Navigation | The {Mis}Adventures of Rachel Bourne
July 17, 2009
Listening to Helen Thomas speak is something I’ll never forget. And even if I do, unfortunately, forget it (in case I have a stroke or get Alzheimer’s disease or something), I still have documentation of the event.
The WJMC is officially winding down, and so is this blog. My posts are lame.
Mainly because the only thing I can think so say is, WHY CAN’T THIS CONFERENCE BE A MONTH LONG?
I think I am going to continue blogging, though. Not necessarily on this website, because I think my account is only temporary, but my fellow youth correspondent Kylee suggested I join livejournal.com and start a blog there. Once I make one, I’ll post the link on here.
I used to blog EXCESSIVELY when I was in sixth, seventh, and eighth grade. Yeah, that’s right–I was AHEAD of the trend. I was a hardcore blogger, too. I posted things at least once a day, knew how to create different layouts for my site, figured out how to have music play when people looked at my page, and posted pictures, links, and videos. I kind of trailed off when I got to high school because my life suddenly got a lot busier, and my friends that were “blog buddies” with me stopped posting things, so I forgot about it. I’m happy to return to the blog world, where ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE!
I’m also happy I attended this conference. It was even more incredible than I expected. I’m going to recommend this conference, as well as George Mason University,to my friends back home who have an interest in writing, journalism, and politics, as well as other people who I think would enjoy the conference and the school.
As I enter into my final hour at the Washington Journalism and Media Conference, I reflect on the wonderful things I’ve seen, heard, and learned, as well as the people I have connected with. I can’t believe how lucky I am. The Washington Journalism and Media Conference seemed to have found its way into my life by sheer chance. When I received the invitation in the mail, I read over it, and minutes later I presented it to my mother with a serious intent to force her to let me go! The invitation could not have come at a better time. I was going through a very hard time in my life, and the invitation to the conference was the PERFECT thing to cheer me up.
Again, I am SO fortunate to have been selected to attend this conference. I am not being facetious when I say that it has changed my life. Before this conference, I was wary about going into the field of journalism, but now, I realize that it is the career path I am called to take. I am so inspired by the staff and guests of the WJMC, and they took a real interest in me when I asked them any questions or talked to them about my plans for the future. I can’t thank those people enough, and I don’t think they will ever realize how much they have affected me. Thank you WJMC, from the bottom of my heart, this conference was COMPLETELY worth it, and if there’s any way I could attend it again, I WOULD!
GOD BLESS AMERICA,
Rachel Bourne, future journalist and white house correspondent.
Filed by rbourne at July 17th, 2009 under Uncategorized
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NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I DO NOT WISH TO LEAVE THIS PLACE.
:'(
Filed by rbourne at July 17th, 2009 under Uncategorized
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July 16, 2009
I WISH I could be that funny. I’d love to just talk with that guy, even if only for five minutes, and see how many witty things he inserts into the conversation. Most people in Sandusky do not comprehend sarcasm, mainly because their heads are filled with rocks, which vexes me (or, as Peter Griffin would so eloquently say, “grinds my gears”). The vast majority of my classmates are lingering in kindergarten-level humor. They think “poop” is funny. A student unconsciously releases a fart during class? HILARIOUS. Oh, even better, the students “accidentally” lock the Spanish teacher out of the room? HYSTERICAL. Rachel makes a sarcastic comment about something? HORRIBLE.
Get smart, guys. Expand your mind. A little dry wit never hurt anyone… haha.
Filed by rbourne at July 16th, 2009 under Uncategorized
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As my title so boldly states, I think today was the closest I’ve come to doing anything that resembles being a real journalist.
It was MAGICAL.
At the press conference today with John Earnest, I had prepared a special question for him, concerning the issue of our dwindling population and how the Obama administration is dealing with it. My question tied into the issue of birth control, and how it is NEGATIVELY affecting our population. People are under the impression that birth control is “population control.” Well, birth control is limiting our population drastically, not to mention infecting our environment with unnatural chemicals and other nasty things. It’s TRUE. I know this isn’t the most… attractive subject, but I think it must be said.
When women ingest the birth control pill, estrogen and hormones come out in their urine (yeah yeah, gross, I know), but those hormones are NOT being filtered out of our water treatment facilities. Don’t believe me? Then check out this article (http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003645892_hormone01m.html), which observes that fish have been found in rivers and streams with not one, but TWO sets of reproductive systems. The hormones are mutating the fish. They’re there in the water, are they’re being consumed by anyone who drinks water. Males are the ones at risk though–the hormones in the water are affecting males by contributing to male infertility. So, if people aren’t having any children because of the birth control pill, and males are becoming infertile, then I guess children are going to be an extinct species! These articles support my claim of male fertility being threatened by the pill:
http://blogs.reuters.com/faithworld/2009/01/05/vatican-daily-says-pill-pollutes-causes-male-infertility/
http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0900033.htm
So, I inquired about WHY, exactly, the Obama administration allotted millions of dollars from the stimulus package to go towards “family planning” services, which is really just a nice way of saying “abortions,” and “contraceptives.” And contrary to what Mr. Earnest said about Nancy Pelosi, she did, in fact, advocate the fundingm along with making a lovely comment on how she thinks children are a burden on society and how they’re money-sucking little brats. Okay, that last part was false, but she DID say that they cost too much money. WATCH THIS VIDEO OF NANCY PELOSI SPEAKING WITH GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS ABOUT THE ISSUE. IT IS VERY INTERESTING:
http://www.marktalk.com/blog/archives/2259
Unfortunately, I must go, because I have to get ready for the gala. I wish I could continue my ranting, but my vanity is in the way. Just kidding. My hair takes forever to do. BYE!
THANK YOU DEAN FLAGEL FOR READING AND COMMENTING ON MY BLOG!
Filed by rbourne at July 16th, 2009 under Uncategorized
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I want to blog. I feel the need to blog.
But a voice in my head, weak and distant, is trying to coax me into going to sleep.
AND WHO CAN SLEEP KNOWING THERE ARE BLOGS TO BE WRITTEN?! Obviously not anybody in their RIGHT MIND!
I wish I would have brought my camera cord along with me. I took some great pictures and I would LOVE to upload them, but alas, I cannot. However, I continue to have a cheerful disposition, because I went shopping today. There was a MAJOR/EARTH-SHATTERING/APOCALYPTIC sale today at United Colors of Benetton. I purchased an adorable pair of denim shorts for only $30. The original price tag? $70. And that, friends, is the most pure example of the perfect bargain you will ever see.
…Alright, maybe not the most perfect example ever, but it’s definitely close.
Today was a great day. Scratch that; today was an unmitigated, marvelous, skippity-doo-da day.
Chuck Todd has THE ideal job. I need say nothing more. If I were Chuck Todd, I would be able to rest my head on my pillow at night and stare up at the ceiling with a satisfied smile on my face and think to myself, “I love my job.” And I would MEAN it.
I was dying to ask him a question today, ANY question, but I couldn’t think of anything decent to bring to the table, at first. I knew for sure that I wasn’t going to ask him one of those monotonous questions that everyone asks, such as “Like, where do you think the future of journalism is gonna go? I mean, like what’s gonna happen with the internet, ya know?” Come on, guys. If someone asks that question one more time I’ll drop the Lincoln Memorial on his or her head. We all know that journalism is migrating towards an electronic revolution. How many more times do we have to hear that answer?! YES, NEWSPAPERS ARE DYING. D-Y-I-N-G. I know, I’m sad too. Yes, it’s a shame and a pity. Now please, grasp that, and cope somehow.
The more I see of Washington, D.C., the more I fall in love with it. I saw as much as I could of the city when I came here for the Right to Life March last year, but I was only there for a day or two–DEFINITELY not enough time. I wish I could get into The George Washington University. That would really make my life. The only thing holding me back is my ACT score. I don’t think it’s high enough. It’s not a bad score, but it doesn’t quite fit the GWU criteria. I’ve always been very methodical, analytical, and careful, and I guess those three things are terrible characteristics to possess, since they inhibit me from getting a higher score. I’m horrendously slow at taking tests, especially standardized ones. I can never get finished in time, so I always end up having to just fill in the circles, but of the questions I do answer, I get the majority of them correct. What I wouldn’t give for an IEP–then I’d be able to take all the time in the world on the ACT and I think I would do quite well.
ANYWAY… let me divert this blog away from my ACT woes. The shopping area greatly exceeded my expectations. The Capitol Building did as well; it was the most magnificent, dramatic, and fascinating piece of architecture I have ever seen. While I was passing through halls of marble with ornate engravings, I thought about how every inch of the building was special. Every last tile holds a piece of history in it. Oh, to be one of those statues! I could be a fly on the wall; hear every secret that escapes the lips of government officials, be surrounded by beauty and history 24/7. It made me want to be a senator, almost. To be able to work in a building like that is such an honor and a privilege. I only wish I could have scoured the entire building from top to bottom.
I have so much left to say, yet I have so little time to get a solid night of sleep. I must bid thee farewell. It’s all the server’s fault, maybe if it wouldn’t have crashed for a FORTNIGHT*, I would have been able to ramble about every single thought that would have popped into my head!
Nihil desperandum*, my friends, I shall blog again when I awake. Parting is such sweet sorrow.
*Editor’s note: In case no one knew what the two phrases with asterisks next to them meant, “fortnight” literally means two weeks, or fourteen nights, hence the term. As for “nihil desperandum,” it translates from Latin to “no more despair.”
Filed by rbourne at July 16th, 2009 under Uncategorized
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Just a note before I begin my next post: the information about myself in the previous post is all legitimate. I did actually do all of the things I said I did, but I must admit I inserted my own “bias” into my self autobiography… ha ha ha. I’m really not that conceited, I PROMISE.
Anyway, since my blog was defective ALL WEEK LONG… I suffered mental, emotional, and physical damage, for I had no place to preach about my fabulous WJMC experience. Then, the lightbulb flickered on in my head: Mr. Kohler, my history teacher! Before school let out for summer vacation, he told me to e-mail him all about the conference and what it was like. And since I wasn’t able to blog, I channeled my enthusiasm into an e-mail instead! I figured I’d post it here, just for something to read. That is, if anyone truly pays attention to my blog in the first place. Oh well! This is what I sent him:
Hi Mr. Kohler! How’s your summer going? I’m coming to you live from my dorm at George Mason University right now. Yes, I realize it’s like one in the morning. I have NO spare time to e-mail you during the day, and I always get back to my dorm late because there’s a million things packed into every single day at this Journalism and Media Conference. I can’t even begin to tell you how great of an experience this is. Earlier this week, I listened to Brian Lamb speak and I got to talk to him afterward! I asked him questions about journalism, where it’s going, and what it takes to be a journalist. I visited the Newseum too, and it was spectacular. All of the exhibits were top-notch. They have this special area where they have the front page of hundreds of different newspapers from around America, as well as other nations, and they are updated every morning at 5 a.m.! There was an exhibit all about how the Watergate scandal broke out, and they even had the ACTUAL DOOR to the room where Nixon held secret meetings. It was so interesting. It had a sign taped to it that said “This door is not to be opened. This is an emergency exit only.” It even looked like a dirty old emergency exit door.
There was also an area of the museum that was all about how the press handled the Lincoln assassination. There was a giant picture of John Wilkes Booth, and when I saw it, I heard your voice saying “Boooo!” I don’t know if you remember saying that, but back when I took U.S. History, you were teaching us about the Lincoln assassination and you asked us if anyone knew the name of the man who shot Lincoln. When no one raised a hand, you gave us a hint by saying “Booo! John Wilkes Boooooth!” You have to see this museum someday. It is astounding. The 9/11 section of the museum was really interesting too, because it had a section of the building after it had been hit. It was this mangled heap of wires, pipes, and metal. The walls in the exhibit were covered with front-page news stories about 9/11 from places all over the world. Another section of the museum that was really cool was the section about how the press handled the Vietnam War. There was a big screen that showed scenes of people rioting and stuff, with ‘For What It’s Worth’ by Buffalo Springfield playing in the background. It reminded me of the 60s movie we watched in class!
We also visited the Smithsonian Museums, which I LOVE. I visited the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History the first time I went to D.C. and I loved it then, so I was happy I got to visit it again. Later on, we went on a tour of some of the monuments in D.C. at night. I’d never seen them at night before, and the World War II Memorial looked especially beautiful when it was the fountains were all lit up. Oh, and guess what… when I was in the Lincoln Memorial, I was reading the words of his second inaugural address, I found a misspelling. My tour guide told us there was a misspelled word somewhere in the Lincoln Memorial so I was determined to find it. It turns out that the word “Futures” had originally been put on the wall as “Eutures”. The government tried to fix it by covering up the bottom line on the E to make it look like an F, but it was still pretty obvious. It was funny!
What’s special about this conference is that we’re not just learning about “newsprint” journalism. People are saying that journalism is dying because newspapers are dying, but they couldn’t be more wrong. Journalism is actually flourishing. With all of the new bloggers our there, and all of the different ways to convey news to the world, such as podcasts, radio, and internet, Journalism CAN’T die out. The future of journalism is going to be very different in the next couple of years, but it doesn’t mean that there won’t be a need for journalists. I see now that professional journalists are more important than ever, because people are going to need and want to hear real, factual information from people who are trained to find out the truth. Not everyone can rely on news from bloggers or other sources that aren’t professional. People are going to need to hear the news from people who know what they’re talking about. I used to be worried about going into journalism because newspapers are in major trouble, even The New York Times, the best paper in the world. Now I’m not worried, because journalism is about to go through this big “rebirth.” It’s going to be really interesting to see how it happens.
I also had the privilege of visiting the National Press Club, and I listened to Vaughn Ververs talk to us about journalism, along with three other reporters. They were all really funny and lively, and they all truly loved their jobs. Everyone at the conference enjoyed listening to them talk because they listened to the questions we had and gave us long, detailed answers. It was really nice to be around people who were so passionate about their jobs. They didn’t sugarcoat anything, and gave us good advice on what the real world of journalism is like.
The hardest thing about this conference is WAKING UP IN THE MORNING. Breakfast starts at 6. I have to set three alarms for myself every morning, arranging it so that one goes off every five minutes. I also I have to put the alarm clock on the other side of my dorm so I’m forced to get up and turn it off. I wake up every day at about 5:30. Other than that, I love this conference. Every time I go somewhere or listen to a professional talk about his or her experiences, I’m completely engrossed.
Tomorrow (or today, rather) I get to hear Chuck Todd speak! There’s also a session about colleges, and what the best ones are for journalism majors. I’m going to tour the Capitol, learn about bias in the media, and I’ll finally have a chance to go souvenir shopping, yay! Oh, and I forgot to mention this, when I went to the Newseum, there was a section of the Berlin Wall! I took a bunch of pictures of it. The artwork that covered the wall was AMAZING. Walking around the Newseum and the Smithsonian Museums was like going back in time to my sophomore U.S. History class. It was like the things you taught us came to life. At almost every exhibit I thought, hey, I remember learning about that! There was stuff about muckrakers, yellow journalism, the Kennedy assassination, Watergate, and a bunch of other things.
I think it’s time I went to sleep, since I have to get up in like an hour anyway, because the wake up call is practically at 3 a.m. I hope you’re having a good summer, and I’ll try to keep you updated on the stuff that’s going on! Bye!
Filed by rbourne at July 16th, 2009 under Uncategorized
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Rachel Bourne, known as “The Fiery Redhead” by her peers and admirers, was conceived in a small town in Wisconsin and born in Sandusky, Ohio. Even as a small child, Rachel was obsessed with seeking out new information. You could often find her sprawled out on the floor of her family room with stacks of books surrounding her like the walls of a fortress. Her insatiable hunger for reading and learning new things led her to discover her true passion. It was in seventh grade when Rachel realized that her creepy fascination with grammar, thesauruses, vocabulary, the English language, narrating her life out loud in third person, fiction, and storytelling could all be combined into a single thing that was even greater than the sum of its parts, and that was writing.
During Rachel’s seventh grade year at Sandusky St. Mary Central Catholic, she tried out for her school’s Power of the Pen team ( Power of the Pen is an interscholastic writing league created for students in grades seven and eight living in the state of Ohio). At her first Power of the Pen meet, there were over a dozen schools participating, but Rachel’s confidence was not shaken. She knew she had the ability to write great things with her mighty pen. Each student participating in the writing challenge was given a topic, and then he or she had to write a story about that topic in the span of thirty-five minutes. Rachel excelled at every one of her Power of the Pen meets, and made it to the state level her eighth grade year. Out of all the eighth graders in the state, Rachel placed twenty-seventh. When asked about her experience, Rachel resolutely proclaimed that “It was one of the best days of my entire life. I shall never forget the events of that weekend for as long as I shall endure. At the time, my self-esteem level was at a record low, and after I accomplished my goal of placing in the top fifty at the Power of the Pen state meet, my self-esteem was repaired. Without the unceasing love, encouragement, and instruction I received from my family as well as my English teacher, Mrs. Chambers, I would have had that life-altering experience.” The link below shows her standing at the state meet, which took place at the College of Wooster in Ohio.
http://74.125.113.132/search?q=cache:LIQ2gFCrlgIJ:www.powerofthepen.org/State06.pdf+rachel+bourne+power+of+the+pen+state+wooster+27&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us&client=firefox-a
Much to Rachel’s chagrin, Power of the Pen was not a high school organization, so her state meet was her last competition. However, Rachel further developed her talent for writing throughout high school. During her sophomore year at Sandusky St. Mary Central Catholic, she participated in a college-level United Stated History class, which literally kicked her butt. The teacher, Mr. Kohler, assigned several difficult and thought-provoking books to read throughout the course of the year, and every two weeks, she had to write an eight to ten page paper summarizing the chapters she read and her opinions on the material. Rachel toiled over her papers, perfecting them down to the last period at the end of her sentences. Those papers were horribly time-consuming, and although they caused some tears and even a few brain hemorrhages, it was worth it in the long run. The experience Rachel gained from the class was well worth its weight in gold, for she had further developed her writing skills, and also improved her IQ.
During Rachel’s junior year at Sandusky St. Mary Central Catholic, she was finally permitted to take Yearbook, a course that was reserved for upperclassmen only. She was surprised at how much she enjoyed fiddling around with the yearbook’s layout, pictures, captions, and informative paragraphs. She spent hours arranging the perfect color scheme, font, and photo positioning, and when she was finished, her yearbook page was a regular work of art, a Mona Lisa, if you will. She was the editor of the yearbook as well, and she loved nothing more than editing pages. Finding a misspelled word was like hitting the jackpot for Rachel.
As Rachel grew older, her interest in the political realm deepened, along with her love of writing. She became active in her political beliefs, attending political rallies, giving speeches at organizations about her opinions on current issues, and participating in United States Outlook, a current events class at her school. Her newfound fervor for politics led her to a special mock-government camp, called Buckeye Girls State. The camp lasted from June fourteenth to June twentieth 2009, and it was unlike anything Rachel had ever experienced. During Buckeye Girls State, delegates are expected to simulate a state government and elect officials to help the government function. The highest position at Buckeye Girls State is Governor. Every girl has a job, whether it be city fire chief, county commissioner, city mayor, or municipal judge. Rachel campaigned and ran for the position of the Federalist Party State Chairman, and won. She was also appointed as the Director of the Department of Youth Services in the Governor’s official Cabinet. If you would like to further learn about what Buckeye Girls State is and what the delegates do there, you can visit the following website.
http://www.buckeyegirlsstate.com/2009/
Along with politics, writing, journalism, traveling, sarcasm, and philosophizing, Rachel enjoys long walks on the beach, getting foot massages, and listening to classical music. She currently lives with her Mother Amelia, her Father Robert, her sister Audrey, and her brother Michael, all of whom she loves to pieces.
Filed by rbourne at July 16th, 2009 under Uncategorized
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July 15, 2009
Good evening readers, this is Rachel Bourne reporting to you live from the Johnson Center Cinema. The crowd is restless, as correspondents chat amongst each other about the latest news, such as the recent shooting at Capitol Hill, which the WJMC member so narrowly evaded.
This just in: Dean Andrew Flagel has just taken the stage! As he calls out the assigned numbers of the various groups of correspondents, they cheer and hoot and holler in response.
He is now thanking us for our cooperation and enthusiasm displayed throughout the conference, which is ironic, since we should be the ones thanking him for all of the valuable advice, support, and entertainment he has provided for us.
I will be updating you later. I have to pay attention to what is going on right now. Over and out!
Filed by rbourne at July 15th, 2009 under Uncategorized
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P.S.: DID I MENTION THE THRILL THAT SHOT UP MY SPINE AND INTO MY BRAIN WHEN I SUCCESSFULLY LOGGED IN ON THIS BLOG SITE????
AT LAST!!!!!!!!!!
Filed by rbourne at July 15th, 2009 under Uncategorized
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AH HA! MY BLOG IS ALIVE! MY BLOG IS ALIVEEEE!!!!!
I don’t have a lot of time to write anything of consequence at this moment in time, but if the blog sit continues to function correctly, then you people better watch out, because you’re in for the longest blog of your lives.
I have to go to debriefing now. I’ll check the blog site afterward and hopefully -HOPEFULLY- it’s still operating.
I’M SO HAPPY MY BLOG IS BACK!!!! YES!!!!!
Filed by rbourne at July 15th, 2009 under Uncategorized
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