Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

So I'm a little late posting this, but better late than never right. I have a Christmas memory to post for you. Most people's are about baking cookies or snow and sorts-mine is a little different.
I did get permission to post this-well sort of you. I just told my mom I was going to post it. Sorry mom, but if I was stand up comic I would be telling it across stages everywhere.
So, when I was a little girl my mom and dad bought this giagantic Christmas tree, I mean huge. One much bigger than my tiny mother. You'll see why that note is important later.
Well the darn thing kept falling over after we put it up. I even remember the tree lost its green luster and turned to a strange gray brown color. I don't know if it stopped sucking up the water in the dish below it or what?? But it sure was getting ugly looking.
Well, let me tell you my momma had had it with the Christmas tree from you know where. On Christmas Eve the tree fell one last time. This time Momma said "That's it." She opened up the french doors that led to a porch overlooking our backyard. With one big swing little momma threw out our sad big Christmas tree ornaments and all. Daddy and I didn't say a word, we just sat there looked at her. We were to scared too. I don't know if you've ever seen a red headed woman mad on Christmas Eve because her Christmas tree wouldn't stay up, but it's not a place you want to be.
So that's the Christmas we spent without a tree...well we had one it was just laying in the backyard. Momma did play ball in high school she's always had a good arm, we didn't know until that day though she could throw trees!!! By the way, now we have artificial trees so momma is happy during the holidays and doesn't have to spend time throwing trees out doors. Love you momma!!
Hope everyone has a safe and Happy New Year.

Salsa Dancing

So last night I show up for my regular Yoga class and was greeted by a new class-Groove. It's a combination of salsa dancing and urban dancing. While I'm missing my yoga on Mondays, I really enjoyed Groove. I love to salsa dance and jam.
So this is really like going back to my high school days. Jazz class one day a week and ballet-except the classes have new names and totally different structures. Yoga and Groove. Of course these classes are not based on technique like the classes I trained in growing up. But it's enough to keep in shape, and it's fun.
Maybe now I can out dance our resident dancer at the station Barry Hiett.
The only class I'm missing is Tap-when is my gym going to offer tap dancing??? Maybe I can teach a class in tap dancing. Now that would be a riot.

New Music

O.K. it has been a while since I bought some new tunes because I just haven't felt like throwing down the cash to buy cds. This is usually the time of year I have to buy cds because I need something new to listen to in the car-the I-pod is getting boring!

Say what you will, Claire Aiello has already ragged me out for buying Britney Spears "Blackout" cd, but I think it is a good one. She actually only has one song that is close to a ballad. What a relief, I can dance to the entire cd. If you know anything about my background I grew up in dance classes and I still go to yoga class to keep up with dance. So bring it on Britney with your latest groovin' cd-I love it. If your looking to dance the night away, or run on the elliptical with your I-Pod drop this cd in and work your little tail off!!

During my same purchase I bought Bruce Springsteen's wife cd Patti Scialfa's "Play It As It Lays". The reason I bought this cd is because I love her song "Looking for Elvis". I heard it during an Elvis special. After that I hit her up on myspace. Then of course eventually made it to the stores to buy the cd. The entire cd is great. It's very bluesy and a totally different speed from Britney. Check Patti out you'll love it.

Now here's one of my favorites I bought a couple of weeks ago. I haven't had a chance to blog about it, but I love this cd. Joss Stone, "Introducing Joss Stone." Whoo...girlfriend she's on fire!!! This girl can sing. I mean she gets down in my soul. I love listening to her. You can't help but dance and sing when listening to her. If you haven't checked out Joss Stone check her out now!

The Rick and Bubba Show Is Moving

The Rick and Bubba Show is switching homes on the airwaves in Huntsville, but not without a little backlash from their current one Rocket 95.1.
Ouch, Rocket 95.1 has a negative spot running on their air and a mean ad on their webpage. Why? Because the boys are going to 100.3 January 2, 2008.
The Rocket pulled the show off the air Wednesday morning when listeners started calling in to the show and asking about the negative campaign against the boys.
I did a story about the switch today and all the negativity. I offered the Rocket time and time again to go on camera with me to explain themselves unfortunately-that never happened. Watch the video here.

You may or may not hear Rick and Bubba again in Huntsville until January 2, 2008 on 100.3 The River. My best advice go to http://www.rickandbubba.com/ to hear the show.

A Year Ago Today

It's been a year since the fatal plunge of Bus 5037. Today I covered the ceremony at Lee High School. Where faculty members released balloons for each one of the girls who were killed in the crash.
The day was a somber one. It didn't really hit me until I saw the video again. Every time I see the video from November 20, 2006 all I can think about is that cold November day. I stood out in front of Huntsville Hospital watching all the victims and survivors being brought to the hospital. Then their families rushing in to find them.
It was very sad. And one of the hardest stories I've ever had to cover. I'll never forget that day of reporting. I got a little choked up tonight just watching it all again.
I will tell you what I love though. When I see some of the survivors out in the community, and their families and I get to talk to them. One of the girls, Patrice Gopher, I saw her about 6 months later, it was so heart warming to see her out of the hospital bed. She was a survivor I interviewed the day after the accident, who was in such high spirits. When I saw her 6 months later she carried with her that same twinkle and sparkle, she had when she was fighting to recover.
I grew close to some of the parents this past year. And I cried at the funerals I covered.

Tiffany Buckner, a Lee High School senior, put it best today. "This day is an important day to know that we haven't forgot them," said Buckner. "We're never going to forget them. You don't have to forget them in order to move on."

So today, even though it brings back hard memories, it's also moving on with the past.

Trips to News Orleans, LA and Jacksonville, AL

This is a picture in a pumpkin patch in Whole Foods in New Orleans. It's so Fall and Festive! Even though it was 80 degrees outside. Sorry it has been a while since I've blogged. We've been busy on vacation. First for our 2nd anniversary we traveled to New Orleans, LA to visit friends. We stayed with one of my best friends from high school, Josh Moore, who is a chef at Gautreau's. Then we met up with several of our Montgomery buddies who are now working in television in New Orleans.
During our visit we toured the 9th Ward and the Lake Pontchatrain area. The two places are still rebuilding. FEMA trailers are still homes for many people. It's sad to see some streets were completely wiped out by Hurricane Katrina. This was my first time seeing New Orleans since the storm.
I didn't take pictures of the storm ravaged areas because I made a video of those areas. I only took pictures of the good times.
This is Josh, me and Kevin in front of Lake Pontchatrain after touring the storm ravaged areas. If you look really hard you can several sailboats in the background. It was such a beautiful day to be out on the water.




















Here is a self portrait of Kevin and I at Pat O'Brien's. I took it. Josh was on the phone.....This was taken before we met up with our friends from Montgomery.
















This is Sean Temple and Nicondra Norwood. Kevin and I worked at WAKA in Montgomery, AL with these two cats. It was wonderful getting to catch up. We watched the Saints game with everyone that night. As you can see Sean is a die hard fan. He and Nicondra are both from the New Orleans area originally. Now they are both home working in t.v. in NOLA.


















The only new face in this picture is Robert O'Shields we also worked with Robert at WAKA. He is now doing sports in New Orleans. All my Gump friends are working in NOLA. It's wild.



















Here's another Montgomery buddy working in New Orleans we got to hang out with. Brooke Erickson. She's also doing television in NOLA as well. So everyone all these cats have the New Orleans market saturated! You go guys-keep rocking New Orleans.

Josh, took us to eat here because, well everyone else and their momma had recommended it to us. Port of Call is known for its famous hamburgers and little bit of potatoes and sour cream and cheese you get. It was good. Next time I'm going to get more seafood, and more of Josh's restaurant. Gautreau's was the bomb. I didn't take any pictures there because I didn't want to look like a dork. The place is super exclusive. I mean Vince Vaughn ate there two weeks before we did. Hey, look out tall drink of water... I can't say enough good things about Gautreau's except for the next time your in NOLA go eat at Gautreau's-it is the best food you will ever eat in your life!!!!

New Orleans Jazz!!!

Part two of this blog entry!

This past weekend I returned to my college-Jacksonville State University for homecoming! It was a lot of fun. That's where my sister is a freshman this year. So we got to spend part of the weekend with her.

This is Caitlin and Brady Baldwin. He plays the saxophone for the Jacksonville Marching Southerners. I took this picture of them at Jefferson's. A restaurant in Jacksonville known for its hot wings! Yesterday, I just got a B.L.T. and a salad. I know, what was I thinking?

Hey, Caitlin cute shirt.

Now here are the Marching Southerners. Can you pick out Brady? Well probably not in this line up. But when they were all spread out he was on the 20 yard line.

O.K. I didn't take a picture of the real J.S.U. cheerleaders because I think these guys do the best job. HA! I laughed my tail off at these men. They ran around the stadium doing cheers.

They had all kinds of letters painted on their chests and backs. At one point one of the men hollered out "SPELL CHECK".

In this picture the guy is screaming give me a number, for number one.

Funny guys!
You definitely got your photo opportunity as they were calling it, as I snapped away pictures.

Give me a G-A-M-E- C-O-C-K-S, Gooooooo Gamecocks! We beat Tennessee Tech!

I'm sure it was because these guys cheered the crowd on....

Human Feces for Fertilizer

Gross! That's all I can say. Human feces for fertilizer. Some farmers in Limestone County are using it on their farms as a fertilizer. They're shipping it all the way from New York City. Imagine me saying that like they do in the Pace Picante commercial, New York City. But seriously, who cares if the E.P.A. says it's o.k. it's just down right creepy, spreading poop across fields.
I mean come on yuck, yuck, yuck. I don't like to smell other people's poop, do you think these people who live next to this farm are enjoying smelling New York people's crap (literally). Think about it farmers, and suppliers. It can't be pleasant.
They're shipping it in by rail car, then treating the poop at Synagro, Inc. in Leighton, AL. Of course we've been getting calls at NewsChannel 19 from people about their animals getting sick already. Which it may or may not be directly related.
Wednesday the Limestone County Commission filed for an injunction to stop farmers from spreading the human waste on farms in Limestone County, but it's not going to stop the farmers in Lauderdale and Colbert Counties who are also using the sludge. It may take a week for Limestone County to find out if a judge will stop farmers from spreading the fertilizer.
Synagro says they've been slinging the poop for 20 years up and down the North and South and it's safe.
Congressman Bud Cramer's office is also looking into the situation. My personal opinion...once it's all said and done. I think we'll go back to using another fertilizer for crops. Perhaps cow poop, or chicken poop? Who knows?

Alabama vs. Georgia

Ahhh! Bryant-Denny Stadium can you hear the cheers!!!!

O.K. here are my pictures from the Alabama vs. Georgia game in Tuscaloosa. This very dark one I took shows one of NewsChannel 19's photojournalists Brad Hood with some other area photogs. That's what I started to do at the end of the game-identifying the photographers on the field and sending them text messages...like "Hey I see you on the field, I'm in the stands!" Anyhow on with the day....

These folks are our friends Trent and Christine. I like to call them our weekend warriors. We pretty much do everything with them. Including leaving Huntsville at 6:30 a.m. on a Saturday morning to get to Tuscaloosa to tailgate for a 6:45 p.m. game. I can't think of a better way to spend Saturday-not-maybe sleeping a little later. As you'll see from the pictures getting up early paid off.

This is Kevin and me in front of Bryant-Denny Stadium. Like our Bama shirts? Christine and I walked around all morning shopping for those shirts and ended up getting them from the vendors outside the stores. I love to shop. Since I went to Jacksonville State, I don't have that many Bama shirts. Kevin really doesn't-he's a Kentucky boy. He looks good in that shirt-don't ya'll think so? I couldn't believe he called us and asked us to get him one. I think he might be getting some Crimson in his veins....

O.K. here's Kevin's favorite picture...here he is posed with Trent in front of ESPN's tour bus. That's the Game Day sports anchors Chris Fowler, Lee Corso and Kirk Herbstreit. ESPN was in Tuscaloosa for their Game Day show. Alabama is now 0-5 with them in town.

Here is the team two hours before game time arriving to Bryant-Denny Stadium.

If you look real hard to the left you'll see Nick Saban in a gray suit in front of the State Trooper.

Obviously, we didn't get there early enough to get on the front row, and Coach Saban wasn't posing for pictures.

This is an up close picture of Chris Fowler and Kirk Herbstreit during ESPN's Game Day coverage.

After Game Day I met Desmond Howard. A Heisman Trophy winner. He's the reporter for the Game Day show .

These are just a few fun shots of Christine and I in front of Game Day. We got there towards the end of it.

Best picture of the day....

Georgia Dogs biggest fan...he calls himself Super Dawg. Isn't he cute. I had to get a picture of him. I thought now that is blog material. He is fine and fancy. I love them tights. I've got to get a pair to wear to the next game.

My New Best Friend

Here are some photos from our trip to the Louisville Zoo in Kentucky. I hope you all enjoy my zoo photos. Especially, the one of Kevin running from the Peacock. I think that one is pretty funny! Anything, to catch a funny photo of your husband. HA! Oh, and this day was oh so hot. Youch!

Here he is on the run from the bird....

I think this is a pretty cool picture. So I thought I'd share it with you guys. It's my new best friend. It's one of the gorillas eating some sort of lettuce.

I think I'll call him Eddie because they've already made a movie about Buddy.

These animals truly are special. I could've sat there and looked at that exhibit all day long.

The elephants are also cool. We got a picture of the new baby elephant with the mamma. How sweet. How interesting life is in the animal kingdom. Mamma's are just as protective of their babies as they are here in the human world.

And here's one of my favorite pictures I snapped of my hubby in front of the elephant exhibit. What a great zoo Louisville has I can't wait to visit it again.

Going To School

My sister left for Jacksonville State University last week. I am so proud of her. I took off the day to help move her in the dorm.
It was great getting to visit the campus. That's where I went to school. Go Gamecocks!


I think it's pretty cool that Caitlin's roommate is from Georgia-my roommate was from Georgia my freshman year. They also have matching sheets and bedspreads! Ditto for my roommate and me. How funny!
It was so weird being back on campus. I told Caitlin I would be more than happy to stay down there and show her the ropes. She declined that offer. You know I guess I'm just not as hip as I used to be. It was only 7 years ago. Hey, I still rock! I guess one day we all have to grow up don't we. NOT!

Appendix Picture-Kind of Gross!

O.K. so it has taken a while for me to post the pictures of my appendix. Don't ask me why? It just has. But some of you just kept asking for the pictures so here you are. They're not pretty! I'll tell you that.

It's important to note the thing hanging off the metal utensil is my appendix in the picture below!
I asked the doctors to give me my appendix in a jar. You know so I could take it home and.... I don't know what I would do with it. Look at it??? hahaha.
They told me in my doped up state of mind they could take pictures of it then give them to me. I said yea, that sounds great. I just want to see the darn thing that's about to kill me.
So ladies and gentlemen there is the lovely appendix that had to go about 4 weeks ago. I hope you all had lunch before tuning into this blog!! I promise more appetizing pictures next post.

Hurricane Dean

While Hurricane Dean slammed into Cancun, Mexico this morning it only brought back memories of Hurricane Wilma.
Especially, since we watched the coverage all weekend....
Kevin and I spent our honeymoon trapped in Cancun in October 2005 in a middle school for six extra days. There were no showers or baths. Let me tell you people stop stinking on day two! We had about 30 people in each room of the school. It was a lovely honeymoon. At least we did get to spend a few days with some nice weather- (Sunday, Monday, Tuesday)
The day before we moved into the shelter we had been swimming with dolphins. When we returned to our room we found a letter that said "We suggest you return to your country." That letter had been sitting under our door I would guess all day. Because we had left early that morning and when we tried to return to our country that evening the airport was SHUT DOWN.
Then reality....
It was time to meet up with the other honeymooners who we would ride out the storm with.
That night we went to a "Honeymooners Dinner" at the resort. We made friends with everyone at our table. That was a good thing because we lived in close quarters with them for the next several days.
The next day we all boarded buses together and headed to the Mexican school about six miles inland and the rest is a stormy scary experience (you can read about it in my first ever post in this blog).
In the end it's been an experience we've never lived down. People still ask us about it everywhere we go. They say "hey you guys are the couple that got trapped on your honeymoon." We say "yes." I guess we'll always have Hurricane Wilma!

Back To Work

Hello everyone! I've been back on the job since Monday. It has been what some would call light duty. I'm recovering slowly and still very sore. I didn't realize surgery on body parts could take so long to get over. Ouch!
I'm ready to be my old self again. I'm ready to go back to Yoga class. I miss going to class. Today, I will have missed four classes in a row.
Next Tuesday is my first visit to the doctor since the surgery. Hopefully, he'll clear me for exercise and lifting heavy things again....no lifting heavy stuff for two weeks.
Oh, and I still haven't posted those pictures. I will! I am just always tired when I get home from work. I promise I am getting around to it!

Emergency Surgery

Tuesday, I woke up to a scary feeling. I had stabbing feelings all over my stomach-well they were so strong it felt like they were all over. It took me all day long to discover they were coming from one centralized area.
I got up to get ready for work. I thought I just needed to eat some breakfast and the pain would go away. I ate a cup of yogurt and a banana and read the Huntsville Times like I do every morning before work. I had a very tough time concentrating on the articles and what was on NewsChannel 19 This Morning. You know I hit the ground running trying to figure out what's going on in the world and this morning my stomach was slowing everything down for me.
So I hit the shower to see if that would give me any relief. I made it through it, but I kept doubling over with pain and I mean sharp pain. When I got out of the shower I called my husband Kevin, who was out of town on business, to tell him about what was going on because the pain was only getting worse.
By this time I had decided since I was crying because the pain was so sharp I had better call work and tell them I wasn't coming in.
Now this is only the second time I've called in sick this year. If you'll refer back to my blog in January you'll see the other time I was sick-it was for a hospital visit.
Moving on with the story-
Then the rest of the day was hell. You know I never call in sick for fear of getting to feeling better the minute after you call in. But this day only got worse.
I finally got in touch with my neighbor and she brought me over some pepto-bismol, pop sickles and ginger ale. That didn't seem to do the trick.
Then at 5:30 I called my mom and told her to not look for me on the 6:00 show that I was sick in the bed. She said what's wrong. I told her everything that had been going on.
Then she asked where was the pain. I actually felt around and realized it was hurting on my lower right side-and it was very sore by that time. She said she, my dad and sister were on their way to get me. They were going to take me to the emergency room.
I said I'll be laying here till you get here.
We got to Huntsville Hospital at 7 p.m. Tuesday night. I went into emergency surgery to have my appendix removed Wednesday morning at 4 a.m. My very sweet husband swooped in from out of town to be by my side an hour and 45 minutes before I went into surgery. Everything was very last minute. I'm just glad I had my husband, my parents and my sissy all there with me when I woke up.
Huntsville Hospital's nurses, doctors and staff took good care of me and I'm doing good. I'm just glad that my mom insisted we go to the hospital. Because I was just going to lay in the bed with my "stomach virus."
I am extremely sore though. I have three new little holes in my belly. One in my belly-button and one below it and beside it.
I am going to post the pictures of my appendix just as soon as I get them scanned. So get ready for that. You're going to love it! For now though I'll be resting up in the bed.

I'm On YouTube...

Hey everybody....I'm on youtube.com. That's pretty cool. It's not like it's a long take or anything. One of our photographers was surfing around today and found me on there. Well a long story short. Here's the story behind why I'm on there. I was doing a court story one day and out of no where here comes a skateboarder flying down the Madison County courthouse steps behind me in my live shot. He busted (fell down) when he landed.
I don't know who sent this in to the website because it happened a really long time ago. I imagine this clip of video has been on you tube for quite some time now.
We got a big laugh out of it in the newsroom when it happened.
At the time though my photographer and I decided to make another story out of the guys. We went and talked to them about why they were skateboarding there since it was illegal. That was our story the next day! Two for one- that's what we like to call days like that one. Enjoy the link.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Niv3IBPyIWE

Harry Potter Review

Here's something for all you Harry Potter fans out there from my friend and co-worker Claire Aiello.
GUEST MOVIE REVIEW, by Claire Aiello
Hello – once again I am too lazy to keep a blog of my own, but Amber has graciously let me post a movie review on hers. I saw Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix this weekend, and once again, it leaves me ready for the next movie!

The film was very good. I have read Books 1 through 6, so nothing in it was a surprise to me when it happened, but it still stinks, knowing it’s going to happen… and there’s nothing you can do to prevent it.

*DON’T READ THE REST OF THE REVIEW IF YOU HAVEN’T READ THE BOOKS AND WANT TO BE SURPRISED*

It just kills me, that Harry finally gets to spend some quality family time with his godfather (Sirius Black), his only living relative, and boom, he dies. It just stinks. I mean, you know it’s going to happen, and every time you see Sirius giving Harry advice, or straightening him out, you know it’s only for so long. And Sirius finally looks healthy! He’s got some food in him, he’s got some decent clothing, a great smile and doesn’t look like an escapee from Azkaban anymore. I was very sad when his death happened in Book 5, and knew it was coming when I saw the movie Sunday but it’s so hard to see it on screen. You really come to love the characters and the actors who portray them. Gary Oldman was really great as Sirius.

And another thing. How do you get to be in a painting at Hogwarts? These old schoolmasters, or historic figures get to be alive in a painting, talking with the students any time they want. Why can’t Sirius get to be in one of these so Harry can still visit with him?

Okay, I got that out. The movie was very good, and it was neat to see the Ministry of Magic come to life. I thought the cinematography was fantastic, especially with the scene at the end between Harry, Dumbledore and Lord Voldemort. Of course, the movie ends and leaves you wanting for more.. so I’ll have to wait another year or two for “Half Blood Prince” to be released in theatres.

I’m also looking forward to Book 7, due out this Saturday. I just hope Harry keeps his title as “The Boy Who Lived.”

Claire AielloWeb Content Manager, WHNT.com

Senator Barack Obama's Visit

Here are a few snapshots taken from the video of Senator Barack Obama's visit to Huntsville. I got to interview him before and after his $1,000 plate luncheon fundraiser. Plus, a $2,300 pre-lunch reception. This candidate is raising some big money.

I'm impressed with Senator Obama. He was a very nice and cordial man. Very accessible to the media. I shook his hand and got to ask him several questions. I can see why people are following this man around and like him so much. He is just that guy next door. Senator Obama is a hard guy not to like.
When I asked him where he stood on the War In Iraq Sen. Obama said, "It's time for us to bring our troops home. I want us to get our troops out. Our combat troops out of their day to day role by next year and that's something we can accomplish."
Senator Obama is also very big on global warming. He says we can all do our part.
"We can increase fuel efficiency standards on cars," said Senator Obama. "We can change our light bulbs in our businesses. We can tell our industries that they've got to stop sending out greenhouse gases."
Those were just a few questions I got to ask. A Huntsville Times reporter asked him who he had in mind for a running mate. He said he hadn't even thought about it. Yea right. I'm sure that's the last thing on his mind. He does have to make it past the primary.




So I think it's pretty cool this is the third presidential candidate I've got to be in close quarters with. Only the second I've got to answer MY questions.
The first was Senator John Edwards. That situation was pretty much the same situation as yesterday. I had a one on one interview with Senator Edwards in Montgomery. The Montgomery Advertiser actually snapped a picture of that interview and put it in the paper.
My other presidential candidate was Rudy Giuliani. I tried asking questions, but the national media ran over us local media. That was at the Space and Rocket Center not long ago. I wrote about it here on the blog. Just look back a few reports to find it.
I hope more candidates come to the Rocket City so I can find out who I want to vote for in the 2008 Presidential Election.

Happy Birthday Baby! My husband, Kevin, celebrated his 28th birthday Friday. Silly me accidentally bought a bag that has the word THIRTY written really big on the front of it. Honestly, I did not notice it when I bought it in a hurry at the Dollar Tree Thursday night. He came down to get his present Friday morning and said "Thirty" and I said "What?" I had no clue what he was talking about. I really did not know. I thought it said Happy Birthday. Sometimes I just don't pay attention when I'm in a hurry.
I did this with our Mother's Day cards this year...oops I did it again. Sorry! Everyone is laughing at me. They were supposed to be cards for our mothers, but the cards I bought were for first time mothers from husbands...oops. I just scratched out the names on the cards and still gave them away once I realized the mistake I had made because I liked the cards! They were those singing cards.
The moral to this story...I need to pay more attention when I'm out shopping by myself. And yes, my husband is really going to get me on my next birthday.

Losing A Friend

One of my college roommates was killed this past weekend tragically by her boyfriend. I didn't know if I would write about this on my blog or not, but it has bothered me extremely bad. To the point sometimes of losing sleep. I just can't understand why this happened to her. She had so much to live for.

Brandy Lynn Slimp Dillon and I attended Jacksonville State University together. That pretty smile you see on her face in the picture is what I remember best about her. That is the way I will keep her in my memory. There were several of us who lived together on the same floor in the Sparkman Dorm our freshman year at JSU and we've all been on the phone sharing our Brandy memories laughing together. Even our sophomore year all of us girls lived next door to each other off campus. My favorite memory of Brandy is her always stealing my fingernail polish.

Brandy, I will forever miss you and wonder why this had to happen to you.

Brandy leaves behind a son, Austin.

Austin, you will forever be in my prayers as well as the Slimp family.

The President's Motorcade

I got to see President George W. Bush's motorcade today. What an experience. I recommend everyone pulling a piece of roadside when the prez is in town to see it. It is moving. I can't tell you why, but it is.
Maybe it's the police rolling up with their lights and sounding them off. They go woop, woop. I mean I love sirens and police cars. Then the President's big black limo rolls up. WOW! It is something see.
I stood on Highway 31 as a reporter. Well I tried to be a reporter. I couldn't be though. I had my digital camera just flashing away. I didn't even know what I was taking pictures of because I wanted to see the commander in chief. Then I saw him. I saw President George W. Bush throw up his hand in the motorcade and wave as we waved back at him.
Tears rushed to my eyes when I saw his hand go up. I couldn't figure out why I was feeling this emotion. I said oh my goodness you've got to cover this story stop or you're going to be crying in front of all of these people. Then I turned to look around and everyone else was crying. They all said it's just patriotism. Well I'm glad to know I'm patriotic! God Bless America. And God Bless our President for coming to North Alabama.
I'm so happy I got to see the Presidential Motorcade. I hope I get to see another motorcade in my lifetime. Maybe next time I'll meet the president. Hey Mr. Bush that's a HINT!!!

Check back soon for a link to my super sweet story on the people watching the motorcade!! It was awesome!

Dance Recital

This past weekend I was in a dance recital. The dance school I took lessons from my whole life, Kim's School of Dance, celebrated 30 years. I danced with them for 17 years. I learned tap, jazz and ballet at the school.
It was a sweet return to the stage at the Princess Theater in Decatur, Alabama. My sister said I looked a little lost in parts of the dance. I only learned the tap dance on Saturday. I did get the part when I was on the front row...the most important part. Vacations and being out of town kept me from making it to all the practices. So I had to learn a whole bunch of 8 counts in about 2 hours Saturday.
I did get one thing right! I kicked my legs so high in the kick line I looked like a Rockette...o.k. I may be exaggerating a bit. I had a blast though. I forgot how much fun it was to be on the stage dancing with the bright colored, hot lights shining down on you and the loud music blaring. You can't even see who is out in the audience, but you can hear everyone cheering. Good stuff!

Vacation and Birthdays

I'm back from the beach and a little older.
Getting older isn't always fun. This birthday especially was different. I'm not telling my age, but I will say everybody likes to say they're this age forever.
It was kind of weird turning this age. I had forgotten it was my birthday until my husband, Kevin, reminded me by telling me, Happy Birthday. Well thank you very much.
I wanted to thank everyone who got me nice presents and called to wish me Happy Birthday. It made my day a beautiful one.
So I guess next year will be easier????

Rick and Bubba Launch Book In Huntsville

Rick and Bubba launched their second book "The Rick and Bubba Code" here in Huntsville. Of course I did a story on it. Here's a link to the story. Plus, I got a new picture made with Speedy, Bubba, and Rick. Yea, I will hang this on my desk and my wall of fame. I have to update my old picture with the guys. I think you've all seen the story I did about the guys losing weight. Well my old picture is kind of out of date now. And it's a couple of years old. And my hair's longer..hahahaha.

They had a great book launch here in Huntsville. Tons of fans showed up to meet the guys and get their books signed. I even stood in line after I bought my copy to get it signed. I hope they get to the number one spot again. The first book made it to the top of the New York Times Best Seller List last year. I think this one will do the same. Good Luck guys!

If anyone is wondering where Don Juan is in this picture, he had to stay in Birmingham. So they could do the live show in Nashville, TN Wednesday morning. Ryan Greenwood the Internet Content Manager tells me Don Juan should be at the rest of the book signings.

Have a great book tour!

P.S. Thanks for the great picture Ryan Greenwood.

Rick and Bubba Before They Were Famous

Here's the link to Rick and Bubba Before They Were Famous. I really enjoyed getting to do this piece. This is why. Getting to know the people who know Rick and Bubba is interesting and neat. I felt six degrees of separation the entire time. I am a Jacksonville State University Alumni as well. I did keep running in to people that I knew that knew some of the same peps...small world..WEIRD!! Anyhoo.

Just finding out, hey these guys have always been down to earth. That is so nice to know. I mean, I can tell you they are super nice people just from meeting them, but to hear it from people who have known them their whole lives now that's something else.

Hey, and those were some funny stories too.

I hope you all have enjoyed these stories we've done on NewsChannel 19 about Rick and Bubba because I sure have.

I'll have one more I'll be linking to my blog, probably tomorrow. The next one is about the book signing. They launched their book "The Rick and Bubba Code" here in Huntsville today. Look for that sometime tomorrow. If you don't have a copy go get one. Help them get to number on Amazon.com.

Rick and Bubba Before They Were Famous

Don't forget to tune in tonight at ten o'clock for my piece on Rick and Bubba Before They Were Famous. I think you're going to like this in depth look into what they were like before they became the radio giants they are today.
I really found some hoots to tell their stories. I would tell you who I've interveiwed, but I don't want to give it away to Rick and Bubba. I have to keep the suspense going just a bit longer.
I've got some great old pictures of the guys you have to see.
Tune in tonight to NewsChannel 19 at 10 or whnt.com. We'll have it there or I'll link it to my blog first thing when it becomes available.
As a follow up to my story and in conjunction to their latest book release they will be joining us on NewsChannel 19 This Morning Tuesday morning around 6:15. Then they'll visit the Rocket City to launch their new book "The Rick and Bubba Code" at 12:30 at the Books a Million on Memorial Parkway, where they'll sign their new book and meet with fans.
Come on down it'll be a lot of fun. Pick up a copy and help the boys make it to the New York Times Bestselling List again!!!

Boy Who Once Sold Drugs Named Student of The Year

This story is touching. I did this story Thursday on D.J. Graffree in Decatur. He has been named student of the year. Yet he has been through so much in his short life here on earth.
D.J. came to Decatur from a little town outside of Jackson, MS.
D.J.'s mom got thrown in prison for drug use when he was just a little boy. Then he was shuttled around to relatives homes, until he ran away to the streets.
D.J. then started dealing and using drugs at the age of 7 until his relatives here in Alabama came to the rescue.
D.J. wanted to be the best he could be when he moved to the area, and has become a model student at Somerville Road Elementary. That's the reason he was picked to be the elementary student of the year. His guardian's say he deserves everything he gets.
People have been calling and trying to set up a college scholarship fund for D.J.

Click on my story in the highlighted area for the full story. You'll love it!

Rick and Bubba Before They Were Famous

Hey everyone, just wanted to let you know the script is written for the next Rick and Bubba piece. This one is a good one. Rick and Bubba Before They Were Famous.

I had a really good time getting to know these folks I interviewed for the story. I think you all will too. They talk about these people on the show from time to time. I really think you're going to like the stories they tell about them.

Boy, I can't wait to show off these pictures I found of Rick and Bubba. They are funny and precious.

So here's where we are right now with the story. I just put my voice down in an edit booth. Now all that's left is a photographer has to put the video together with it. Then Monday night all you guys get to watch it!!

I can't wait for everyone to see this one. Especially Rick and Bubba and the rest of the gang, Speedy, Don Juan, and Ryan Greenwood. Hey Casio Kid when am I ever going to meet you?

My Sister Gradauted

My baby sister, Caitlin Moody, graduated last night. She is my one and only sister.

First of all, sorry I didn't take any digital pictures. I took my ole' timey camera to ensure there would be no red eyes!! You know it was a big and important night!!

Well, it was a beautiful graduation. Caitlin graduated from Decatur Heritage Christian Academy. The very first thing they did at the ceremony was show a slide show from her mission trip to Costa Rica....o.k. I'm not her mother, but I did tear up during the slide show. Sorry, couldn't help it. They had to play it to "I Will Remember You" by Sarah Mclachlan. You would've had wet eyes too. I had already gotten a little emotional in a private moment just thinking about her growing up before we got to the graduation. So of course I was going to do that during the slide show.

Then during every little thing after that I was tearing up. Thanks little sis-you know I love you.

What am I ever going to do if I ever have my own. Boo-hoo, I guess.

So Caitlin and I had a very sister moment yesterday riding around preparing for graduation...because we had to get ready for of course graduation then the celebration at my dad's house afterwards. ...

o.k. so here's the moment.

The Meow Mix plant is in Decatur and you pass it going over the Decatur Bridge going to my dad's house. Well we had the sunroof back riding over the bridge on the beautiful sunny day it was then all of sudden we broke out in song at the same time "meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow."...

You know the jingle from the commercial. Well it's all you can smell when you ride by that plant!

But it was so freakin' hilarious I just had to share that moment I think I will forever remember.

MEOW!

Congratulations Baby Girl! Go get em' in the big world.

Rick and Bubba Series

Here's a link to the big story I did on Rick and Bubba Monday night at 10 o'clock.
These guys are hilarious.
And yes, I am an avid listener!
Tune in Monday, May 28th for my piece "Before They Were Stars." I've found some old pictures of them and some good stories from friends from the past. You don't want to miss this.
Don't forget their book launch for the "Rick and Bubba Code" May 29th.

Rick & Bubba Shedding Some Pounds

A preview to my first piece of my Rick and Bubba series ran this morning. The focus, the self proclaimed "Sexiest Fat Men Alive" aren't so fat any more. Both have been out exercising and watching what they eat. Bubba's playing tennis, and Rick's doing a little bit of boxing.
The Rick and Bubba show is a syndicated radio show based out of Birmingham, Alabama. It keeps growing by leaps and bounds.
So the boys have been dieting for health reasons, to live longer for their families and themselves. The weight loss is shocking. I'm very proud of both of them. This is just the first piece. Tune in tonight at 10 to learn more on Rick and Bubba's political and religious views.
Here's a link to my piece.

Update On Seniors on Mission Trip

The Class of 2007 at Decatur Heritage Christian Academy made it safely to Costa Rica yesterday. They got up for church services this morning and will start their mission work this week.
Keep them in your thoughts and prayers.

Mission Work

Here's a feel good story for you. My sister Caitlin Moody's senior class at Decatur Heritage Christian Academy in Decatur, Alabama is going on a mission trip to celebrate their graduation.
The class voted on the mission trip between cruises and other trips last September. I'm very proud of her and her classmates for choosing to do such a noble job.
They'll be going to an orphanage in Costa Rica to do construction work, hand out food and spread the word of God.
There are about 14 students going on the trip of course with chaperones and a sponsor.
The class of 2007 will be rewarded for their work. They're going zip lining through the rain forest in Costa Rica. Hey sis that sounds so cool. I want to do that. They are also going to get go to the beach for a day.
I'm sending my video camera with my sister so that she can bring us back some video for the news. So we expect to have a nice follow up story when they return from their mission trip.
Hopefully, we'll get a shot of one of them ziplining!!!
So everyone be praying for these kids headed down to Costa Rica.