Burning questions

Never before have I had so many representatives from the county call me at the same time to try and sway my story. While writing about ongoing developments in the Stafford County Fire and Rescue Department, the county spokeswoman and the fire dept. spokesperson asked me not to write anything about the controversial fire chief, the he was the headline of the story.

Volunteer firefighters are upset with the county’s first-ever fire chief as he aims to make sweeping changes. The volunteers do not like a new rule that requires at least three people in each station at all times, new recruiting and marketing practices, and the fact that they do not receive any type of retirement compensation.

When I asked to speak with the fire chief, I was told that he was unavailable and could not comment on the matter at all. The spokeswoman went on to say they would like to see the whole issue play out in county meetings and away from the media.
I’m not sure if Stafford is used to having someone ask controversial questions about polarizing issues within the county, but they should know that I am here and it’s my job to ask.

Some stayed home

I went to a local ice cream shop today and took a small survey. I asked a random three people if they had traveled anywhere for the Memorial Day holiday weekend?

Besides Thanksgiving, Memorial Day is supposed to be the most busy travel times of the year. AAA did estimate that the number of highway travelers would be down by one-percent over the number of travelers just a year ago.

They were probably right, because once I asked the question many more than just three people spoke up and said that the price of gas kept them at home this weekend.

The average price of gas in Washington, D.C. is $4.02, up from $3.20 one year ago, according to AAA.

Now in Face Book time

So I have taken a moment over this beautiful Memorial Day weekend to join the ranks of Face Book. Because I have no idea how much of it works, if anyone would like to add me and tell me what giving someone a cupcake means, that would be great!

Oh yeah, someone sent a “poke” to me. I don’t know what that means but I’m assuming that it is harmless fun. Do you think that we can set-up a ‘hater poke” for when you want to by down right nasty to someone?

A good press day

Wednesday’s are deadline day. All of our articles must be in and the newspaper laid out on the page. Running late on a story, I had to wake up at 6 a.m. and be at a high school to cover a teacher strike. Then my pants zipper broke this morning, so naturally I thought I was going to have a bad day.

But this week, as if someone was smiling down from above, everthing has worked out for the best. We made deadline sooner than ususal!

Now that I have some extra time, lets talk for a second about enjoying the work that you do. For years I went from job to job, working as a restaurant manager, a Cable Internet phone help guy, I even moved furniture for a few summers.

But now that I am doing what I have loved to do since high school, I am finally happy about my job – which sounds snotty because most cannot say that.

But how long will this feeling last?

I disagree with some of the intricacies of how our paper is produced each week, and the long overtime hours that for some reason are necessary to produce the product. Yet even that does not deter me from coming in each day and yearning for more.

I guess you could say I like the exposure. It is the best way that I know how to use my talents and help others.

Through my reporting I have been able to get VDOT to post new road safety signs on a dangerous curve in Stafford. I was able to help a tractor-trailer driver get his rig unstuck in a flood and get moving again.

I don’t know exactly what it is, but we all have our good days and our bad ones – I know I will have more. I guess you never know which one you are going to get.

If my pants had a hole in them though, that would have been another story.

I was just staying

While covering an event at one of the Stafford County Firehouse’s this week, where volunteer firefighters were airing grievances about their boss, the chief of the house said that he didn’t want me there. He claimed that it was a private meeting and the press had no business interfering.

Unfortunately for Mr. Chief, when you have three or more local government officials in one room, as it did, the county’s press secretary is required to notify the press. Then I usually show up.

According to the chief, the press declines to tell the whole story, or doesn’t fully take the time to understand what is going on. I asked him if he had bothered to communicate the story to us, or did he simply not want us there because he had something to hide?

Where there are journalists out there looking for the next juicy story, there are those of us who try to do our jobs the best we can.

If you have never been burned by me before, why not try to use me to get your story out there. I will then in-turn use you to tell a great story. See how it works here Mr. Chief?

On the wall for all to see

I took a moment on Saturday to browse the fourth floor art gallery at the Woodbridge Campus of Northern Virginia Community College, and what I saw brought a smile to my face.

I could take some time to write about the extensive tornado coverage I provided to my newspaper this week, or about the relentless rains that are causing low-lying flooding as I write this, but I would rather talk about some images that make us who we are.

Two side-by-side images in one frame caught my eye immediately, as an art student found an old picture of his grandmother’s 1950’s-era car sitting outside a Woodbridge home. The student went back to the home, nearly 60-years later and took another photo of a Honda minivan parked in the same spot.

The comparison was striking, not only because the shot captured how much time had changed the home, but probably because the house looked to sit on or near Botts Ave., an old hang-out from my younger days.

Other photos displayed were similar comparison streetscape shots of Old Town Manassas and Qccoquan, with big finned black-and- white cars on one side of the street, and sub-compacts in full living color on the other. They showed me how much has changed over such a relatively short period of time.

Another shot depicted the infamous corner at U.S. 1 and Prince William Pkwy., where day-laborers stand daily and wait for work.

Because these pictures showed places me the places I grew up near, they gave me a sense of place.

Other areas of the commonwealth have their own look and feel; Richmond has historic neighborhoods that are quickly becoming an arts Mecca. Further down I-64 travelers will find the beach and the first colony in the New World. In Southwest Virginia, the mountain music and friendly smiles define the state’s portion of Appalachia.

What is Northern Virginia’s culture? Other than being located outside of DC, who are we and what do we stand for? We are known for great schools, military and good government salaries;
but will this region ever have the “cool” factor?

We know that you can raise a family here, and as long as the Federal Government remains in business, so will the area’s commuting faithful. But only time will tell what NOVA will look like in another 60 years from now.

Right now may be a good time to take a look at who we are.

Lessons from a quadruple murder-suicide

I was assigned to cover my first multiple homicide / suicide Tuesday, and it was for lack of a better term – an eye-opening experience.

In the tragic episode Monday night, a 24-year-old father of two shot both of his children in the head, both no more than 2-years-old, while they lay in their cribs. After shooting the children’s 23-year-old mother, who was also his girlfriend, the shooter turned the gun on him.

It brought Stafford County’s death toll to five so far this year, with four of the deaths being children.

At the scene were reporters from the major Washington, D.C. and Richmond televisions stations, and dailies like The Washington Post.

By the time I had arrived all of the police had left the scene, leaving just us reporters to find someone, anyone else who wanted to talk about this tragedy.

I found one distraught lady who declined to talk to my video reporter who was working alongside me, but did agree to speak with me off camera.

As she began describing the horror that happened the night before, a reporter from Channel 7 in D.C. honed in on my interview and tried to again convince the woman to talk on-camera. She again declined, until the reporter tugged on her heart strings a bit and said she should talk “for the children’s sake”. The woman teared up and then went on camera.

This reminded me of a lesson that I learned a long time ago while working in TV news, and that is I am more than just a reporter of the facts, but also a persuader of people.

It takes a certain kind of finesse to get people to talk to you, and these are skills that I learned in previous jobs I held prior to taking this Stafford reporter job.

The manager of my newspaper, who comes from and works in advertising, says that “even reporters are sales people too, we just don’t know it.”

Where I’m not selling you the news when I write my stories, I do try to tell them in a manner that will make you want to read them. I hope that you will choose us when you want to know what is happening around the area.

But after covering this tragic story, I am reminded that the people I talk to don’t have to necessarily have to talk back to me.

I have to let them know how important their side of each story is, and why they should trust me with it.

No more Disney for Cyrus?

This is pure speculation and even more fun, but don’t you think that the recent story of Miley Cyrus being upset about some photos being taken – photos that she agreed to pose for – is a little weird?

The child actress turned pop star is reportedly worth $3.5 million, and judging by her current image, one might think that she doesn’t want to maintain her lead role in Disney’s Hannah Montana forever.

This might just be the first move of the young star to get out from under the vehicle that made her famous, and move on to the next part of her career. Or she really might be the victim of some bad photos. What do you think?

Comment or vote on the poll to the right of this post.

The Internet wins again

It’s not that surprising that out of everyone who voted, the Internet is the number one place you turn to get news and entertainment information. It won over TV, radio, and print – beating them by 100%.

This is in no way a scientific survey, but as always, thanks for playing.

Keep the emails coming

I seem to be receiving more emails and press releases from people who are very interested in me coming to their event or telling their story. Being that there is only one of me in the newsroom, getting to all of these events is impossible no matter how thin I attempt to stretch myself.

I do enjoy the emails and the news tips, and because I feel that it is my job to both help people and hold government officials accountable, I want to write about everyone. Plus, good stories are good for my readers. As long as you’re reading, interacting with me, and hopefully patronizing the local business owners who advertise, I know that I can continue to do what I love.

I’ll be talking with someone from Stafford’s child protective services this week in an attempt to find out what is behind a recent rash of child molestations in the area. It seems like the cases have been extremely prevalent this year. I’ll also update the continuing trash hauling feud that has brewing in Spotsylvania over recent weeks. This is one of those stories that you’ll want to keep an eye on.

Have a great Cinco de Mayo Day

Channel 9 follows my lede

They say that all great reporting beings with a newspaper reporter rolling up their sleeves and digging in to get the facts. I must have done this and got noticed, as the story that I broke about the trash feud was picked up by a reporter from Channel 9 - Washington, D.C.

Their reporter followed my very footsteps at the Spotsylvania Courthouse, speaking with the same people I did to bring the story to my readers.

It feels good to scoop them!

Kaine visits, trash companies feud

I just wanted to take a moment from a very busy news week and update the blog. Today I had another chance to cover the governor as he came to Stafford County to hail the creation of a wildlife preserve. Timothy Kaine, D-Virginia said the purchase of the 1,700-acre site is a gemstone of his goal to preserve 400,000 acres of land in four years. Kaine said he is halfway to his goal with 18 months to go.

Another major story that I covered this week was a feud between two area trash companies. Shifflett’s Trash service, based in Stafford, is looking to expand into neighboring Spotsylvania County. Davis Disposal, the company who has many Spotsy garbage customers apparently does not want the company operating in their neck of the woods.

Danny Shifflett told Spotsy authorities that William Woodrow Davis, an employee of the family-owned Davis Disposal, attacked him in broad daylight while out hanging flyers to advertise his trash service. Davis was arrested on a misdemeanor charge and later released on summons.

Late word today from the Commonwealth Attorney’s Office is that Virginia law enforcement has stopped investigating the case, citing the issue is now a civil matter that would require a lawsuit. There is much more to this story on our Web site – staffordcountysun.com- including how an unidentified member of the community is trying to get Davis out of Spotsy, due to the fact that he is a convicted violent sex offender.