Election night irony

On election night they sent me to Baird to get what we call MOS, which stands for Man-on-the-street. That's where we go to some random public place and ask random people their opinion on something. It's not easy to do because you have to approach complete strangers with a camera. The issue this time was the alcohol proposition on the ballot. I was supposed to get some opinions on both sides of the issue. Baird was voting on whether or not to allow alcohol sales in stores. Well, after 5pm it's extremely difficult to get any people on the street (or town square) because everything closes in small towns like Baird. The only other option is to knock on doors, and that's even more awkward. I tried a local Mexican restaurant. Everyone eating inside was from Clyde. So I looked for another place to go. There was nothing. I noticed a place (which shall remain anonymous) with the lights on and lots of cars out front, so I went in to ask if anyone would go on camera. As soon as I walked in I noticed some flyers on a table. I had walked into an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting! I couldn't bring myself to tell them what I was inquiring about, so I just asked them where else in town I could go to ask locals about the election, not mentioning the issue. If I hadn't noticed the flyers or they hadn't placed them on the table, who knows how embarrassing the situation could have been. My thanks to the folks there for pointing me in the direction of a local steakhouse where I interviewed the cook (because there were no customers at the time).

becoming the news

driver rear side of car

driver seat

passenger rear side; trunk & back seat separated

front passenger door

Front of car

Last week I went on vacation and got a little more action than I bargained for. When a photographer is on vacation, he tries not to think about news (that's not easy to do). This time I became the news. While driving on a rather long road trip to Nebraska I got into a BAD accident. I'm lucky to be alive. Where did it happen? Abilene, Kansas. The town is much smaller than the one you all know and love. I was just 2 hours from my Grandparents' Nebraska town. It was cold, rainy and dark. I missed a stop sign at the intersection of two country two-lane highways. In that intersection, an SUV broadsided me on the passenger side just behind the front seat. The car is in two pieces; the trunk and back seat were separated. The only safe place in the car was the driver seat where I was. Luckily no one was with me. I escaped with cuts and bruises. The other driver got some stitches.

Storm Chasing!

Many of you experienced some severe weather last Thursday. Of course, when that happens, we chase them. Just after the 6pm news that night, I was in engineering getting some equipment fixed. I walked through the KTAB studio on my way back to the newsroom. Bob Bartlett was talking to Sam about the approaching storms. He saw me and said, "Head toward Sweetwater". So I did. Abilene skies were still clear at the time, but by the time I got past Tye, they got dark-and fast. I wound up stopping in Trent. It's always a gamble deciding where to ride a storm out. You do not want to be in the middle of nowhere, not just because of safety, but because it's hard to shoot video. I stopped at the 7-11. Gas stations make an OK place to shoot storm video because you can use the cover of the building to block wind and rain. And at night, the lights help show heavy rain, hail and wind. I shot video just outside the front doors. It didn't take too long for the parking lot to fill up with cars. It was raining too hard to see anything, and people were looking for cover. The radar-indicated rotation disappeared before the storm hit Trent, but it was definitely windy. If I had to guess, sustained winds were probably around 40mph, with 60-70mph gusts. Rain came down sideways; you could tell there was still rotation in the storm (but not strong enough for a tornado). Pea-sized hail fell for a short time as well. Then it let up rather quickly. After doing a phoner (live shot over the phone; sound only; a phone interview) with Sam, I decided to head back to Abilene. On the way back another cell crossed over the interstate. I had to pull over. I couldn't tell what lane I was driving in. This was the definition of zero visibility. In this situation, it's hard to tell what is safer-pulling over and risking someone who is unable to see hit you-or keep driving and risk going off the road. It finally let up some. I got back just in time to bring all of you video of the storm. Luckily there wasn't any tornado damage in the immediate Big Country, but when there is I will probably be there bringing you the video.

about myself

OK-Here's a little on my background. I come to Abilene from Shreveport, LA. I was a photographer at KTAB's sister station there. I have been there for the last 5 years. I graduated from the University of North Texas in 2004. I've covered a lot of cool stuff. After only a year there Katrina hit. Then Rita. Between those two storms I spent 8 weeks on the road covering the aftermath. I spent a week in San Diego covering Marine recruits going through basic training. While I was there, the reporter and I interviewed Bob Dole, who happened to be signing books at the time. I have met countless celebrities at various events. Nascar races at Texas Motor Speedway are a melting pot for famous people; you never know who you are going to bump into. Sports trips are the best part of this job. I was on the field for the BCS National Championship game in January 2008 (LSU vs. Ohio State in New Orleans). Other bowl games I've attended include the '07 Sugar Bowl (LSU vs. Notre Dame) and the Chick-Fil-A- Bowl last season (LSU vs. Georgia Tech). I've also been to the New Orleans Bowl a few times, and the Independence Bowl many times because that game is in Shreveport.

Next up...a little on what I've been up to since moving to Abilene. Stay tuned!

Hello Big Country!

Hello Big Country! I am Danielle's replacement. My name is Marc Gustafson, but I'm known around the newsroom as Goose. Why? Well, no one can pronounce Gustafson. (It's "Gus-tuff-sun" like the guy in "Grumpy Old Men", by the way). I get a lot of "Goose-tuff-sun", "Gus-tuff-a-sun", and most commonly "Gustaf" or "Gustav". That's where Goose came from. In my old newsroom, the main anchor, 10PM producer and the sports guy were calling me Gustaf. One of them, I can't rememer which one, said "how about Goose?" one night. That was it. In less than 10 minutes it caught on, and ever since then I've been Goose.

Coming up...more about me and a little on how my Abilene experience has gone so far. But I don't want to tell everything now; stay tuned! (as we say in TV)

Letting It Go....

I've come to the decision, without any input from station management, to remove my previous posts discussing an incident with a Dyess security officer. We were both doing our jobs, and everything turned out the way it should. Though no "insults" were intended, some readers may have taken it that way.

I look forward to continuing my professional working relationship with all Dyess personnel in the future.

Maybe next time I'll blog about a Downtown Artwalk or something a little less controversial!

Best Friends Parting...

The tale of two best friends here at KTAB/KRBC is coming to an end this week. Megan Dobbs and I are long-time buddies and never thought we'd have the opportunity to work side-by-side but Abilene made that dream come true... Sadly my circumstances are changing... I'm headed to Little Rock for a new position at one of our sister stations. It's a bitter sweet good-bye. I'm excited to be moving up but I'm sad to be leaving Abilene and the special relationship Megan and I had here at the station. Although it's hard to part, we are just happy to have had our time together in Abilene... But I couldn't leave without saying a sweet farewell and commemorating the years that we have stood by each other.

This is our story...