A new age?

When I started in newspapers about a decade ago, it was all much, much different. Even though it was just about the year 2000, no one was really thinking about how fast the future could come.

Now it's next to impossible to get a resume into a newspaper without some sort of grasp or concept of how news can be done on the Web. The early stages of news on the Web is laughable, and you'll find that most are going through a very strange transition, like me at 13.

Like me, the news industry's ears and head are growing at a disproportionate rate. But luckily the cost of experimentation is a lot less than it is in print. Newspapers were never designed to be a cavalcade of lights and sounds for your eyes. They're made to be read, but with a Web site, rarely is there just a plain page of boring text anymore.

I'm learning people are much more forgiving when it comes to Web news. There is just something about seeing something in black, white and spot color that demands a sort of respect. Perhaps it has something to do with print's inability to run the NumaNuma guy?

With this said, Friday night I embarked on a first-time journey. I went to an assignment armed only with something the kids are calling a video camera. I didn't do too much with video in college - outside of watching - because at that time, there was absolutely no way anyone thought we'd be cool with watching tiny little images on the screen to go along with our news stories, especially since our television/laptop/computer screens have gotten so much bigger.

Naturally, professional writing majors stayed focused on the writing. My best videos are much older and we edited them with two VCRs and they were about an air hockey league. I did, however, sing the Edith part of the All in the Family theme song as part of our outtakes from the pre-game show segment. I believe that is TMI, and no, I won't sing it again.

It was a weird feeling, not writing down a single thing at the assignment, that is. I later realized I didn't have a pen, but did have a notebook. Pens I have forgotten to take on assignment in past, more than once. Like ten thousand spoons when all you need is a knife, my so-called assignment bag has about 100 pens and pencils inside but it was just too hot for any of that last night, so it stayed in the car.

All that together, please keep in mind this video is not HD, which will be evident, and my editing skills are rusty, at best. Here is a report from Hamburg's Beach Night, an event organized by Our Town Foundation, Inc. This is the full Wing Eating Contest.