My journey at the Times-Republican

As my time winds down at the Times-Republican, I think about all of the opportunities this job has given me, and I wonder where I would be without my experience I have gathered while interning here for the past year. Here's a brief "history" of my time at the T-R throughout the past year.

It all started with "SoundOff!"

As much as that weekly feature could be a pain in my butt, I loved every minute, and as you may have been able to tell, I really loved Hy-Vee ... almost too much. However, some of the people I would approach and ask to be in "SoundOff!" (you know who you are) were like talking to a brick wall. I mean, who wouldn't want their opinion and picture in the Sunday paper for thousands to see?

After "SoundOff!" came the blog.

My boss asked me about a month after I started if I would be able to write a blog every now and then. To be honest, I don't like writing editorials or columns and, as much as I like to state my opinion, it's almost impossible for me to put it on paper. So, I went with it and wrote whatever my little heart was feeling. My most popular blog to date has got to be about Gov. Terry Branstad and his killer 'stache. Go check it out ... again.

After blogging came the stories.

This is when I felt like a bad, for lack of a semi-appropriate term, butt. I was still in high school and these people really just asked me to cover stories for them? I was thrilled. I can remember the first story I ever covered. It was some craft show at the fairgrounds. I pulled up with my little camera and recorder and remember sweating like a pig the whole time because I was so nervous. Why? I don't know ... I guess the old ladies and their quilts really got me going. I can also remember my recorder dying in the middle of the interview. As you can see, things got off to a great start.

After stories came the internship.

So, my boss (the best boss ever) threw out the idea of a summer internship one day while I was in the office doing "SoundOff!" At first, I was just kind of like, "Oh, that would be pretty cool." Then I realized that this is a huge opportunity and will only help me in the future. We got the ball rolling and here I sit now; In a cubicle, at the Times-Republican, in the newsroom typing this blog.

After the internship comes reality.

As I said before, my time at the T-R is coming to an end, and I'm sorry to the thousands of people I am going to disappoint because my face won't be the first thing they turn to in the Sunday paper.

But, joking aside, this internship has been more than a learning experience. I've met great people, and I've had hilarious moments with every one of them. It is truly an experience that will travel with me through the next however many years of my life. I don't think I would have wanted to spend my summer any other way.

So, thank you to the Times-Republican for this amazing opportunity. It's been a great year.