Out of my element....running with the pack

6/22/2007

I walked into the press conference as the rest of the press corps walked out. I'm just late enough to be nearly useless. It's a long drive from Toledo to Canton, and I got a late start.

This is not my favorite kind of journalism anyway, running with a pack, trying to find some new angle in a story that takes everyone to the same landmarks. But here I am in Canton, part of the pack covering the disappearance of a young woman just days from delivery of her second child. See, just say that sentence, and you get why every news organization you can about think of has crowded into the parking lot at the Stark County Sheriff office for the news conference I just missed.

City Editor Kim Bates walked up to my desk around 1 p.m. Thursday, sort of bobbing and weaving the way she does when she has to ask something she fears you might not like. In fact, she paid so many compliments in the lead up to asking me to drive to Canton right now and stay for who knows how long, Clyde Hughes, who sits behind me, started laughing. He knew, I was about to be hooked and reeled in. You can still see the wound in my lower lip from her deft angling

OK, you're thinking, you're the science writer? I know. I think that may be why Kim was squirming when she asked although she denied that she was buttering me up. But anyway, here I am at this press conference, too late to do any good.

I did manage to write something last night. I'm not at all sure it was any good. But like everyone else out here, I tried to make it different, interesting, informative, not any easy task when we're all working with the same facts, and there aren't many of those.

OK, I gotta run. In an hour the volunteers will be gathering at the Greentown Fire Station to begin searching again. I should be there, see who I can talk to. I don't want to miss anything today.

Oh, btw, the Blade hired a freelance photographer to work with me. This has turned into a real treat. Meeting me at the sheriff's department was Phil Long, who I worked with 25 years ago at the Medina County Gazette. Nice reunion. Funny enough, it feels like we worked together just last week. It's that natural.

I'll talk to you later.