Thursday, March 29, 2012

Gooooood Moooorning Lower Providence!!

With all due respect to the movie 'Good Morning Vietnam", no one will ever mistake my voice for that of a manic Robin Williams first thing in the morning. Anyone who knows only the most basic details about me is well aware that I am a creature of the night. I'm probably one of the deepest sleepers EVER, and I.hate.mornings.

Seriously, it's like I'm in a coma. I've often said someone could break into my house in the middle of the night and rob me blind, and I would be none the wiser (one more reason I'm really glad we are now Rottweiler owners). My family loves to regale me with tales of crazy things that have happened while I slumbered - stuff that should have had me standing straight up on my bed, like the time a squirrel somehow got in the house and everyone was chasing it around with brooms and jumping on chairs - but which I had no knowledge of until told the next morning.

My biorhythm is such that I have a really hard time waking up, MUST start the day with a strong cup of coffee to even be somewhat coherent, and I don't really mentally wake up til around 11 am.  This does have its advantages, however. I'm just hitting my stride around 4 pm when everyone else is dragging, and I really get wind in my sails around 9 or 10 pm.  Many people I deal with on a regular basis know they may awake to emails from me sent at 2 or 3 am. And, this anomaly of nature - being a night owl, that is  - was definitely a plus as a candidate, when a lot of the work of campaigning - knocking on doors, strategy meetings, fundraisers, meet & greets etc. - is done in the afternoon or evening.

I've had periods of my life wherein I had to be a (very) early riser. I didn't really like it, but I did it for long periods of time when I absolutely had to. It's definitely not my preference  though.

So, when my good friend and newly elected Upper Providence Township supervisor Lisa Mossie asked me to consider taking over her slot doing the 7-8 am shift of our local Fox affiliate radio station, co-hosting "Live and Local" with Barry Papiernik, I was both excited and torn. I've been in full night owl mode for some time now, like having time to myself late at night while everyone else is sound asleep, and I wasn't sure I wanted to give that up.  Life had just gotten back to normal after last year's bruising campaign for supervisor.

If you don't know, "Live and Local" is conservative-oriented talk format which focuses primarily on local politics, issues and current events, but also touches on state and national concerns, especially if they'll have a local impact. Some mornings it's silly; some it's serious business.

Sometimes, we interview guests, such as elected officials or candidates for local office so you can get a better feel for who they are and where they stand (I was a guest about a year ago to talk about improvements to the 'Bud's Bar' property that I was able to accomplish during the primary). Just last week, county commissioner Bruce Castor joined us to talk about how well things are going with his new co-commissioners down at the county courthouse.

While Lisa did the show five days a week, Monday through Friday, I initially committed to two or three days a week, and given my disdain for early mornings, reserved the option to do the show in my pajamas (just kidding). We've now fully transitioned, and I've enjoyed it so much that I've willingly and happily gotten up at the crack of dawn every day to be there and will continue to do so as long as they want me. It's proven to be a GREAT way to wake up and start the day, and I hope you'll think so, too. Even better, Lisa will continue to join us from time to time.

I remain a staunch advocate for Lower Providence, and I'm sure to mention the fine institutions, landmarks and businesses of my hometown whenever appropriate. I hope you'll tune in, consider taking out a reasonably priced advertisement block, or pitch an idea or topic you'd like us to consider or community event to mention. Find us online at http://www.1180wfyl.com/.




Disclaimer: my appearance on WFYL and any comments made by me on-air represent my personal viewpoints and are in no way intended to be representative of any of the employees or elected officials of Lower Providence Township, the Times Herald or my employer.

No comments: