Since I am blogging every day this month, I thought I would try some new things. I have never done a running diary of anything, and with an overnight shift at work what better time to try it out? Here’s the 10 p.m. to 8 a.m. shift writing news for the world (all times Eastern):
9:02 Okay, here we go! On the Metro from Vienna to downtown D.C. Odd that on a train with so few people, we all seem to be packed into the same area of this train.
9:06 The guy in the seat to my left is rocking out to his iPod. And by rocking out I mean he should be featured on the auditions for American Idol since he clearly thinks he’s a FAR better singer than he actually is. Strangely, as more people get on the train, he seems to sing louder. The falsetto is not helping his case.
9:18 Two girls just got on at the Virginia Square station. I would peg them at 20 years old. One of them is explaining the plot of “Office Space,” which clearly means the other has never seen it. I resisted the urge to throw something at her.
9:37 Just got off the train at Federal Center. I know it’s almost 10 on a Friday night, but no one else EVER gets off at this station. Don’t they know how happening this area is at night?
9:42 Got the assignments for today. We’re covering Europe, the Middle East and sports. Good mix for an overnight — while Europe sleeps I can write sports stories and when I want to sleep the Euro folks will wake up and keep me busy.
10:19 Quick start to this shift — legendary UCLA coach John Wooden has died. The Washington Post took some heat earlier today because they reported his death yesterday. Always interesting to see how quickly everyone can put out their pre-prepared obits for famous figures. L.A. Times was ready with a great one.
11:09 Took a while to fill my obit out, but I think it’s a decent look at Wooden for our audience.
11:18 In case you were wondering, all of Europe appears to be very, very asleep.
11:43 That means lots of trolling for stories, including the always-enjoyable London newspapers. Interesting story I’m not writing about–UK considering dropping its legal limit for drinking/driving from .08 to .05.
11:54 In other random news, an Australian restaurant REALLY wants you to finish your plate.
12:26 There’s some trouble brewing in the Middle East. An aid ship is heading towards Gaza, which the Israelis are not exactly keen on letting happen. LOTS of conflicting reports about what is going on here — some say the ship has been intercepted, some say it has been boarded, while others say none of that has happened. Might take some time for sources to get things straight so I can do a story.
1:28 Most painful story of the night to write. Philadelphia Flyers even the Stanley Cup Finals at 2-2. Game five Sunday in Chicago.
1:42 Big advantage of working your overnight shifts in a media environment: there is a TV on my desk. Latenight with Jimmy Fallon is a rerun (though usually a surprisingly entertaining show). I also can’t believe I don’t hate this Carson Daly show. He just had an interview with former Minnesota Governor (and wrestling star) Jesse Ventura. Ventura has book about all kinds of historical truths. Just said the U.S. government knew about 9/11 and let it happen.
1:46 Just polished off a lemon lime Gatorade and a granola bar. May have erred in not bringing a sandwich. Check back in a few hours.
2:47 There’s a CNN sports show out of London earlllly in the morning. It is strange to see highlights of our sports with a British accent…particularly hockey.
2:52 Orange Gatorade has been opened. Nacho Cheese Doritos won’t be far behind.
3:20 With Europe still asleep, time to do a baseball recap story. Poor Orioles.
4:01 Finally have enough agreeing information to put together an Israel/Gaza story.
4:32 Celebrating with the Doritos. Crunchy foods are an amazing asset to staying awake.
4:52. Struggling a bit…employing the nuclear bomb of awakeness — chewing gum.
5:45 Rest of the Middle East is awake. Politician in Iraq has been shot and killed in his home. Second from the Iraqiya bloc (just won most seats in parliamentary elections) to be killed in two weeks.
6:09 New info out of Gaza — confirmation from Israeli military that they boarded the ship. Live interviews on al Jazeera have been REALLY good all night.
6:57 Oh look, British Airways crews are going on strike…again. Third time since March and second in as many weeks. They always seem to announce the details of their strikes long in advance.
7:04 Looks like a growing bloc of countries are ready to drop the U.N. sanctions hammer on Iran. Russian President Dmitri Medvedev just announced a deal is in place (Russia has long resisted because of close economic ties to Tehran). Look for something Monday.
7:37 Iran story is out. Always interesting to get stories that cover both of your regions at once (Iran-ME, Russia & Germany-Euro). If only they could have worked a soccer game in there somewhere I’d really have something.
8:00 Off to the Metro and a nice nap. Goodnight. Or is it Good day? G’Day? Whatever.