Tuesday night, taking in the election results at the Old County Courthouse was a bit surreal. I was carrying around Jinni's diagnosis like it was a yoke and wanted to get shed of it, so I did. In the process I probably floored some folks but at least I felt better.
I took my laptop in and plopped myself down at the press desk... opened up the screen and started typing. Pretty soon, in came the traditional media folks. The Rhino's John and Willy Hammer along with Scott Yost (traditional?), the N&R's Binker and Newsome, High Point Enterprise's David Niven. John Hammer asked, "Is this the blog desk?" "Yep", I said to all within earshot, "Say hello to the new media."
Except for Niven, I have known the rest of those guys for quite a while, and like them all... so I said, "Hey guys, listen up." Getting their attention, I broke it to them just like I broke it to you in the previous post... headline style: "Jinni has breast cancer...."
Taken aback, they all recovered pretty quickly and asked questions and offered support just like any other friend would. We moved on and the banter turned to the Courthouse's lack of WiFi internet access while I looked in vain for a telephone cord while Willy started photographing the event from the speaker's podium.
After a short while, soon-to-be-blogging head of the N&R's editorial department, Allen Johnson came and sat behind me. We exchanged pleasantries then turned to politics. "How does it feel being here for the returns and not being a candidate?", referring to my recent run at the City Council. "Still exciting.", I answered, "and the anxiety is still the same."
Then Allen asked the same question he asks every time we meet, "Going to run again?" "That's kinda out of my hands right now...", I said, then filled him in. Allen was his gentle, re-assuring self and offered his assistance and best wishes for a speedy cure, and I thanked him and went back to blogging.
As reporter Maria Johnson opined about my possible candidacy in her recent N&R article on me, "If Hoggard were an old house and he were leaning this much, he'd be condemned.", the prospect of running again appeals to me very much because I think I have something to contribute to the community... but...
Family first. So, now Maria's old house metaphor finds this political structure leaning back to vertical.
10:01:20 AM 
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