Our arrival in Portland

Ah, my first blog ever! Well anyway, I am the head photographer from Burges High School in El Paso, Texas, and in my experiences in journalism I have found ways to open doors for my future career.

Last year, the JEA conference taught me a lot and I look forward to this year’s convention. Yet first, there was the long trip from our border town of El Paso to Portland. The long trip all the way up to Portland from El Paso has got to be one of the most exhausting trips I have made.

Before we arrived we made stops in Los Angeles and Oakland. When we were in Los Angeles, I was still in my comfort zone because I had been there before and I still had energy to go on. Afterwards, we made a stop in Oakland and I was feeling the effect of sitting on an airplane for awhile.

Aside from my exhaustion, I was in awe from the scenery. In El Paso all you see is desert, for example, the mountain range has no green vegetation visible. The mountain looks like a big rock covered in rocks, and the only time you see a lot of green is when you are around a golf course.

I should let you know that I vowed not to take one photograph today, but I was extremely tempted to in Oakland. I love photographing trees, it’s a silly hobby of mine. When we arrived in Portland, I was blown out of this world. It is such a green environment and it is a modern metropolis. I am so excited right now as I write these words.

The Convention Center is a marvelous piece of architecture and I am really interested to be a participant in the event. It is something that I have thought about since we left Phoenix last year and by the way I couldn’t keep my vow. I ended taking a lot of pictures at the trail outside of the local zoo. I just enjoy photography so much that I can’t avoid it for long. I even see things as pictures now whenever I look at things around me.