Better days and rolling with the tide...

As I'm sure many of you have heard, we've had a bit of bad luck here that has made life considerably difficult. Two weeks ago, my great-grandmother, Grums, passed away at the ripe age of 93. I visited with her a few weeks before, and her smile still lit up the room. She still looked at me like the little girl she always loved to play Uno and cards with, and that is the face I will always remember.



Shortly after that, our beagle, Pickle, died. He would have been 5 next month. It was the worst tragedy Jeremy and I have experienced together, as what happened was a horrible accident. To all of you dog owners, if you cage your dogs, I'd advise you to remove their collars everytime. That is all I will say about that.

Anyone who knows me knows what Pickle meant to me. He was my graduation present to myself after finishing my undergrad at Appalachian. I walked across the stage, picked up my puppy, and the two of us set off to Orlando alone. It truly was him and me against the world. He was my only companion for some time, and when I met Jeremy, they bonded instantly. I firmly believe no one could have loved him as much as we did. He was a handful, but he was ours, and we adored him.



Aside from those tragedies, Jeremy and I have endured yet another move, this time to northeast Alabama. We will be pursuing our master's degrees through an innovative program called the Knight Community Fellowship. We are officially University of Alabama students, but we will be attending classes inside the reputable Anniston Star newsroom. For more information on the program, or to take a peek at our biographies, click here.

Throughout the year, Jeremy and I will be participating in a barrage of journalism theory courses. But the one that I believe will be most interesting is one called Grand Rounds. During this course, taught by our program director and newsroom editor, we will participate in discussions about different types of journalism, attend community events geared toward certain topics and write journal entries about them. I will do my best to post those entries, and other thoughts, on this blog.

I just want to take this opportunity to thank everyone for their support during this difficult time. I know I haven't been in contact much, but as time eases our pain and stress, I promise I will get back to you. Please just know how much I appreciate your support and love.

Wish us luck...