Kelly Craig's Journalism Story

I needed to write a piece about how I got into journalism and decided to share it:

“I know I didn’t want to work nine to five, and that’s why I became a pilot.”  Okay, so I knew I wasn’t about to follow in my father’s footsteps and go to aviation school but avoiding a boring office job sounded great.  I want to be out in the world, not constantly under florescent lights walking on outdated carpet, I thought although I wasn’t exactly sure how to go about avoiding the cubical.

When I was in high school, I took an AP psychology course were we learned how looking at activities we were interesting in during the developmental ages of six and nine can be a glimpse into our future careers.  This is because at this point, a child will start to express their interests purely as they have not yet felt much world influence yet.  I thought back to what I was doing around that age and was hit with a flashback.

Pen and small Lisa Frank flip pad in hand, I snuck around the house looking for interesting stories.  My brother John forgot to bring his backpack to school today.  Mom had to drive it to him.  Dad is fixing the playhouse outside.  I interviewed who ever was making dinner.  After gathering facts, I ran up to my room with a copy of the local newspaper The Asbury Park Press.  I broke out the crayons and sliced off a huge chunk of fax paper and get to work on layout.  I scribbled Kelly Craig Park Press on the top and decided to mimic the newspaper’s layout complete with a drawn picture.  I made up (poorly made) word searches and crosswords.  I clearly remember being unsure of why all the profiles of people in the newspaper were of people who have just died in the section I was holding.  I decided to do profiles of my friends and pets instead.

Unfortunately, the Kelly Craig Park Press didn’t have too great a readership, but the archives can still be found in a special folder in Freehold, New Jersey.  About a decade later, I realized how an actual local newspaper ran at my first internship with North and South Brunswick Sentinel.  Reality hit when I walked into the offices seeing the cubicles and overhead lights but at least the carpet wasn’t from the ‘70s as I had pictured.  I let out a sigh as editor explained how I was free to write articles from my personal computer instead of using the office ones. 

I did end up spending some time in the offices, which was better than expected.  I spent most of the internship going to town events interviewing locals and experts and going to the nearest coffee shop to write up the pieces.  Although I didn’t love each topic, I knew that this was for me.

Throughout my academic career, I have spent 8 months away from Ramapo College of New Jersey, the school I will receive a Bachelor’s degree in communications journalism and minor in international studies.  I spent one semester at Florence University of the Arts and one at California State University of Monterey Bay.  I have one more semester to go which will be spent in California.  Although I neglected to follow my dad’s advice in becoming a pilot, I was intrigued by travel.  The studying abroad and the National Student Exchange programs were available at my college, and I knew I would regret not exploiting the opportunities.

Continuing to gain experience in journalism, I took a path other than taking formal internships.  In between eating gelato, sipping espresso and exploring cities, I was sure to leave getting published somewhere, anywhere.  I ended up with an article in Blending Magazine, a student run paper.  On my next trip I was sure to more actively work toward building a portfolio and ended up doing some editing work for Monterey’s Travel Host Magazine and taking two virtual internships at eCampus and Dallas Flow Magazine, which I am excited to continue throughout the summer.

As the days to May 15 wind-down, I have become more and more anxious about my Group Leadership Application sitting in the office of The Experiment in International Living to be considered for a summer 2012 program.  Although it’s a long shot, I hope to travel abroad with EIL as I continue the virtual internships.  Even if it’s only for a few weeks, I want to be out in the world, not constantly under florescent lights walking on outdated carpet.

One last thing

I forgot to add in my last post:

Because of all of the people whom I've met, conversations I've had, and things I've thought in the past couple weeks, I've realized that I really did make the best decision for me by staying here for the fall. I kept second guessing myself and fearing utter regret, but I'm so excited to come back, especially since my list of things to do here has grown not shrunk and since I've realized that it only takes one or two small things to make the whole experience different.

I've realized no one really cares and I probably should have just journaled that. Too bad since I've already typed everything out. Plus, my blog goes into my journal anyway. I'll stop now...

Camping Trip

I've been really nervous for the past few weeks. I'm not going to lie, I've been in kind of a funk. I just wanted to skip over the next five weeks and get back home to Jersey. I wasn't sad about missing this place because I'll be back next fall.

And then, my long dreaded camping trip came up.

I'm not sure why I wasn't excited. I haven't camped all that much in the past few years, but I've never had any bad experiences. I'm not sure why I was so reluctant to rent my gear, pack my bag and go.

This weekend was one of my favorite weekends I've had here so far (again, one of). I met some new people. I laughed with the people I knew. I played around with my professor's dog he brought along. I slept. I slept. I slept. I ate trail mix (with extra m&ms). I sat by the river. I looked up at the stars with my friend after we ended up walking by a growling tent as our flashlight gave out. I remembered how different sides of people can come out when they're crowded around a fire on a cold night. I looked out into the mountains that looked like green waves crashing everywhere you looked. I ran through the woods (downhill), something I forgot how much I missed. I sat under a tree and journaled and sketched the bridge that brought us back to the cars. I thought about how one year ago today I was drinking a cappuccino with a friend with the Duomo in the background and now I'm in the Ventana Wilderness in California's Carmel Valley completely content (aside from the streams of sweat pouring down my face...). I thought about how much I've seen in the past two years, grateful and lucky that I have these opportunities and that I was born and raised with drive and motivation to work and go out and see these things.

It was sad coming back to campus, but I got my clothes de-posion-oaked, my hair is soft again, my skin cleaned, my leg shaved. I realized that as long as you take one tiny thing from a trip, the smallest of things along with you, the trip was worth it. Going on a trip, enjoying yourself, then going back to the exact life you had before seems pointless. Why not just lay on the couch if you just needed a break? I for sure adapted Italian aspects of life into my everyday, and I've definitely changed since I've been here. Who knows? Maybe I would have changed in this way if I was home, but I think the atmosphere and environment played a role too.

I decided to make one pretty drastic change for the next few months and not use my cell phone on Mondays. For everyone else, that must seem impossible, but it isn't that hard for me since I don't have class now or over the summer on Mondays. I'll still use my laptop for school and work, but to put my phone away for a whole day will be a nice change I think.

I've just taken the journal entries I wrote from in the tent and from under the tree and just added them to my little leather-bound journal. I have to say, I haven't documented this trip as well as my last, but I also am not visiting exotic cities every weekend. I am adding pictures to Facebook and journaling more than I have been editing photos and blogging.

For those of you who don't know, on my first trip abroad, I bought a leather-bound notebook. I was journaling about that trip in my travel journal, something my mother gave to me when I was little that has Mickey Mouse stickers in it and scribbles how John wouldn't keep fighting with me on that long drive up to Maine. Anyway, I bought journal and wrote in the front my favorite things of the moment and then wrote out "this will be the journal I use on my big trip to Italy." I didn't know at the time I would be studying abroad since I was only 16 at the time. I figured it would be something I found decades from now and laughed at. Not only did I use the notebook, I realized I bought it in Florence of all places. Since I returned, I thought it would be nice to keep the tradition. Now, every time I go to a place, I use the journal I bought from the last place. Before I return home, I buy a journal made in the area that I was in and write in the front my favorite things and save it for my next big trip. It has been difficult to track down a journal or notebook that is made in California, but I am determined. Plus, I have all next semester. For now, I'll just enjoy where I'm at and leave the worrying for tomorrow.

Before and after:

A friend and I thinking "what did we get ourselves into?"

This isn't too bad after all :)

OH, and this is totally lame, but I'm happy I saved the last 50 pages of the last Hunger Games book to read when I got back from being in the woods for a few days, not like the experience is all that similar, just thought it was funny.

New favorite coffee shop

I've biked and bused to my new favorite coffee shop in Carmel that my program advisor introduced me to. Perfect timing since I'll need a new place to write my final papers ...I've been getting sick of the library.

Yummy

Whole wheat bagel with avocado, sprouts, pickle, tomato and red onion. Breakfast doesn't get any more California

Happy Easter

I just went to a beautiful Easter mass in Carmel. I can't believe it's been a whole year since spending Easter at the Duomo, but the church we went to was from the late 1700s! The old school traditional look reminded me of Florence.

Home

I have said this before but of all the things I miss back home, it really is my dog. Think about it. Everyone i would want to keep in touch with I do since Facebook, video chatting, phones... The only other friendship I have that I can't maintain is the one with my Jack puppy since I can only hang out with him in person. I'm still loving California, but I can't wait for a good Jersey summer with my border collie.