So… Internet is still a bit of a sore subject in Lakeview. On one side it is nice because I do not find myself wasting hours surfing random sites but on the other side it cuts down on productivity a bit. Alas, I find myself back at the public library this morning.
Yesterday was a big day for us on the awareness and media front.
First, we met with Tommy from the KQIK radio station. Tommy is the morning personality on the local radio station. He recorded an interview with MacAdam that will play live Monday morning at 8:28am on stations 1230am and 93.5fm. I was surprised to find that all of the slots on Thursday and Friday were already filled. I mean come on; this town only has 2,700 people. What could possibly be going on that was more exciting than out-of-towners? According to Tommy, the Dr. Daly Days Health Fair is a hot topic this week. I guess that this is a good thing since we will have a booth there Saturday.
Tommy the KQIK morning personality.
Tommy is a bit of an interesting character. I would place him in his late 70s or early 80s with a smooth radio voice. The recording studio was quaint and located on the outside of town. It was really hot inside due to the sound proof installation. Tommy was extremely interested to learn about our mission this summer. He asked MacAdam quite a few questions about what we are doing in Lakeview and our plans moving forward. Like most people in this secluded town, he was extremely supportive and appreciative of our cause. We gossiped a bit about what is new around town and learned that a natural gas pipeline is being put in that spans from here to Wyoming. After a half hour or so, we waved goodbye to our new friend and set out for our next stop at the Lakeview Examiner.
The KQIK Studio.
MacAdam giving the interview, Benny the Beaver looking chill and Alex taping the process.
I have never really been to a newspaper office before but I cannot imagine that we got the typical experience. Upon entering the door, we are greeted but two over eager puppies, Scooter and Reser, that appeared to have free run of the building. A receptionist greets us and tells us to come on back to a table and some chairs to wait. She did not even question why we were there. We had very strict instructions from Papa Jim that we are suppose to talk to Edward and Edward only. In Papa Jim’s opinion, Edward is the best reporter in Lakeview due to an article that this Edward guy wrote about his grandson Cameron. The receptionist tells us that Edward is on the phone and that it might be a few minutes. This does not really bother us because we have puppies to play with and the receptionist chats us up about Oregon State and her eight grandchildren who may or may not be attending Oregon State. (This is a very common conversation topic where ever we go.)
Eventually Edward comes to see us. Our initial reaction is shock. Like everyone else in this town we expected Edward to be in his 80s, white and some retired rancher friend of Papa Jim. This was so not the case. Edward is a young, fresh out of college graduate. He is literally the first Asian I have seen in Lakeview and has a very serious look on his face.
He leads us to a back room (a table, several mismatched chairs and piles of old papers) and pulls out his moleskin notebook that he records interviews in. Edward wastes no time with pleasantries and starts digging through our story. I felt kind of bad for him trying to balance three answers to every one question that he asked but he was really sharp and asked detailed follow-up questions. I do not think that he laughed or smiled the entire time. (Like I said, super serious.)
After awhile we take a break from the official interview and start talking about college and over course, local town gossip. He finally started to smile a little bit when MacAdam and Alex started talking about their love lives (a little too R-rated to post, sorry). I asked him how he ended up in Lakeview and how long he had been here. Apparently after college he sent out over 200 resumes and applications and this was the best job that he could find. He has been here since New Years and is from Kirkland, WA (a very affluent city near Seattle). I feel bad for him because it must be a bummer to move to a small town where everyone is 80+ years old and you stick out like a sore thumb. The boys all got really into their conversation though and I just sat there and laughed. It must have been nice for ol’ Edward to hang-out with some people his own age for awhile. Finally we all trooped outside to take a picture with our awesome van.
This is either going to be a very good article about what we are doing this summer or a very interesting article about MacAdam’s and Alex’s love lives. Either way though, I suspect that it will be epic!
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