In the meantime …

For those not in the know, I left my gig as sports editor at Laredo Morning Times last week. My wife Julie got a job as a reporter for the Corpus Christi Caller-Times in November and shortly after I also earned my way to Corpus, to work as an editor/designer on the sports central desk.

After 4 1/2 years in Laredo, I find myself somewhat back in the norm. To be honest, Laredo was a complete culture shock in some ways. I found the sports scene to be a whole lot better than advertised and the people were great, as accommodating and friendly as any. But standards were low. Laredo is content to just do enough to get by, and eventually that dwells on a person.

I see the transition to Corpus as a new lease on life. I’ve quickly grown to love the area and I can’t wait until I start my new job on January 23. It’s something new, something vastly different. I’m excited, yet also very anxious. The people in Corpus desire to emphasize a completely different aspect of my talents than anyone has before. In a way we’re on different pages in regard to where we see myself fitting in, but I consider it a leap of faith. Not everything is going to run smoothly and not everything is going to be comfortable. That’s a large part of what made Corpus so attractive. I get to explore new boundaries.

I’m eager to see what opportunities lie ahead. In the meantime, until I start up, I’ve been trying to adjust to a different quality of life. I wake up at 8 a.m., make my wife breakfast and lunch. I read for a bit, then try and go explore Corpus some more. I figured I was awarded this head start for a reason. I’ve been brushing up on editing techniques and reviewed some of previous editing work on stories and sports sections, seeing what I could have done better or what I could have tweaked. It’s certainly been a reassessment period.

In a little more than a week, I formally start up at the Caller-Times and I will no longer look back on Laredo. If there’s one thing about me that’s a gift and a curse, it’s my ability to turn the page and focus on the present. I wish I could tell you what I expect or that I’m confident heading in, but I’m far from sure. It’s like the first day of school. You think you know what to expect out of what’s to come, but you truly never really do.

Then again, maybe that’s not a bad thing.

Rattlesnakes update, with first look at new unis

We now have an idea of what threads the Laredo Rattlesnakes will wear once their inaugural season kicks off in March 2012.

On Wednesday afternoon, designs of the Rattlesnakes’ uniforms were made available.

The home jerseys:

The road jerseys:

Not bad. I like the red for the home. Had a sense it would be navy, but I think the red – which is reportedly much sharper than it is depicted in the photos – works well.

As for other Rattlesnakes news: I hear they’re induction into the Lone Star Football League is a done deal. A formal announcement is expected to come in the next few days.

Laredo will be announced along with Corpus, and they will join Houston as the league’s first three members.

An interesting development has come up, however, in that Rio Grande Valley’s status is in doubt. It is suspicious that that team is not being announced in along with Laredo and Corpus, but sources say there is growing tension between the team and the arena there.

For the record, the president and owner of the Laredo team, Chad Dittman, is also owner of the Corpus and RGV teams in name only. He has taken a more hands-off approach in recent months and actually deals very little with either club these days now that Laredo has his full attention.