When I'm not lifeguarding, I also work as child care associate– pretty much just a fancy name for someone in a powder-blue polo who supervises children for less pay than they deserve while their rich parents workout or lay by the pool.

Lately I have been subjected to a coworker that is generally disliked by the rest of the staff, because she consistently comes in late, brings in her child that bites just about every other kid that approaches and doesn't stop talking! Worst of all, most of her stories are so fabricated that I spend most of the time pretending to listen while I daydream about the end of the shift. No, I don't care about your ex-husband's drunken proposal while camping. No, I don't care about your $16 dollar margarita you had at a concert the other night (and neither did the mom you told while at WORK!). NO, I don't care how dilated your vagina was when you gave birth!

But one story was so outrageous, so ridiculous I just can't hold it in!

She said, "After my baby was born they pumped me for breast milk, the day after because I just had so much! They pumped four gallons of my breast milk. I had so much left over that I donated it to all the other newborns in the nursery who needed it and I just feel so good about myself now. Knowing that I was able to feed hungry mouths is such a rewarding feeling."

WHAT?! Okay, okay I'm not a lactating, breast milk expert but doesn't it take at least three to five days after birth for the milk to come? And, I know they expand but come on do you know how much four gallons looks like?


Each gallon of milk weighs 8.59 pounds. That would mean each ta-ta weighs about 17 pounds.

If she can produce that much milk in one day we should just strap her to a cow milking machine, and feed the world! And the best part of the whole situation is she tells people what a wonderful feeling it is to be feeding the hungry youngsters as the universal wet nurse of the infant ward. Pretty sure that would be considered unsanitary, seeing as disease can be spread through breast milk, including AIDS.

There would have been no point in correcting her. I could only laugh silently at her dramatic mental fantasy of laying in a hospital bed with nurses at her side, vigorously pumping her breast pumps while she lay there, exhausted but urging the nurses to carry on because she was pumping for a good cause... to feed the poor newborn infants who needed four gallons of milk to survive.

It's hysterical. Coworker? No. Cowworker.

"You would think my boob had popped out and shot Ghandi!" - Tara Reid on her accidental exposure on the red carpet.

We are nine days into summer break, and about a month until the actual summer season is upon us.

Centennial and the surrounding communities are glorious. The trees have leaves, the grass is green and flowers are in bloom. Only two more days until the neighborhood pools open up and the heart of what summer really feels like begins.

I'm already back to work at the Colorado Athletic Club, Denver's only upscale athletic club chain, as a child care associate and soon a lifeguard.

In my short time back I've already been to the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, finished a book (Columbine by Dave Cullen, which I am planning to blog about soon), watched a handful of movies, conquered Peggle as Boston friend Kedzie Teller advised, and created a thorough yet incomplete schedule of events with my friends based on a list of things to do this summer:

- Back to summer BBQ
- Make root beer floats
- Go to the natural history museum
- Go to art museum
- Go to the Grizzly Rose
- Go camping multiple times
- Go hiking
- Katy wants spray tan and cartilage piercing. Lauren will attend.
- Slip and SLIDE!! A big one!
- Water World! and Elitches (perhaps)
- Rockies games (at least 3, including the July 3rd fireworks one)
- Downtown for dinner and fun
- Day trip Boulder for Pearl Street
- Go to Glenwood (hopefully)
- Alpine slides @ winter park
- Tea party
- Make a dinner and eat it.
- Go to Washington Park.
- Play trivia at Wash Park Grille.
- Go clubbing and not die.
- Go to the pool.
- Go to breakfasts
- Go to Chipotle countless times (at least 10)
- Midnight premieres! (Harry Potter, Transformers) and see many movies.
- Films on the Rocks
- Play boardgames outdoors
- Picnic!
- Ring the boat house door!! WOO!
- Bike rides
- Movie marathons
- Ice skating(?)
- Laser tag!
- Play croquet
- Sleep in the backyard
- Create a CD/music video
- Go ATVing
- Go tubing/water skiing.
- Play dead in a pool!
- Play night games!
- Water balloon/squirt gun fight.
- Anonymous notes on doors!
- paint balling
- Go mini golfing
- Go real golfing, dress up like country club people and schedule a Tee time.
- Garden of the Gods
- Cave of the Winds / Cheyenne Mountain Zoo
- Marshmallows / S'mores
- River rafting
- Throw a tomato into a fan
- Go to Estes Park
- Go Kart-ing!
- Build a pillow and mattress fort
- Learn to Salsa dance
- Learn how to play tennis
- Play in kiddie pool
- Kidnap people
- Drive-In
- Go to Fort Collins for Drive In and for fun! Hike at Horsetooth.
- Order a pizza
- Make care packages for special people
- Volunteer at a nursing home
- Go bowling
- Go to the zoo
- Scavenger hunt
- TPing!
- Chocolate fondue!
- Disney Scene It!
- Play badminton
- People's Fair (June 6 - 7)
- Frisco Park
- Mile High Flee Market?
- Celestial Seasons Factory tour
- Tour of Denver US Mint
- 27th Annual Highlands Street Fair (June 20)
- Go in public and yell "hey, stupid!" and see how many people turn around.
- Go to a batting cage.

Some of them are jokes, or funny things we found when Googling "Things to do in the Summer." Tonight we have a Denver Nuggets party planned around the game versus the L.A. Lakers. I'm confident Laura Nelson's team will fail miserably.

Some interesting and disturbing news: My parents have stopped subscribing to the Denver Post, because they thoroughly hate it. Despite my whines, there is no major Denver newspaper being delivered to my doorstep at any point in time. It seems like a permanent decision. So until the industry figures out a new model I am stuck with the Denver Post as my homepage, relying on the Internet and television shows to get all my news. In Denver Times seems to be plummeting fast, which is a disappointment because I really had hope for it but am tired of loading the page day after day and not finding much original content, or small articles that just direct me to a better article published by somebody else. I'll always support the idea and former Rocky Mountain News employees, but as of now I've kind of lost hope.

On a lighter note, I was informed that I was chosen to be a weather anchor for CTV next fall! I'm super excited for working as a weather anchor, and producing as well. My sophomore year will be just as if not even more exciting as last year.

Only 13 more days until my next Free Spirit reunion in Chicago. I call it a Free Spirit reunion because some people I will see are legitimate Al Neuharth Free Spirits, and other new friends I made in Boston are honorary Free Spirits. First I will go to Indianapolis for the Ted Scripps Leadership Institute weekend, which I won (all expense paid) on June 5 - 7. Then I will fly in to Chicago for five days of a brand new city I have never been to before road tripping with Natalia Ledford back to Denver and camping in the Rocky Mountains for a few days.

This summer is shaping up well! I can't wait for things to start really getting exciting. Be sure to subscribe and receive the Fort Report by e-mail so you don't miss a beat of the Summer in Centennial edition.
“But thy eternal summer shall not fade” - William Shakespeare

This was just too fun not to share. The Collegian and College Avenue team up to put out a welcome issue for new freshman over their orientation weeks, and I was asked to write something so this is what I wrote, entirely based off of my experience with an awful roommate. I doubt it will be published online so here it is:

Most of the time, roommates are able to coexist harmoniously, even becoming good friends by the year’s end. But on the rare occasion Housing gets the pairing wrong, you could end up one of the few distraught dorm dwellers living with the roommate from hell. They are inconsiderate, unpleasant and all around terrible to be paired with. Check out this backwards guide to make sure you don’t become one of those dreaded roommates yourself:

Step One: Wake your roommate up in the middle of the night. This is cardinal rule for the bad roommates. It’s okay to come back late; you aren’t living with your parents curfew anymore, but if you come in to the room while your roommate is sleeping and turn all the lights on, whistle loudly, turn fans on high and talk on the phone your roommate will most definitely hate you. You can also earn extra hatred points by waking your roommate up late at night with a guest who is just as noisy.

Staying up late to the glow of your computer screen is also very inconsiderate, as while it seems quiet enough the light may bother your roommate’s eyes. Also, be sure to set your alarms for early wake up times when your roommate doesn’t have to be up until 10 or 11 a.m. and then sleep through the alarms as they scare your roommate out of slumber while the sun is still not out. If your roommate has to get up in the dark and figure out how to turn your alarms off while you keep sleeping, expect them to throw it across the room, or at least yell at you in the morning.

Step Two: Blare your music whenever the urge strikes you. It doesn’t matter if your roommate and you have the same taste in music, if you are inconsiderate of your roommate’s volume preferences, this will irritate them. Rocking out together in the room is different and blaring your music can be a bonding moment, but if you are both are studying and your roommate says he or she doesn’t mind music, they probably will mind it if it’s louder than their thoughts.

Step Three: Borrow your roommate’s belongings without asking. Especially with food, which you can’t return, only replace, taking things that aren’t yours and returning them at your own pace won’t make you friends. Most roommates have a normal tolerance for sharing, but if you start snatching things up or eating food that a roommate pays for on their own, don’t be surprised if things of yours start to go missing. Taking someone’s things without asking shows a serious lack of respect for the other person, and the frustration behind that can make your roommate react destructively. If your roommate has no respect for your belongings because you have none for theirs, you may start finding coffee rings on your papers or an unusual smell of lotion in your sheets, which leads in to the next step in being an awful roommate…

Step Four: Have sex in the room, at any time of the day, even if your roommate is there. Nothing could possibly be more unpleasant than this. Being trashy on purpose will make your roommate want to leave you as fast as possible if they are smart. If you really want to disrespect your roommate have sex in their bed. Your roommate will figure it out when they smell the KY Warming Gel on their sheets, and will hate you for life. Also, have sex in the room while your roommate is seven feet away in the tiny dorm room. Even if you think they are asleep they might not be, or most likely will be woken up by you and your partner. They will be forced to lay in horror, kept up by the sound of your slapping bodies - just the wake up call they wanted.

These steps are the foundation to being the roommate from hell. Some people might be able to tolerate some of these characteristics to some extent, but if you consistently are rude in every category, you both are in for a rough year. Some people have enough sense to call it quits midyear when they have a bad roommate, but most will want to stick it out for the year, believing there is some shame in leaving a bad roommate behind. If you have a bad roommate, don’t be afraid to request a switch.

Roommates surprisingly have a huge impact on your quality of life at CSU. Most people can live with someone and have minor problems, but there are the pitiable few, forced to survive some of the most unpleasant people on campus. A roommate is someone you have to wake up to every day, and if you absolutely hate the person on the other side of the room, it’s time for an upgrade.

"I don't need to pay a therapist to give me crap. I have a roommate that does it for free." - Ally McBeal

I can't believe it. This is it. My freshman year at Colorado State University is over.

I spent so much time wanting the summer to come, but now that it has I'm wishing I could be a freshman forever. It was the hardest year of my life, but I learned so much about myself. I never anticipated how hard leaving home, having all my best friends ripped from me for schools on opposite coasts of the county and starting all over would be. But, I survived it, made some amazing new friends, survived a daily college newspaper people told me I would never last past the first month at (I'm the only stipend that survived the year, mind you), tried some new things and now have a lot to look forward to for next year.

Fort Collins has changed me. I'm not the same person I was when I first arrived here a week before school, frantically unpacking my belongings in my dorm with my parents before heading to newspaper training. I remember sitting on my bed, hugging my parents and feeling so uncertain for the future.

Now I'm sitting in the same place, with everything in boxes and my room looking more like it did when I first arrived. All my photos and mementos from the year are packed away, but I am never going to forget everything I was so lucky to have experienced this year, and everything I managed to survive. Everything fell into place this year, not in the way I would have chosen or expected, but it did. I got everything out of my freshman year I wanted.

One phrase that came to mind on my realization on how blessed I have been through everything was, "If life is an orchestra, someone up there is doing a damn good job conducting mine." Even when I felt like I was in an uphill battle with things going on around me, it was all for a reason and I'm stronger because of it.

How lucky am I to have a college I am going to miss over the summer? Even though this is goodbye to some people I met this year, I know that there are still three more chapters left in this adventure, and I have a reason to come back next fall, not apprehensive or unsure, but excited for what a new year will bring.

"And I'm not who I was when I took my first step and I'm clinging to the promise you're not through with me yet. So if all of these trials bring me closer to you I will go through the fire if you want me to."

"Here's to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in the square holes... the ones who see things differently -- they're not fond of rules... You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them, but the only thing you can't do is ignore them because they change things... they push the human race forward, and while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius, because the ones who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world, are the ones who do." - Steve Jobs


***I will be on a blogging hiatus for at least the next week, maybe longer. Then get ready for summer in Centennial!

So, after becoming an expert Twitter user from my friends in Boston, I decided for my second (and unfortunately final) package of the year to continue with the the technology beat and do something on Twitter (you can follow me @kelleybruce).

This package was a lot of fun to put together, especially the stand-ups at the end. It also let me play around with Final Cut Pro and utilize my Photoshop skills for television (note the cell phone-twitter graphic). It's surprising me how many of my print journalism skills come in handy, but I also have a lot to learn.

In this package, I felt like my "live" from the CTV newsroom was ten times better than the first one. The first time, as you probably noticed, I stumbled a little bit and kept glancing at our producer. This time I tried really hard to get it all out without looking around.

Check back soon, I have some non-Roving Reporter fun to blog.

"The secret of seeing is to sail on solar wind. Hone and spread your spirit, till you yourself are a sail, whetted, translucent, broadside to the merest puff." - Annie Dillard

Watch the video below to see my first CTV News package ever! It aired last night on Fort Collins channel 11 at 9 p.m., mountain time.



If you haven't already guess from the title, my big change for next year is me switching over to CTV and focusing my energy there, instead of the newspaper. It was a decision that came semi-abruptly on the same day I was working on my latest Collegian article about the protest at the capitol, but had been weighing on my mind for a long time. It was the last day to apply for a Collegian editor position or a CTV staff position, and I had to choose what I wanted my main focus to be for next year.

It wasn't an easy decision, because I love print journalism with all my heart. It's been a large part of what makes me who I am for the last five years, and brings me an immense amount of joy. But applying for a CTV position felt right. There was many different factors that played into choosing CTV, and to try and balance both seemed like I would be shortchanging myself in both areas. I wanted to throw myself wholeheartedly into whatever I chose for next year, as I have already done so much this year and am tired of feeling spread too thin. It was great to be involved in so many things but I have to say goodbye to some things if I want to improve in other areas. The Collegian had been a good learning experience, but I felt like it was time to try something new.

I applied for an entry level position at CTV since I was so new, and had really only been volunteering chunks of time there for a few months. I would be starting over, but that was alright with me. You can only imagine my surprise when, after my interview, I was hired as a producer for next year! I was told it was based on my writing experience at the Collegian, and am completely thrilled. It will be a big responsibility, writing for and piecing together a show each week, but it's exactly what I wanted: to feel like I was part of a team and have a lot of stake in it.

So this last week I've been working on my first news package as a reporter, will do another next week, audition to be an news or weather anchor next week as well and am honestly, completely excited to start this new adventure in a different medium of journalism. It won't be like anything I've done before, and while I will still have the magazine to get my print journalism fix next year (the Collegian will also be there in the future at well), I'm most excited to throw myself into a really exciting group of people here at CSU and learn as much as I can.

"Never be afraid to try something new. Remember, amateurs built the ark. Professionals built the Titanic." - Unknown

No, I haven't forgotten about the CSU Fort Report, but lately my days here at CSU have blurred together, and to try and chapterize all that has happened would do the experience injustice. Needless to say, what's going on in my life will be a story worth telling and some big changes are in my future.

But you'll have to wait for Thursday to read about everything I've been doing. I have to first live through tomorrow, when the culminating event of everything that has been set in motion for me happens. Have patience, it wouldn't be a worthwhile story without a proper ending, or new beginning depending on how you look at it.

But this entry isn't about me this time. For my Picks of the Week, I want stop and point out some amazing things that have been going on in the lives of my friends across the country who are fighting their way through their first year in college and pursuing careers in journalism as well.

• Matthew Rist, at George Washington University in D.C., recently won the Gridiron Scholarship for his work on the biweekly newspaper, The Hatchet. His stories are frequently featured on the paper's front page.
  
  
• California girl Laura Nelson has been busy chasing crime as a beat reporter for the Daily Trojan on the University of Southern California's campus. She recently did some amazing coverage on a hit-and-run near her campus and got to have a mini interview with Katie Couric!
  
  
• Paula Skaggs of St. Olaf College in Minnesota interviewed today for the editor position of her school newspaper. Good luck, Paula! She has also created dozens of "What the Hill" shows all year for her campus radio station.
  
  
• Aspiring recording artist/journalist Caroline Klibanoff has been working on songs for her album while writing a column for Georgetown University's newspaper, The Hoya, and hosting her own radio show, "Melodious Intoxication" each week.
  
  
• Carol McLaughlin has been named next year's editor in chief for her college newspaper, The Newark Targum, at Rutgers University - Newark. Congratulations, Carol!
  
  
• Katie Lannan has an potential internship with New Hampshire Public Radio in the works for the upcoming summer. She has been busy at Boston University working for her college newspaper, The Daily Free Press, as a reporter and has kept a hilarious blog of open letters this semester.
  
  
• John Ross Hendrick has been snapping photos and collaborated with Caroline Klibanoff, using one of her original songs to create a multimedia slide show, using Final Cut Pro. He currently is learning to become a visual journalist at the Brooks Institute of Photography in California.

Sorry if somebody's good news didn't catch my radar; please comment and let me know if there's anything big I missed. It's so interesting, having passed our one year anniversary of the Al Neuharth Free Spirit Scholarship and Conference, seeing how far each of us have come. I feel so honored to be among truly the best and brightest of our country's future journalism industry.

Again, check back Thursday to read what I've been up to. But if you are too impatient for that you can now follow me on Twitter. I caved and started tweeting, and have discovered it's downright fun. Following me and reading previous tweets might give you some insight to my life, but some of you who are already following me might have a general idea of what's up.

"I praise loudly, I blame softly." - Catherine the Great