NSPA, Indianapolis, IN: Day 3

Saturday, November 12

Our last day at the convention! I walked down to breakfast and grabbed some juice. Since we weren't going back to the hotel, everyone had their bags packed and ready to be loaded into the bus. All of us got down to the convention and went to our first session. I went to "10 Fingers to Videography." My second session was with Anna Louise about LGBTQ topics in journalism. It wasn't the session I was originally supposed to go to but I am really glad I did because it was very interesting. Lulu and I found each other and looked for a session but all of the ones we would have gone to were full. We joined Abby Kierst at Starbucks to grab some beverages and then found a design session. Next was our lunch break. Both of us joined a big group of STA girls and walked to Subway for lunch. Everyone split up for afternoon sessions and I joined a few STA students at one about teen press that was the entire afternoon. When sessions were over, all of us got in the bus to drive home. We stopped in Effingham, IL for dinner where I picked eating at Chipotle. Most of us went into the truck stop gas station and looked around. We found some funny Illinois shirts and a majority of the group bought them. Mine is green and has "I (heart sign) (Illinois state)." Outside of St. Louis, the bus stopped again at McDonald's so Bridget could get the wallet she forgot. Our final stop before STA was a rest area outside of Columbia, MO. Then, we finally arrived at STA and went home. It was a really fun trip and I am lucky that I was able to go. Thank you for the memories STA Indy Trip!

NSPA, Indianapolis, IN: Day 2

Friday, November 11

Our group boarded the bus at 7:15 (except I was a minute late, whoops!). We headed downtown to the NSPA convention at the J.W. Marriott. Downtown Indianapolis is very similar to downtown Kansas City. I think that both cities have the same look and feel which was really cool because I love Kansas City so darn much. Cricket, our bus driver, dropped us at the convention and we checked in. The trade show was going on so we walked around and grabbed as many free items as we could. STA’s yearbook company, Herf Jones, had a video booth (basically, a photo booth but recorded) that printed the video into a flip book which was very fun. Josten’s had a booth that took a photograph of us and printed it on an ID badge that we could wear on a chain. Another company had a coloring space with adult coloring books. Smart advertising! After the trade show, I had my first session that was about making the most of Pinterest. My next session, “10 Must Have Images of Photography,” was one of my most interesting and most informative sessions. It was taught by Mr. Eric Thomas who was STA’s former advisor and a current professor at KU and he had an awesome presentation. Following Mr. Thomas’ presentation, I went on a Photo walk at Victory Field, home of the Indianapolis Indians. It was a nice break from being in the convention center and I had fun walking around the baseball field. Then, lunch! Zoe Willard and I grabbed nachos from a food truck and drinks from Starbucks in the Marriott. I went on my own to an eighty minute session called “What’s the Word(Press)?” but it wasn't what I thought it would be so I left early. Instead, I listened to a presentation about writing good captions with Lauren Lynch and Catelyn Campbell. After, Catelyn, Anna Louise, and I went to Write Offs. Write Offs are competitions that are anything from law to design. Since we are photographers, we pre-entered photography contests. At the Write Off, the judges went through some of the photos and talked about them for two hours. Our group went to Adobo Grill in downtown Indy for dinner where Mr. Thomas also joined us. The next stop was the annual dance back at the convention center. There is a STA tradition to wear our uniform, so before going in, all of us girls changed into them. We were late to the dance and it was hilarious when all of us ran in with our uniforms on. We had a ton of fun because the Dart and Teresian staffs competed against each other to see who could get the most snapchat contacts at the dance. Dart won because Anna Louise gathered 47 total usernames. Wow!!!! Bridget Graham and I took a break during the dance and swapped our Windmoor literary magazine with other schools. When the dance finished, the group went back to the hotel and stayed in for the night. It was a good day.

NSPA, Indianapolis, IN: Day 1

Thursday, November 10

Our day started at 9 AM. All forty or so of us congregated behind the school gym to get on the bus. I set up my space on the bus for the next nine hours, anticipating our departure. I was lucky enough to sit next to my friend Victoria Cahoon. After getting on the road, we invited our friends surrounding us to play a game of Cards Against Humanity. Man, does that game bring out another side of people. Fellow yerd Catelyn Campbell directed a VideoStar video to the song “Deleted” by classmate Mackenzie O’Guin for the entire bus to take part in making. We are finishing the video later, most likely on the drive home, and I am confident that the end product is going to be great. We stopped at McDonald’s for a quick lunch and then got back on the road. Following lunch, the drive began to feel longer and longer. We found whatever we could to entertain ourselves on the rest of the ride to Indianapolis. Victoria and I mostly talked and listened to music until our next stop and hour and a half from the hotel. Our next stop was a big truck rest area, but we got a nice breath of fresh air and some cute photos on the rest area lawn. I took a nap the rest of the ride, and then we finally arrived at our hotel in Northeast Indianapolis! My roommates, Lily Manning, Zoe Butler, Victoria Cahoon, and I checked into our room and then joined the rest of our group to go to dinner at Bucca de Beppo. After the group dinner, we went back to the hotel and had a staff meetings for the Yearbook and Newspaper. I had some free time after the meeting, so jumped into the hotel pool and hot tub. No one else got into the hot tub or pool, but Claire Molloy joined me on the edge and we had a great time chatting. I took the elevator upstairs to stay in for the night, and then I talked with my roommates. Day one was mostly driving, but I still had a great time!