Tag: News 8 local sales

My Current Situation XIII

November 2025 was the last blog post I entered in this Current Situation series.  What’s been happening since then?  Here’s the update – it’s April of 2026 and gas prices have spiked through the roof, home heating oil prices are extremely high, my 40`1K is up and down and up and down and the job market in general is sketchy.

 

 

On the flip side I am still gainfully employed as a Media Sales Professional by News Channel 8 (ABC) in New Haven, CT and I’m nearing retirement.  By the way, the Media Industry as a whole looks starkly different then what it looked like almost 40 years ago when I started my career so I consider myself blessed to be in the position I am in.

 

These boots were made for walking…

 

As I mentioned before it’s mid-April in the state of Connecticut and this New England changeable weather has recently taken a turn for the worse.  Last week I was wearing sundresses and sunglasses, this coming week I’m pulling out long sleeves and heavy stockings.  Winter is back – Waaaah!

 

 

On the bright side health wise I am doing extraordinarily well.  My pap smear was normal, my vision was normal and I was recently told at my annual physical  exam by a new Primary Care Doctor (a young woman in her 30s) that I should continue doing whatever it is I am doing because all of my labs were great.  Not to be funny but I was not that surprised because I gave up alcohol 6 years ago, totally cleaned up my diet, and as for drugs, I don’t indulge (smile).   For exercise I work out 5 mornings a week at Orangetheory Fitness Center in Hamden, hydrate a lot and strive to get at least 7 hours of sleep a night.

 

Working out is my form of physical therapy

 

Family wise my almost 93 year old father,  Jonie B. Hollis, was recently (through the collective efforts of my sister Casandra who lives in Nashville, TN, myself in Connecticut and my brother Michael also in Connecticut) presented with a Quilt of Honor (citation and actual quilt) for his 30 years of service in the U.S. Navy.  It was a total surprise to Jonie B. — the ceremony as well as my brother Michael’s  heartfelt tribute left him teary eyed and proud.  The Old Saybrook Nursing home where he resides showed up and out – it was a beautiful affair and one for the record books.

 

Jonie B., his son Michael, daughter Lajeune and the 2 lovely women who hosted the program

 

Other Blessings:  Two babies were born into the Hollis family tree this year – my nephew Jacob who lives in Florida had a baby boy in January of 2026 and my nephew Jasper who lives in Arizona had a baby boy in February of 2026.

 

Happy Great Aunt

 

One of my New Year’s goals for 2026 was to take up something I left behind years ago.  Reading.  And reading is my jam!  I am currently reading the trilogy of Paradise stories by Elin Hilderbrand that I am loving so much I cannot put the books down.  She’s an awesome writer and puts the reader right into the thick of her stories –  I’m on the last book in her trilogy series now – it’s called “Troubles in Paradise” and it inspired me today to book a return trip to St. Thomas for our upcoming June vacation (smile).

 

 

Reading is not foreign to me.  As a matter of fact back in the early 1990s I was hosting an African American Book Review radio show with my co-host LaMonda Williams called ‘The L & L Book Review’ on AM1340 WNHC Radio while simultaneously hosting an African American monthly book club in person at Barnes and Noble bookstore in North Haven, CT.    As luck would have it, I made connections with publishing houses in New York City that started sending me hardcovers in the mail for free in the hopes that I would include their books in my reviews!  I also interviewed African American authors at the radio station as well as in person at Barnes and Noble  bookstore.   It was most definitely a labor of love for I was not getting paid to do either of these gigs (smile).

 

Feeling real good about reading at night because it exercises my brain (smile)

 

And that’s all I have to share for now – until next time.

 

Sincerely,

 

 

TVFL

My Current Situation Part IX

It’s the season of what we like to call “Fall” in New England.  The days are short, the air is brisk and the leaves are “falling” from the trees.   I happen to like this season because the temperatures in Connecticut tend not to be too extreme plus it’s a great time to enjoy backyard bonfires.

 

It’s also cold and flu season so I scheduled my flu shot this coming week at my place of employment.  I was advised by my Primary Care Physician to get the Shingles shot this year which by the way comes in two separate doses.  I’m well over 50 but for some reason was advised to take care of it this year.  Our local pharmacy (Walgreens) made it real simple for me.

 

The drawn-out Covid pandemic (which could easily turn into a “Twindemic” with the upcoming Flu season upon us) is still causing me to pause as to what activities I should or should not participate in.  For instance, I went to see Erykah Badu a few weeks ago at the Hartford Healthcare Amphitheater in Bridgeport, CT because the people in charge were asking all attendees to be fully vaccinated and wear their masks.  However, I skipped going to an outdoor festival in Hamden, CT because there would be children there under the age of 12 who, at this time, cannot be vaccinated.   Decisions, decisions…

 

And as far as work goes I am currently in month 15 of working hybrid for the News 8 local sales department and I’m not mad about it (smile).  You see I enjoy working from home every other day because it keeps me in the practice of dressing up to go into work in the first place (smile).  I am forced to put on a nice dress or blouse and skirt every other day.  Otherwise I would just live in yoga pants and baseball caps (double smile).

 

I also get to touch base with my fav co-workers and experience a change of scenery from the home decor.  But working from home also has its perks:  those aforementioned yoga pants and baseball caps, no commute, noontime walks and healthy lunches.  Truth be told I actually work harder when I’m working from home as I still get up at the same time every day but on those days can begin at least an hour earlier, multi-task at lunchtime and end whenever I feel like it (after quitting time) since I’m already home.

 

 

Being a true fan of  Social Media, I am noticing more and more posts of people in general spending quality time with their families and their friends.  In my opinion the notion of Family is back in a Big Way and it is very apparent.  If nothing else comes from this pandemic, it will have shown us that Family and Relationships are truly what we all have been missing.

 

 

TVFL readers, have a Great Week.

 

 

My Current Situation Part VIII

There was a small window in time at some point in July of 2021 where life was beginning to feel a little normal, albeit, the “new normal,” as masks were flung off, dressy outfits were put back on and baseball caps were sent back to the ball field.

 

 

 

Then along came Delta, it sounds like a movie title but instead it’s the name of the new variant that is quickly turning our everyday lives into a mini nightmare.  The medical doctor on the last WTNH News 8 segment I watched explained that even if you are fully vaccinated, you can still catch and/or transmit the COVID virus –  Yikes!  It’s no wonder that it’s spreading like wildfire.

 

 

 

And now the Connecticut Department of Public Health recommends that all state residents go back to wearing masks inside public buildings.

 

 

 

Yes.  Again…Wait, Really?!?

 

 

So as of today, me and my fellow News 8 Account Executives continue to work (masked up outside our cubicles) in the same hybrid fashion we started about 14 months ago.  Call me crazy but I happen to like working 50 percent from home and 50 percent from the office.  I have even created a cozy home office in one corner of my dining room that easily fits my desk, office supplies, desktop computer, office chair, printer and work files.  I can’t lie: I’m not looking forward to going back to work in the office 100 percent of the time.  Especially since I’ll have to face those crazy, unhinged drivers every day as opposed to just half the week.

 

 

Being the Optimist that I am though, I take a deep breath and remember what I am truly grateful for: I am truly grateful that me, my family and my loved ones are all healthy, fully vaccinated and presently living Covid- free lives.

 

 

 

And I certainly hope and pray the same for all of my TVFL readers.

 

 

 

My Current Situation Part IV

The season of Fall happened about 3 weeks ago in the state of Connecticut and with it comes decreasing temperatures, lots of fallen leaves on the ground, dark skies and squirrels running amok.   Soon I will be packing up my golf clubs in advance of the next season:  Winter.  But for now I am still managing to hit golf balls despite the broken twigs, crispy leaves and tree debris.

 

 

 

Fall for me also means it’s time to head back to the kitchen.  Anyone who knows me knows cooking is not my thing but I do enjoy cooking when Autumn arrives…

 

 

We have also finally entered Phase 3 in the state of Connecticut which means that restaurants can serve folks indoors at 75% instead of 50%  capacity…

 

 

personal services, hair salons, barber shops and nail salons can also operate at 75% percent capacity, indoor performing art venues at 50% capacity, and churches and other places of worship can have 50% capacity, capped at 200 people.  All, of course, with masks and social distancing…

 

 

Working hybrid continues for me and my colleagues on the News 8 sales team.  What this means is we are split into 2 teams and half the team works from the office on one day and the other half of the team works from the office on the following day.  The managers all go into the office each and every day.  It has been like this since mid-March 2020 when Covid 19 totally rocked our world.

 

 

The Presidential election is quite literally right around the corner so I encourage everyone to exercise their right to vote.   It’s more critical now more than ever…

 

 

Sincerely,

 

 

TVFL

My Current Situation – Part II

About 3 1/2 months ago (mid-March 2020) Covid 19 happened and turned my world inside out and upside down.

 

 

 

To try and sort everything out, I blogged about the unfolding of these unusual events in My Current Situation: My current situation…

 

Here’s where I’m at today:  during the first 10 weeks of Covid 19 me and my fellow Account Executives in the News 8 local sales department were asked to work 100% of the time from home on our laptop computers.   Daily zoom sales meetings and zoom  calls with our clients and prospective clients became the the new norm.  To make it work at home, my dining room quickly became my new office, the table now completely covered with client files and client notebooks.  Lucky for me I already owned a computer desk and office chair and now it was finally getting full use.  At the office I was used to working  off of dual monitors so to simulate this I connected my Dell home computer monitor to my HP work computer and as luck would have it, they were compatible (smile).

 

 

When Week 11 arrived we Account Executives were told we were heading back to work but in a checkerboard fashion.  Meaning that we were to be split into two teams.  Team  A would go into work the first week back  on Monday, Wednesday and Friday and work from home on Tuesday and Thursday and Team B would do the complete opposite.  In this way only half the staff would be in the office on any given day.   We still were not sure how long this new arrangement would go on but as it turned out for me it worked out just fine (smile).   I’m happy because I get the best of both worlds: a break from the monotony of working from home 100 percent of the time and the chance to get out of the house, work in my familiar cubicle and connect face to face with my co-workers (smile).

 

 

 

I’m not gonna lie:  Being back in my cubicle was strange that first week back because in this new Covid world we now had to wear face masks and practice social distancing.  No more water cooler chit chat (smile).  Plus we did not have access to certain areas or departments in the TV station as they were now considered off limits…

 

 

And sanitizer seemed to be everywhere so my hands felt like they were in a perpetual state of dryness.

 

 

 

But the best part of week 11 was that we entered phase II of back to normalcy in the state of Connecticut.  In this phase Hair and Nail Salons were now allowed to open back up.  Yay!  Finally some relief for my neglected head of hair and bitten down nails.

 

 

Also my gym I love kickboxing opened back up – so I had to quickly get used to working out real hard again (smile).

 

During phase II I was also able to go back to my favorite dentist in North Haven to get my teeth cleaned.

 

 

But phase II did not include vacations (at least not in our world).  Vacations for now were a distant memory…we are not looking to fly anywhere for a long while nor were we even remotely interested in taking super long car trips so Staycations in Connecticut  including home movie dates were going to become our new option.

 

 

Here’s what I think:  suddenly in this Covid 19 world the little things that we used to take for granted have become big things…spending quality time with family members, heading to a performance at a live theater or concert hall, meeting up with my girlfriends for dinner, etc.

 

 

 

But despite everything I still commit to remaining positive, optimistic and focused as we are truly all in this together.  And because of that, I choose to wear my mask in public.

 

 

Sincerely,

 

 

TVFL