At a recent mixer of people in our building, Corrie and I learned about the rather storied history of the place we moved into and the two adjacent buildings. Clifton Terrace (now known as Wardman Court) was a drug and crime infested wasteland in area even taxis were afraid to take passengers.

Searching some databases I found some old articles detailing shootings, fires and the several attempts by community groups and eventually the federal government to redeem the place. It eventually worked, obviously, as we live there and the place and surrounding neighborhood now seem pretty safe. But the history fascinating and I’d like to try and find out more about the place, especially photos.

The most notorious gang of the area, the Clifton Terrace University, still exists today. It’s strange to see people walk their dogs in the nice lawn that once was a den of so much violence and crime.

I’ll let this 1987 Washington Post article below sum it up:

Continue reading →

So that’s it then, this is my next big step. As of today I officially accepted a job offer from NPR to be an assistant producer/editor, digital. It is an amazing opportunity and I can’t wait to get started.

Being given the chance to work with one of such a first-class and primary news source is something I’ve always dreamed about. A hearty thanks go out to the people who helped me along the way.

Now, where’s that Kool-Aid?

Well, we made it. Our drive to Washington, D.C. and the moving of all of our stuff across the country went off without much of an issue. We’ve only been here a week but it’s been great so far. There’s so much to see and do and we’ve got an amazing road ahead, including some expected good news for me later this week. I can’t wait for wait lies in our future.

So next week we (Corrie and I) are moving to Washington D.C. It’s a big change but an exciting one. Corrie landed a great job there after having earned her Ph.D. and so I decided to take on that next life adventure with her. Though we both have enjoyed Minnesota, D.C. seems like the kind of place for both of us.

MINNESOTA PUBLIC RADIO

It wasn’t easy to decide to leave MPR News. It’s what brought me here to Minnesota, when then managing editor of online news Mike Reszler took a chance on wayward Florida boy. I came here with just my car full of clothes and no idea what it was going to be like — especially the winters. Clearly, I survived.

I leave MPR News with a wealth of knowledge and the experience of working with an amazing mission-driven organization full of talented, bright and passionate people that absolutely love what they do. That environment and the type of people I worked with might have spoiled me, but it’s one I would never want to trade. I was only at MPR for just under 3 years, but the work I did there and the people I worked with will stay with me forever.

Whenever you leave a place you get a sense for the impact you might have had based on the reactions of those around you. Judging by the reaction of almost everyone I worked with in the newsroom, I feel I’ve left a lasting impression of someone who cares deeply about what I can bring to a workplace and that I was an important cog in the MPRnews.org machine while there. Thank you all.

‘WHAT NOW? WHAT COMES NEXT?’

Currently, I don’t have a new job lined up. I’ve applied at a few places in D.C. and have high hopes for some opportunities at NPR. I’m not worried, D.C. is an amazing spot for media and a great market for digital journalism.

The strange part will be that until I get a job, it will be the first time in close to 16 years that I haven’t had a job. I got my first job close to when I turned 15 years old at one of the local pizza places near my parents’ house. Since then, I’ve always worked and had overlapping jobs. At one point I think I even had three jobs at once, and somehow managed to go to school somewhere in there. Looking back, I wonder how I survived.

I’ve also thought about going back to school too. The University of Maryland’s Philip Merrill College of Journalism has a great program in multimedia journalism that I want to explore. There’s also a program at Georgetown, though it’s more academic and analytical (though that doesn’t necessarily mean bad). The possibilities for me (and us) are wide open in D.C. and I can’t wait.

So long Minnesota! Cheese curds, I’ll miss you most of all.