Sports Writer, Sebring, Fla.

I think that it's funny that when a job out west says it is only 3 hours drive from three major cities, it is considered to be a great location, but a job in Florida that is 90 minutes from major cities and beaches is "in the middle of nowhere."

Maybe it's just me, but I don't think it's that big a deal to have to drive an hour or two to get to a beach or a place with a good nightlife.

 

Stop it.

I grew up in Florida and still live here. I went to summer camp in that part of the state. I've been to that race track. Sebring isn't the suburbs of someplace like LA, where you're in a metropolitan area and you just have to drive for a while while still enjoying that metropolitan area. Leave Sebring and what do you have? Orange groves. Lots and lots of orange groves. For variety, there's also grapefruit groves. And mosquitoes. You don't have the same outdoors recreational opportunities you do in some places out west which make those places more appealing. And if you're 90 minutes from the beach in Florida (or about as long a drive to get to scheduled airline service, as Sebring is), you are in fact in the middle of nowhere with a long, dull drive to get out. But Amtrak has two scheduled stops a day there, so you got that goin' for you -- you can at least take a nap while the train takes you to Orlando, Miami or Tampa.

Everybody I know who grew up in the Sebring couldn't wait to get the hell out. One week out of the year, Sebring is interesting. The rest of the year? Forget it.

 

Is driving through a metropolitan area supposed to be fun? I always thought is was a bit of a pain, going 5 miles in 30 minutes, but I guess I was missing out on all of the excitement?

Look, all I was saying is that I find if funny that when a job in Oklahoma, Nebraska, Wyoming, Kansas, Nevada, etc., is a "day trip" away from a happening place, it's considered to be a good location, whereas on the east coast, if you are more that 30 minutes from a major league baseball team you might as well be on a deserted island.

But if my line of thinking somehow offends you, I will do my best to "stop it."

 

Where on earth is a backwater town in Kansas, a day trip from anywhere decent, considered a 'good location'? Certainly not here, I wouldn't have thought.

The east coast is certainly more compact in that regard, but living somewhere like Sebring (and I've lived somewhere comparable, though not quite as bad) becomes doubly annoying because you know that Florida, for example, is full of decent places -- Orlando, Tampa, Miami, etc. -- and yet you managed to pick a place that isn't really near any of them.

You hear of a job in Kansas, and you say, well, that'll be a shithole. You know what you're getting going in. You hear of a job in Florida, and you say, hey, Florida! Beaches! Bikinis! Sunshine! And then you find out you're in Sebring, where there are no beaches, you wouldn't want to see anyone in a bikini and the only benefit the sunshine has is to make it even fucking hotter than it was yesterday, when you were convinced you lived in the hottest place on earth.

 

The Highlands Today was my first job in the business 10 years ago. It's where I got my start, and for all it's downsides, it's a great place to cut your teeth.
I learned a lot in my four years there. That's right, I spent four years there, and, yes, I survived. I even met my wife there. And let's just say, she's a 10 no matter what city you're in. I also made some great friends down there, so, you can have a personal life.
Just like any job, or any situation, it is what you make of it.
Some positives: The SE there is one of the best guys I've ever met in my entire life. There are a bunch of great golf courses. The fishing is great and everyone you meet has a boat. You can get a good meal for not a lot of money, especially if it's before 4 p.m. I think they call it the early bird. And if you're from up north, well, you'll feel right at home, because every one there is a Big Ten fan.
While I haven't worked there in six years, I still visit a couple times a year and have some knowledge of the ins and outs, so if anyone has any questions, you can PM me.

 

Who in God's name is saying that??

 

How far away is Sebring from Lake Tahoe?

 

Worked in Sebring -- for the other paper, the News-Sun -- 20 years ago. NYT owned the paper at the time and kept promising to make it a daily, but never did and while NYT dawdled, Highlands Today came in and set up shop. Anyway, I liked the area fine, being a small-town type. Enjoyed the 12 Hours and preps were pretty good -- notably baseball, producing three guys who pitched in the major leagues, including Tom Gordon. We didn't do regular-season youth baseball gamers then, as is done now; I can't imagine that, even in the smallest of places.

It is remote by Florida standards, about as far as one can get from a beach or an airport. To me, that would be the biggest downer along with being so micro-local as to have to write youth and rec-league gamers. Don't know if Highlands Today is quite as micro-local as the News-Sun.

In any event, a good first gig for somebody.

 

Hmmm, I could be mistaking but I'm pretty sure I've seen a few people on here make staments like that...

micropolitan guy: Seeking page designer/copy editor in Fargo
"And by Midwestern standards, the 3-4 hour trip to the Cities is a piece of cake, especially in the summer."

Football_Bat: SE, Kennett, MO
"The Missouri Bootheel is an interesting place. Not far from Memphis, a little over two hours to St. Louis depending on traffic. You can be in Illinois in a short drive one way and be deep into Arkansas going the other direction."

Editude: SE, Victoria, TX
"The city itself has new and older parts, and it is within a few hours of Houston and San Antonio."

JJHHI: Sports journalist, The (Greenwood, S.C.) Index-Journal
"Quick jaunt to the Blue Ridge Mountains, which is a major plus if you're into outdoors stuff, and a weekend trip to the beach isn't out of the question."

luckyducky: Sports copy editor/desiger, Tacoma News Tribune
"Seattle is a 30-minute drive north, Portland is a two-hour trip south, and beautiful Victoria, B.C., is a three-hour ferry ride away."

BrianGriffin: Sports Writer, Beaumont, Tx
"Also, it's an hour from Houston and right on the Louisiana border, so you can day trip to a lot of culture and fun if you feel Beaumont is lacking."

TrooperBari: Sports Writer, McAllen (Texas) Monitor
"Way down there ... Monterrey is basically a day trip."

Golden Brown: Sports Reporter, Casper, WY
"There's generally enough going on in Casper on any given night that we don't feel compelled to leave, but it's also fun to make the occasional road trip to Cody (en route to Yellowstone), Denver, Gillette (Devils Tower), Lander (Lander Bar, Sinks Canyon), Laramie (college town), Rawlins (great Thai food -- really) and Riverton (Wind River Casino)."

awriter: community sports writer in Hannibal, Mizzou
"It's not bad for a day trip from St. Louis if you like Clemens (Samuel, not Roger)"

 

We have the right to remain silent. Anything we say can and will be used against us in a future post. (Just teasing, Greg.)

And since someone dragged out one joke above, I'll drag out another: Dammit, I'm good enough to work for Highlands Today!

 

I mentioned before my aunt and uncle's cabin in Basinger. That's plenty enough Central Fla. for me.