Trying my hand at Journalism

This is an article I wrote for my Journalism module. I was paired up with a guy in my class and asked to interview and write an article about him, the task proved more difficult than I initially anticipated as my partner was not a big fan of being interviewed at all!! never the less we got there in the end, so I decided I would share it with you on here.

Watch out for the quiet ones

Danny, from Middlesborough, is from an ‘average’ UK family. Mum, Dad- who he describes to be much like himself, and elder sister Sarah. He grew up as an ‘average’ kid with an ambition to be a lorry driver, growing into an ‘average’ teenage boy who enjoyed nothing more then to hang out with his mates. But who is he now? Danny tells me ‘I don't often open up to people. This is a rare glimpse.’ I cant help but hope I am about to open Pandora's box. 

‘Hmmmm, nope, errr not really’ Danny ‘helpfully’ replies, as I interrogate him with question after question. I pause thinking up my next fire round, ‘Do you have any weird habits, have you ever met anyone famous, do you have a favorite type of music?’ The general answer continued as a mumble of a ‘no’, shrug of his shoulders and within seconds he was back texting! So there I was sitting in an awkward silence. Frustrated, I give him a sneaky once over. Danny Eaton; brown haired, pale skinned, a stylish guy, smart clothes, relatively new looking trainers. Aside from his evident blessing for style, he is not your typical chatty and inquisitive fashion communication student. I watched him relaxing into his chair, in a world of his own thoughts. It suddenly dawned on me. I was on my own in this awkward atmosphere! Somehow it figured that I, an overly chatty, confident, and friendly, girly girl, was sat feeling speechless and totally out of my depth with a person whom I had ignorantly labeled as ‘shy’. Clearly there was more to Danny than I had naively assumed. Danny describes himself as “quiet, busy, greedy, thoughtful and polite” giving off the impression of ‘the guy next door.’ I totally agreed with his description. However I knew there was more to be revealed. I had to peel away layer by layer. What was this ‘thoughtful’ mind thinking and what was this chilled out guy ‘busy’ doing? His silence just enhanced my intrigue. Who is Danny Eaton? Not the easiest character to unveil but certainly an interesting one.

Two frustrating weeks after our initial interview and my mystery was still no further uncovered. I did not foresee that in this modern world of technological portholes, contacting Danny would turn out to be such a problem. Oh the naivety! My phone number request- shot down, ‘Facebook’ request- declined,‘Google’ stalk- miserable fail. I began to worry! Beginning to feel like a psycho stalker Ex, I did what any desperate girl would do... I tried yet another approach and casually asked for his email address. If you’ve ever sat staring at your phone for hours waiting for some guy to reply, you will know the anticipation that I felt that week. Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t that I had some surging mad crush on my new intriguing study. But as a typical ‘want what you can’t have girl.’ It doesn’t matter the context; be it a crush, the chocolate bar when you're dieting, or getting the quiet guy to talk... if you cant have it you want it more! So when I refreshed my email for the sixth time that morning, to find not just a reply, but a six page response! You can only imagine my delight formal and polite, yet appropriately casual, I have never appreciated hotmail so much in my life

I sat down with a hot chocolate and indulged in piecing together my mystery. The first piece of my puzzle quickly fell into place as Danny began to justify his self description ‘busy’. Four days a week, In order to be on time for his sales assistant job at ‘size?’ shoe shop, Danny gets up at 5am! Clearly driven by something, Danny reveals his first obsession. shoes. An obsession he tells me, driven from a young age ‘At school you were disliked for “uncool trainers” and it’s just stuck with me. I don’t like to wear a pair of shoes more then four times... So I have about 50 pairs’. Although I found this totally excessive- even to my clothes hoarding standards, you can’t help but like a guy with a passion. Danny went on to tell me about his love of bikes, be it fixing them, riding them, anything! It was clear he was a man of many passions!

Delving further into my questionnaire, I was pleased to discover that there was a lot more than met the eye with Danny Eaton. Take it from a single but fussy girl, when it comes to ‘uni boys’ a full time degree and a part time job, tend to be a plateful enough! However for Danny, his studies and job were not the only important things on his mind. Danny has a girlfriend ‘April.’ They have been together for an impressive four years, and now share a small flat in Newcastle city centre. Excited at my new discovery, I attempt my bit of girly gossiping, unfortunately only for him to describe her as ‘short tempered and moody’ I couldn’t help but laugh. Typically an unromantic ‘lad’. However he went on and his soft side showed ‘she is funny, caring and very generous’. It was clear Danny is besotted by her. The two have even recently bought their own kitten, ‘Socks’. I have to say, I was both surprised and impressed by the level of commitment shown from a guy, whom I had deemed as totally laid back.

The biggest surprise was Danny’s ambitious dream for his blog www.5thstreetbakery.blogspot.com to be a success. Having a quick nosey, it was imminently evident that his dream was not as far fetched as most aspiring bloggers. Danny’s blog covers everything “From Fashion To Food. Raw Denim To Raw Fish”. A few scrolls down the pages, and I noticed the advertising for a brand ‘SET’. Danny tells me, this is his own brand, which he has set up with a friend! A bit of cyber research later, and it was clear to see that the duo are establishing themselves well, managing to sell simplistic logo caps for up to £40!

Taken aback by Danny’s talents and passions. I felt like I had uncovered a dark horse. The irony was he didn’t need discovering. His work was evidently already kicking off. Danny Eaton; hardworking, driven, passionate, focused and very much your average nice guy! I would not be surprised to hear his name in the future. An evident lesson; watch out for the quiet ones!