In an email to me, Walton’s daughter Ellie writes:

“The Dalai Lama gave our dad his kata (scarf). Paul said the three of them chatted and laughed together for close to 10 minutes. According to Paul, the Dalai Lama asked our dad such questions as where he served in WWII, what weapon he carried, and whether he had shot anybody. Dad told him that he served in India, carried a Springfield ‘03 rifle, and never shot anybody.”

What a great moment. At 94, Sidney Walton proved that you never know when that “once-in-a-lifetime experience” will come.

Josh Benson always wanted to be in TV News. As a kid he used desks, sheets and lamps to produce newscasts on home video. Twelve years after college and many productions later, Josh is equipped with much better technology at the CBS affiliate in Miami where has been the morning anchor since August 2012. Outside of TV, he stays busy with a web company, a non-profit, a startup and hosts online programs. He also tries to squeeze in occasional rounds of golf.

“There’s never enough time in the day,” Josh says.

But he did find some time for…

SW: Now that you’ve had some time to settle down in Miami since becoming a morning anchor there last August, looking back, what has been your biggest challenge?

JB: Can I have two answers? The schedule and surviving the roads. The schedule is a bear. I wake up at 2:50am and go to bed anywhere in between 8:00-9:00pm. There’s never enough sleep, but I’m working on it. And Miami drivers are from outer space. Speeding is the norm and red lights are just warnings. It’s a long way from my home state of Minnesota. The casual wave has been replaced with the one-finger salute on any given commute.

SW: Why are missing persons cases are so important to you, specifically Jodi Huisentruit, the Iowa news anchor who disappeared in 1995?

JB: The Jodi case was my first opportunity at an in-depth news story. I really worked hard on learning the case and trying to find answers. Back then, the work was for a 13-part Sweeps series. It’s been 11 years since then and I’m still working on it. We’ve created a non-profit and built a talented team around it at FindJodi.com . Some things are hard to let go. And to think about losing a family member without any answers as to why, that’s enough to keep me going. I’d like to see Jodi’s family find closure.

SW: It is important for aspiring broadcast journalists to have a strong presence today on Twitter, Facebook, a website and more. Why is the “online brand” so critical?

JB: A person’s online brand is huge. I look at it as more of a personal brand. Companies have a brand. People should too. Social media and the internet as a whole allows you to reach so many people and reach them quickly. It allows a you to display your talents, background and interests. Employers, interviewees, and strangers will decide if the characteristics of your brand can help or interest them. And they’ll decide quickly. So it’s important to keep your content fresh, current and clean for the biggest impact.

SW: What is the first media credential you saved and the most recent?

JB: The highly-coveted ‘all-access pass’ to the Spam Museum festival in Austin, Minnesota. The most recent was the 99.9 KISS Country Chili Cookoff in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. I just realized how much of a gas my career has been. Whoa.

SW: You’re from Minnesota and are a life-long Vikings fan. I’m a life-long Saints fan. The Vikings and Saints have had some heated run-ins over the years, including the epic NFC Championship game in 2009. What is your most vivid memory from that game that kept your beloved team out of Super Bowl XLIV?

JB: In all honesty, it wasn’t the excessive brutality displayed with cheap hits by your players that would eventually unravel ‘BountyGate’ in which your players earned bonuses for inflicting injuries on opposing players… No, that wasn’t it. Hahahah. Bitter? No, the moment I really vividly remember is when Brett Favre threw his last interception. All he had to do was run a few yards, fall down and set up a field goal for the win. Later I realized Favre isn’t a runner. He was bred to throw. So I can’t blame him. Sigh, some day.

Follow Josh online:
Website: JoshBenson.com
Twitter: @JPBenson
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/joshbensontv

Know someone who should be featured in Five Questions? Email me.

His online bio says it all:

From the outset of his career, Besh’s talent and drive have earned him continuous kudos: Food & Wine named him one of the “Top 10 Best New Chefs in America” and his flagship restaurant August has featured on the late great Gourmet magazine’s “Guide to America’s Best Restaurants,” and “America’s Top 50 Restaurants.” Local publications keeping close tabs on the dining scene, like The Times-Picayune and New Orleans City Business, have applauded all his other restaurants as they’ve appeared and won the hearts and palates of discriminating diners. He won the James Beard Award for Best Chef of the Southeast in 2006, and was awarded Food Arts’ Silver Spoon Award in 2009 for revitalizing the culinary legacy of New Orleans.

Besh’s restaurants include August, Besh Steak, Lüke, Lüke San Antonio, La Provence, American Sector, Soda Shop, Domenica and Borgne. The former U.S. Marine has also found time to write two cookbooks — My New Orleans in October 2009 and My Family Table in November 2011.

On a flight to somewhere, Besh took the time to answer…

SW: What are your biggest strengths and weaknesses in the kitchen?

JB: I love to eat and I love to cook, but if I’m not careful I tend to overanalyze and make things too complicated.

SW: What is your favorite ingredient to cook with and why?

JB: Changes with the season, although right now it’s wild crawfish. I live for each season – nothing says Louisiana spring better than crawfish.

SW: What do you enjoy doing outside of the kitchen?

JB: Hunting, fishing, daddy, husband, boating. Basically anything with an -ing.

SW: Outside of your own, what is your favorite restaurant/dish in New Orleans?

JB: The ban cuon from Ba Mien, the jellyfish salad at Kim Son, the chicharron and cheese pupusa at Divino Corazon and the crawfish bisque at the Bon Ton. All tied for first place.

SW: You have nine restaurants now. How many more until you take over the world?

JB: Don’t know. I thought after the first one I’d never open another restaurant. But I love the creative process and I love making people happy. Now it’s especially fun watching all of my protégés now achieving their own notoriety.

RB Shawne Alston
West Virginia

DE Glenn Foster
Illinois

QB Ryan Griffin
Tulane

TE Josh Hill
Idaho State

CB Ryan Lacy
Utah

G Tim Lelito
Grand Valley State

LB Eric Martin
Nebraska

C Elliot Milton
Michigan

TE Keavon Milton
Louisiana-Monroe

LB Kevin Reddick
North Carolina

LB Rayford Shipman
Central Florida

CB Rod Sweeting
Georgia Tech

LB Chase Thomas
Stanford

The 2013 NFL Draft begins at 7 p.m. Thursday, with the second and third rounds taking place Friday.

The remaining rounds (4-7) will be held on Saturday.

The entire draft will be televised on the NFL Network.

Here’s where the Saints will pick:

1st round
Pick #15 overall

3rd round
Pick #75 overall

4th round
Pick #109 overall

5th round
Pick #144 overall

6th round
Pick #183 overall