So, yeah. There's a lot on my mind.
There has been for a while. If anyone ever wants to take a peak inside, you're probably not going to have a fun time.
First, a story about the importance of knowing your schedule and how easy it is to confuse Wednesday with Tuesday or Thursday.
Every week, I host a sports talk show on our campus radio station, 670 AM WPPJ. From 3:00-4:00 p.m., I have the chance to talk sports with one of my friends. It's fun and relaxing and something I really look forward to every week.
Something our radio station looks forward to every year is "Rock-A-Thon." This is the 35th annual Rock-A-Thon and the first year that I am involved with it.
For 67 straight hours (our station is 670 AM, hence 67 hours), we broadcast live outside of our normal radio studio in the middle of one of the busiest hallways on campus. Our broadcasts can be heard from the first floor in the building and across the sky bridge into the second building across Wood St.
It raises money for good causes ever year and is a great event for the station.
Each DJ is required to host at least one hour of programming during Rock-A-Thon. When I originally signed up for my one-hour time slot, I accidentally signed up during my Wednesday Spanish class. During that same time period on Tuesday and Thursday, I have a break. I was going to go straight from class, do my show, and go to my next class. Easy.
But, I realized that I had accidentally signed up for the wrong time slot when I double checked the list. When I went to change my time, it was too late. The only other available time slots were the early a.m. times from 1:00-8:00.
I was forced to sign up for the 1 a.m. time slot on Tuesday night / Wednesday morning. I was already going to the Penguin game that night and would get back to school pretty late, and I had to study for my test. I was going to be up anyways. It looked like it would work out.
The show ran smoothly for the first 50 minutes. I had great discussions with my co-host, played some good music and was having fun.
Then, as I went to play a soundbite from the computer, nothing happened. The computer was fine. The chord running from the computer to the sound mixer was not. The tip of the chord broke and fell off. When, how or why is still unknown. It just happened.
I was getting ready to send my show off into the next one that was scheduled to run from 2 a.m. until 8 a.m. when the morning show began. He was prepared for an overnight shift, I was not.
Our tech guy was looking at the problem trying to find an answer. I told the next guy up, Vic, that I would stall with him until we could get music up and running for him. After all, his show is a music show, not a talk show.
I soon realized that I was in for a long night.
After a couple hours of messing with the equipment and looking for new chords, our tech guy just grabbed our old record player and hooked it up to the system. RadioShack opened at 9 a.m. the next day and he said they would just go there and get the part they needed. In the meantime, the record player would play Vic's music.
We didn't get that working until 5 a.m.
From 1 a.m. until 5 a.m., I was on the air without music or a commercial break. Nonstop. We gave random facts, talked about high school, interviewed random students passing by, I played the ukulele at one point, we played would you rather, and I even studied for my Spanish exam the next morning live on the air.
It was the latest I have stayed up in a long time.
The real kicker is that I woke up at 6:30 a.m. Tuesday to go to The Globe and edit pages. I was up from 6:30 a.m. Tuesday until 5 a.m. Wednesday with a brief half-hour nap in the middle. Talk about a long day.
I had an in-class writing assignment in English at 9:40 a.m. and a Spanish exam at 11:20. I somehow got out of bed at 9 a.m. and was productive for the next three or so hours.
So, lesson learned: don't confuse days on your schedule or you may end up staying awake unintentionally for almost 23 hours.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I'm only a couple weeks away from taking over Point Park's student-run newspaper, The Globe. In operation since 1967, I will become The Globe's youngest editor-in-chief ever. My predecessor became Chief during her second semester of her sophomore year as well, making her the youngest Chief ever. I am a couple months younger than her, giving me the nod as youngest Chief.
It's terrifying, actually.
I have to manage and run this whole joint for 12 months. January to January. In that time, our new Pittsburgh Playhouse will begin construction, Point Park's new digital media center will open, and we'll have a new president in our country. So there will be a lot of big stories to cover.
I'm steering this ship for the next twelve months which is both exciting and nerve-racking.
I have no idea what problems will arise and what touch decisions I will be forced to make.
The first major task at hand is getting a staff together. I created an online application for prospective staffers that eliminates the hassle of filling one out on paper. It's turning out to be a great decision, as 29 people have already applied for spots and the application still isn't due for another 10 days. As it stands now, I don't think I'll have any problems getting as staff together.
The next big task is finding an editor-elect to work under me for the next year to eventually take over after my term ends. The application for that position was due today and the applicants must now interview with a board of faculty and administration. I can only play the waiting game now on that front.
I have a lot of ideas for The Globe to take it to the next level. I'm excited to start in January and get the ball rolling. Then, I have to see that 28 issues get on newsstands over the next two semesters.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I'm heading back to the Baseball Winter Meetings this year in Nashville, Tenn. with the Pittsburgh Center for Sports Media and Marketing.
We've been preparing for the last several weeks for this year's job fair and it should be another great experience. I can only imagine what opportunities it will give me this year.
I don't know what I'm doing this summer. I might work in baseball, I might stay in Pittsburgh, I might move somewhere totally different or a number of different things. I have no idea.
Whatever happens, happens. It'll work itself out.
I'm also traveling to Bradenton, Fl. in February to work the annual Riverwalk Regatta.
Finally, I am going to Cambridge, Mass. at the end of March for the 2016 Northeast Regional Honors Conference where I will present papers on the escalation of sports broadcast rights and stadium naming rights. I am traveling fly out to Cambridge with members of the Point Park Honors Program.
So, a lot of traveling and a lot of great opportunities aren't far away. I'm taking seven classes next semester along with everything else I'm doing. Hopefully I can make it out alive. The best way to do that is take things one week, one day and one hour at a time.
Because, why not?
Josh
There has been for a while. If anyone ever wants to take a peak inside, you're probably not going to have a fun time.
First, a story about the importance of knowing your schedule and how easy it is to confuse Wednesday with Tuesday or Thursday.
Every week, I host a sports talk show on our campus radio station, 670 AM WPPJ. From 3:00-4:00 p.m., I have the chance to talk sports with one of my friends. It's fun and relaxing and something I really look forward to every week.
Something our radio station looks forward to every year is "Rock-A-Thon." This is the 35th annual Rock-A-Thon and the first year that I am involved with it.
For 67 straight hours (our station is 670 AM, hence 67 hours), we broadcast live outside of our normal radio studio in the middle of one of the busiest hallways on campus. Our broadcasts can be heard from the first floor in the building and across the sky bridge into the second building across Wood St.
It raises money for good causes ever year and is a great event for the station.
Each DJ is required to host at least one hour of programming during Rock-A-Thon. When I originally signed up for my one-hour time slot, I accidentally signed up during my Wednesday Spanish class. During that same time period on Tuesday and Thursday, I have a break. I was going to go straight from class, do my show, and go to my next class. Easy.
But, I realized that I had accidentally signed up for the wrong time slot when I double checked the list. When I went to change my time, it was too late. The only other available time slots were the early a.m. times from 1:00-8:00.
I was forced to sign up for the 1 a.m. time slot on Tuesday night / Wednesday morning. I was already going to the Penguin game that night and would get back to school pretty late, and I had to study for my test. I was going to be up anyways. It looked like it would work out.
The show ran smoothly for the first 50 minutes. I had great discussions with my co-host, played some good music and was having fun.
Then, as I went to play a soundbite from the computer, nothing happened. The computer was fine. The chord running from the computer to the sound mixer was not. The tip of the chord broke and fell off. When, how or why is still unknown. It just happened.
I was getting ready to send my show off into the next one that was scheduled to run from 2 a.m. until 8 a.m. when the morning show began. He was prepared for an overnight shift, I was not.
Our tech guy was looking at the problem trying to find an answer. I told the next guy up, Vic, that I would stall with him until we could get music up and running for him. After all, his show is a music show, not a talk show.
I soon realized that I was in for a long night.
After a couple hours of messing with the equipment and looking for new chords, our tech guy just grabbed our old record player and hooked it up to the system. RadioShack opened at 9 a.m. the next day and he said they would just go there and get the part they needed. In the meantime, the record player would play Vic's music.
We didn't get that working until 5 a.m.
From 1 a.m. until 5 a.m., I was on the air without music or a commercial break. Nonstop. We gave random facts, talked about high school, interviewed random students passing by, I played the ukulele at one point, we played would you rather, and I even studied for my Spanish exam the next morning live on the air.
It was the latest I have stayed up in a long time.
The real kicker is that I woke up at 6:30 a.m. Tuesday to go to The Globe and edit pages. I was up from 6:30 a.m. Tuesday until 5 a.m. Wednesday with a brief half-hour nap in the middle. Talk about a long day.
I had an in-class writing assignment in English at 9:40 a.m. and a Spanish exam at 11:20. I somehow got out of bed at 9 a.m. and was productive for the next three or so hours.
So, lesson learned: don't confuse days on your schedule or you may end up staying awake unintentionally for almost 23 hours.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I'm only a couple weeks away from taking over Point Park's student-run newspaper, The Globe. In operation since 1967, I will become The Globe's youngest editor-in-chief ever. My predecessor became Chief during her second semester of her sophomore year as well, making her the youngest Chief ever. I am a couple months younger than her, giving me the nod as youngest Chief.
It's terrifying, actually.
I have to manage and run this whole joint for 12 months. January to January. In that time, our new Pittsburgh Playhouse will begin construction, Point Park's new digital media center will open, and we'll have a new president in our country. So there will be a lot of big stories to cover.
I'm steering this ship for the next twelve months which is both exciting and nerve-racking.
I have no idea what problems will arise and what touch decisions I will be forced to make.
The first major task at hand is getting a staff together. I created an online application for prospective staffers that eliminates the hassle of filling one out on paper. It's turning out to be a great decision, as 29 people have already applied for spots and the application still isn't due for another 10 days. As it stands now, I don't think I'll have any problems getting as staff together.
The next big task is finding an editor-elect to work under me for the next year to eventually take over after my term ends. The application for that position was due today and the applicants must now interview with a board of faculty and administration. I can only play the waiting game now on that front.
I have a lot of ideas for The Globe to take it to the next level. I'm excited to start in January and get the ball rolling. Then, I have to see that 28 issues get on newsstands over the next two semesters.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I'm heading back to the Baseball Winter Meetings this year in Nashville, Tenn. with the Pittsburgh Center for Sports Media and Marketing.
We've been preparing for the last several weeks for this year's job fair and it should be another great experience. I can only imagine what opportunities it will give me this year.
I don't know what I'm doing this summer. I might work in baseball, I might stay in Pittsburgh, I might move somewhere totally different or a number of different things. I have no idea.
Whatever happens, happens. It'll work itself out.
I'm also traveling to Bradenton, Fl. in February to work the annual Riverwalk Regatta.
Finally, I am going to Cambridge, Mass. at the end of March for the 2016 Northeast Regional Honors Conference where I will present papers on the escalation of sports broadcast rights and stadium naming rights. I am traveling fly out to Cambridge with members of the Point Park Honors Program.
So, a lot of traveling and a lot of great opportunities aren't far away. I'm taking seven classes next semester along with everything else I'm doing. Hopefully I can make it out alive. The best way to do that is take things one week, one day and one hour at a time.
Because, why not?
Josh
