For ten or so years I had the often odd experience of being a part of much of what happened in Grand Island, and sometimes outside of it. Aside from covering football games, school class assignments and the occassional spot news, one thing I covered often was the Harvest of Harmony parade through downtown. I didn’t cover it every year, but took enough pictures of it to fill several edition of The Independent. This year was different though. Jess and I went back to see family and friends. In addition I went to the HOH as a spectator for the first time.
I still had my camera to catch family pictures, but I couldn’t help feeling the need to wander around and take some pictures of the bands. It was a different experience though because I could no longer wander through the crowds and walk along the parade route with abandon because I was a member of the press. I was just another guy with a camera looking to take pictures of the bands. No special access. It was odd. It’ll get easier as I go along, but it was the first time the I was really smacked in the face with the fact that I don’t work at a paper anymore. I guess that part of me really is in the past now. At least for now. Who knows in the future.