After nearly six years of bylines for kgw.com, it's time to write a bye-line.

I'm leaving KGW to attend graduate school at Pacific University, where I will pursue a doctorate in clinical psychology. I'm extremely excited to embark on this new endeavor. And yet......

I'll miss the frantic pace of breaking news...

I'll miss having access to a meteorologist on the premises five days a week...

And most of all, I'll miss the faces I've grown used to seeing daily - they are my caffeine...

Caption: Having fun with the ladies of KGW and kgw.com. Left to right: Keely Chalmers, Teresa Blackman, former KGW reporter Jennifer Iveson, Jane Smith and Antonia Giedwoyn

It's been a ball working with kgw.com site manager Frank Mungeam, senior producer Teresa Blackman and David Krough. The full-time kgw.com staff is a small and tight-knit group. I am so happy to have worked with them and I'm proud to call them friends. They are dedicated journalists and excellent people.

Over the last half dozen years, I've written approximately 6,000 stories for kgw.com. Some have made me cry, some have made me curse, some have made me roll my eyes and laugh at the absurdity.

And so, if I may, I would like to impart some parting wisdom I have gleaned over these last few years thanks to criminals and common folks suffering from errors of judgment:

--Never leave a live chicken in a hot car

--Never call 911 because you want the "cute deputy" to come back

--Never leave your name and address at the scene of a bank you've just robbed. (Please don't rob a bank in the first place. If absolutely desperate for cash, you can always sell your plasma.)

--Never steal a pirate -- real or wooden

--Drive very, very carefully when transporting eight colonies of honey bees on Interstate 205

--Never write X-rated e-mails to a coworker - particularly a subordinate - if you are chief of police, or if you aren't chief of police

--If you're going to break the law speeding, don't videotape yourself doing it

--If you're caught speeding 129 mph, don't claim you were looking for your lost wallet

And lastly,

--Never compete with a peacock for candy

Writing for you has been a privilege and a pleasure. Thank you for reading. Maybe some day we'll meet again...

in a therapist's office...my office...

Take care and be good,

Antonia Giedwoyn

We went back to the zoo today for a follow up story. I got to see the baby elephant for the first time. He was still separated from his mother and wailing for her. Zoo staff said he cried all night. The mom responded and sniffed the grates where he is penned. Without the nutrients her milk supplies, the calf could become ill, dehydrated. For now, they are bottle and tube feeding the calf, hoping Rose-Tu will accept him soon.

When you're expecting, you'll hear this comparison. At seven months into your pregnancy your baby is, statistically, the size of a football.

Well, we've hit that mark. Seven months along. (Yep, the suit coats are getting snug - and some of the camera shots are even snugger.) So I pulled a football out of our basement - just to get a feel for the size of our unborn daughter. It's mind-boggling how fast they grow and develop. Just a few months ago she was, again statistically speaking, the size of an olive.

My husband, Damien, and I are experiencing what other first-time parents have already shared - sheer giddiness as that magical "birthday" nears.

Our baby girl is due on Election Day. Presidential elections are always memorable, but for this first-time Mom, this one is shaping up to be extraordinary.

Phelps went to my junior high and high school back in Baltimore. Our paths never crossed, he was graduating from Towson High School in 2003 when I was already reporting for KGW. However, the route Towson kids take is one in the same. Everyone grows up on subs from Harry Little's (the cheeseburger subs are the best), goes shopping at Towson Town Center, and to Ocean City for summer vacations. When you grow up in a suburb like Towson (pop. 51,000), you are bonded with the people who went before you and after you, like Phelps.

I call or text my family every morning after a Phelps win to make sure they were watching. My mother, older brother and twin sisters went to Towson High, as well. We've been Phelps fans since Athens. I still have the unopened Wheaties box in my cupboard. One of our producers at channel 8, Craig Edwards, checked on EBAY for me last week..it hasn't increased in value. But that's not why I have it.

Phelps grew up in the same neighborhood as my mother. It’s called Rogers Forge, a post-world war II brick row house community on the Baltimore County line.

He is the product of a single mother. His mother and father, high school sweethearts, divorced when Michael was about nine. He reportedly doesn’t have much if any contact with his father.

Although Towson High is one of the best public schools in Baltimore County (recently ranked #240 in Newsweek Magazine's Top 1,300 U.S. High Schools), it doesn't have a swimming program, or a pool. The "Generals" have a history of state lacrosse, badmitton and volleyball titles.

So when Phelps wanted to swim, he took lessons at a nearby private boy’s school. The coach recognized his talent and urged his mother to get him into a better facility. At 15, Phelps he made the 2000 U.S. Olympic swim team. He placed 5th in his one event, the 200-meter butterfly. Towson High renamed the street in front of the school "Michael Phelps Way" and the rest is history.

Phelps makes it look so easy, the way his legs undulate when he pushes off from the wall, his ability to hold his breath longer than his competitors and his seemingly effortless glides in the water.

To fuel his machine, he eats eight to ten thousand calories A DAY(that's a lot of Harry Little's subs) !!!!! I'm not sure I eat that much in a week!

There isn't a dearth of sports heroes in Baltimore. Cal Ripken and Johnny Unitas are two of the many. But this one..the human fish..is different, at least to me.

Phelps intends to beat Mark Spitz' record of seven gold medals in one single Olympics. Tonight Phelps made history by becoming the winningest Olympian in history. With each victory, you feel as if you've won. I know I do.

More: Phelps all-time medal winner

Photos: Phelps in Action

Its amazing what those men and women are doing on a daily basis---without a single complaint---at least none that they shared with us.

First, they're drilling over and over in the hot sun. I know I'm a bit of a whimp, but I was soaked in sweat just standing there in 100 degree heat, with no shade, carrying my pen and note pad.

The soliders are wearing helmets so heavy they made my neck hurt--and more importantly, heavy anti ballistic vests that weigh, I think, 40 pounds.

I wore one a few years ago when I embeded with Oregon troops in the desert of New Mexico. I was exhausted after the first day--and I'm pretty sure I cheated and did not wear it to the bathroom at night like I was supposed to.

They're wearing that stuff and carrying weapons and on high alert with the sun blazing down on them and they seemed in a good mood.

Very impressive.

It made me want to pull my sagging stomach in and put my shoulders back--at least while I was around them.

If you have a soldier over there training---preparing mind and body to go to Iraq---you should be proud.

They're an impressive group.

I covered the drowning of Mic Woodrum today. Its a heartbreaker. He'd just returned from a Boy Scout trip and was having fun along the Clackamas river with his family.

His troop leader, John Kunzler told me he'd discovered Mic was not a strong swimmer during scout camp last summer.

But he said Mic loved being with the guys--- and probably could not resist the pull to follow the brother he loved and admired across the river.

We reported all that, but we were not able to get into the terror that no doubt sprang to life as events unfolded.

The older brother Tabor, who is 18, noticed Mic was struggling and went back to save him.

The scout leader says Tabor was actually able to grab Mic for a moment, but he was tired too and the current too strong. He couldn't hang on and the river swept both teens down over fast, deadly rapids.

Tabor barely survived himself and was pulled to shore by people who noticed what was happening.

In an instant, a fun family outing turned into a horrible nightmare---one that hasnt ended for many who loved Mic Woodrum.

Tonight, the family's friends and loved ones and their Mormon Church are offering comfort.

Keep them in your thoughts.

pd

Is this a sign our economy is in a recession? I think many of us would appreciate reading about your most effective haggling techniques, so please share.

As always, if you have information about someone taking advantage of consumers or something that can help them, shoot me an e-mail anytime. whavrelly@kgw.com
Happy Haggling!

What is a total lunar eclipse? It's a bit tricky, but I'll try to explain it. Think of three different balls - one large, one medium, and one small. The large ball is the sun, the medium ball is the Earth, and the small ball is the moon. The light from the large ball, the sun, shines onto the Earth, the medium ball. And our medium ball has a shadow. Every once in a while, the moon's orbit takes it into that shadow of the Earth. And when that happens, a total lunar eclipse occurs. This picture may help.

Photo Courtesy mreclipse.com

A lunar eclipse can be viewed without worrying about taking any safety precautions. You can look directly at the moon, and can use a telescope or even binoculars if you'd like. (A solar eclipse is the type of eclipse that you need to protect your eyes from.)

So what time will all of this astronomical excitement begin? =) The moon will start slipping into the Earth's shadow at 5:43pm PST tonight. The moon will be completely dark - completely in the Earth's shadow - between 7:01pm PDT and 7:51pm PDT. After that, the moon will slowly re-emerge from the Earth's shadow until, at 9:09pm PDT, it will be completely illuminated again.

Enjoy! Feel free to e-mail me with any questions you may have.

Joe

I've covered a fair number of political campaigns and the results of various polls. But I've never been able to get the raw questions that go into polls---until now.
Read excerpt from poll questions
Monday I came into possession of the questions created by Portland company Moore Information, as part of a series of calls made November 11, 2007 to 400 New Hampshire voters.

We've included a link to those questions below:

Pollsters I talked with in Portland said they do not believe the questions are part of a "push poll" a sort of dirty politics way of planting bad---and sometimes false information in the mind of the voters.

They point out that a classic push poll involves two or three questions or statements which are read to thousands of potential voters. The company conducting the push poll does not typically gather demographic information or even record the response. The effort is not geared at data gathering. Its to plant information.

While that may be the definition of push polls amongst pollsters---its not the definition used in New Hampshire.

Under that state's law, a push poll is defined as having all three of the following:

1. The call is on behalf of, in support of, or in opposition to, any candidate for public office.
2. The recipient is asked questions relative to opposing candidates which state, imply or convey information about the candidate's character, status, record, or political stance.
3. The call is conducted in a manner likely to be construed by the voter to be a survey or poll to gather statistical data for entities that are independent of any political party, candidate, or interest group.

It also has to be aimed at the general election.

Today (1/16/08), a member of the AG's office will be in Oregon, asking a Multnomah County judge to force company owner Bob Moore, and one of his employees to fly back to New Hampshire and answer questions in front of a grand jury.

Specifically---the AG wants to know who hired Moore to form those questions. Moore won't say.

Under New Hampshire law, if the AG can prove that the questions were aimed at the general election (Moore has said they were aimed at the primary) and that a candidate or campaign paid for them (as opposed to an independent 3rd party trying to gauge who to support) then it would qualify under state law as a "push poll".

What do you think?

A few ways to prevent a stroke include exercise, eating healthy, don't smoke and keep your weight down.

I love my job.

But when it cuts into big Blazers home games, like the one against the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday afternoon, well let’s just say it can be tough to punch in the ole time card.

So imagine my delight when my manager called me up Sunday morning and said, It’s Blazers Heritage Night, you’re covering the game!

I put on my red shirt.

The assignment could not have fallen on a more grateful reporter. I grew up in Portland and some of my favorite memories are of cheering for the Blazers, when their shorts were short, and their winning streaks long.

I sang Rip City Rhapsody with the best of them (and might be coaxed into rapping a few lines for the right Blazers ticket), but to me, the Blazers were more than the hottest franchise in the NBA. They were a group of great guys that brought my family and friends together. And they just happened to give us a reason to cheer and believe.

I believe in this team, too. and at most games I have been lucky enough to attend, I have believed from the 300 section. On Sunday, I believed from the floor underneath the Blazers basket, as they dunked all over the 76ers.

I was REALLY loving my job, then!

And this is just the beginning. There are still many months ahead to watch these guys dive for the ball, fight for every WIN and play with class.

But come June, I hope to be cheering for the Blazers at the Rose Garden, in much the same fashion my parents did at the Memorial Coliseum, June 5, 1977. The day the Blazers beat Philly for the NBA Title.

After all, this season is all about celebrating the Blazers Heritage-- let’s keep the theme going!

Oh, one more thing… and this is the ultimate complement here… I think this team is so cool, they should get their own set of Dairy Queen drinking glasses.

Enough said.

Candid talk and original music.

That's what you'll find during the New Year's Day special on KGW-TV, called Behind The Lens.

Sure, you can catch a newscast almost any time you turn on your television.
But few really know what photojournalists go through, to capture those images for a newscast.
At 6pm on January first - you'll find out. In candid language.

Every year one of our KGW Photojournalists takes over this massive project.
During the one hour special, he or she literally takes you behind the scenes, gives you the view through the camera lens.

It's a lot of work. This one hour special takes more than one hundred hours to shoot, write and edit. Just ask Alex Lynch. He's the Photojournalist who took on the annual project in 2007. In fact, he was here until 3:30 Saturday morning, fine-tuning, editing.

One cool feature Alex added -- original music. From someone you may recognize. Since 1984 Joe Becker has been reporting and anchoring KGW Sports - now you'll hear his music. Yes, my friend JB shares some original tunes on his bass and acoustic guitar. Alex thought it'd make a great addition - and it does.

I took a peek at Alex's work before it was done. In fact, he asked me to be a small part of it. Honestly, I think he asked me because everyone else was on vacation, but I'm honored nonetheless. It's a cool project.

I hope you'll set your DVR, VCR or make a note to turn on your television at 6pm on January first.

Ten children are making Christmas merrier for 135 other kids. Way to go!

Here's a cyber high-five to the children of the Portland Quarter Midgets Club.

I met the group Saturday, December 15th, at Cedar Hills Crossing. My husband and I were collecting toys for the Newschannel-8 Great Toy Drive. While we met many generous souls as they dropped off new, unwrapped toys to be delivered to children in need -- I won't forget the children in this group. They piled out of cars, arms weighed-down with shopping bags, all smiles. It was a great moment.

That moment took a year's worth of work. They raised $500 dollars - to spend on toys for other children! They sold snow cones, in part, to raise the money. That's a lot of snow cones!

Think back to when you were eight years old. Now - imagine you've saved $500 dollars. Now - imagine taking that HUGE sum of money to the toy store and spending it all on people you will never meet.

Way to go Racers!

If you visit the Portland Quarter Midget Racing Association website, you'll read it's a volunteer based sport for children aged 5 to 16. From what we saw Saturday, it promotes more than volunteer work. It teaches about giving to those in need.

The club dropped off 135 toys. Meaning 135 children in the Portland Metro area will have a little merrier Christmas.

Thank you!

A random thought -- even with the failure of M50 , health care remains at the top of the list of issues most Oregonians want their government to solve...that means even more focus on the Health Commission recently appointed by Governor Kulongoski...and a tricky political question for the Governor and Democratic leadership of the Oregon Senate and House as to whether or not to bring a childrens' health care funding measure to the short legislative session in February -- such a measure might appeal to the Democratic base but might underscore a split between more liberal and more moderate democrats, influence the internal battle to replace speaker Merkley and give Republicans a fresh "no new taxes" mantra leading into the 2008 election so that they have something to talk about other than separating themselves from national Republican politics

Interesting to think about what legal maneuvers will follow on the victory of M49...assuming that there are issues about the wording of certain sections of the measure as it relates to how much "loss of a property right" must be shown by property owner in making a claim, I would expect Oregonians in Action to seek a show-case to challenge the new law relatively quickly...

One bittersweet personal moment -- just got off the phone with our son who is attending GWU in Washington DC and working at a political firm that is handling the yes campaigns on M49 and M50...so a split victory/loss night for him...

For those watching AP wire service, there are laerts on both M49 and M50 -- AP calling Yes on 49 and No on 50...

Just talked to a reporter at The Oregonian -- they are showing very updated numbers which have M49 winning substantially and M50 being defeated...I am not in a position ot dispute their numbers but i was sckeptical to hear the size of teh NO on 50 margin...it wouldhave to mean that so much of the late breaking vote broke to the no column, which if true means that as good and smart as the field effort was that the yes campaign put together, they couldn't hold up against the size and quality of the No TV ad campaign...

Watching for new AP numbers -- earliest returns showed M49 with yes winning 67-33 and M50 No leading 53-47...no new numbers since first returns

M49 is showing strong support in ealy returns...this is a testament to a favorable ballot title and a smart campaign which tapped into Oregonians' fear of losing "what's secial" about Oregon...using rural, farming families to carry the images offset the "property right" appeal of the No campaign...and the Yes campaign organized an effective outreach/coalition effort that was missiong last time around [M37]...because this is another chapter in the on-going debate oregonians have been having about land use, most observers doubt that this will be the final word -- expecting alegal challenge, a fight in the next legisaltive session and possbly another ballot measure as soon as 2008.

So a little background while waiting for the next round of number...50 started off with a huge margin -- reflecting the number of nonsmokers to smokers...then $8 million later the No campaign had controlled the messages and moved the dial on the issue of putting the tax in the constitution....by the time the yes campaign came on TV they were able to stop the movement form yes voters to undecided....and that's where the votee sat for awhile -- No campaign had the advantage of ad budget and some very compelling ads, but were unable o close the deal...then the yes campaign turned up the intensity ontheir field campaign and found a receptive audience in democrats and women-- the key for the Yes became how much they could get out that vote to above 50% and resist the huge TV buy by the No....

Campaign to make Clackamas County a 5 member Commission will probably be one of the more interesting stories after people digest 49 and 50 results...interesting mix of personalities and politics for this metropolitan County....

First votes shown...as expected 49 leads and should lead through thenight....surprise will be how well Yes on 50 campaign was able to use an effective "field campaign" targetted to specific voters [fem/dem] to offset the paid media campaign at $12 million plus...

For more than two decades the debate over climate change and global warming has raged. Is global warming happening? If it is happening, are people to blame? Questions like these have swirled about the scientific community for years, often with murky or inconclusive answers. Over the past couple of years, those answers have become much more clear.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), established by the United Nations back in 1988, has become the authoritative source on information about climate change. And their most recent report – issued earlier this year – was the most conclusive one yet. It stated that warming of the climate system is unequivocal. In other words, the planet is warming up, and there is no longer any doubt about it. Even the cause of that warming has become clearer. According to the IPCC, there is greater than a 90% chance that this warming is because of people, and the amount of carbon dioxide that we have released into our atmosphere.

So what to do about it? Aggressive cuts in greenhouse gas emissions are necessary to try to reverse climate change. And even though many countries are tenaciously working to cut their greenhouse gas emissions, it will still take time to reverse the climate change trend. More than likely, temperatures worldwide will continue to warm throughout all of our lifetimes. It’s simply a matter of how warm temperatures will get. But by reducing our emissions, we’ll lessen the impacts from climate change and global warming.

If you have any questions about climate change, feel free to shoot me an e-mail. You can also click here to visit The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s website.

Joe Michaels