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I volunteer every week at Metro High School in Cedar Rapids. I've helped out at the school for about three years now. Today, I watched the inauguration with a group of students and teachers all huddled in a dark classroom.

People cheered as Obama said the oath and some even shed a few tears. It was a moment I'll never forget.

As I looked around the room, I thought about all the other people all over the city, state, nation and world watching the ceremony. Everyone is so busy now. Rarely does any kind of major event capture so much attention from so many people.

I'm looking forward to watching the next four years unfold. The campaign has attracted a lot of attention over the past two years. I wonder if people will remain as interested in politics now that Obama has officially become President.

Mount Mercy College has an annual "day of volunteering" on Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday. This year, the college extended it to a "week of volunteering." Why? The need is greater than ever in Cedar Rapids right now because of the flood.

Today, I covered a story about a group of college students volunteering at one flood victim's home. Some of the students told me they had never seen the inside of a flooded home before. It was truly shocking to them. I was shocked that after all these months, some people are still learning about the disaster.

When I first walked into a flooded home back in June, I couldn't believe how much damage water could do to a property. Now, nothing really surprises me. I wonder how many people still just don't "get" what happened back in June.

Governor Chet Culver visited Cedar Rapids today to talk about his plans to help the state recover from the flooding. He spoke with a lot of passion and energy. It will be interesting to see if lawmakers approve his 700 million dollar proposal.

Lots of city, community and county leaders were at the press conference. As I was standing there in the room, I couldn't help but think about all of the press conferences we've had since the flood. During each one, there's always a lot of emotion. This one was no different. I think there was a mix of emotions around the room ranging from excitement to frustration to hope to anger.

2008 was a rough year for Iowa. So far, 2009 has been pretty cold, but hopefully we won't have to suffer through any more natural disasters.

The city of Cedar Rapids is asking people to spend quite a bit of time on Saturday talking about the future of flood damaged neighborhoods. Officials want people to arrive around 8:00 a.m. and stay until 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, January 10. The goal is to get people talking about ways to rebuild, restore and enhance neighborhoods that might be danger of fading away. Other similar meetings like this will follow in the coming months. My question is....are people really willing to devote that much time (all at once) to this topic? Or, should the city try to break-up these meetings/sessions into smaller chunks that won't require sacrificing an entire day. What do you think?

This weekend, I covered John McCain's visit to Eastern Iowa. He spoke to a crowd at the University of Northern Iowa's campus on Sunday. McCain didn't walk on stage until around 1:00 p.m. Yet, all of the media had to be checked in between 8:00-9:00 a.m. We had to drop off our cameras and tripods (and any other equipment we needed) early so the secret service could inspect everything to make sure it didn't pose any kind of a threat to the candidate. This is a pretty standard procedure...especially this close to the election. The media usually has to arrive before events like this begin just to make sure all the equipment is set up properly. But, as the election draws nearer, campaigns become increasingly worried about security. So, that's why they ask everyone to be in position as early as five hours before an event begins.

The past few weeks have been hectic here in the newsroom. You’ve probably noticed we’ve been busy covering all kinds of flood related stories. It’s been unlike anything I’ve ever experienced before. Typically, when there is some kind of a disaster, we cover it for a week or maybe a little longer. In this case, I imagine we’ll be covering the after-effects of the flood for years to come. Like many of you, I wonder how long it will take before everything gets back to “normal.” I also wonder if that’s even possible. It seems as though just about everything in Cedar Rapids has been affected in some way or another.

The past month has truly been overwhelming here at KCRG. At the end May/beginning of June, I spent much of my time in Parkersburg covering the devastating tornado that hit the town. I thought this would be some of the worst destruction I would ever see in my life. Despite all the flattened homes and businesses, I was amazed by how optimistic and friendly people were in the community. During a time like that, people could have easily become irritable or grumpy. Instead, everyone seemed to focus on the positive.

After we finished our Parkersburg coverage, no one expected something just as bad (if not worse) was about to hit Iowa. The Flood of 2008 is something that has changed Cedar Rapids and all of Eastern Iowa forever. I don’t think anyone at KCRG or in the Cedar Rapids area ever expected the water would rise as high as it did. It’s impossible to prepare for this kind of a catastrophic event. However, I think everyone has done the best they can to get through this difficult time.

I have never covered something of this magnitude or intensity as a reporter. I hope I never see a disaster like this ever again. Many people have called or e-mailed to ask how people here at KCRG are handling everything. We’re all exhausted, but no one’s complaining. We all understand how important it is to bring you accurate, up-to-date information. We all feel terrible about what has happened.

Right now, it might be hard to imagine how Cedar Rapids will recover from the flood. As the initial shock begins to wear off, it will be important to remain patient as the rebuilding process moves forward. It is going to take quite a bit of time. In fact, it will probably take years. The city won’t be the same, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. This could be an opportunity for the community to rebuild stronger, bigger and better than ever.

This week, I traveled to Des Moines to cover Senator Barack Obama's first visit to Iowa since the caucuses back in January. However, this event was much different from the ones held during the time leading up to the caucuses.

There was a lot more security this time. Obama didn't get on stage until 9:00 p.m. The Senator's campaign staff asked us to be on site between noon and 1:00. They said we need to be there that early so law enforcement agents would have enough time to secure the area and search all of the news equipment.

Whenever you entered the media area of the event, you had to empty your pockets and allow an agent to scan your body with a metal detector. Police and federal agents were on the tops of buildings and just about everywhere else you looked.

When Obama finally took the stage, the crowd certainly seemed happy to welcome him back to Iowa. After all, this is where his campaign scored its first victory. Now, I wonder when/if Senator Hillary Clinton will hold a similar event sometime soon.

I love covering these kinds of events and I'm looking forward to all the excitement and anticipation leading up to the November election.