Hammers Finally Flying in Newsroom
More than three months after Hurricane Rita two-stepped across Southeast Texas, newsroom restoration finally began yesterday. Hammers are pounding, and Sheetrock is being moved around.
The rag-tag news team that endured the harsh conditions of Rita's aftermath has been scattered throughout The Enterprise offices.
Here's a breakdown of our current whereabouts:
Editor Tim Kelly works in an abandoned office in circulation on the first floor, with newsroom assistant Marie Richard at a desk just outside his door.
Meanwhile, I'm working in what has been nicknamed "Murderers' Row," just outside the office of Ruth Potts, personnel manager. Ruth is a popular woman. Employees are either in her office or knocking on her door almost the entire workday.
Other Murderers' Row members include Assistant Managing Editor Pete Churton and Associate Managing Editor Sheila Friedeck. My managing editor counterpart, Ron Franscell, used to work alongside us here, but we traded him to The Mezzanine level for a box of Christmas cookies and an editor to be named later.
Actually, after a few months of bonding with us on Murderers' Row, Franscell packed up and moved to the The Mezzanine to be closer to his staff.
Or maybe it was because he was ashamed of his lame performance in the gnat-killing contest. A couple of months ago, before the cooler weather moved in, pesky gnats plagued our work area, zipping in front of computer screens, landing on noses, getting onto our food and even drowning themselves in our coffee mugs.
That's when the gnat-killing contest began, for a six-pack of beer. Within a short time, almost 30 gnats met their fate in a deadly succession of thunderous slaps. But then the gnats grew scarce and the contest died down. Reporters had a similar contest going across the hall in their work area, formerly a grand meeting room on the first floor. They actually have it a little nicer than Murderers' Row occupants.
Meanwhile, the photo staff set up in another formerly empty room in the personnel office, while the three business writers are holed up in the Newspapers In Education office. Features and sports are on The Mezzanine next to the business office.
On the second floor, the copy desk is scattered throughout an area that production once used before the magic of pagination came along.
The news staff's biggest lone wolf is Tom Taschinger, the editorial page editor who has found refuge with the classified ladies on the second floor. He's got it pretty good, considering that the staff up there often has pot-luck lunches and whatnot. We might have to send in the National Guard to retrieve him once the newsroom is restored.
This is how it's been the past three months for the news staff, scattered and displaced but not divided, putting out the day's news under less-than-ideal circumstances. It could be six weeks before we're back in our restored newsroom.
Nevertheless, there haven't been many complaints, particularly from me, whose mighty gnat-smashing prowess has given me a comfortable lead for that coveted six-pack.
The rag-tag news team that endured the harsh conditions of Rita's aftermath has been scattered throughout The Enterprise offices.
Here's a breakdown of our current whereabouts:
Editor Tim Kelly works in an abandoned office in circulation on the first floor, with newsroom assistant Marie Richard at a desk just outside his door.
Meanwhile, I'm working in what has been nicknamed "Murderers' Row," just outside the office of Ruth Potts, personnel manager. Ruth is a popular woman. Employees are either in her office or knocking on her door almost the entire workday.
Other Murderers' Row members include Assistant Managing Editor Pete Churton and Associate Managing Editor Sheila Friedeck. My managing editor counterpart, Ron Franscell, used to work alongside us here, but we traded him to The Mezzanine level for a box of Christmas cookies and an editor to be named later.
Actually, after a few months of bonding with us on Murderers' Row, Franscell packed up and moved to the The Mezzanine to be closer to his staff.
Or maybe it was because he was ashamed of his lame performance in the gnat-killing contest. A couple of months ago, before the cooler weather moved in, pesky gnats plagued our work area, zipping in front of computer screens, landing on noses, getting onto our food and even drowning themselves in our coffee mugs.
That's when the gnat-killing contest began, for a six-pack of beer. Within a short time, almost 30 gnats met their fate in a deadly succession of thunderous slaps. But then the gnats grew scarce and the contest died down. Reporters had a similar contest going across the hall in their work area, formerly a grand meeting room on the first floor. They actually have it a little nicer than Murderers' Row occupants.
Meanwhile, the photo staff set up in another formerly empty room in the personnel office, while the three business writers are holed up in the Newspapers In Education office. Features and sports are on The Mezzanine next to the business office.
On the second floor, the copy desk is scattered throughout an area that production once used before the magic of pagination came along.
The news staff's biggest lone wolf is Tom Taschinger, the editorial page editor who has found refuge with the classified ladies on the second floor. He's got it pretty good, considering that the staff up there often has pot-luck lunches and whatnot. We might have to send in the National Guard to retrieve him once the newsroom is restored.
This is how it's been the past three months for the news staff, scattered and displaced but not divided, putting out the day's news under less-than-ideal circumstances. It could be six weeks before we're back in our restored newsroom.
Nevertheless, there haven't been many complaints, particularly from me, whose mighty gnat-smashing prowess has given me a comfortable lead for that coveted six-pack.
posted by Brian Pearson at 9:25 AM
1 Comments:
It wasn't the gnats, g--dammit. It was the close quarters. Everybody who called remarked about hearing heavy breathing in the background. I told them it was only you ... and Pete ... and the city-side reporters ... and Ruth Potts ... and something living under the table.
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