This is what I'm judging: Tillamook Mac N Cheese Contest.

I'm a HUGE foodie and can't wait to see the new takes on my old favorite. Six recipes to sample......... OMG. And there's a hefty first-place prize to be had by the winner we choose, so I'm taking this seriously!

Did I already mention this?? My husband got this t-shirt as a gag gift last Christmas:

He also got one that mentions things not to do around the campfire (for the record; he's only allowed to wear it when we're camping). Anyway, I found the perfect shirt in San Francisco that I plan on wearing the next time he puts on that beer shirt....

$40 well spent!

We'll be quite the pair, eh? Frankly, I don't really care if we're the only two laughing about it as we tool around in those ridiculous shirts. I think it's funny.

:-)

Anyway, THANK YOU for your kind emails and thoughtful comments. I really can't thank you enough. Everyone goes through loss. Some are harder than others. And while I miss Milo, it was truly his time. My friend Siobhan texted a picture to me-- but my phone won't allow me to save the photo (otherwise I would have posted it). On Milo's last overnight slumber party at her house, he packed himself into a super small dog bed. Sort of like the clown car deal.. he's all legs and somehow got himself all folded up inside.

Bottom line: I'm feeling stronger about the whole thing as time goes on.

What are you up to this weekend?! I'm emceeing the Candelighters Harvest of Hope auction. It's a fun event where local folks make things that others can bid on. Last year I made a fused glass plate that I spent waaaay too much money to get back (hey-- it was for a good cause). This year, I submitted this photograph I'm calling "Hope".

Cross your fingers it goes for some decent dough!!

Last weekend I emceed the Doernbecher gala with Joe Donlon. Geez, is he fantastic to work with. We had a blast. But the showstopper was this guy Howard Hedinger and his son Huston who donated a million bucks to Dr. Brian Druker and his lab. Wow. I mean a million dollars?! Just like that?!!! How completely rad is that?!!!

I kicked my high heels off during the last auction item and someone suggested we bid on them, too. Ummm, no. First of all, I really like those shoes. Of course, it's all for a good cause so I could be convinced-- but honestly: who wants sweaty, worn heels anyway?!!

Later gators! :-)

Since before I left for China, I've been caring for my sweet puppy Milo who has a lesion in his spine (most likely a glioma that they can't biopsy due to its location). He's actually 10 years old, but always a puppy in my mind. I cried and cried when I left for the Olympics figuring that would be the last time I would ever see him, but god bless him-- he hung on for almost a month and a half after I got back. Until yesterday.

It was time to put him to sleep-- which, if you have ever, ever done anything like that in your life-- you know how gut-wrenching it is. My vet is simply the most wonderful man in the world and came to the house where Milo would be most comfortable. I soothed Milo and talked to him so the last thing he would hear would be my voice telling him what a very good dog he was. And then he slipped away.

This morning was rough.

Drew Carney was out previewing a phenomenal event-- one I actually already had on my calendar after a friend told me about it a few weeks ago: Doggie Palooza. I definitely recommend checking it out if you're a dog lover like me.

But, seriously, what are the odds THAT is what I'd have to deal with not 12 hours after making the most difficult decision I've had to make in years? I gotta tell you, it was hard watching Drew's segments.. and seeing his dog Zoe (who is a sweet, adorable dog and made for TV). You just can't help but think about your own circumstances in a case like that, you know? And I just about lost it watching Zoe get worked on by the doggie masseuse and hearing Brenda say during the segment that she puts her dog to sleep with a massage. It was too much and knocked me down for the rest for the newscast. But I kept it together because the event is a fun, unique one that deserves enthusiasm-- just the kind of event dogs like Milo would love to attend (yes, dogs are welcome.. just make sure they're well-behaved).

I've got my head on straight again, but just barely. I miss my Milo and am not looking forward to going home to an empty house. At least it's Friday.

This year was interesting. I had a conversation with a man who told me last year he and his family were financially sound only to lose everything (first the house, then the job) this year. He hoped it would be the only time he'd need to rely on charity for a hot meal. Heartbreaking. Just heartbreaking to look into his weary eyes. It just changes the way you feel about the things you have in life, you know? I need to do a better job of thinking about people who may be in need all year round-- not just at a specific event. And, for him, I hope from the bottom of my heart that next year brings stability in his life.. a job, and a place he can call home.

This photo is from the Blazers.. The team, the Trail Blazers employees, the local businesses, and everyone who turned out to volunteer deserve a word of thanks.

But let us all try to keep it up throughout the holiday season and through the following year.

I was working on a non-health related story today for November and the banker I interviewed recommended everyone check their credit report. Everyone.

Now, since I have really good credit and a high credit score, I've never bothered to check. But, since I wanted to include his suggestion in my story I figured I better put myself through the process first. Good thing!!

Front and center on one of the reports was a red flag.. a collections agency that said I was delinquent (or more specifically my spouse) on an account. From 2005.

The fast backstory is that it wasn't me. OR my husband. OR my father-in-law who shares the same name. We all got served papers in 2005 and had to go through the tedious process of proving they had the wrong family.

We got all kinds of official looking documentation from the people at the collections agency saying they agreed-- they did NOT have the right family-- and more importantly that they would contact the credit reporting companies to ensure this would not end up on our credit report.

Well, here we go again. The collections agency folks says they DID follow through on their end of the bargain, they have no idea why it ended up on my credit report, and that it's up to me to dispute it directly with the credit reporting agency (in this case Experian). I submitted my request to Experian through an automated voicemail system and now have to wait until the end of November to find out what investigators decide. WHAT A PAIN!

The good news is the people at the collections agency says they will explain it to Experian when investigators call.

Cross your fingers for me.

In the meantime, let me be the first to urge you to take that banker's advice. Check your credit report with all three companies. Even if you have awesome credit. It's free, and you can do it online.

Here's a link that explains how to do it:
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/credit/cre34.shtm

You'll need to know some of the specifics about your current mortgage, etc. for security questions. You'll also get asked repeatedly if you want all kind of add-ons for a fee. Just click no. You don't have to buy anything to get your free credit report.

And one last thing: these reports do not give you your credit score. Just the report. But that's all you need to learn if there is a mistake. Good luck!

Ps. Mary Ann: I start my new show in mid-November!! 7pm. Look for me if you're around to watch!!!

I'm thinking a bob is in my future. And for everyone who will tell me that is sooo last season.. that soo many ladies are sporting one; so what? I had a bob 9 years ago and LOVED it. Enough of 'hair talk'. It's just on my mind as I confirmed my hair appointment for Wednesday night.

On a totally different, non-health related topic; anyone out there have direct experience with cork flooring? I'm particularly interested in knowing if you've had problems with divots from high-heels, dog nails, etc.

I'm considering this for a remodel in our house:

I've read online forums about the flooring but I'd love to hear from someone here who has cork in their house. How is it working out?

And finally, anyone know what makes October 8th special 'round these parts??
Click here to find out.

:-)

McGorge Scott sent along some running links he likes:
www.redlizardrunning.com
And for folks out in his neck of the woods...
www.columbiagorgerunningclub.com

Here's a photo from China.. we went back to the sea cucumber shop and my two travelling buddies tried samples (and both insist they liked it). We were getting ready to leave and I looked up at a corkboard behind the register and spotted this:

It's a picture they took of me on my first trip there. Between the cheesy hand guesture, too-cool-for-school sunglasses, 14 pounds of credentials hanging off my neck, Blackberry out and ready for email action, and dippy grin.. I'm one Mao t-shirt away from looking like the epitome of a working tourist.

I left them an NBC Beijing 2008 pin as a guesture of goodwill (and apology-- ha!!).

Well, it was a success. My body fat percentage dropped and I had the extra motivation I needed to workout (I'm TERRIBLE without a partner.. I totally loathe the typical gym routine, etc. because I get bored.. and don't have a schedule that allows me to get out on my bicycle or pickup a fun evening sport like indoor soccer).

Anyway, the challenge is back on!! I totally agreed to do it again this month with my two friends Karen and Rick.

Starting today.

AND I ALREADY BLEW IT.

I've developed an addiction to the paninis served at the City Bean coffee shop across the street. Russ Lewis is to blame for turning me on to them. He's a panini pusher. There ought to be a law.

I digress. The challenge is on-- and this time the goal is to hammer out a 10K at a pace of 8:45/mile. Don't laugh. That would be fast for me. I'm completely out of running shape and am pushing 9:15/mile right now. Maybe more. Normally this time of year I start ramping up for my annual November half marathon-- but I just can't find the enthusiasm for running those long weekend runs right now.. so the 10K seems perfect. Long enough that I can't just waltz into it but short enough that I can do weekday runs to get up to speed.

If keeping fit is your goal for the upcoming holiday season I found a few websites today that you may already know about; two for running and one for cycling. I hope they'll help you stay moving.

Oregon Bike
Oregon Road Runners Club
Clark County Running Club

Wish me luck.
I'm off to the movies tonite with the family and saved my salad for quite late in the day in the hopes I will only nibble on the popcorn as opposed to getting my head stuck in the bag like a total...... like a total.......... like this:

(I snapped this shot this past weekend at a little shop on the coast that I LOVE)
;-)

I got my assignment at 11:30. The mission was to watch Congressman DeFazio's press conference at noon and do a quick-turn on his bailout proposal for 12:30. Provided it started on time (it did) that would give me about 10 to 12 minutes to write the story if I bailed on watching the presser at 12:20.

Well, we couldn't get the story into our system properly-- so I couldn't log it as I was watching it. We figured out a work-around by sending me to a back edit bay. Then we had a glitch or two in there-- which we quickly figured out thanks to editor extraordinaire Dave.

Anyway, I was trying to synthesize the details from the press conference and cobble together something useful for our 12:30 audience. I sat down in front of the newsroom camera with a minute to spare and did my live shot.

Phew.

Anyway, the whole thing from start to finish was rougher that I would have liked. And then, 5 minutes after I was all done.. someone in the newsroom forwarded me an email with the specifics of Congressman DeFazio's proposal. Specifics not really outlined in the press conference. Awwwww, man! I would have loved to have that in hand before my live hit.

What can you do?! Tomorrow is a new day!
:-)

Hey Sean!! I'm working on getting you an answer that will help you!! I have not forgotten.

And for those of you who are patiently waiting for me to get back to bloggin'.. send me an email at sstricklen@kgw.com. I've got a question for you about my new duties here at KGW.

I'm off. Talk soon. Steph

Answer: I guess so, since it's pretty much my call what I include here.

I'm now on a "regular" dayside shift and am working on special reports for November, so I can't really blog about those. And I'm not fronting health stories at 5pm, so I can't blog about those, either.. and the health story that one of our producers sent to me today would likely get me fired if I posted it publicly. The things some researchers study, my word! So, I can't blog about that......

So. Here I am in a dilemma about what to include. I guess while we will call this the health blog, you may need to bear with me while I figure this out.

In the meantime.. Herb and Gracie sent me this pic of the harvest moon the other night!

Have a wonderful weekend!!!!!!!

This camera takes a higher resolution still pic, too...

It's high time I invested in one of these for home, frankly. My parents have wanted to do video calls FOREVER-- but I've put it off because I just don't have the heart to tell them that when we talk I also do stuff around the house (always multi-tasking).

:-)

Gotta go.. talk to you tomorrow.

Spend, ohhh, I dunno.. maybe 40 or so days in China. Add an 18 hour travel day.. a dash of morning arrival in PDX.. and one ugly transition back to my early morning shift and poof: you've got a recipe for tired. Not just any tired, but the kind of tired that actually makes it a little uncomfortable to fall asleep (does that make any sense, or is it just me?).

It's day two of my 'normal' routine which, by the way, is about to change come Monday.

I'm leaving mornings.

Here's the full breakdown: starting sometime in November I'm anchoring a new 7pm show on KGW. Yup. Goodbye early morning shift. Goodbye 4:30am newscast. Goodbye split sleep schedule. Hello normalcy.

I'm a little bummed (okay, a lot bummed) about leaving the people I work with on this shift. I won't see a few of them at all, save for occasional weekend get togethers and that sort of thing. We have a great time in the mornings and I will miss the producers who work on this shift and Tamara on the desk! We're a little newsroom posse from 5 to 7am and I enjoy it immensely. And Russ is a wonderful co-anchor at 4:30 and someone I count as a good friend. I'll miss that.

But, I'm also thrilled about this new show. It is not a traditional newscast, but it should offer something for almost everyone. I know, I know.. I'm short on details, but my boss will kill me if I spill the beans before it airs.

The producer for it is Aaron W., a man I have tremendous respect for. He is flat out one of the most intelligent people I have ever met, and (on an aside) he puts my moderate techie skills to shame. I joke that I'm a proud geek at heart.. I follow Gizmodo and Engadget, I HAD to have an iPhone, I spent way too much time reading about proton accelerators/colliders/micro-black holes this morning.. you get the idea. And Aaron likes that stuff, too. We'll make a great team.

So, come Monday I'm back to a day shift. I'll work on some special reports, make regular appearances in the 5pm newscast, and continue the work on the new 7pm show, which, again, kicks off in November.

In the meantime, have you checked out the political newscast that KGW is currently running at 7pm weekdays? You'd probably expect me to sing KGW's praises, but I mean it when I say the station deserves kudos for giving this election, and all the issues, the coverage they deserve.

Mmmmm. It's 6:17 this morning and City Bean doesn't open for another 40 minutes. I'm dying for a latte, and not that decaf business I usually get, either. Leaded all the way for me today!

Here are two of the most awesome traveling partners ever: Ciara and Siobhan.

We went huge in Beijing and I had a blast vacationing with them.

TTYS, Steph!

I landed in Shanghai less than 24 hours ago and am overwhelmed at the size of this city. It's hard to make Beijing look small, but Shanghai does. I came on the heels of that terrible rainstorm here that flooded the streets and killed a woman who drowned in a tunnel. The rain is gone and you wouldn't know what happened here if you didn't read about it in the local papers.

The city has dried out and carries on at a pace that you only see in cities like New York and LA, etc.

To update you on my previous blog posting, after a day of wrangling I finally did get to catch up with Elsie Windes (GO ELSIE!!) and we got her on the air for you. What a great gal! She was so excited to wear that silver medal-- even if the loss of the gold in that water polo match was painful in the moments when it happened.

I swear, I'm the luckiest person I know.. getting to cover the Olympic stories that are uniquely Oregon and SW Washington.. getting to spend this time in China and seeing two of the larger cities in the world. I want to say thank you to each and every one of you who emailed me. I'm thrilled you enjoyed what you saw!

And, to the parents, businesses, athletes, and everyone who took the time to let me come interview you, showcase your story, and deliver it to everyone back home in the states.. THANKS!! These stories would not have happened without you.

And finally, to my best friend and husband.. I MISS YOU SO MUCH I CAN NOT WAIT TO SEE YOU!!! I know, I know.. I call you every night to tell you that, and text you, and email you when I get access (like now)... but I can't help it. I'm so excited to hang out, go camping, and just be together again.
I love you. :)

This health blog is likely going completely dormant for the next, oh, two months.

In the short-term.. wontcha consider visiting me here?

http://beloblog.com/KGW_Blogs/olympics/

Yeah, yeah.. wontcha isn't a word. Neither is "gonna". And that wasn't a sentence. I know, I know. :-)