Kaity Tong

I’m A Reader, Too. Write Me.

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 21:25:20 -0500

Full disclosure. I love to write; I admit it. I always have and always will. And the fact is, if I didn’t love to write, I would never have gone into the news business. Writing is, after all, the foundation of virtually everything we do. And oftentimes, the best news organizations are the ones that can boast of having the best writers.

Be Grateful For Your Ass-ets

Mon, 08 Mar 2010 20:05:00 -0500

There’s a story on our news tonight about six New Jersey women who went to this quack doctor to get bigger butts, and ended up in the hospital. Why?

Because this unlicensed character injected their behinds (which were probably just fine to begin with) with silicone….the kind of silicone that is used to CAULK YOUR BATHTUBS! I am not kidding.

When Emily Frances reported on this during our 6:30 newscast, I introduced her by asking, tongue-in-cheek, “You mean to tell me that DIDN’T work out so well?!”

Fab Over Fifty

Tue, 02 Mar 2010 19:43:15 -0500

It’s a brand new website aimed at smart, stylish, independent women of a certain age. It’s called FabOverFifty.com and it had its official launch just a few days ago. To my surprise, I was asked to be the guest of honor. Now, I will admit that I hesitated. Let’s face it. There is a reluctance among folks in my industry,( and I’m talking about the men just as much as the women, if not more so!) to reveal too much personal information, especially age.

Another Little Moment with Mom…..

Thu, 25 Feb 2010 20:55:20 -0500

Went to visit my mother this past weekend. Washington, DC, as most of you know, really got hammered with snow….record amounts. When I arrived at the little Tudor house where I spent most of my teenage years, the snow was piled almost to eye level alongside the long walkway up to the door. Granted, I am not tall, but eye level is eye level. A bit daunting. And my mom, who is tough and spirited, had been basically holed up in her house for days. Barely fazed her. In fact, she could survive for months on what she has in her pantry.

A Cataclysm of Cats!

Mon, 18 Jan 2010 21:20:53 -0500

Not one but two cat stories in the news tonight. First, there’s the lady in Brooklyn who started out with two little kittens, a boy and a girl, and lo and behold, before she knew it, she was knee deep in cats. 37 of them, to be exact, all jumping and playing and making MORE cats, till it just got to be one hairball too many.

She called the ASPCA, who told her, categorically, she had a veritable cataract of cats and not to be catty or anything,but that was just WAY too much kitty litter in one house.

Skype Phobia

Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:30:15 -0500

Again, apologies to my readers for not keeping up my blog very well these past couple of months. My only excuse is that with the advent of the 6:30 newscast, I have almost no time to breathe, let alone blog!

Also, my son was visiting me and I really wanted to spend every moment that I wasn’t at the station with him. He only had a few weeks with me before he left for Japan.

Sayonara Son!

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 20:52:15 -0500

Dear Readers. Let me start off by apologizing for being away from my blog for so long. Has it really been more than 10 days???!!! Please know I think of you often, but it has been a bit traumatic this past week or so, and I was just emotionally unable to put finger to computer to communicate with you.

Well, here I am now. My son is living in Tokyo. He got there just a few days ago. He told me the room that he rented is tiny, but not as tiny as one of those torpedo-type sleeping units that seem completely claustrophobic to me.

That's- a One Spicy Potato! (Wasabi Style)

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 20:22:42 -0500

For the first few years after we came to America, my mother would cook only Chinese dishes at home, even for Thanksgiving. Then this one year, we went to a neighbor’s house where we were treated to the full Western extravaganza, and my little brother and I loved it.

I remember the next year, my mother decided to cook her first Western Thanksgiving meal, complete with a giant turkey. She really put her all into that turkey….stuffing it, basting it every hour on the hour. And it came out beautifully.

Except for one thing. You probably already know where I’m going with this. Yep, she didn’t know about that packet of turkey guts and neck and God knows what else that they pack in plastic or paper or something inedible. The thing you’re supposed to pull out BEFORE cooking.

We ended up eating Chinese.

Remembering Eva Blum

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 20:19:03 -0500

I got a sad message on my cellphone the week before last. It was from Paul Blum, the husband of a woman I did a story on this past August. Eva needed a bone marrow transplant and we told her story, hoping to help her find a donor match. Here is the story we aired.

Do NOT Push that Button! Adventures on the Acela...

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 21:13:06 -0500

I have heard some unintentionally funny announcements, but the one I heard last night on the Acela going from Washington DC to New York was a doozy. I was returning from visiting my mother, and was almost asleep in my seat when the speaker crackled, and a conductor says the following:

“Riders, please listen carefully to what I have to say. If you are using one of our restrooms, do NOT….I repeat, do NOT…..push the red button on the wall. It is NOT the flush button. If you push the red button, we will assume you are in trouble, and we will come in to save you. So, please, please do NOT push the red button if what you want to do is flush the toilet.”

Yankees Victory Parade 1996

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 21:49:21 -0500

The sun will be shining tomorrow as the victorious Yankees celebrate their World Series triumph...again. For the 27th time. Reminds me of covering the victory parade thirteen years ago. The 1996 Yankees World Series win.

It was cold and sunny that day, too. Jack Cafferty and I were among the horde of anchors and reporters sitting check to jowl on hastily rigged risers, with City Hall behind us. Just like tomorrow, that is where the Yankee victory parade will end up, with a big celebration on the steps.

What Do You MEAN You Haven't Seen Our 6:30 Show???!!!!!!

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 20:40:00 -0500

Day 52 of our new 6:30 PM newscast. About six weeks now. It’s a kick to do, so different from our News at Ten. Have you had a chance to check it out yet?

We HAD a Cat!

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 20:15:46 -0500

Last night Jim, my partner in crime here at PIX, wrote a blog about getting a kitten for his three little boys. Got me thinking about my cat, Jake. Or rather, my son’s cat. We got him from Bide- a Wee in Manhattan, a tiny little orange ball with big green eyes.

Kaity Runs the NYC Marathon!

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 18:05:21 -0500

The New York City marathon coming up! Mr G is running something like his 28th consecutive one. Okay, he did skip last year, and maybe one other year but my point is he’s run a hell of a lot of marathons. And he’s always among the first…..oh, 20,000 or so to cross the finish line. Just kidding G. Jeesh, he’s so sensitive.

I’ve been to a few marathons myself. Reporting on them. Live, from the comfort of a director’s chair.

Freaky Fishy Foot Fashion Fad

Mon, 12 Oct 2009 20:55:09 -0500

Okay, could not pass this one up. Story yesterday about a legislator wanting to ban ‘fish pedicures.’ I never even heard of such a thing before. Apparently, women put their crusty calloused feet into a bowl filled with tiny fish with teeth that literally eat away all that nasty skin around your toes! Hope you’re not having dinner while reading this.

It made me sick, too.