Day 90, around 8:42 pm: Thoughts from the Alaska Capitol Press Room (or IMO - I Missed Out)
There’s about three
and a half hours left of the Alaska State Legislature's 90-day normal session. It’s Sunday. I’m stuck at the Capitol waiting for the Senate to start their
floor session, waiting to relieve my fellow crew members, waiting for this all
to be over. I got about three hours of sleep last night and I’ve been here for
over 12 hours so I’m not really with it totally or barely at all.
A long time Capitol reporter, says, “This is fun,” as he fishes for a Diet Pepsi out of the small press room fridge. He’s wearing a light brown suit and a tie that bears big prints of Benjamin Franklin’s one-hundred-dollar bill face. I kind of part-laugh, part-scoff at this comment, and he replies, “I’m serious. All these tiny chess games going on.” The House floor session happening right now has been taking long at-eases (breaks). I know they’ve received the current version of the Capital Budget, SB18, the last big legislation that’s left to complete in these final hours. So I ask this reporter, “What chess game is going on right now? Why all the long at-eases?” He kind of turns his head gesturing behind him. “I can’t say. My competition is around.” Again, I kind of laugh, kind of scoff. Again, he says, “I’m serious.”
I can’t write about tonight and not mention that Scott, Amber, Cindy, Stephen, along with several Juneau friends are hanging out at a beach in North Douglas sitting around a bon fire, watching orcas and the setting sun (which, by now, has already set), eating grilled brats and just having a wonderful old time. Without me. That last (not complete) sentence was written with sadness, not anger.
A long time Capitol reporter, says, “This is fun,” as he fishes for a Diet Pepsi out of the small press room fridge. He’s wearing a light brown suit and a tie that bears big prints of Benjamin Franklin’s one-hundred-dollar bill face. I kind of part-laugh, part-scoff at this comment, and he replies, “I’m serious. All these tiny chess games going on.” The House floor session happening right now has been taking long at-eases (breaks). I know they’ve received the current version of the Capital Budget, SB18, the last big legislation that’s left to complete in these final hours. So I ask this reporter, “What chess game is going on right now? Why all the long at-eases?” He kind of turns his head gesturing behind him. “I can’t say. My competition is around.” Again, I kind of laugh, kind of scoff. Again, he says, “I’m serious.”
I can’t write about tonight and not mention that Scott, Amber, Cindy, Stephen, along with several Juneau friends are hanging out at a beach in North Douglas sitting around a bon fire, watching orcas and the setting sun (which, by now, has already set), eating grilled brats and just having a wonderful old time. Without me. That last (not complete) sentence was written with sadness, not anger.
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| Amber sent this photo via text of Scott holding a beer and sitting in front of the fire. This did not make me feel jealous. That's a lie. It did. |
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| At one point during this beautiful April evening on a beach in North Douglas, Scott said there must have been about a dozen people there. Sounds like fun. |
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| While my friends were doing that, I was doing this: Behind the camera during the final Senate Floor. They adjourned around 11:30 pm and won't have another floor meeting until January 2014. |
posted by Siapiau | 11:53 PM
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