Medford/Ashland

On my 25th birthday, I celebrated with my brother, his wife Kitsie and my beloved "aunt" Adaline and her husband Kernie in Portland.
The next day, I moved to Ashland.
I had vacationed there earlier in the summer and fell in love with it.
I moved there with no job and not knowing anyone there.

After a few months, I got my first paid job in radio, KMED.
Then, after 2 years, I moved to another radio station, KBOY.
On the local TV station, a friend and my former morning DJ Jim was doing a noon show called Meridian. His co-host was Ann Curry.
One day I visited Jim at the station -- and stuck around to talk with Ann.
I think I called her later that week with some lame invite -- but she said she was busy.
The next week, Ann called me.
She was eating a carrot and said bluntly into the phone, "so what's the deal with you anyway?"
I figured the carrot eating was an effort to appear like she was still busy (eating) and barely had enough time to talk.
I could see through it -- she was curious about me.
After all, I was short, skinny, had a mustache and didn't dress very well.
So I told her I was interested in taking her out.
We went to the Applegate River.
Hung out, drank some beer.
And then I pulled out of my bag a diving mask and pair of flippers.
I put them on and went into the river.
It was cold and I didn't swim well -- so I spent less than 5 minutes there.
Much later -- Ann told me she thought I must really be into diving since I came so prepared.
But she was puzzled -- and thought I was a little odd -- when I only spent a few minutes in the water.

We became close friends. Ann was promoted to the newsroom as a reporter. I remember her first day as an anchor. It was a Saturday. Normally, the Saturday anchor had to gather all the news, film themselves and deliver the news. No one had cameramen.
I went along that first day to help and film her.
The newscast went fine.
And that was the start of an amazing career.

I remember one time Ann invited me to join her father and her father's folk dancing class in Ashland's Lithia Park. I wince at that memory. I was so shy and insecure about my ability to dance -- I pulled away when Ann's dad sought to bring me in.
That's something I've learned over the years -- how to push myself out of my comfort zone.

I recall when I got news of my father's death.
I sought out Ann. She was with our friend Mary. Mary had another friend there. I remember Ann explaining to the new person, "Greg's father just died -- but he is a strong person."