Make your voice count
November 4, 2008 by lisagriffis
Filed under Uncategorized
It’s Election Day and for most that means going to the polls and casting their vote for the candidates of their choice. For me it also means working long hours waiting for results so that we can put them in the newspaper for our readers.
It also means that there will be an Election night buffet of pizza, fried chicken, mashed potatoes and of course those damn cookies that are really hard to resist.
I will be sitting on my butt most of the day and night, so I will pass on all the goodies and bring my dinner that way I can avoid the foods I know I should be avoiding.
I have learned one thing in my 30 years of being a newspaper journalist is that the people I work with have hearty appetites. I am hoping there might be a quite few minutes so I can take a few lapse around the block. I keep a spare pair of tennis shoes in my desk for just that occasion.
As news reports have said the turnout is going to be historic, so I was in line at 6:15 am to make sure that the most important item on my daily to-do list was checked off. Now I can do my workout and know that I made my voice count.
Thanks for tuning in to my website.
One of the things I miss the most about working at a newspaper is being a part of history… and the food.
If things were going great (elections, Superbowls, Y2K, etc.), there was food. If things were going lousy (9/11, exploding Shuttles, elections, etc.), there was food.
Early on, it was mostly pizza. Even people who don’t love pizza like pizza so it was a reliable choice to feed several dozen people.
As the newspaper business improved (yeah, 1990s and 40% profit margins), we dropped the lowly pizza and went upscale: Olive Garden. Mounds and mounds of lasagna and paper bags full of those yummy garlic bread sticks. Heck, sometimes there was even a big sheet cake for desert.
I’m pretty sure the Orlando Sentinel is back to pizza or even pot luck.
—Matt