From staff reports

Born and raised in Dallas County, Nathan Straus comes to the Jacksonville Daily Progress fresh from Chandler.

A lifelong fan of writing and the journalistic way of life, Straus said he looks forward to throwing himself back in the line of duty.

Having recently left work at The Chandler-Brownsboro Statesman, a weekly paper in Brownsboro, Straus said he looked forward to the move up to a daily edition.

He is most familiar with school and city coverage, though he also has a wide variety of experience with general reporting and feature stories.

“We’re thrilled to welcome Nathan to the Daily Progress,” Publisher Amy Miller said. “He arrives at the perfect time and it’s great he has some new experience. I think he’s got a lot to offer this paper and this community.”

A favorite pastime of Straus’ is having others guess at what species of pets he owns. The answer to this question is a two-parter. Straus’ oldest pet, Joanna, is a stubborn and rather large green iguana he purchased during his college days at Abilene Christian University in West Texas, where he studied journalism and psychology. Truth be told, he was goaded into buying the reptile by his roommate, but he loves the feisty four-foot eating machine just the same.

Not everyone knows it, but Joanna, like all green iguanas, is a herbivore. Of course, upon looking at the lizard’s large size, sharp claws and serrated teeth, one could be forgiven for wondering if the iguana knows that.

His second pet, purchased more recently in Tyler, is a far friendlier take on uncommon companions. Wallie, a female cockatiel, is a small and mischievous parrot with a penchant for dropping items from high places. Despite this aggravating pastime, the bird is very friendly and gets along well with people after overcoming the terror of seeing new faces in the room. It should be noted the bird is frightened of nearly everything, including loud noises, dark places, small insects, rock music and most inanimate objects.

She will generally insist on eating people food and will even attempt to steal cereal directly from the bowl, a habit equal parts annoying and entertaining to her owner.

Nathan enjoys classic movies such as Citizen Kane and books by the greatest American authors.

Overall, Straus is happy to be working for the Daily Progress, and will strive to always conduct himself in a manner befitting a professional reporter. He looks forward to meeting everyone in the school system and local government, as well as anyone else who cares about the news.