Friday, 9/15

I guess I can now finally spill the beans.

As those of you who've been reading these the past few months may recall, I have a new TV gig on the horizon. I said yes to doing it in early summer but because of waiting for the station at which I'll be doing it to actually announce it, I've had to refer to it here in very measured, very oblique tones.

But now I can shout it out to the rooftops.

I will be what as known as a "contributor" to the News 19 newscast on Marquette's new CBS station, WZMQ. They launch a local newscast on Monday, October 3rd, and each Monday night during the 6pm newscast I will be doing a segment called "Life in the 906". It'll basically be a TV version of these things--me writing and delivering a little weekly essay on what I deem important, interesting, and/or strange around the central UP.

To put it in a little perspective, I'll kind of be like Andy Rooney, except for the bushy white eyebrows.

I think it should be an interesting gig. When plans were being formulated by station management for their newscasts, several people with whom they spoke thought that i would make an interesting addition to it. I'm not quite sure WHY they thought that, but they conveyed their feelings to the people running the station, we chatted a bit, and viola--here I am with a weekly gig on a TV newscast.

I know I've said this before and I'm sure I'll say it again, but my life is weird. It really, really is.

Now, the eagle-eyed among you may notice that the first "Life in the 906" is supposed to be delivered on October 3rd, when I'm (hopefully) in Germany. And I'd reply that you're 100% correct about that. So the first segment--on the very first night of the station's new newscast--will be recorded. The rest, though, will be delivered live on the air, giving me a chance to interact with the anchors and/or make a complete fool of myself by screwing up on live TV.

So you have that to look forward to.

When I had mentioned a little while ago that I'd be on TV waaaaay too much for the average human, I wasn't kidding. Between "High School Bowl" on Saturday nights and "Life in the 906" on Mondays I shall be on TV a LOT. But that's okay. You have my permission to either run screaming from the room when I appear on screen or to just pull an Elvis and shoot your TV screen out.

I know I'd probably do one of the two myself.

So that's the TV gig abut which I've been hinting. I'm glad I could finally spill the beans and, if you have the chance to watch it either live or on the web, you'll check it out.

And that's another slice...of "Life in the 906".

(jim@wmqt.com), who'll be wrapping up each segment with that corny phrase.