Monday June 25: Working as Ms. Reid’s Assistant

Remember the film The Devils Wears Prada, where an inexperienced young woman comes to New York as the assistant to one of the most well known magazine editor, the hardcore Miranda Priestly?

Well my experience as Ms. Reid assistant is not as exaggerated as the film, yet mirrors some of the same situations Andy Sachs, played Anne Hathaway went through. As an assistant to someone who is renowned in the media industry such as Ms. Reid teaches you to have tough skin, a humble spirit, and mind of a perfectionist. When I was granted the opportunity to have an eleven spot in the Reid Group, my heart skipped a beat and my eyes began to fill with tears of joy because knowing that Ms. Reid had faith in me proved that I was capable of interning in New York.  I would never forget the words, “Its something about you, like you’re destined for greatness,” and “I believe this internship would benefit you,” she said over the phone.

What separate Ms. Reid from Miranda Priestly are her sweet spirit and her passion in helping others. Don’t get me wrong; Ms. Reid doesn’t play when it comes to assignments, deadlines, and not taking “No” for an answer, but her motherly nature and southern hospitality makes you love her even more.

As an assistant, I’m constantly working closely with Ms. Reid while quietly observing her characteristics. I believe it’s important to learn as much as possible about the person you are working because it will show that you are considerate and serious about the job. Before the internship begun, I was assigned different task via email from Ms. Reid, therefore I was prepare to come to New York. In order to be a successful assistant you have to understand that communication is the key to everything. I carry my phone close to where I can hear it because I’m always receiving back-to-back emails and text messages. I am the liaison between Ms. Reid and the Reid Group.

Working for Ms. Reid isn’t easy but tough love to shape me for the real word of media.

Thank you Ms. Reid,

  ✌ ❤☺-Demeshia Jackson

Sunday June 24: Church

Time flies super fast we you constantly have work to do. The motto I live by is "Late nights and early mornings," there is no time for sleep if you are in the Reid Group. I can't believe I accomplished the week three already, sometimes I'm so busy working I forget the days of the week. Challenging myslef everyday can cause me to mentally drained and physically drained, but I know one thing that keeps me going is my strength from God and applying the word I receive on Sunday throughout this week.

This Sunday, at the Christian Cultural Center we had guest preacher from Atlanta by the name of Dale C. Bronner. Bishop is also an well-known preacher with a mega church called Word Of Faith. As Bishop Bronner slowly made his way in the church, I knew that his face looked familiar. My mind kept wandering as I try to figure out how this Bishop looks familiar. Than I realized, in the beginning of 2011 I attended one of his services. Pastor Bernard was suppose to give us part to of message titled Design, but the congregation and I were in for surprise. Bishop Bronner has a way with using big words, and the way he articulates certain things can sometimes leave you confused. Pastor Bernard jokingly mocked Bishop Bronner by using highly intelligent words as he begin to introduce him.

Bishop Bronner message focused on "Chasing after your Dreams," which was perfect for the situation I'm in. Interning in NY is a step closer to my dream of having a career in the mass media industry. He stated, "When you have one Godly idea, that idea can be bigger than a place and the product." I believe that God has blessed me with the gift of creativity, in my younger years I realized how my mind works in mysterious ways. There are so many goals I want to achieve in my life, and in the scripture Luke 1:37, "For nothing is impossible with God," which confirmation of God's word over my life.

Everyday is challenge but trusting in God and letting him be the center of your life will help you conquer that anything life throws at you. Throughout this entire internship experience I vow to continue to keep God first and watch the blessings unveil.


  ✌ ❤☺-Demeshia Jackson

Saturday June 23: Live Shots

          This Saturday was the most anticipated day this throughout week as I reflected back on my previous live shot training and thought about different ways I can improve.  Earlier that morning the Reid Group and I gathered together at NBC Universal Studios to watch our live shots from last Saturday. I was so nervous to see myself, as I was fearful of looking a mess on camera. I was the third person to go during the live shots, and when I popped up next on the screen in the conference room, all I could think about was how great Mr. Nelson was a the cameraman. The lighting was perfect and I looked amazing I camera.  But when I opened my mouth to begin to talk, I immediately turned red in embarrassment. I understand this was my first time, however I could have delivered so much better. The obvious mistake was the way I held a microphone; it was extremely to close to my mouth as if I were to practically eat it.  Also controlling my nerves on camera was another issue for me, because it distracted my thought process to where I ran out of things to say.

Ms. Reid kindly critiqued the footage and individually suggested techniques to help us as we continued practicing live shots.

            The Reid Group and I headed to Central Park, which is a main attraction in New York, to practice our live shots. This only meant more people and more attention.  Throughout the week we met with Soledad O’Brien who mentioned two strong tips while preparing for a live shot, talk into the camera as if you were talking to your mom and blocking out every distraction possible. There were so many people taking pictures, asking question, and jumping into the shot as were reporting out live shots.  The struggle to control my nerves this time was intense as I began to over think how I wanted to deliver on camera.  One moment I would change my story and than I would go back add to the original story, I was so discombobulated. I no longer wanted to referrer to my note pad, so this time I just braced myself and winged.

            I was a tad a bit nervous again, but I was able to control most of my nerves and saw improvement in my live shot. I knew what I wanted to say; I delivered to where my audience received the most important information. I felt better about my live shot performance this Saturday and I will continue to forward to my progression during this internship.

  ✌ ❤☺-Demeshia Jackson

Friday June 22- Melba's

I've been in NY going on 3 weeks and I've yet to have a good southern home-cooked meal. Usually I'm always up for cooking great dishes, but working hard at this internship spares me little to no time to throw down in the kitchen. I love to cook, that's one of my passions and I'm actually really good at it too.

Ms. Reid constantly told me how great Melba's is and they're the true epitome of "Soul Food." Last week the Reid Group and I were suppose to have dinner there but plans were cancelled and ever since I just had a craving for it. So I made reservations because of how popular Melba's is the wait to get a table can take forever. We caught the C train from 127th St Nicholas Terrace to 116 st which is only 1 stop; Melba's isn't far from the dorms at all. We walked 2 blocks to 114st and to the left hand side was a very small, intimate, classy restaurant known as Melba's. I couldn't imaging make a reservation for 11 people because we would have practically filled up the entire restaurant.  There are about no more that 25 chairs in Melba's so we were sitting pretty tight.

I grabbed the menu, which is very simple and straight to the point. The menu was long, skinny, and two sided. It was easy for me to decide what I wanted for dinner because of the simple menu, I wasn't confused. I order the Smothered Fried Chicken, the most talked about Tres Mac and Cheese and Candied Yams. My mouth drooled as I waited in anticipation for some southern comfort food. Within 20 minutes the food arrived and it looked delicious, despite how was missing a wing, the waitress took care of that really quick. After one bite, I was sold. Everything was so fresh, hot, and well seasoned. My plate was squeaky clean after I finished eating. Sometimes being a good cook yourself can cause you to be a tough critic, but everything was appetizing. So my review for Melba's would have to be an A- only because our waitress spent 15 minutes trying to split the check.

There were so many rules and regulations that we were unaware of about paying for our food. You can't split the check between 3 or more people, you have to pay with cash if your food is $19 or less, and you can use more than 3 credit when splitting the check. I was so confused and ready to go after the situation. I mean the waitress literally told us she don't know how to split and so she left the check for us to figure out how much we want to pay. Again, this was ridiculous to the point where I'm pulling out my tip calculator to figure out how much my bill would be including the 20% gratuity. This issue happen to me before a while back, and I realized how many resturansts don't emphasize the importance of knowing how to add or subtract. Basic mathematical skills will help prevent incidents like messing someones bill up.

Although we had a minor problem, the waitress was able to fix to where we finally got sperate checks. Will this hinder me from coming back to Melba's? No way! But I would advise everyone to bring cash.

✌ ❤☺-Demeshia Jackson

Thursday June 22: Lunch w/ Pastor A.R. Bernard

Making sure that you are a spiritually fed is very essential to the mind and body.  So meeting with Pastor A.R. Bernard again was much needed to help the Reid Group and I stay focus throughout this internship.

With many big groups there will be moments where you have some ups and downs or, as Ms. Reid would call them, “incidents.” Pastor Bernard, once again hit it right on the nail with his message about how we don’t need self-entitlement when we deal with different situations. For example, when God places us in a position where we may not agree with the outcome, we have to learn not to blame him. It’s not about our feelings, or us we have to understand that we have the power to make the choices in life that can help us overcome those obstacles.

We also met with the members of Christian Cultural Center (CCC) who are active in the youth ministry, also known as C3. C3 is a group of youth who are dynamically involved in ministry who travel all around the world. They shared a few stories about their mission trip in Guatemala, which was very powerful. Especially when the lady who’s originally from Australia talked about expressing love through a simple hug and smile made a difference in those young Guatemalans girls’ life.

I never been outside of the United States, but watching and listening to C3 story, inspired me to get back into ministry. Members agreed that their faith was tested and increased from their experience in Guatemala.  That is something I desperately want to experience for myself because sometimes here United States I can get distracted and take the simple blessings in life for granted.

When I go back home to Dallas, TX I would definitely tell my Pastor Hal Johnson from Christian Stronghold Church about CCC mind-blowing youth ministry. 

  ✌ ❤☺-Demeshia Jackson

Wenesday June 19: Meeting Soledad O'Brien

Yesterday, in the infamous word of Ms. Reid, was an “amazing” day. The Reid Group and I woke up bright and early around 6:30 a.m. to head to CNN Studios to watch and meet with notable journalist Soledad O’ Brien.  We were able to sit in on O’Brien’s show called Starting Point, which is morning “conversational ensemble” described by CNN. This show replaced American Morning that aired from 2011 to 2011.

In 2009, I was first introduced to O’Brien while watching CNN’s most powerful documentary called Black in America. This documentary showed how African-Americans deal with everyday life and the many challenges we face. I instantly became a fan of O’Brien ever since because it took strong and confident journalist to be able to deliver and execute such a controversial documentary.

While standing on the set of Starting Point, I was jus in awe on how well O’Brien reported information and had control of her show. It was so natural just like her personality, very detailed and straightforward. Also, in her segment there a different variety of stories that she reports, from hardcore news to fun moments in sports. I also went behind scenes in the control room to see how the show operates from a viewer’s standpoint. I notice the teleprompter and tried to read along, it’s not as easy as it looks. There were times were O’Brien did a little impromptu and adlibs.

My favorite part of Starting point was when she interviewed Southern Baptist Convention’s (SBC) first African-American president, Fred Luther for the 167-year denomination.  One of her guest panelist asked Luther a question about gay marriage being a civil right’s issue, which is a very sensitive topic. Luther confidently stood on his biblical beliefs, stating “God attended marriage to be between a man and a woman.” Than O’Brien interjected with another question about he feels about being in opposition with America’s president who supports gay marriage. Again, Luther did not back down on his beliefs but mentioned how he supports our president and the gay community but has a different perspective on gay marriage.

We headed back to the set of Starting Point for an intimate question and answer moment with O’Brien. I introduced myself while so many thoughts were running through my head, like “OMG I cant believe this happening!” She than asked if we had any question to ask, I think everyone stood in admiration because there was an awkward 3 second pause before questions were asked. She went in detailed about finding what makes you comfortable while reporting to help control your nerves. That was a common issue for the entire Reid Group last Saturday while practicing our live shots. She gave a helpful example that I will never forget, she suggested acting like the camera is your mom and you’re trying to tell her whatever happened as detailed as possible.  I will definitely use that tactic this Saturday coming up to help master my live shot performance.

Meeting O’Brien will be an unforgettable experience; I really enjoyed her down-to-earth persona and helpful advice.  I can’t wait to see her again possibly work with her in the future.

  ✌ ❤☺-Demeshia Jackson

Tuesday June 19: Modern Day Nannies

Central Park was filled with many strollers from left to right; majority of the children in the strollers followed behind a Black nanny, a trend among black women that is still somewhat popular.

            

       The trend of Black nannies where from the West Indies and was spotted strolling a white child around the park.  Some nannies where from Trinidad, Barbados and Jamaica. New York is known for being an integrated city, where many immigrants from around the world come and start a new life.

            Becoming a nanny is a common occupation for West Indies women to make good money without an educational background.  .

            Sonya has been a nanny for 25 years and mentioned how she makes more money than most people who graduate with a degree.

            “A lot of us come from the West-Indies because this is what we get when we get it here,” said Sonya. “I need to be able to provide for my family so if that means taking care of someone else’s and make really good money that’s what I’m going to do.”

            Nanny duties consist of help raising a child and spending quality with him/her when his/her parents are not present. Many of the children’s parents are older in age and have a fulltime career in corporate America. These children are always away from their parents so having a nanny helps ensure that the child can still receive plenty of attention and love.  The relationship between the child and nanny was very natural as if the child was her own.

            Each nanny mentioned how being “referred” is a way to get into the nanny business.  Sheila, also a nanny for about 5 years explain how many families prefer Black or West Indies nannies over young white babysitters.

            “They prefer us because they know that we are skilled at raising children and we are hard workers,” said Sheila. “These young white girls are lazy and don’t wont to do anything.”

            Similar to Sonya, Sheila successfully makes good money working in the nanny business.

            Although nannies reflected a poor image in the past for Blacks, these modern nannies seem love what they do and appreciate the stable income.

           

 ✌ ❤☺-Demeshia Jackson