hot zone

As a (mostly) native North Carolinian, I felt validated by an LA native today when she said that Raleigh is "pretty sweet, actually." We were talking about things to do, nightlife, etc, and I said I liked Chapel Hill better. And she stood in Raleigh's defense. Awww.

I'm currently reading Kevin Sites' book In the Hot Zone. Though I've maybe felt like this once or twice, it reminds me of a few journalists I know who live life like this. I find myself wondering if this is the life I'm headed for. Am I okay with this? Instinct tells me "yes," rationality tells me, "you need to think it over." Good thing school is tying me down for another year. But it's a thread stretched thin.

**

"There is a duality at work here that is hard for me to comprehend. I am enticed by the geographic disjuncture of my journey, the shock of sensory overload, the new smells, structures and lives that wash over me on these drives. Simultaneously, I am lulled by the comfort of it all; the fact that there is too much to understand. Instead of a reporter, for this moment, I am a dog with my head out the window, the rush of air creating a comforting buzz that silences the need to know more--at least for now.

"In every new p lace, this drive is where the journey begins. During this drive, my inability to speak the local language doesn't matter; it is about smiles and pleasantries done in charades. On this drive, there is no negotiation over prices, no cold sweat over the time I have to shoot, write, edit and transmit a half-dozen new stories. There are no technical concerns, no hunger or sleep deprivation--for a moment, even the alternating sense of alienation and loneliness disappear."

-Kevin Sites, In the Hot Zone, pp 200