I moved back to northern Indiana recently after spending several years down South. Now, I went to school here in Valparaiso, at Valparaiso University, and I grew up an hour east in South Bend, but I hadn’t spent much time in the region in quite a while. So freelancing for the Post-Tribune and scout.com (covering Notre Dame) has been fun, and educational. I’ve learned:
1. Some local geography I would not otherwise have gotten to know. I had no idea that I lived so close to Portage and Wheeler high schools.
2. That you need to remember which organization you work for. I’ve been telling people that I work for the Knoxville News Sentinel for the past four-plus years. These days when I introduce myself, “News Sentinel” is still on the tip of my tongue. I haven’t actually blurted it out yet, but I’m sure I will.
3. That I don’t yet know the little tricks that can help a sportswriter make deadline. I parked in what I thought was a good spot at Portage High School for the Portage-Chesterton football game last week, but I still got stuck in some horrendous postgame parking-lot traffic. I know next time to park way, way out, near the only exit that’s not blocked off after the event.
4. GPS can be a lifesaver. MapQuest, I love ya, but in this instance, not so much. Driving from Valpo to Notre Dame-at-Purdue football last weekend, I was led by the driving-direction site to a dead end (unless I followed the directions wrong, which is entirely possible). And then I remembered that my handy-dandy new iPhone has GPS, I turned it on, and the phone showed that I was only about a mile and two left turns away from Ross-Ade Stadium. Plus, I stumbled upon a free (nights and weekends) parking garage. Still stunned by that on a football gameday.
5. Sometimes, on a weeknight, when you’re covering a local sporting event, all kinds of crazy national news breaks.
