Atlanta?

My U-Haul truck - somewhere between Eau Claire, Wisconsin and Atlanta, Georgia in September, 2021.
I had no idea what kind of journey I was about to begin.

So, where was I?

That’s right! When I last left y’all a blog post, I was in the middle of trying to figure out where my life was going to take me.

This was nearly two years ago, after all. Since then, it’s appeared that radio silence was in effect and I’m sorry for that.

So, to catch you up … this will be a long post. Buckle up, kiddos!

For much of the spring of 2021, I was in the midst of applying for countless job opportunities - all with the hope of advancing a two-decades-long career in journalism. It’s been a career which has taken me from one end of the country to another. It saw me pivot from newspapers to television, back to newspapers, and back to television - where it’s mainly remained solidified since 2014. There were a couple side ventures

My 2020-2021 job search was mainly on the narrow side. I had the goal of cracking into a top-10 television market. Now, there were a few in that list which I was not too keen on. If anyone knows me, they can understand I’m not an L.A. kind of guy - unless, all I was doing was laying on the beach with a piña colada in one hand and some avocado-based food item in the other. Despite having some dear friends in the Phoenix area, the insanely-cruel summer months would just wreck me.

My main three targets were: New York, Washington, D.C., and Boston. These are places with plenty of things to do and never a shortage of activity - regardless whether it’s day or night. A couple more specific items include a fair amount of craft breweries (gimme a good imperial stout any day!) and tons of history. In each case, I had contacts who I could lean on to see if I could get a foot in the door. So, I felt confident that something would drop. There was even an interview I had for an opening in Philadelphia. Now, that would have really checked off a lot of the marks I was looking for.

Just after one of the weekend evening shows, with me (far right) and the troupe we had working that night.

… and then, Atlanta.

ATLANTA?!?! Wait a second! That wasn’t on my list!

But then, I looked at it. Atlanta has been a city on the rise. The jump it’s made from 2010 to 2020 was astounding. Many people were making the move from points in the north down to Atlanta.

From a television news perspective, it had quickly shot up to become the 6th-largest market in the country. That puts you in the big leagues, for sure!

Like any major city, there were a lot of craft breweries to sample. … and, as far as history, just looking at the city’s connections to the Civil War and the modern day Civil Rights movement can have you investigating its roots for years.

So, I put in for an opening at a TV station down here … and, how about that! I was hired - beginning a new phase of my life, which remains an open book.

When I made it down here the day after Labor Day of 2021, it triggered so many feelings of uncertainty and self-doubt. Was this the right move? Should I have just played it safe and stayed back in my hometown of Eau Claire, Wisconsin? Is this the right thing to do as I move into my late-40s? Whenever I’ve had those questions posed to me, there’s always been the counter-emotion of expected regret. By this, I mean that had I not taken a roll of the dice, I would’ve been asking myself “Should I have moved to Atlanta?” for months and years on end. It was this kind of thought process which made me stay on the track in 2007, when KUSA in Denver called to express their interest in me. At that time, I said “I have to see this through.” … and, by doing that, it set me up for at least the next 16 years (so far) of my life.

Inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium or an Atlanta United matchup with the New York Red Bulls.
Yeah, this is a HUGE stadium - one of the best in the world!!

With that kind of pseudo-rational thought process working with me, it was back to renting a moving truck and trekking nearly the entire length of the country - from the Upper Midwest to the Empire City of the South.

My mother says she was impressed at how organized I was for this move. Granted, some of my previous transitions from one state to another haven’t always been smooth. There was the thinking, as a 23-year-old skinny kid, that I could just tow a small pup trailer with an aging Ford Escort from western Wisconsin to Augusta, Georgia. Yeah, thaty got me as far as Elgin, Illinois. For now, I’ll spare you the details from that point on.

This time, I had my mother coming down with the move, as she drove my car while I piloted the U-Haul … and, after a quick nap in a semi-sketchy hotel in Clarksville, Tennessee, we rolled into my apartment building in northwest Atlanta on Sept. 7, 2021.

Just like that, the metamorphosis began.

Since then, it’s been an adjustment to try and feel at-home in Atlanta and the state of Georgia. Yes, I had previously lived in a big city … and, I was able to feel comfortable in Denver. However, all of the circumstances were much different this go-around. It was one thing to make that leap of faith in my early 30s, when I was hitting an apex for my career. It’s another thing to make a similar jump 14 years later, when you’re working with colleagues who are young as a child that I never had - or will have.

To help, I’ve made a few ventures out to see some of the landscape - around Atlanta and beyond. From the Little White House in Warm Springs to the 16th St. Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama to the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library here in Atlanta, any chance to gain some insight of the world I now find myself in has been wonderful. One afternoon was unique and actually saw me have this internal conversation: “So, I have to go to the grocery store … but, I really want to see that Rodin exhibition in town.” The beauty of it was I was able to make it work - heading to the High Museum of Art in Midtown to see many of the famed French sculptor’s work, including “The Thinker”. It was just one of those things I haven’t had a luxury to take in and appreciate. You don’t get something like a Rodin exhibit coming to quaint Eau Claire, Wisconsin. Here in a fast-expanding global hub for everything, going to see “The Thinker” on a Tuesday can be as easy as … and, yes. I did get my groceries.

There are many great craft breweries across metro Atlanta. Contrary to popular belief, I have not yet been to every single one.
This is a flight from Glover Park in Marietta - in the northwest mart of the metro.

… and, yes. There’s a watering hole right across the street from my apartment building. I know my Wisconsin roots seem to always be fueled by imbibed thoughts. However, I have never retreated from the fact that bars and taverns have always been part of the fabric which is the United States. In fact, a popular watering hole of the late-18th Century - Buckman Tavern in Lexington, Mass. - was where a bunch of militiamen hung out to wait for British troops to roll in. Soon after, the first shot of the Revolutionary War was fired.

As for this new hangout, it’s fit me just right! It’s certainly not a place to “be seen” - more like, I’ll go there to see what everyone else is doing to try and be seen. Since my career has me trying to bring order to chaotic situations on a moment’s notice, it’s rather comforting sometimes to just sit back and let the chaos unfold … knowing you won’t have to clean up the aftermath.

Being in Atlanta has also afforded me the luxury to experience those things typically associated with a big city. Even though I covered sports for many years as a newspaper write and sportscaster, I can still be entertained by going to a game. Since I made it here, I’ve gone to see the Atlanta Braves, Atlanta Hawks, Georgia Tech men’s basketball, and Atlanta United. A bonus with the first three teams was seeing them compete against my home state teams! I took in the Braves against the Milwaukee Brewers in the 2021 National League Division Series - the first time I was in the stands for a postseason game, rather than with the rest of the press. Then, the Wisconsin Badgers came to Atlanta to take on the Yellowjackets at McCamish Pavilion. Finally, the Milwaukee Bucks (defending NBA champs at that time) were in town for a marquee matchup with the Hawks on MLK Day.

Sadly, my teams went 1-for-3 when I was there. Sorry, Brewers and Bucks.

Add on to that all of the music and food which contain its own unique flavor and you have a fantastic location to discover this new chapter of my life.

Contrary to my outward persona, I have allowed myself to enjoy some more of what Atlanta has to offer. A few times, I’ve taken a rideshare to a different part of town and, at least, made an attempt to immerse myself beyond the boundaries of my known universe. These expeditions have come with a wide range of success, but I am glad to do that. It just reminds me that the opportunity is there for me to grab at. Again, I love the city of my birth and upbringing, but Eau Claire, Wisconsin can’t compete with the level of availability Atlanta has.

Here I am, one sunny fall afternoon in downtown Atlanta.
There was a lot on my mind then … and there’s 10 times that much on my mind now.
Time to figure a few things out.

This is truly an international and cosmopolitan metropolis, which is becoming more and more a rival to New York and Los Angeles. Each of those cities have their own charm and my visits to NYC have been amazing!!! … but, The ATL has game, too.

It’s also not far from other ports of call to check out. Soon after I moved here, I took a road trip down to Warm Springs, to see the “Little White House” of Franklin Roosevelt … and, IT’S LITTLE!! Opulence is not a word I’d usd to describe it! Along with being a vacation destination for the nation’s 32nd President of the United States, it was there where F.D.R. died on April 12, 1945. Even just this quick road trip was good for the soul. There was also a day trip to Birmingham - my first time in Alabama - and I plan on other getaways in the future.

As I am wrapping this post up, it’s June 8th and I just dropped my mother off at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. She was down here for a few days, marking her fourth trip here to see me since I set up shop here. By now, she’s seen a fair bit of the things that tourists usually take in when they visit - the Jimmy Carter Library, the World of Coca-Cola (you have to do it at least once), the National Center for Civil and Human Rights, Stone Mountain, etc.

I promise that I’ll share more of the individual items of note from my time here in Atlanta in future posts. I just wanted to finally post that I’m not dead and that I think things are working out for me.

Until then, let me leave you with the following mission statement.

I love being in Atlanta. This is a city which has been trying to embrace me since i moved down here in September of 2021 and, bit by bit, I have allowed it to do so. There’s a decision I’m working on finding a resolution to … and I know that it’ll be resolved in the coming weeks. However the game of dominoes is played out, I am glad to know I’m in an area where I can play ball, can score a hit for myself, and come out a winner in the end.

This is MY kind of town!