Living the Paperboy life

I sometimes wonder what would have happened had I taken a different career path.

Sure, I love being the Paperboy, and it brings me new adventures every week. I get to sit through countless government meetings. In fact, I would challenge anyone to come up with someone who has sat through more public meetings than I have.

I started covering meetings when I was 15 years old. Other guys were trying to act cool in front of other high school sophomores. Not the Paperboy. I was in a township planning commission meeting one night. My friends were staying up until all hours creating mischief. I was waiting for the school board to come out of closed session.

Oh, don’t worry about me, I caught up on the mischief end, but it always had to be after the meeting was over.

My first real job out of college brought me the task of covering a contentious city council meeting in a southern Wisconsin community with a new development coming in. The city was in favor of it, and lots of people were against it. In retrospect, the city was right, and the community is a muchbetter place for their elected officials being willing to put their neck on the lines for it. A couple got voted out of office, and their replacements I’m sure now would agree they did the right thing.

Anyway, that first night was a battle, and the job I took for $275 a week put me right into the middle of it. During a break in the action, I retreated to the restroom. As I washed my hands, the city clerk came in and he was quite agitated about the proceedings. He was taking it out on the Paperboy, who, remember, was on his first day on the job. This man was yelling at me while he was using the facilities. In his animated state, when he stepped away from the urinal, it was apparent that a lot of what he did dribbled instead on his pants. He knew it, and I knew it. It happened to be raining outside, and he made a decision that made me realize why he got paid the big bucks. Instead of going back into the meeting with stained pants, he went outside into the downpour, to the amazement of everyone present.

When he came back inside, his entire suit was as wet as his pant leg had been. He was a true problem solver. “It’s really raining out,” he said. Everyone already knew that, because they could see the deluge.

Only the Paperboy knew – as Paul Harvey would say – “the rest of the story.”

At this point in my career, I’m well into middle age, and I still get excited about local news. I like to cover meetings. I hate long meetings. But, in all, I like to be there, and it’s fun to be at the center of things.

So, while I know I would have made a great meteorologist (who wouldn’t want to be paid for being right only some of the time?), I know I chose the right career path. And now at my age, my friends are starting to slow down and plan for life after their career.

Not the Paperboy! It’s full steam ahead, but I still do make time for a little mischief now and again.