Haley Rae's Blog

  I sit here, beer in hand, in the middle of Gate D at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, waiting to board a flight to Green Bay, Wisconsin, to meet the station offering me a job. I should be drafting questions for a crummy starter reporting contract, maybe figuring out what it would take from the m to get me to say yes. But instead, I sit here, staring at a blank document, the cursor blinking back at me, waiting for my words to show up. I take another sip of my heavy, orange beer, willing some words, any words , to come.   The bartender asks about my travel plans, and his face tightens when I say Green Bay. I can't help but mirror that grimace, remembering how I felt just last Friday when I saw the offer pop up on my phone. Valentine’s Day. A job offer that should have made me jump for joy. But instead, it left me frozen in my car, scrambling to figure out what the hell I was supposed to do.   The bartender, sensing my hesitation, starts fi...

  I admire how Baltimore stands tall, bathed in the glow of the night sky. Beneath its towering skyscrapers, secrets linger in the shadows, hidden from the soft light of the moon. On the surface, the city feels serene, its unique charm radiating a warmth, a sense of familiarity, as if it has quietly welcomed us through these four years of our journey here. It is the Charm City, yes, but one where the cries of its forgotten communities' echo in silence , unanswered. Oh, how the college kids rejoice in the bubbles of their campuses unaffected by the problems surrounding them.    I am one of them . Or so I used to be.    This city has claimed my heart over the course of these four years, and yet, I still take it for granted. As I show my officer around, the city reveals itself to him too, the cobblestone streets, the weathered brick buildings, the narrow roads that make you grip the steering wheel in anticipation, the water that meets at Fells Point. He sees a ci...