Quick Advice About Internships

Here's some advice for people before applying to similar internships that I just had...

#1). ALWAYS ASK QUESTIONS AND ASK WHAT YOU CAN DO TO HELP!: Don't ask questions when people are busy, but when there's a moment and you're chilling with someone just ask them about their job and different things they're interested in. I always had 100 questions, which means I'm in the right field, but you have to feel the situation and not annoy people. If you're a journalist, you know what I mean.

#2). THE OTHER INTERNS MAY BE YOUR FUTURE CO-WORKERS: Make friends with the other interns because you will probably work with them later on in life. Get their contact info and keep in touch!

Broadcast Station Internship

1. Know if your Station is UNION SHOP: A lot of local stations do not have unions so you can touch and use the equipment, but in NYC (besides NY1) the local stations are unionized. I was still able to observe the entire process in putting together a news package, but I was not allowed to touch anything. I would say, do one internship at a non-union shop to touch the equipment and then work with a union shop to gain more experience. 
2. People will remember you, which is Good & Bad: Broadcast news is a small, small world. So, don't be a jerk. Be polite to everyone and be engaged. Be friendly to people that work at the other stations too, you never know who you will run into in the field!
3. You want to be an Anchor? Do More: No one is an anchor automatically. Learn from everyone you can. GDNY anchor Rosanna Scotto says, "The best anchors were always the best reporters."
4. Get to know your Photogs: I never thought about this before, but honestly the coolest people I met were the cameramen. Some of them have been all over the world and most of them know all of the other cameramen from other stations. They also always have your back. 
5. Dress to Impress: People at the station sometimes thought that I wasn't an intern because I dressed nicely. They'll remember that. (Also, people on the street thought I was the reporter... which was kind of awesome.. not going to lie!) 

Independent Media Writing Internship 

1. Ask if Co-workers need help on their Research: Writers at FAIR were always working on their own individual projects. If you're interested in the same topic, ask them about it and they may let you help them their with project! 
2. More Work is Available: Working in a smaller place allows you the chance to be hands on. I was able to write 4 blog posts, a study with a co-worker, and my own piece. There is a benefit to working with a smaller group of people because you can literally do more.
3. People will remember you, which is Good & Bad (AGAIN): Indy media is really small as well. The people who you work with might have connections to other media outlets, so don't be mean. With that knowledge comes responsibility, so don't schmooze (I hate schmoozing..). Work your butt off because it's a smaller market than mainstream media and it's more specialized (people report on more specific topics). 
4.  Study the Writing Style of the Outlet: FAIR writes with a very specific tone which took me a long time to adopt. Read A LOT of the outlet's work and try to practice writing that way. I didn't realize how uncomfortable I would be writing in the tone FAIR uses, but I got used to it. 

Weekend Sightseeing (Part Two): Sunday Funday

I know what you're thinking: No, Clement and I did not go bar hopping on Sunday. Instead we did a bunch of other cool things.

The Intrepid! 

I have visited the USS Intrepid about three or four times since I was little, but it was great to go on a warm day with Clement. The Intrepid is this beautiful aircraft carrier that is now a museum.

Usually, my parents drag me out of bed early so we beat the lines, but Clement and I didn't do that. Sunday is my one day off, so I wanted to sleep in! We showed up at the museum an hour after it opened and only waited a few minutes to buy tickets. I think it is usually pretty busy on the weekends, but it's best to go before lunch to avoid large crowds. We also purchased student tickets, which are slightly discounted ($20). They're still a bit pricey but -- hey -- you're going on an aircraft carrier. It's worth it on a college budget.

The Growler submarine.

If there aren't a lot of people ahead of you, you should go on the submarine. I've never been on it because, well, I'm not sure how to put this lightly but my Dad is a giant. So, no submarines until now. I couldn't believe how many people fit in the Growler submarine -- there were so many tightly packed beds. The crew must have been huge!

Then, we went to the hanger (inside the ship) and talked to a volunteer about some of the historical morale badges and patches the men wore. It turns out, there was actually a basketball league on the ship. The teams were broken up according to different jobs and they would play in the hanger. Most of the men were 19-24 years old and playing a sport brought up morale. 

Here are some of the morale badges. 

When we were in the hanger, we saw a bunch of tours going on. Next time I go, I will probably take a tour because there is so much information that I've missed over the years - like the morale patches. It will cost more, but if I went with a big group of people it might be worth it.

Clement and I played some of the games in the hanger (turns out, I'm really bad at keeping a ship afloat) and then we went to the best part of the ship -- THE FLIGHT DECK. There are so many cool helicopters and fighter planes at the museum. (The Enterprise space shuttle is also there, but the exhibit reopens in a few weeks).  The deck also has a great view of the city. 

After visiting the flight deck, Clement and I left the museum. We were hungry and wanted to eat on the water, and we spotted this little restaurant next the the ship. The host sat us, telling us that only cash is accepted. We started looking at the menu... it was $10-12 dollars for a burger without fries... it's not like I could have cocktails but they were the same price... Then we saw something shocking --- paying for water. Clement and I looked at each other. "Want to leave?" "Yes. I am not paying for water."

Good thing we left, because we went to the BBQ Block Party! One of the reporters at FOX 5 did a story on this even the day before, how could I forget about this?! Clement and I ran to the subway and went to Madison Square Park, just a short walk from Union Square. Once again, if I was with my parents they would take me to this event first thing in the morning but Clement and I went half way through the day. I wish we went earlier because there were SO MANY LINES. The park was hopping, and honestly this was probably the highlight of our weekend.

These are Baker's Ribs. They were cooked
Louisiana style. I don't know what that means
but it was great!

There were so many tents set up with beautiful BBQ, and the pitmasters were from all over the country. Each plate was $9, which is a really good price for a dump of food in NYC. We meandered around, trying to find short lines, and we found a side street with two tents with shorter lines that were moving fast. Clement and I got into the lines. I went to HillCountry, which is a restaurant in NYC, for beef brisket and pickles, and Clement went to Baker's ribs from Texas, for ribs and coleslaw. We sat on the curb and started to devour the meat. It was amazing.

The BBQ disappeared so fast that I didn't take a picture. The ribs were perfect competition ribs. I watch a lot of BBQ shows on Food Network and supposedly competition ribs should not just "fall off the bone," you should slightly tug them and then they easily come off. With a good rub and some sauce. I have been dreaming about ribs like this for years - just don't tell my Dad because I love his ribs too. (He cooks BBQ ribs a lot but these were a completely different experience). The coleslaw was also great because it was vinegary and crisp. The brisket was great too, good bark and the pickles were very tasty.

After eating, Clement and I sat in the park for a little and just relaxed. Then we went to a cool store Michelle likes called Fishes Eddy which has corky and vintage dinnerware. The store has city skyline pattern dinnerware with famous buildings. I love it!

We went to Union Square afterwards and then took the subway back to the apartment. For dinner, we went to a restaurant near the apartment, which was a nice way to end our weekend. I have to figure out what we'll do next because we covered in one weekend. Luckily, there are endless possibilities in NYC.

Weekend Sightseeing (Part 1): Little Italy

Little Italy at night, Mulberry Street.

My boyfriend, Clement, came to NYC to visit me this weekend. We did a lot of sight seeing. Clement is from the a small town outside of Ithaca and has only been to the city a few times - so I have a lot of places that I want to take him.

The logo of the smartphone
 application HopStop.

The problem is, is that I'm not exactly the best person when navigating through the subway. I've taken the subway for years but I only know the lines that I take constantly. So, my friend Annie told me about the app for the smartphone, HopStop, which will give you directions including subway stops. Clement and I found our way to Little Italy, now really Little Italy because it's only one block in Chinatown.

Clement really likes ravioli, to the extent that anytime it's on a menu when we go out - he'll order it. He happened to order pumpkin ravioli when he first met my Dad, Tom, who is the biggest carnivore next to a T-Rex or Jaws. Only four pieces of ravioli were on Clement's plate, so my Dad made him order something else. Since then, he's a little weary of ordering his favorite little pasta dish.

Clement's ravioli, in a tomato cream
sauce. He wanted me to take a
picture with just four of them...

As much as I make fun of him for loving ravioli, I can't blame him. A week ago, I was checking out restaurants in Little Italy and found one with lobster ravioli - Lunella Ristorante. So, we had to go there. Like I said before, we used HopStop to get to this bubble of restaurants and bakeries.

We were able to sit outside, which was wonderful since it was just becoming dusk - cooling down the hot humid cement of the city. Our dinner was delicious, of course. I ordered veal francese, one of my favorite Italian dishes. The sauce is buttery, lemony, and probably has a hint of white wine. It's beautiful with pasta, but there was one problem. 

Clement had more food than I did, and he ordered ravioli.

The portions were a lot smaller than I thought they would be. As Clement said, "They're actually a single portion size," which is way to small for me. At least this meal was. I had two very thin but tender pieces of veal, both pieces smaller than my hands (and I have very small hands, abnormally small), one piece of broccoli and one very small roasted potato. I shouldn't really be complaining because the sauce was honestly the best francese sauce I have ever had, but I would have loved to smother more veal with it.

La Bella Ferrara's sign. We sat right
under it, outside on a small patio.

Lunella's was really good, worth the money, and I will probably go back but we decided to get dessert somewhere else. Sometime in my childhood, I remember eating in a bakery Little Italy with my Dad. He has been to Little Italy many times, and actually the only other time I've ever been to Little Italy was with him. I messaged him before dinner to ask the name of a good dessert place on the block, and he told me to go to Ferrara, which is where I went when I was little. I just realized that we went to the wrong place - we went to La Bella Ferrara which is a smaller bakery. Still, it was really good.

My beautiful box of Ferrara pastries.
(left to right) Two lobster tails, two cannolis,
italian cheese cake and fruit tart.

You walk into the bakery and there are glass boxes lined with endless amounts of pastries, big ones and small ones - cannolis and fruit tars. To me, it's like going into a jewelry store - you're just in awe of the presence of these beautiful pastries. It was just magical.

Clement and I both ordered individual desserts, probably $5 each, and split a decaf cappuccino. This totaled for around $15 dollars.

I don't really spend a lot of money anymore, so I decided to splurge and take some pastries home. I bought 6 miniature desserts, which cost the same and as our dessert! Next time, I'm not going to bother ordering the big desserts (except that tiramisu, it was to die for) and I'm just going to order the miniature ones - you get more for the same amount of money! Either way, the desserts were delicious.

Clement and I made our way back to the apartment, with various desserts in hand and continued our adventure in the city the next day.

Weekend Sight Seeing:Part 2 --- Coming soon!

Looking FOXie!

I don't usually do posts about outfits, but I think that it is important to mention (especially for young working people). It drives me nuts to think this way, but it's been on my mind. Some companies address appropriate business attire in manuals, or just casually mention it if you ask. So, I think it's important to address now since I completed my first week of work. [I will probably write about this a few times because dressing well in the summer is difficult because of the weather, which is a whole other post]

First day at FOX 5 outfit.

Anyway, last winter my step-mom took me shopping to find and teach me what are appropriate outfits for a business work environment. Why is this important? Well, you are judged by your appearance. I'm not saying people judge you at work because of "how pretty you are," which does happen, but honestly employers and co-workers look at how you dress.

What does this mean? Well, ask yourself: do your clothes fit you appropriately, meaning they aren't to tight or loose? Are they ironed? Are you showing to much skin and are undergarments showing?

These don't just apply to women, these ideas are important for men too. Getting wardrobe pieces hemmed or adjusted in some way make a huge difference in how they look on your body.

Also, a few weeks ago I realized that tailoring clothes makes a huge difference, don't be afraid to do that! I had to get my skirts taken in so they were smaller in the hips, and it completely changed out the skirts fit on my body.

So, on the right is a picture of my first day at FOX 5 outfit which was a silk white shirt, black slacks, black and silver belt with a cool clasp, and black sandal heels (1.5 inches because I have trouble walking in heels). I bought most of this outfit with Michelle, my step-mom, in the winter.

A business wardrobe should be practical. I purchased multiple suit pieces that are black and all work together. When you buy a few pieces that are the same color, you can mix and match with other colors - meaning you have a ton of options.

Some business clothes can be really expensive, but department stores have big sales and coupons, lots of coupons. In order to justify these purchases, Michelle explained to me that buying these clothes is an investment because they will last you for a long time. A good example would be those black slacks, I've had them for four years now. I would say they still look good!

Overall, my first day at FOX 5 was successful. I can talk more about my work there later. I have to go iron my outfit for tomorrow!