Kevin & Brandi Norman in 2003

“Some people come into our lives and quickly go. Some stay for a while and leave footprints on our hearts. And we are never, ever the same.” — Anonymous

In this day and age and especially in a business where we are fortunate to meet so many people, friends come and they go. We may not talk for months and in some cases even a few years, but good friends pick up right where they left off; as if no time has ever passed … as if older age has never come.

It really doesn’t seem that long ago. Dressed in uniform with worries that now seem so trivial, summers were spent at Cleve Borman Field in the heart of the Napa Valley. On a hill overlooking the quaint town of Yountville, sits the Veterans Home of California and at the heart of “The Home”, lies a baseball field that has been ingrained into the lives of men, young and old for generations. Somewhat appropriate that this field is where I met Kevin and so many other summer friends. Keep Reading …

Welcome to Fort Irwin

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Like the entire country, we were all saddened yet glued to the television as the horrific story in Texas unfolded at Fort Hood. So many times we have covered stories around the globe with soldiers stationed in Killeen and we have heard so many stories about the base, it makes you feel connected … right along with our unwavering support for our troops.

Within a few hours of the shooting we got the call. Many soldiers and their families at Fort Hood have at one time come through Fort Irwin, the Army’s massive training site in the middle of the Mojave Desert. While this base is not nearly as large as Hood, Irwin has about 22,000 soldiers and civilians on base each day by midday. Six-thousand cars make the drive off of Interstate 15 down about 35 miles or so across the desolate landscape each and every day. The topography reminds me of parts I’ve seen in th middle east and in Pakistan. The area is arid, cold at night and warm during the day.

Producer Laura Prabucki and I leave LA and battle traffic and the long road for several hours before arriving in Barstow. There we grab a quick hotel room and a few hours of sleep. Photographer Scott King and our satellite truck guru Eric Graychock decide to leave early in the morning and head straight to the fort. Our first task before we leave Barstow is a stop at a quick mart to grab water and any food that is not perishable. Unlike other bases around the country, Irwin is literally in the middle of nowhere.

Because of the concern about the shooting in Texas, Fort Irwin has decided to keep the media about 5 miles away. We have great relations with the men and women here and understand their decision. So, we are parked next to the sign that welcomes everyone, along with a couple of retired tanks. From the knoll where we are reporting, I look in a 360 degree area and see absolutely nothing. Topography that reminds me of stories I’ve covered in the Middle East and in Pakistan. Other than the road that 6,000 cars a day trek down, there’s some scrub brush and tumbleweeds, both greenish yellow from recent rains.

Everywhere we stop and everyone we meet is either watching the reports on television, or expressing condolences for all of those who serve our great nation. It is a tough time for the Army today no matter where you serve. Brothers, sisters, comrades, soldiers….all Americans. Are thoughts and prayers are with you.

California game wardens cover a massive amount of land and water in and off of the Golden State. From 200 miles off the coast, the the highest peaks and lowest desert, wardens do their best to protect California’s natural resources, animals and wild areas. It is a rewarding, yet tedious job since only 358 sworn officers cover an area twice the size of California (counting the ocean of course). As a kid growing up in Northern California and then as I worked in areas like Chico (the North Valley), the Wine Country, the Sacramento Valley and now for Fox as a correspondent, I have seen their good work. Tough and ever more dangerous. The budget crisis hasn’t made anything easier as a significant increase in manpower wont likely come any time soon. Here is some behind the scenes video as we along for a ride with wardens Stephen Johnson and Byron Trunnell on the Sacramento River.

So what is it like to board a Navy ship? Well the last time a photographer and I boarded this ship, the destroyer USS Milius, we were landing in a helicopter as the ship patrolled the Persian Gulf and enforced the UN Mandate on Iraq before the war began back in February 2003. Now we get the chance to do a proper boarding in San Diego, where the ship calls home. The crew has just returned from a seven month deployment and will stay in this area until some time next spring. It is good to be back on board the ship and good to see her in such great shape and in such good hands.

Based in ‘Tinsel Town’, we get our share of famous faces walking through the hallways of the LA bureau. From Actors to politicians, reality stars to bands, few cause a stir like the one caused today. Sure we have swimsuit models and the single guys or girls (depending on the models gender of course) take notice, but this star has a following that brought a number of us downstairs to the LA studio. He weighs in at only a few pounds and sports a nice and quite familiar shade of blue. My mom might even argue that next to my immediate family, he was one of the few figures I recognized at an age where I could barely walk. Funny thing is, those standing with me now downstairs cover about 13 years from one end of the age spectrum to another. Whether we watched TV in the bell-bottom 70’s or were initially glued to the tube during Bush 41, most kids in this country know … ‘THE Cookie Monster’.  

As the rumor he was in the building filtered around the newsroom, the buzz of excitement barely could be kept in. Did he actually have cookies with him and were they good? Like many in LA did have an entourage and was a certain 7-foot bird along for the ride? So many questions. Chocolate Chip is his choice and now we know oatmeal is his second. BUT … this trip wasn’t just to talk flat-baked treats, THE ‘Cookie Monster’ was here talking healthy eating and specifically eggs as part of a balanced diet. It seems America’s egg farmers are partnering with Sesame Street on their 40th anniversary to donate eggs helping fight hunger. Called ‘The Good Egg Project’, for every American who signs the pledge to eat good every day, the farmers will donate an egg to the food bank up to 1-million white ones. Not bad. And Cookie Monster reminds us … after a balanced meal, there is nothing wrong with throwing down a chocolate chip one! Which make me think right about now … “Me want cookie!”, “Me eat cookie!” They better be soft!