It Seems So Long, But It Never Is

That's how I feel about not writing here since August -- about a month-and-a-half.

I've been writing 5-7 stories a week (I'm the only full time news reporter now; our editor is having to do everything but actually write now; we have an intern who does a feature every week or two, and takes pictures at community events; we have a stringer assigned to one of the towns; we have a sports editor and a person to type up the community/religion listings). Now I'm having to fill in answering phones and doing other odd office jobs for various reasons.

I'm tired all the time. I like the compliments I receive, but I could do without the evil media cracks I get every once in awhile (then have the person say that he/she wasn't talking about me). I got one such comment last night saying we don't get our facts straight on stories; it was from a school board member).

Funny thing, I interviewed the chairman of the school board today, and he told me he had been meaning to compliment me on my stories about the school system; he thought they were well-written, that I was even-handed in my approach to the stories and that I had my facts right.

I wish I could share more of my stories with the few people that know me away from where I live, but our webpage isn't any good, and what articles it does post only stays on the site for a week and then it disappears.

If any of you are still around and reading, ask and I'll send some articles your way.

I feel like I've written some good stuff. My paper emphasizes a narrative approach to writing and reporting, and I think I'm good at it. But I can't get to all the stories I'd like to simply because I don't have the time. I also compete against a daily and another weekly, so I have to come up with another approach to the same story. Often that means we might not run stories on newsworthy events just because it's "already been covered" by the daily paper.

I'm not sure if our superiors understand what a crunch we're under, and the faulty equipment we have. I had to help explain today that my paper's editor has to handle all the photos for myself and the intern because our computers can't handle the software required to do it (the sports editor's computer can, though). I have to borrow time on someone else's computer just to look up information or to check e-mail, and that won't be as easy soon when our new graphic designer starts.

I don't mean to sound like I'm complaining; it just means longer days and nights, and Fridays where I have to fudge my timesheet because our company doesn't pay overtime past 40 hours. And it's not like I make a lot. I know teens that flip hamburgers (nothing wrong with that) who make more than I do.

My wife and I are doing well. We went away to Assateague Island a few weeks ago, and we went to D.C. to go to the book festival on the Mall. We made a day of it in the city, going to the waterfront for fresh seafood and then to a soccer game. She really got into the game; it didn't hurt that 25,000 people were there and she got the full effect of chanting, singing, drums, smoke bombs and really good goals, especially in the second half. We also chaperoned a homecoming dance last week -- one of the perks of being a teacher's husband. It actually went fairly well. We went apple picking the next day, but we both were wishing it had felt more like fall.

Enough for now.

I love you all...