Stop No. 3 on the 2007 Workshop Tour

Posting this week from Manhappiness, Kan., home of the 2007 Flint Hills Publications Workshop. My good friend Tim Janicke and I are advising the workshop newspaper - the Kedzie Krier. It 's tough to take 12 high school students from different schools, get them mixed in and comfortable with one another, pass out some story and photo assignments and POOF! produce a paper in three days. Somehow, though, we always manage to thread the needle. Our big production night will be Wednesday, so I might be a tad bit prickly that night. Out of 12 students, only four have InDesign experience, so the actual production part of the process might get a little kee-razy.

Something new this year (because we're just gluttons for punishment, I guess) is the eKrier. We're taking the Kedzie Krier online. Check it out. I continue to be amazed at the talent and dedication of these students. We have live stories posted 10 minutes after an event ends, and then we'll add to the story for publication in the print edition.

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A Chittum Challenge update: I'm hovering around just 2.5 pounds lost - the summer of constantly being on the road has been a little tougher on my motivation and habits than I expected. That being said, though I did haul my ass out of bed at 6:30 this morning for a run near our hotel. I'm so glad I went - it was actually cool outside this morning, with a slight breeze.

It's fun to run through Manhattan and reminisce about where my friends lived in random houses, or strange apartment buildings where I THINK I attended some party once or twice.

And, those of you who went to K-State will appreciate this for how it illustrates my re-dedication to the Challenge - this morning, in the Union, I had yogurt and an orange for breakfast. I DID NOT EAT UNION B&G! B&G is usually a staple of my workshop diet. Not this year...

We'll see how I do by Aug. 17 when our marathon training begins. I would just like to shed a few if for no other reason than to make the running easier.