Amanda Knox’s To-Do List

I’m a news junkie — there I said it. Big news happens and immediately my heart starts pumping and I get that “news feeling.” Once a newsy — always a newsy. Years in a control room will do this to you. This is exactly what happened to me when the Amanda Knox verdict was read.  She was set free and cleared of murder charges. Whoa — no matter what your feeling on the case — it’s shocking.

Immediately I put myself in Amanda’s shoes — if I were being released from prison after four years…what would I want to do?  What did I miss? Who should I visit? How do you take all that in?  So I made a list of to-dos that Amanda Knox should consider:

1. Get an iPad: I tell everyone I know that it’s the thing that you don’t need but that you have to have! She should immediately download Angry Birds.

2. Get Twitter & Facebook accounts: Twitter was just a baby when Amanda Knox was first imprisoned and perhaps she had a Facebook page as a co-ed…but things have drastically changed in four years.

3. Catch up on Movies, TV & Music: Avatar, Betty White’s comeback, Michael Scott’s exit, Oprah’s farewell season, Modern Family, Mad Men, Anything on Food Network, Lady Gaga, Amy Winehouse.

4. Eat Foods You Can’t Get in Prison: Green tea, dark chocolate, Pop Chips (so delish,) Pinot Grigio (I had to.)

5. Update Wardrobe: Buy skinny jeans immediately.

6. Visit Friends & Family: Think of your own family — how much has changed in four years? Who has gotten married, divorced, had children, died, graduated? There will be babies to meet and people to hug. This could take a long time. She should make a separate list of people to visit.

7. Thank Yous to Write: She should write these to all of the people who supported her — including her parents, lawyers and fans.

8. Just Breathe: I don’t know what it smells like in prison — but I know it can’t smell like the fresh air of Seattle. She should go outside — stand alone in silence and take in the scene.  Listen to the birds, smell the flowers and feel the breeze on her skin.  And stand here and just breathe.  It’s amazing what a difference a day makes.