Though there were no parties or celebrations, I recently had an anniversary. And it was a somewhat unusual one for a journalist: 10 years with the same newspaper.
A lot can change in a decade—and a lot has.
I’m a California native, but when I accepted a job with this paper, I’d been living in Washington State for just over a year. At the time, I was hoping to come back to my home state and had two good offers on the table: one here and another from a paper down south.
When I started, my position was “night editor,” which meant I came to the office in the afternoon and didn’t leave until printing started, usually about 2 a.m. or so. I got first glance at the newspaper as it rolled off the press and made sure everything looked A-OK.
I came in with a journalism degree from one of the top universities in California and about eight years experience in the field. But my the third day on the job, an unhappy photographer at the time took my mugshot and—as I stood there smiling for his camera—sneered to another coworker: “I wonder how long this one will be around.”
Turnover is common in this industry, that’s for sure.
But I’m still here.
I’ve realized there is usually one of three reasons someone doesn’t stick around. No. 1: A small paper is often a stepping stone in an ambitious journalist’s journey. No. 2: Someone doesn’t live up to the boss’s expectations and is let go. No. 3: A youngster comes in bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, is overwhelmed and bows out—sometimes not very gracefully. We’ve had new hires come in, leave at lunchtime and never return.
These aren’t the only scenarios of course, just some I’ve experienced. (I won’t reveal which applies to the former photographer.)
Newspaper jobs are generally unpredictable, fast-paced, deadline-based and definitely not everyone’s cup of tea.
Through the years I’ve taken on different duties and titles, declined others and eventually landed comfortably in the Lifestyle editor chair. News is my background, so I never came into this wanting to go into features, but it seems to suit me. I’ve never really had the aggressive personality sometimes needed in the news arena.
I’ll be honest. When I accepted the position 10 years ago, I told myself I wouldn’t stay more than three years. Maximum.
So much for that idea.
Three years came and went, and I found myself loving this area: the people, volunteering with area seniors, the community events, everything that creates a hometown feel. I enjoy swinging by local businesses and being 99 percent anonymous, but with an occasional “Hey Andi!” from a familiar face—and sometimes unfamiliar, a reader who recognizes me from this column. I’ve had random folks stop me with questions, complaints or praise for a reporter’s story, offer kind words following columns about painful deaths, and even had a nurse checking me in for a doctor appointment once say, “Are you the one who wrote about your parents anniversary? I thought you looked familiar!”
In my 10 years here I’ve seen a multitude of changes, have worked with a variety of personalities and have endured some of the most painful years of my personal life and come out on the other side, still smiling.
The smile always returns. I think it’s because I love what I do and where I do it. Although it was a quiet day, my anniversary was reason to celebrate my “sticking it out,” my incredible past and present colleagues whom I continue to learn from and my neighbors: all those who make up this great community.
