Breaking News

Okay, so maybe it wasn't breaking news. But it was a big story. A small Cessna aircraft crashed while it was trying to land at the local airport. The pilot was the only one on board. He died on impact.

That's the story I covered today. I guess you could say it was my first big story. I got into work about 9 am and was immediately sent to the scene. Later in the day we found out the plane probably crashed around 6 pm...the previous day. I sat in wonder and thought "how could we only be finding out about this now. It happened yesterday." To be fair to us, the competition didn't know about it either. But still...it was a long time. Whatever, I'm missing my original point.

Breaking news is what I love about being a reporter. I love the excitement of a big story unfolding before your eyes. Part of starting a news career in a small town is to gain experience. Breaking news isn't easy to cover. Everyone involved has to think on their feet. Things happen fast. I may love it but I know I need practice in covering it. I got a little bit of practice today with this story. But it's a little frustrating that "breaking news" means within minutes in most cities. In Montana, it apparently means "within a couple days." Oh well. I suppose things can't be perfect.

On a side note. It was 10 degrees outside while I was covering this story. My hands got cold. Very cold. On the trip back to the station they began to warm up again. I have never felt such pain before. As they warmed up it was a constant, slow, intense throbbing pain. It was horrible. Just thought I'd share.

Oh and while I love Montana, and have spent one winter here, the cold isn't so fun when you don't have a big mountain to snowboard on to look forward to.

Easy Kathryn, that wasn't a slam on Montana. It was a slam on winter.