Yesterday, I went to Newtown.  It was very eerie being there.  Such a poor little community that will never be the same because of the actions of one.  It was the 6 month anniversary of the shootings at Sandy Hook and it was very emotional.  Many families and friends gathered outside the town hall and of course lots of media (including Josh, David and myself).  I was actually included in the list of journalists covering this event in the ABC email coverage list. 

We arrived later than most and weren’t able to plug our audio into the usual place.  We had to MacGyver our wireless mic onto the stand that the people would be speaking at.

     A moment of silence was held for 26 seconds at the start of the ceremony to honor the 26 lives lost.  The first speakers that asked for this moment of silence were two girls who lost their first grader sister at Sandy Hook.  They did fairly well remaining composed until they left the podium.  Then they were escorted into the town hall.  The next speakers were advocates for a group against gun violence.  The ceremony was to last 12 hours because they were reading off the 6,000+ people who have been killed by gun violence in the 6 months since Newtown.   We listened for a bit then interviewed a few families of victims.  Then we were done and started to make the hour and a half trek back to the station. 

      We drove around Newtown for a bit.  Both David and Josh had covered Newtown when it happened and had vivid memories of it.  They showed me where angels were placed to commemorate the children, the volunteer fire station where some children ran, the little diner where they edited everything for the shows.   They are leveling the school so we couldn't drive there but we could see the road that led to it.  

     Once back, we imported the footage and I went back to the desk for a few hours.  Not too shabby.

      I have nothing planned this weekend really.  I may meet up with a few friends but I’m not at all opposed to having the weekend to myself.  It’s been a non stop time for the past couple of weeks and It may be nice to veg out for a weekend.  My mom and mimi are coming next weekend and that should be fun filled and busy weekend so I’m not killing myself to make plans this weekend really.  

      PS i got a new room today in my extended stay... not a bad view.