A New Direction for Me

Me, reporting on Clydesdales. Oh what a fun job this has been!

One of the funny things about blogging is that you get to decide what level of transparency you want to give to your readers. I will be honest; I'm not that transparent, for a variety of reasons. Chief among them has always been my career as a journalist. 

We can't know what's happening in the lives of any of our friends, even if we think we do. One thing you couldn't have known, reader, is that I have been gearing up to change careers. It's — for lack of a better phrase — a big effing deal. 

My father is a journalist, my husband is a journalist, my mother-in-law and my father-in-law are journalists. My husband and I met on the school newspaper, and most of our friends have been journalists. I love the industry, but many things have made it tough in recent years. The schedule is grueling, the pay isn't great and the constant fear of getting something wrong is enough to wake you up in the middle of the night.

Still, I've delighted in the small victories. Readers' comments that prove they read every word and really got it. Finding out your articles might have had some small impact on someone's day or even life. Hearing that you're the only one who got it right. Meeting Bob Woodward. Covering the Dalai Lama. That's all amazing.

When I saw an opportunity open up at a local art center I visited frequently as a college undergrad, I had to apply and was lucky enough to get it. I like to imagine I can tell you anything, reader, but I've been keeping this one close to the chest. 

This week is my last as a journalist for the foreseeable future, and I won't lie...I might have a mini identity crisis for the next couple months. But I'm excited for the new opportunities and to stretch my creative muscles in new ways. I hope you'll forgive me for keeping my news to myself!