water, or no hot water. Didn't complain when the people doing ceiling inspections showed up several hours early and I wasn't up yet. Nothing when they did construction early in the morning. Now, I'm super pissed. I'm inside, but still pissed. Time to just sit, relax and watch a movie.

Hopefully I'll get a new lock soon.

On Air Debut

Here's a link to our video player, click on "Thrilling Wedding":

http://www.okcfox.com/players/news/top_stories/video.shtml

Here's my review from our OKC news blogger:

Welcome to "Phil the New Guy"

Nice story on "Thriller". You got a great smile out of Britten, and thousands of men just enrolled in dance lessons.

He loves Britten, our reporter/anchor. Well he loves all the ladies in TV news, sometimes a little creepy, but sometimes very insightful. As long as I get a laugh from the ladies, I suppose I'll stay on his good side.

After I finished the story I was sent to the courthouse to get the verdict on a double murder trial. The judge made the jury stay until they finished, so that mean things didn't wrap up until 8:45, a tight turn to make it for the top our our 9:00 newscast, but it wasn't too bad since no cameras are allowed in OK courts (that sucks). So I had my first every live shot and it was hard breaking news. A very exciting night.

Cheers!

Moving to OKC

It's official. I'm moving to Oklahoma City. I am really going to have to get out of the habit of singing the song every time I write Oklahoma. Whenever I write it I get into the whole musical theme song. O-k-l-a-h-o-m-a....Okla-homa, hooray.

I have accepted a position at KOKH. It's the Fox affiliate in OKC. I will be working as a reporter/producer or producer/reporter. Semantics? Yes, but either way I am going to be a reporter, which has been my goal since I started college. I never thought it would happen, in fact I became very discouraged in the past six months over this fact. So much so I was actually going to get out of the business of TV news. I knew I didn't want to go to a tiny market and work my way back up, but I didn't think I could land any sort of reporting gig in a larger market. When I applied for this job I did so just because. Really I was just doing my passive-aggressive thing....I was upset with my job, so I was spending some work time applying for other jobs online. This one was something I thought was out of reach, but the next thing I knew I got an email from the news director and he was flying me down to OKC and offering me a job. It all happened rather quickly and everything just feels right.

Now I am stuck with the massive task of packing up my two years in Des Moines and moving my entire life south. I'll miss all my Iowa friends...no, let me rephrase that, I'll miss all my Iowa family Because over the past two years these people have become family.

Well it's off to do some more packing. Where did I put my cowboy hat?

Why I Hate Valentines

Ok...so it's not just because I'm bitter for not having someone. I am actually very comfortable with being single. I have a few more things to figure out about myself and what God wants to do with me before I go dragging someone else into my life. (However if you know of a single person who's just a little bit crazy, I'm all for that, so don't hold back).

It's not even because of the over-reaching capitalism. More power to the card companies if they can create such a stupid holiday and make people buy crap. That is the foundation of our economy. Figuring out how to make people spend money on stupid stuff. I love capitalism (except when it works against me).

Valentine's day is all based on the wrong ideas. First of all...you have this guy. A priest, Valentine. Some call him a saint. I would use that term loosely. Caesar ordered that no one serving in the army could get married. So what. You serve your time, then get hitched. Keep your pants on Rome. Let's also not forget that a guy with a family may not be so willing to run out into battle. And the big picture...he's the king. He can do whatever it is that pleases him. Yeah that throwing Christians to the lions thing wasn't so cool, but it's his army, he can do what he wants. So this Valentine punk decides to start marrying people. He gets caught. Caesar actually takes it easy on him...let's him off with a warning. I think that's rather fair. But does "Saint" Law Breaker take the hint? Nope...he keeps on breaking the law. Now, I can't really get behind the senseless violence that happens next. But Caesar has him beaten to death with clubs and then beheaded. Not only that, but he does it on the Eve of the Feast of Lupercalia. That feast was basically a pagen orgy. So really all of you "Saint" Valentine fans...really you're celebrating a pagen feast. Not his sainthood.

The other thing I really hate about "the day that shall not be named" is the hype that makes a person think that this is the one day to talk about love. In a relationship, love should continue to grow each day. There shouldn't be one day that you "have" to say how much you love someone. Is it really "love" if it is expected or forced? I won't even go into my theories on modern "love," needless to say. V-Day is stupid.

I suppose I have been bitter in the past of those people in "loving" relationships on this day. However I truly believe my feelings would be the same regardless off what my relationship status was on any one given day. I personally feel more lonely on the 4th of July than on Valentines. Because what fun is blowing stuff up if you can't share it with someone. What good are "oooh's" without someone to add an "aaaahhh" ?

So anyone free for the 4th of July?

P.S. Check out this link for more on the problems with V-Day:

Valentine bouquets 'are bad for the planet'

Ukelin and Case

Going Home

Well I'm getting ready to go home for Christmas. Never before has a vacation meant so much to me. Even in college with papers and tests and jobs hanging over my head, I would give anything at any time for just one extra day off a week. And since I've been having to come in on weekends...sometimes all I want is just two days off a week. Now I have a whole week. One week, no news. I hope that I can put things behind me and just celebrate Christmas with my family. The bad thing is that I am already dreading coming back to work on January 1. But it won't be so bad...probably. Here's to a new year, with a few less problems than this last one had.