Tracy Kornet's Blog

I've been questioning lately if I'm becoming numb to emotion. If I can still love like I used to. Care about anything as deeply as I did when my children were young, my family was growing, my career was budding. Tonight I think I know the answer. I haven't cried like this, or feared deep loss like this, since my mother was dying. But that was my mother. This is my child. I simply can't bear the thought of losing Luke. I don't know how parents of terminally ill children get through such heart-wrenching times. I have a full-grown, 19-year-old, healthy son and I will be crying myself to sleep tonight at the thought of what just happened becoming something much worse. I just watched Luke get clocked during a basketball game and slam to the ground. Nothing broke his fall. Just his head. I was watching the game in my cubicle before anchoring the 10pm news, during which I often report terrible stories about concussions, accidents, falls, and beatings. I'v...

It is hard to blog when there are so many people we're obligated to protect. I don't want to embarrass the kids or get them in trouble (any more than I already have). I don't want to divulge any station secrets or affect my reputation as a news person. Yet I want to be authentic, relatable. Right? Isn't that what a blog should be? I keep sitting down to type and end up erasing every thought...out of fear. It's no fun living this way. So I've decided to type a few of the random thoughts and feelings I've had these last few weeks. And then I want to hear YOURS.  Deal? Tracy's Random Thoughts 1. I feel gross. This winter has just about destroyed my energy, desire, and ability to stay active. I have spent entirely too many mornings curled up on the couch in my leopard PJ's, reading and watching "Love It or List It" before work. I finally got to the gym today, and I'm determined to get back to my old self and out in the s...

You know what I consider a big positive about this 24-hour news cycle? What may seem like the end of the world one minute, will be quickly replaced by the next earth-shattering story. A big negative? The scary reality of video, the replay button, and the need to feed the beast. You've likely seen by now what happened after the Vanderbilt-Tennessee basketball game last night. After a tremendous win, Vandy Coach Kevin Stallings ran straight into that media fire. Today he profusely apologized for the obscenity-laden correction of his player's reported unsportsmanlike behavior. Hopefully, it's a learning lesson for everyone. Heck, watch any episode of Dr. Phil, and you'll see that losing it--for whatever reason--never looks good on tape. Some of you reading this remain shocked to see a coach yell like that. I know I used to be. And I stayed that way for years. (For the record, I still believe coaches can rise above dropping F bombs and taking God's name in ...

Here's something cool about living in Nashville: Reba pops in and sings at your Saturday fundraising luncheon. Before this ridiculous ice storm rolled into town, a long-lost college friend invited me to her inaugural Valentine's Day luncheon. It was Cheryl Davis' first major event since joining the Nashville Rescue Mission , a non-profit doing a tremendous job helping and rehabilitating the homeless and others in need. Sure enough, Reba McEntire marched out on stage, sang a few songs, and held the whole room in the palm of her hand--all to honor the tables full of female graduates of the Mission's Life Recovery program. It was a most meaningful way to celebrate Valentine's Day and brought many of us to tears. I especially enjoyed a conversation with one of the young women seated at my table. She was a Vanderbilt graduate and a co-believer in the liberal arts education our university (and others like it) provides students. We both shared apprec...

First, this post is NOT about me. Yes, I've experienced mean girls several times in my past. Just not in this particular season. I am posting this amended version of some past thoughts, because several conversations with others in recent months have inspired me to do so. So whomever this is meant for, I hope it helps.  Have a "mean girl" in your life? Get to know her story. Or cut your losses and leave. Empathy is the great equalizer.   It is hard to be jealous of or angry with someone who is struggling, hurting, or being treated unfairly. You will understand how to love mean girls (and boys) and overcome their ugliness when you seek out the "why" behind their actions. With that said, mean girls can sometimes grow up to become mean women. When you encounter a mean woman--and especially if she is in charge--one of you may have to leave. And unless God or karma intervenes first, it will likely be you. The nice girl.  This is extrem...

When's the last time you printed actual photos that you can touch, feel, and retrieve in 10  years when you can't find a thing in your phone or on Facebook? With only two short years left of college basketball memories, I realized I had better go old-school and get some pictures printed, enlarged, and framed before this precious phase is all over.  I also decided to get off my derriere and save a few clips of my first day on-air here in Nashville. Check out this warm welcome from my classy co-workers, whom I've grown quite fond of over these last four months, I might add: You know what else is cool?  This beautiful blonde Jennifer, is also my neighbor! We literally moved next door to each other, unbeknownst to us both at the time. I am still in transition, but I'm trying to count my blessings and focus on all of the *good* change can bring. Bought this for my cute cubicle, in fact. Hope it helps you focus, too.

I'm an addict. I binge on fun. Broadway shows & girlfriend trips. Concerts & coffee. Happy hours & Home Goods. Once I get a taste of joy, I only want more. But lately, these pleasures have lost their allure. And I believe I now understand why. I often binge on books, too. So in the interest of full disclosure, this latest revelation came via a new-found philosophical nugget, Fulton Sheen's 78-page paperback called " Finding True Happiness. " A lady passed it out at Christmas mass at the Cathedral here in Nashville. Sheen asserts that pleasure is best enjoyed when it comes to us as a "treat," in contrast to experiences that are less pleasurable. This makes a whole lot of sense to me. Sheen writes, "Self-discipline brings back to us the excitement of our childhood, when our pleasures were rationed--when we got our dessert at the end of the meal and never at the start." (Unless you take the kids to the Cheesecake Factory. I...