A look at my "Sunday drive"

My mom has always said, "pictures without people are boring."  I apologize in advance to you folks who agree with her-but I couldn't resist snapping a few pictures along my drive through Tillamook State Forest this afternoon. 

My best attempt at advice for TV newbies

Last week an intern at my old station in Spokane emailed me.  She's about to graduate from college and pursue her dream of working in TV.  She wrote, "With that though comes a lot of nerves and questions; a place where it sounds like you have been yourself. Do you remember your feelings and emotions when you took your first job? Do you have any advice for me as I head into this new stage of life?"

YES!  Of course, I do.  I was in her shoes exactly six years ago!  I hope this helps-

A Little Bit Of Eye Candy

Alsea Bay Bridge, Courtesy:  Mike Smallwood

If you ask me which season is the most beautiful--I think I would have to say fall.  Don't get me wrong-I love the snow and ice in the winter and I love the lush green mountains in the spring-but fall is downright spectacular around here.  Especially on days like yesterday.  Portland topped out at 74 degrees with wall to wall sunshine.  The blue skies were the perfect canvas for stunning sunrises and sunsets.  Also, the brilliant changing leaves really stood out against the baby blue sky.  On days like yesterday our email inbox is flooded with gorgeous weather pictures at KOIN.  Click "read more" to see some of my favorites!  Thank you everyone for sharing-please send more!  news@koin.com

Now That Was Fun!

What a blast!  From start to finish I loved the Portland Half Marathon.  The crowd was awesome-enthusiastic and full of energy.  Bands along the course ranged from bells to drums and Christian worship to techno.  My favorite music came from a DJ set up in an old bus on Front Street.  Some man stood on top of the bus and blew his whistle to the beat for hours!  Hilarious. 

One Of The Blessings Of This Crazy TV Business

I started in TV when I was 22 years old.  Fresh out of college.  I moved to a small town in Idaho.  In fact, I'd never heard of Idaho Falls until I flew myself in for an interview.  The beginning was rough-starting a new career, dealing with the nerves of being live on TV for the first time and living in a town of 50,000 (I grew up and went to school in a couple of the biggest cities in the country).  But you know what made it so worth it?  Yes, of course fulfilling a lifelong dream, and telling amazing stories but more importantly-the friends I met at along the way. 

HELLO FALL!! Good To See You Again

When I woke up this morning I knew it rained overnight and I didn’t even need to open my eyes or take my head off the pillow.  I could smell it.   When I left for my morning run, it was blustery and the winds were whipping.  Crunchy dijon colored leaves were falling from the trees.  

Viewers Say The Darndest Things...

 

It’s a part of the job that can be heartwarming, uplifting, hilarious, discouraging and even hurtful.  So what…you might ask…can evoke all of these emotions?  Viewer letters.  From the trivial, to the funny and the rude to the insane-I’ve seen and read a lot during the past six years in this business.  This blog was inspired by my most recent piece of mail (yes, it came through old fashion snail mail). 

He Changed My Life And I Never Met Him

There’s not a lot on my desk here at KOIN.  I have a couple family pictures, an autographed picture of one of my favorite people-Diane Sawyer-and there’s one other picture.  Drew Swank. 

He’s a boy I never met.  I never heard his name until he was on life support at a Spokane hospital.  Nevertheless-his story profoundly touched me.   Drew and the entire Swank family left a huge heart-print on me. 

A Tornado Of Birds

I'm on the morning show this week, which means my alarm starts screaming at 1:30 a.m.-even so, I found a great excuse to stay up late Sunday night (and by late I mean 9 p.m. ).  Imagine a perfectly choreographed tornado of thousands of birds-all funneling into a chimney.  Sounds like a scene from a scary movie-but it's reality around sunset every night in September at a school in Northwest Portland. Take a look at some of my pictures.

Spectacular Smoky Sunrises & Sunsets

One of the first things I do when I walk into the weather center is check email for weather pictures.  Recently, viewers have done an incredible job of sending their pictures in.  Over the past week we've received some of the most spectacular sunrise and sunset pictures through news@koin.com.  The reason for the red, orange and yellow horizons? Sunny skies and plenty of smoke from wildfires.  Take a look at some of these beautiful pictures!  The shot above is the sunset over the Columbia River sent in by Barry O'Neil.

An Enchanted Island

I've found an enchanted island--and it's just 20 minutes from my doorstep.  Sauvie Island is spectacular.  The Willamette River flows on one side of the island, the Columbia flows on the other.  The second I drive over the bridge-I feel at peace. 

I fell in love today...

...with dahlias. I've always loved fresh flowers. They have an incredible ability to instantaneously put me in a good mood. A friend told me the other day-one of the "must haves" during a difficult life transition is fresh-cut flowers in your home. I agree whole-heartedly. That brings me back to the whole falling in love with dahlias comment. Today I went to the Swan Island Dahlia Festival.

See ya later, smoke!

Here's a picture taken from space Saturday afternoon (courtesy of NASA). You can clearly see the strong impact of the easterly winds on the Dollar Lake Fire smoke plume. It sent smoke rushing into the Willamette Valley, heck as far west as the Oregon coast!

Here's the picture taken Sunday afternoon. I know it's tiny-The Dollar Lake Fire is the northern most smoke plume in the picture (we have several fires burning in central Oregon right now). The winds really relaxed today. You can tell they switched direction and blew the smoke to the northeast.

A Smoky Day In Portland

A view from space of the Dollar Lake Fire smoke plume riding easterly winds.

Smoke from the Dollar Lake Fire looking west from Palmer Snowfield on Mt. Hood. Courtesy: Viewer Jeff Raetz

Viewer Garry Yarosevich watched the Dollar Lake Fire's explosive growth Saturday morning. Look at that smoke plume!

By this afternoon the smoke blanketed skies above Vancouver. This picture sent in by the Campbell family.

Mt. Hood Is On Fire!

Take a look at these pictures. Wild fires can be devastating and terrible-but I was in awe looking at Mt. Hood this afternoon before my live shots.

In Search Of Sunshine

Portland woke up to grey skies and drizzle Monday morning. Great timing for everyone who has a normal work schedule-bad timing for me. Monday is my Saturday! It was time to seek out some vitamin D-and I found just what I was looking for on Mt. Hood.

My first air show!

About three weeks ago, my boss approached me and asked if I'd be willing to go up in a fighter jet for a story. My initial response was-SURE! Then, I remembered I can't even stomach a rollercoaster ride :) So...to prevent a TV story filled with gagging, barfing and an unconscious reporter-our weekend sports anchor flew with The Patriot Jet Team at The Oregon International Air Show in Hillsboro- I watched from the ground. Man, did they put on an impressive show!
The picture above is me, Bruce Sussman (chief meteorologist), Carly Kennelly (morning traffic reporter) and Ken Boddie (weekend anchor) at the air show's Koin booth.

Thank you so much!

I am so lucky to have the support of my family. Moving is never easy. At first, everything seems foreign and at times scary-but these four people have always been there. Thanks, guys!

Exploring the Columbia River Gorge

People have told me over and over again-the best thing about Portland is how close it is to everything-the coast, the mountains and the Columbia River Gorge. Two weekends ago, I decided it was time to explore the Gorge!

My little slice of heaven

Is there anywhere more relaxing than the Oregon Coast? I've been to Cannon Beach two times in the past month. My mom came with me the second time. From walking the beach, to shopping and eating out-it is a little slice of heaven. I have a few recommendations-Crepe Neptune (incredible! melt in your mouth savory crepes) and Purple Moon Boutique (they serve wine, beer and mixed drinks as you shop-and they have darling clothes to boot!)

Fabio swept me off my feet!

I had no idea this would happen when I walked into work earlier this month! HA! Fabio was at KOIN for a promotional shoot in early August. Here's a link to his weather forecast-gotta love the wind in his hair-http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrfiPm9JM4A
After he shot that forecast he came out into the newsroom. I walked up and asked if I could have a picture with him and he said (with his little accent) "I can do you one better," and with that he literally swept me off my feet. What a riot. It got a little awkward when my coworker couldn't figure out how to use my camera-so I just sat there, in his arms, getting a good whiff of Old Spice.

A summer of big changes

Goodbye Spokane, Hello Portland! In May, I was thrilled to accept a job at KOIN in Portland. When I started in the TV business about seven years ago, Portland and Seattle were the markets I dreamed of one day working in-it's unbelievable to me that this day has come. I feel so blessed. Even though the move is exciting-I left wonderful friends and incredible memories in Spokane (the picture above is my last day at KXLY). Having spent three years there, I finally felt settled and truly happy. I think that's one of the hardest parts about the TV business-moving. It was hard moving from college to my first job in Idaho Falls (KIFI). It was even harder moving from Idaho Falls to Spokane (KXLY). I started at KOIN on July 5th. So far, Portland has been great-but it's been a whirlwind--Learning new weather equipment, newsroom software, finding a hair dresser, a doctor, a dentist, a gym, oh and of course-a social life! One thing that I really enjoy is exploring. I get in my car and drive. It helps me decompress and relax-and I love to know firsthand about the cities I'm forecasting for and reporting on. I've never been very good about blogging-but I hope to keep this one up to date with my adventures around Oregon. So bare with me-and thanks for reading!