Columnist Sandy Thompson: Journal tracks whereabouts, information

Sandy Thompson

Friday, Aug. 31, 2001 | 4:01 a.m.

Sandy Thompson is vice president/associate editor of the Las Vegas Sun. She can be reached at 259-4025 or e-mail at thompson@lasvegassun.com

WHEN LAVONDA McClain was a teenager, she sometimes left her house without telling any family member where she was going or who she was seeing.

Now, at 24, the Las Vegas woman shudders to think what could have happened to her. She also has come to understand the pain it would have caused her parents if she had disappeared without a trace. They wouldn't have known where to start looking for her.

McClain, who studied child psychology in college, last year wrote an informal journal she had published in a book, "Never Say Never."

It's a good idea that's presented simply and directly. It's a way for people to keep records, notes and identifying characteristics about themselves. It's not McClain's book itself that's important, but the information and the opportunity for communication it provides.

The first page asks for personal information such as date of birth, height, weight, blood type and other physical descriptions, as well as an emergency contact.

The remaining pages in the journal are "fact sheets" listing the date of an outing; the people who will be with you and their phone numbers; the license number, model and make of the car you're traveling in; and when you plan to return home. There also is room for notes about the outing. That's where you may write about uncomfortable things that happened (especially if you are going on a date for the first time) or interesting points you want to remember.

Of course, you don't need to buy this particular journal; you can keep one in any notebook. It's McClain's idea of keeping a regular journal with pertinent information that's appealing and makes sense, especially for teens and adults who live alone.

The importance of writing down such information was underscored by the disappearance of Chandra Levy, the graduate student from California who disappeared in Washington, D.C., without a trace.

Writing events in a journal serves another important purpose, McClain says: It may make you think twice about doing something negative.

Although McClain wrote the journal for youths, people of all ages have bought it. A man in his 40s, she says, keeps it in his office because he fears his wife is trying to kill him. If something were to happen, there would be a record of his comings and goings. Any suspicious incident would be detailed in the journal for the police and/or family members to follow up on.

That's a bit extreme, but in this day and age you never know.

Writing information down in a journal also is a way for kids to communicate with their parents, McClain says. Some parents don't want to acknowledge their kids are dating and kids don't tell their parents about it. Kids can use the information in the journal to show their parents that they are being responsible, McClain says. Parents who don't know who their children's friends are will have something to go on if there is an emergency situation.

Although she dedicated the book to all youths "to show them someone cares," McClain says it's also an apology to her parents for sneaking out of the house and a thank-you to God for protecting her.

Most importantly, she says, the journal could be a saving grace if an emergency occurs.