By By MaryClaire Foster
It happened, and then it happened again and unfortunately, it will probably happen again. I messed up. I made a mistake.
Finding out you have misspelled the name of the main person in an article is not only embarrassing but upsetting, especially when you genuinely enjoyed speaking with that person and interviewing them.
Part of the reason I love journalism so much is knowing someone is excited about something I have written, whether it is because it’s about them or just because it is something they wanted to read about, and making a mistake in the article, whether it be misspelling a name or leaving out a bit of information is disappointing to both the reader and the writer.
I know that hasn’t been the only mistake I’ve made, and I hate that it won’t be my last, but I hope they will be few and far between.
After a brief hiatus from reporting, I am still getting back into the swing of things and am so appreciative to be doing it in Atmore, where everyone has been so encouraging and supportive. I am in my third week at the paper and after having moved out of the Best Western last Friday, can now officially say I live in Atmore.
My favorite part about my new place is having a kitchen. I am a huge food lover and as much as I love eating out it will be nice to be able to go home and cook, but I can’t say living in the hotel was all bad.
It was always clean, my bed was super comfortable and I got to watch movies every night on HBO, but living in the hotel meant my meal choices were severely limited.
After eating my microwave lunch, save the two luncheons I attended at the hospital (where the food was delicious), I would take to the town at night in search of good, convenient food; however, one night I had resigned myself to yet another microwave meal and headed to the grocery store. Then, as I was pulling out, I noticed a little red building that said Po’Boy and hoped gumbo would accompany it.
After making a quick U-turn back to the Po’Boy shop I made sure it said open and went to the door. Finding it locked, I disappointedly walked back to my car. As I was about to get in the owner Carrie Williams drove up and let me in. She had gone to take her grandson to practice and had to run out of a moment.
Let me deviate for a second and say this is one of the charming things I love about Atmore- family always comes first and business can wait. After ordering some gumbo, we began to talk, and I learned she was an evacuee from New Orleans.
Now, this is why I went into journalism. Stories. I love hearing people’s stories, plus her gumbo was some of the best I’ve had.
While working on another article, I had the opportunity to visit the airport. There I met manager Mickey Parker. He wasn’t too keen on letting me take his picture, but he did take me to the hangar and allow me to see four WWII and earlier planes he has restored, which were beautiful.
His is a story I plan on writing soon, and I look forward to seeing what others come my way.
MaryClaire Foster is news editor for the Atmore Advance. She can be reached at 368-2123 or via email at lifestyles@atmoreadvance.com