Courtesy of Timehop, this piece on Anthony Shadid — which I’d quoted and linked on Facebook a year ago — showed up in my inbox today. It’s a beautiful piece from his student newspaper, the UW-Madison Daily Cardinal, written just after his death. Here’s the part I quoted: Continue reading →

I’ve learned more in the past week than I did the entire preceding year.

That’s probably hyperbole, but not by much. My first week-and-change at my first daily reporting job has brought story after story, and not just the ones that went on the page.

I’ve learned (from my editor, full disclosure) that if you visit the site of a house fire the next day, you can talk to the family and learn what they lost and where they’re headed. Do that and you’ll blow your own story, the one you would’ve written with the transcription of the fire marshal’s quotes, out of the water.  Continue reading →