Shell-shocked...

Or call it Rosie's ranting and raving.

As many of you long-timers know, I moved from sports to news some time ago. Our normally quiet little area has been rife with tragedy lately - which I've been covering.

I'm sick of perverts who think molesting kids is a good thing.

My heart is aching for those who recently lost their loved ones in tragic vehicle accidents.

My stomach turns every time I think of the report on a murder which will end with a sentencing coming up soon.

My heart is aching - again today - for those waiting word for a loved one who is missing (and sadly, baring a miracle will be found dead.)

I feel shot at and missed, sh*t at and hit.

I know more than a few of you in the past have mentioned your disdain, frustration, irritation - what have ya - at those of us in the newsside. And I'm sorry some of ...

K, was found dead. Just got the call from the sheriff.

... anyway, as I was saying I'm sorry if some of the newsside doesn't have sympathy for some of the long hours many of you work.

But next time, before you get upset or angry - think of those of us who are pummelled with some of the heartache of this job. Like talking to a young widow whose husband was killed in Iraq. Or ... I could go on. There are times that dealing with parents convinced their children aren't getting the ink they deserve seems pretty damned good.

Rant over. I have a Web site to update, then have a massive crying jag.

 

Hell, Rosie, I feel for you.

It sucks. And it never, ever gets any easier.

Just get home and hug all of yours.

 

I hear you, Rosie.

I spent five years on the news side before moving to sports. It's a lot more fun going to a game as opposed to getting beeped out of bed at 3 in the morning to go cover a homicide.

Any time I want to bitch about my job, I remember those days.

Keep feeling and being human. If you ever go home and the things you cover don't wake you up in the middle of the night .. it's time to go do something else.

 

Whenever people ask me why I finally chose sports instead of "normal" news, I always respond:

"Because I didn't want to lose my faith in humanity."

 

You know Rosie, I've been on your side, and you're right.
There are bad days all around right now, and it visits every department. But there aren't many of us in sports that have to call the mother of the 5-year-old hit by the car and now dead looking for a story.
God bless, and love the ones you with.

 

Echoing the sentiments all around. I'd never work on newside as a reporter (I'm on the news desk now, though), for the reasons mentioned.

Peace be, Rosie.

 

I hear you, Rosie, and I'll keep you in my prayers.

You should know, though, that the Sports Department isn't immune to the tragedies of this life...

I could tell you about the basketball star who had a big night (21 points and 9 rebounds) in a tournament game, then missed a curve on his way home, flipped his car and died in the ensuing fire.

Or the softball star who was running late for practice one afternoon and drove her car into a half-ton truck that was stopped in the roadway.

Or the football player who tackled a bigger player wrong, broke his neck and was paralyzed from the neck down.

Or the basketball coach who walked into his school's locker room one morning, sat down on a bench, put a pistol to his head and blew his brains out.

I've done all of those stories while still on the sports beat, plus being pressed into news duty when Hurricane Katrina came through and having to talk to families whose homes were destroyed by falling trees.

It's a tough world out there, and the old Toy Department isn't always the refuge we wish it was.

 

Several years ago I had a string of "death" stories, dying coach, dead police officers, funerals of kids killed playing with guns, funeral of the coach, it was brutal. Then 9/11 happened....worked my ass off for days on end. The end of the pay period arrives and my supervisor tells me I'm not getting all the OT I racked up, I had to print fiction on my timecard. I know it had been building up, but that night it just hit me like a wall. It wasn't the OT, no amount of money would have been worth the emotional toil of the previous weeks, it was just that it was then that I realized that we're all just numbers. The button-pushers have no appreciation for what they ask of employees and what they give them.

 

*hugs* Rosie

 

Albert77, I am sadly and well aware sports is not immune to life's tragedies. I've been in this biz a long time.

This string has just been a relentless onslaught - one tragedy right after the other - and I thank each and every one of you for your prayers and support.

And hugs. Hugs are good - I didn't say anything last night (I never do in front of the kids, even if they are almost adults), but Rosebud was very huggy last night. Sure helped.

Today's gonna be a long day. This was a tragedy with two deaths - and as what makes this even harder in a small town-area, since this has been the case too many times for either me or my family, my kids were acquainted with one of the victims.

 

Rosie, I feel your pain and I'm sorry that you've had to go through that. I made the switch a few months ago, too. How long have you been in news now?

It's tough. I lost a close family member to suicide last year, it's something that still hurts. A while ago, I got a call about some police standoff or something (guy didn't know much). I was the only one working that day, so I had to go. As soon as I got there, I knew what was going on. There were like 5 police cars, a SWAT truck and a fire truck there. I could hear an officer yelling through a megaphone, "Please, come out, we just want to talk to you. We just want to help you."

He was dead before cops arrived. His wife, who couldn't get out of bed, was there for 5 hours as police tried to make contact.

I wanted to be anywhere else. I would've covered junior high soccer instead of that.

I really don't understand how people can make a career out of being a news reporter. Maybe I'm just an emotional guy, but it weighs on me, when I know it shouldn't.

 

The single thing I hated most about being on the city desk at a daily was the "families of dead people" stories.

Those are some long walks from your car to the front door of a stranger, not knowing how they're going to respond to your uninvited knock.

Me, I'd slam the door in a reporter's face. Some did. Others appreciated the opportunity to talk about their gone loved one.

But it always sucked.