2 December 2006

Random thoughts...HOLIDAY edition:


* LOVED, LOVED, LOVED the Boston Pops Holiday concert the other night. It was almost 70 degrees out, but it definitely put me in the holiday spirit. You can read the Washington Post's review of it HERE. (I pretty much agreed with it word-for-word.) We got a quick pre-concert nosh at the Corcoran Gallery of Art's cafe which is a mere block away from Constitution Hall. The gallery is open until 8PM on Thursday nights, so it was an inspired choice. (And one that I cannot take credit for--good idea, McDaniel!) The food was surprisingly good, too.

* On my weekend show we're doing a segment called BAH HUMBUG where we try to "right" Christmas "wrongs." Today's segment involved a church in Lakeland, Florida who had about $3000 worth of Christmas trees stolen from their church parking lot. (Read a story about it HERE.) The proceeds were supposed to go not only to the church, but also to about half a dozen area charities (Boys & Girls clubs, Habitat for Humanity, homeless shelters, etc.) We had one of the church's volunteers on the show today to tell us the story and then we put up a fullscreen with information on how our viewers can send donations. I feel really proud and hope it helps.

* It's a holiday first for me: an artificial Christmas tree. I admit I WAS a bit dubious, but I am pleasantly surprised. I miss the smell, of course (we have a spray, but it's NOT the same) but it IS safer and cleaner. We had friends over last night for some cocoa and it was very festive with the tree all lit up, a roaring fire, and holiday music. We have yet to actually decorate the tree, but we're gettin' there. I will post a picture when we're done!

30 November 2006

You've heard the expression "gone to the dogs"--well, this next item goes to the CATS.

First, a little background. When a VIP (the president, VP, Sec of Defense or Sec of State goes on a big overseas trip, the networks all get together and set up a "pool" to cover the event(s). Each network takes turns doing these pools and everyone shares in the product. For Secretary Rice's trip to Amman, Jordan--NBC was the pool. Part of the duties for whoever is doing the pool is to write pool "notes" about what happened, what time it happened, and any interesting "color" to the events. Today's installment is from NBC anchor Brian Williams. He's describing a series of interviews Rice gave to some of the networks outside the Dead Sea Marriott:

"Fox went before us in the interview order, and their correspondent tried awfully hard to continue the interview with a straight face... after the conversation was interrupted... by a cat. The pool/beach-front deck at the Dead Sea Marriott is a sea of cats. At one table, we counted four felines, each of them seated in a different chair. These cats are of a tough and saucy breed. They have visible swagger. It's close to a strut, actually. One of them made off with the sandwich that had been the intended lunch of the CBS cameraman. The cats, as far as I could tell, run the place. When our cameraman tried to apprehend the cat that had been running around the interview, the cat objected loudly and clawed at him. Finally, after another cat interruption, a member of the security detail that surrounds the Secretary picked up the cat and tossed it off the patio, as several of us looked on, certain that this was a first in the annals of Secretary of State interviews. We're pretty sure the offending cat landed on its feet and is resting comfortably tonight."

Thanks to my friends at mediabistro.

29 November 2006

* Had lunch with the girl at our favorite place Busboys & Poets the other day and in walked Washington's mayor-elect Adrian Fenty. He's good looking, charismatic and -- 35 years old. I find it a TAD unsettling that a mayor of a major American city is younger than me.