The week in Hell (OK, the three days, really) is over. I guess it wasn't that bad. Or at least I keep telling myself that.
This was the week where we switched to a new computer system in the newsroom. New hardware, new software, same old people. Yikes. We trained about an hour a day for about five days, after we went to press. That part went well. Then Wednesday, we went "live" with the new system for that day's paper. We were an hour and a half late going to press, which the software company's IT guys said was actually pretty good. Most papers are two or three hours late. And they were happy because we're an afternoon paper, so they didn't have to stay up until 3 a.m. for us.
There were other problems. Somehow one of the front-page stories lost its first half, so we had to reprint it the next day, and it took awhile to figure out how to recover the original story. Our managing editor, who set up the few templates and libraries we have to work with, forgot about setting them up for the stocks page, which is also the page for our obits and jumps from page 1. So we had to part of the page on InDesign, and part of it on Quark, and pre-press double-burned the plate. That's what we're still doing. The sports guys had a lot of trouble with their scoreboard page, too, with all the agate type.
Add to that the fact the reporters are dealing with training and new software, too, so our local story count is down, and just filling the paper has been a challenge. I think we're awful lucky nothing big has happened locally.
I had to go in today and do the Sunday lifestyle pages that I normally get done on Friday afternoon. What would normally take me a couple hourse took five!
Really, though, it does seem like we're doing well. Our sister papers in the company are also switching systems. We've heard that one of them -- sort of our rival, since we cover similar territory in circulation and news -- is having to take it much slower than we have. They have five people on the news copy desk and got five weeks worth of training. They are doing only one of two pages a day on the new system. Compare that to our paper, where, we have three people on the news desk putting out about 10 pages a day, and I think we're kicking some ass!
Next week, the other paginator will be back after taking a couple weeks when his wife had a baby, but he hasn't had any training on the new system. So it will still be rough for awhile. I've put in about 18 hours overtime this week. I'm going to need a break soon.
Saturday, January 20, 2007
Saturday, January 13, 2007
Goodbye, Vera
Word came by e-mail this morning that one of the members of my breast cancer support group died last night. She had suffered a stroke just before Christmas, which they initially thought had been brought on by all the chemo she was going through. But later, they found the cancer was in her brain. She had been under Hospice care this week, surrounded by her family.
She retired from an area school just this spring, where she had worked in the lunch room for many years. I remember her saying early last year they had told her that she would be on chemo the rest of her life. I think that was a big part of why she retired when she did. I sat at the same table with her at several of our meeting and got to know her a bit better than some of the others. She was a nice lady, and loved having her grandkids around (I think there was a first great-grandchild in there, too). She will be missed.
Otherwise today, it is snowy, but it's just a light snow for us. A bit of ice beforehand, but nothing big like the last one, at least not here. It sounds like southeastern Kansas and Oklahoma is getting it this time around. Keep warm if that's where you're at!
I'll be at work today, but hopefully will be home a bit early. We're going to try to get done an hour early tonight so the drivers have more time on the roads overnight.
This next week at work will be very interesting. We got some training on InCopy last week and started on InDesign yesterday and will finish that up on Monday. Then probably Tuesday afternoon, after that day's paper has gone to press, we'll switch out the computers and be up and running on new hardware and software for Wednesday's paper.
This all probably wouldn't be that big a deal to me, but our lead page designer and his wife had thier baby early last week, so he is actually gone for all this. That puts me in the lead seat! Usuallly, that makes me pretty nervous, because I just don't do that job often enough to be real confident in it. But where he's gone for so long, it's given me time to be more comfortable in doing page 1 and essentially being in charge. Our managing editor has been busy all week building our page templates from scratch on the new system, so he's pretty much been out of it as far as the daily work goes. It also helps he's not a jerk in how he treats people and knows something about computers, too!
She retired from an area school just this spring, where she had worked in the lunch room for many years. I remember her saying early last year they had told her that she would be on chemo the rest of her life. I think that was a big part of why she retired when she did. I sat at the same table with her at several of our meeting and got to know her a bit better than some of the others. She was a nice lady, and loved having her grandkids around (I think there was a first great-grandchild in there, too). She will be missed.
Otherwise today, it is snowy, but it's just a light snow for us. A bit of ice beforehand, but nothing big like the last one, at least not here. It sounds like southeastern Kansas and Oklahoma is getting it this time around. Keep warm if that's where you're at!
I'll be at work today, but hopefully will be home a bit early. We're going to try to get done an hour early tonight so the drivers have more time on the roads overnight.
This next week at work will be very interesting. We got some training on InCopy last week and started on InDesign yesterday and will finish that up on Monday. Then probably Tuesday afternoon, after that day's paper has gone to press, we'll switch out the computers and be up and running on new hardware and software for Wednesday's paper.
This all probably wouldn't be that big a deal to me, but our lead page designer and his wife had thier baby early last week, so he is actually gone for all this. That puts me in the lead seat! Usuallly, that makes me pretty nervous, because I just don't do that job often enough to be real confident in it. But where he's gone for so long, it's given me time to be more comfortable in doing page 1 and essentially being in charge. Our managing editor has been busy all week building our page templates from scratch on the new system, so he's pretty much been out of it as far as the daily work goes. It also helps he's not a jerk in how he treats people and knows something about computers, too!
Sunday, January 07, 2007
Game hangover
I woke up Saturday morning regretting how late I'd been up and what I'd been doing. I had a headache, had no energy and didn't want to get near what had caused it all. No, I hadn't been out drinking. I was just up real late playing Diner Dash. I got if for Christmas from my brother. I'd been playing the online version for awhile, but there's only so far you can get in the career mode, and it doesn't have all the stuff you can get in the endless shift mode. But it's easy to get carried away sometimes. I won't say how late I was up last Friday playing, but it was much later than I should have been up.
Not much else is going on. I'm trying to get back into a workout mode. I haven't really gained any weight, but I haven't lost any either. I've been doing well on taking lunches to work, but could probably cut down on the snacks. Cookies and hot chocolate every night probably don't help.
No more problems here with the weather and power outages, but there's still a lot of people across the region doing without. We got lucky here, I think. We might not next time.
Took my car in for an oil change, and found out I need new tires. Three of them, one of them badly. It's always something, ain't it?
That's all for now.
Not much else is going on. I'm trying to get back into a workout mode. I haven't really gained any weight, but I haven't lost any either. I've been doing well on taking lunches to work, but could probably cut down on the snacks. Cookies and hot chocolate every night probably don't help.
No more problems here with the weather and power outages, but there's still a lot of people across the region doing without. We got lucky here, I think. We might not next time.
Took my car in for an oil change, and found out I need new tires. Three of them, one of them badly. It's always something, ain't it?
That's all for now.
Monday, January 01, 2007
Livin like a refugee
I never thought I'd be a refugee. It's always other people in those situations, right? People who live where there's been a hurricane or earthquake or something. Well, yesterday, I was one of those people.
The massive snowstorm in the Plains missed us, but we got plenty of ice instead. It knocked out the power for a few hours Saturday, and then went off again at about 2 a.m. Sunday. I had hoped it would be back on by daylight or shortly after, but no such luck. I had to work at the paper yesterday, to get our New Year's Day edition out, and I felt glad to be where there was heat and light, but guilty about being there while Mom and Dad were stuck back here with no power.
I tried to keep Mom updated on what was going on whenever we heard something at work about when the power might be back, the shelter in town, etc., and each time I talked to her she sounded more and more tired. When we talked around 6 p.m., the power company spokesman was pretty confident the power would be on within a few hours in our town. But when I talked to Mom after the press was running at 7 p.m., she just sounded like she couldn't take much more. I asked if she and Dad would just like to come in to town anyway, and that what we did. I know when I was driving to work, just having the heater in the car was such a relief both physically and mentally. And I hadn't put up with the cold all day.
They got into town shortly after 8 p.m., and we went and got some hot food at Sonic, the first either of them had had in more than 24 hours, then headed to the shelter at the university. They had it set up in a few of the gyms and racquetball courts where the coliseum and health-type classes and recreational activities are. They even allowed pets! The local humane society loaned them some pet carriers, and they had us set up in a racquetball court near an exit, where we could easily take him out when needed. We were the only ones in that room, but there were a few other people from our town as well as a few travelers at the shelter. A unit of the National Guard stopped in sometime during the night as well. They've been out delivering fuel to areas without power so people can run their generators.
Oddly enough,I think I met more people from this town at the shelter than I have living here for four years (guess that says a lot about me, huh?). The county emergency services coordinator lives here, as does the president of the local Red Cross chapter, and an assistant to our congressman who works in his office out here, plus one of the campus policemen. And then there were the three older ladies the emergency services coordinator had convinced to come in out of the cold. All were pretty nice folks. And they all liked Nipper, too. He snuck out of the court a few times and had to go see everyone.
The cots weren't too bad, and I'm surprised how well I slept, once Nipper settled down. Since there weren't any other animals in there with us, we left him out of the carrier, and he wandered around a bit, not quite sure in that strange place how to tell us he needed to go out or that he was thirsty. But once we got all that figured out, he settled down on a blanket next to my cot, and we all fell asleep pretty fast. I was surprised when I woke up to use the bathroom and found it was almost 6 a.m.
We all started waking up about then, and Mom and Dad got some coffee at the main camp-out room, where they heard the power had come on at home around 10 p.m. and did stay on all night. That was the main concern, that it wouldn't stay on because of all the ice on the lines and the wind blowing them around. But when we got home, it was warm and everything was OK. We had lost a big branch off the old cottonwood Saturday, and one of the willow trees by the creek is down, but that seems to be the only damage here. Lots of other branches down around town, too.
I was still tired after we got home, despite sleeping pretty good, so I crawled into bed for a nap, and Mom stayed up to watch the Tournament of Roses parade, her tradition. Nipper is pretty bushed, too, and slept quite a bit.
The tree are still covered with ice, and just awhile ago, the sun came out and it was quite pretty. I took some pictures -- with film, so you'll have to wait to see them. I'm not really sure a picture can capture what we saw with the eye, however. Amazing how nature can be so brutal one day, and the next so beautiful.
Hopefully, that will be the big event of 2007. I'm off now for a piece of my birthday cake.
The massive snowstorm in the Plains missed us, but we got plenty of ice instead. It knocked out the power for a few hours Saturday, and then went off again at about 2 a.m. Sunday. I had hoped it would be back on by daylight or shortly after, but no such luck. I had to work at the paper yesterday, to get our New Year's Day edition out, and I felt glad to be where there was heat and light, but guilty about being there while Mom and Dad were stuck back here with no power.
I tried to keep Mom updated on what was going on whenever we heard something at work about when the power might be back, the shelter in town, etc., and each time I talked to her she sounded more and more tired. When we talked around 6 p.m., the power company spokesman was pretty confident the power would be on within a few hours in our town. But when I talked to Mom after the press was running at 7 p.m., she just sounded like she couldn't take much more. I asked if she and Dad would just like to come in to town anyway, and that what we did. I know when I was driving to work, just having the heater in the car was such a relief both physically and mentally. And I hadn't put up with the cold all day.
They got into town shortly after 8 p.m., and we went and got some hot food at Sonic, the first either of them had had in more than 24 hours, then headed to the shelter at the university. They had it set up in a few of the gyms and racquetball courts where the coliseum and health-type classes and recreational activities are. They even allowed pets! The local humane society loaned them some pet carriers, and they had us set up in a racquetball court near an exit, where we could easily take him out when needed. We were the only ones in that room, but there were a few other people from our town as well as a few travelers at the shelter. A unit of the National Guard stopped in sometime during the night as well. They've been out delivering fuel to areas without power so people can run their generators.
Oddly enough,I think I met more people from this town at the shelter than I have living here for four years (guess that says a lot about me, huh?). The county emergency services coordinator lives here, as does the president of the local Red Cross chapter, and an assistant to our congressman who works in his office out here, plus one of the campus policemen. And then there were the three older ladies the emergency services coordinator had convinced to come in out of the cold. All were pretty nice folks. And they all liked Nipper, too. He snuck out of the court a few times and had to go see everyone.
The cots weren't too bad, and I'm surprised how well I slept, once Nipper settled down. Since there weren't any other animals in there with us, we left him out of the carrier, and he wandered around a bit, not quite sure in that strange place how to tell us he needed to go out or that he was thirsty. But once we got all that figured out, he settled down on a blanket next to my cot, and we all fell asleep pretty fast. I was surprised when I woke up to use the bathroom and found it was almost 6 a.m.
We all started waking up about then, and Mom and Dad got some coffee at the main camp-out room, where they heard the power had come on at home around 10 p.m. and did stay on all night. That was the main concern, that it wouldn't stay on because of all the ice on the lines and the wind blowing them around. But when we got home, it was warm and everything was OK. We had lost a big branch off the old cottonwood Saturday, and one of the willow trees by the creek is down, but that seems to be the only damage here. Lots of other branches down around town, too.
I was still tired after we got home, despite sleeping pretty good, so I crawled into bed for a nap, and Mom stayed up to watch the Tournament of Roses parade, her tradition. Nipper is pretty bushed, too, and slept quite a bit.
The tree are still covered with ice, and just awhile ago, the sun came out and it was quite pretty. I took some pictures -- with film, so you'll have to wait to see them. I'm not really sure a picture can capture what we saw with the eye, however. Amazing how nature can be so brutal one day, and the next so beautiful.
Hopefully, that will be the big event of 2007. I'm off now for a piece of my birthday cake.
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