Dr. Phil's Blog

Memorial Day at Ponce Inlet Lighthouse

2006-06-04T12:29:00.000-04:00

Today I visited Ponce Inlet Lighthouse, which is just south of Daytona Beach and across Ponce Inlet from New Smyrna Beach. At 176 feet high, it is reportedly the second highest lighthouse in America. It also has one of the nicest vistor's center and museum. Numerous displays tell the story of the lighthouse, as well as some history of the region.

Because it was Memorial Day, there was some special entertainment...mainly tour guides in period costume and some old-fashioned music.

There was a very interesting display of "Cuban rafts," small makeshift vessels used by Cubans trying to get to America. The rafts did not look very seaworthy, but I suppose the refugees were desparate enough to take significant risks in crossing over the sea.

I was visiting the lighthouse with my mom and her friend Mary. My mom didn't feel like climbing to the top, but Mary was a trooper and joined me for the 222 step climb. It was quite a view from the top! I think Mary was a little nervous climbing to the top, and was relieved to get back on solid ground.

CMA 2005 Convention

2005-11-01T20:45:00.000-05:00

This year's College Media Convention was supposed to be in New Orleans, but because of Hurricane Katrina, the meeting was held in Kansas City. This year 11 West Chester University students joined me for three days of learning, sharing and networking. I offered three sessions myself for CBI (College Broadcasters Incorporated), one of the groups co-sponsoring the event. The WCU students who joined me for CMA 2005 included five from WCUR, four from The Quad, and two from WCU-TV. Here's a picture of the "WCU Media Gang."

WCUR OMG 1000!

2005-03-31T23:51:00.000-05:00

Tonight was WCUR's Battle of the Bands, also known as OMG 1000! Taking home the $1000 prize was...Back of the Bus! Congratulations to all four bands making the final cut, who performed to a packed Sykes Union ballroom. And a special thank-you to all of the WCUR staff for their hard work in making this a great promotional event for WCUR, West Chester University's student-operated radio station.

Back of the Bus wins WCUR's OMG 1000!

Easter Sunday ride on my new bike

2005-03-27T19:30:00.000-05:00

My wife gave me a new bike for my birthday, but I didn't pick it out until yesterday. After "test riding" three different models, I settled on a Trek Navigator 300, a "comfort" bike that is supposed to be a good bike for casual riding across different terrains. It has a padded seat and upright handblebars, plus "shock absorbers" on the front and back. Today I took my new bike out for a spin. It was a bit chilly (upper 40s), but not too bad. It's not a speed racing bike by any means, which is fine with me. I'd rather have a nice comfortable ride, and this bike seems to be a good choice.

Going for an Easter Sunday ride on my new bike!

Communication Studies Open House

2005-03-24T20:55:00.000-05:00

Prospective students, parents and invited guests sat in on my 2 p.m. COM 212 large lecture class today. A reception was held after class in the hallway outside of the lecture hall. The Association for Women and Men in Communications helped host the event, which was also attended by a number of department faculty.

The Department of Communication Studies held an open house today.

The Moldy Oldies Show

2005-03-17T22:06:00.000-05:00

Every Thursday from 4 to 6 p.m., I host the "Moldy Oldies Show" onWCUR, 91.7 FM. I'm the faculty advisor to West Chester University's radio station, and doing an airshift each week keeps me in the thick of things. And I enjoy playing music from the era when I used to be a professional radio announcer. Helping me each week are Douglas, executive producer and doowop dandy, Kathy, associate producer and interviewer extraordinaire, and Marcus, assistant producer and caustic commentator. Each week we present some great music, interview a local notable, and talk about what's going on. We gladly play requests from my extensive oldies collection. Check it out, Thursday afternoons from 4 to 6 on 91.7 FM, and on our web stream at www.wcur.fm

Host Dr. Phil	Executive Producer Douglas
Associate Producer Kathy	Assistant Producer Marcus

SeaWorld Orlando

2005-03-08T22:43:00.000-05:00

Today we spent the day at SeaWorld in Orlando. I took a ride on the "Journey to Atlantis" ride and got a bit wet. Later I saw Shamu the killer whale give an amazing show. While waiting for the show to begin, I enjoyed a Shamu Bar (really just an eskimo pie in the shape of Shamu). A fun day in our Spring Break trip to Florida.

A fun day at SeaWorld Orlando!

CMA 2004 Convention

2004-11-04T00:04:00.000-05:00

On November 3, the day after the 2004 Presidential election, I travelled with a group of my students from The Quad to the annual College Media Convention. It was a great convention, with many informative sessions for students involved in college media, including newspapers, radio, television, yearbooks and the web. At one of the sessions, I gave a presentation on "The Future of Automation for Noncommercial Radio." It was fairly well attended for an 8 a.m. session, despite the fact that Shanai Twain was giving a free concert in the streets of Nashville at the same time as part of the Good Morning America television program.

Welcome to the College Media Convention

The Convention Hotel