Same Song, Different Verse

Got the following email from a friend, Amanda Palleschi. Perhaps it's worth a discussion:

Shortly after you posted the Las Vegas Sun weather story, I, too, was assigned a weather story. It's getting hot (90 degrees plus a lovely lake breeze is 'getting too hot' here in Erie, Pa), how are people dealing with the heat and lack of rain, how long will it last, etc.

Though I tried to use the Sun story as inspiration, I failed horribly at making anything creative or interesting out of a ho-hum assignment given to many interns and starting reporters. It's something I'm not proud to have my name on, and after it ran, I thought of about 5 things I could have done with it to actually make something out of nothing. I want to know -- how do Gangreyers get inspired to make something out of nothing assignments like these, especially on deadline? I want examples--your best weather story, house fire story, parade story, etc. Anything you did with a bad assignment early in your career that impressed editors?

I realize that I may be your only reader who is a lowly summer intern, but maybe not. Who knows. But reading that weather story made me want to read more like it.

This weather story from Alexa James at the Times Herald-Record ran a few days ago. Stellar example of how to make the mundane assignments sing. Anybody have thoughts on this?