The first week of August for me involved days of leisure, sunbathing, cold beverages, and pure unadulterated laziness. It was a much-needed break for some rest and relaxation following a busy couple of weeks in the newsroom.
Readers may be unaware that I took over as interim editor for both the Airdrie City View and Rocky View Weekly while Scott Strasser was enjoying a delayed honeymoon and much-deserved holiday to sunny Spain.
Prior to his departure, I had been training alongside him for several months to learn the ropes of the position. Though I had spent many hours preparing for my time in the spotlight and felt prepared, I must admit my temporary tenure as editor was truly a trial by fire.
During my two-week stint, I fielded constant emails and calls from readers, sought out story ideas for both papers, edited our summer intern Cassie Hearn’s articles, prepared the layout for both papers, wrote articles of my own, and consumed more caffeine than I have in years.
Just a few days in, reporter Masha Scheele let us know she had given birth to twins a few weeks earlier than expected and would be stepping away to spend time with her newborn babies in the newborn intensive care unit.
That meant it was up to Cassie and me to keep the show on the road.
It was a hectic two weeks in the newsroom, with several major developments happening in Airdrie and the surrounding Rocky View County communities we cover. One of our first big stories was when AHS announced the Airdrie Urgent Care Centre would experience temporary overnight closures throughout the summer months – a call that was met with frustration from residents, politicians, and health-care advocates.
Shortly afterwards, we received a tip there was another fire at the Highline Mushrooms plant south of Crossfield – the second blaze this year at the facility. It meant dropping everything and getting to the bottom of this breaking news story.
Throughout the weeks, we received several more reports of goings-on in the community, including a fire at Good Shepherd School in Airdrie, and several RCMP investigations.
Suffice to say, it was a very busy introduction to the world of being an editor. By the time the two weeks had come to an end, I found myself wiping the sweat from my brow, and basking in a sense of accomplishment, having edited two editions of both the Airdrie City View and Rocky View Weekly.
Cassie and I had put together two weeks’ worth of news for the community. We both congratulated one another for making it through mostly unscathed before we packed our bags at the end of the second week.
As soon as Scott returned from Spain, I was off on my own week-long vacation – a much needed and restorative time off.
But as is usually the case with long-awaited holidays, the time flew by, and before I knew it, it was back to the old grind again.
