Live Your You

It is not common knowledge that this past week Alyssa Andrews our amazing editor of the Marshfield Mail left for vacation and put me in charge as the “acting editor”. Last week as she was preparing to leave and going over what I needed to know I had strep throat and to be honest I was like “yep yep yep” because I just wanted to go home and go to bed. 

Monday morning I woke up in a panic. 

In my head I’m going “holy crap I have to be the editor today and tomorrow”

When I arrived at the office Monday I settled in and got to work. 

And I worked.

And I worked.

And I worked.

Y’all listen, I am not a clock in at 8 and stay until 5 kind of girl. 

I’m more of like a show up around 9 ish, go grab lunch around 10:30, head out around noon kind of girl. I’m a work a few hours and see ya tomorrow girl.

I worked all day yesterday. I started from home around seven and I worked until after four. I think that’s the longest shift I’ve worked in like ten years-I’m not even kidding. 

When I got home I was so wound up from the anxiety and stress of “did I do that right”, “is everything in”, “I hope I didn’t miss anything” and “if any of this is wrong everyone is going to complain and Alyssa is going to be the one to deal with that and she is going to hate me forever and never get to take another vacation”. 

Stressed is not the most accurate word to describe my feels when I left the Mail on Monday. 

The thing about the newspaper is that most people don’t really understand how it works. They don’t know the amount of time and thought that goes into laying out each page. They don’t know that Alyssa usually starts her day on Tuesdays at 4:30 in the morning finishing proof reading every single story that goes into the paper, deciding which pieces go where, stressing over if it will all fit and if it doesn’t who to bump to next week and hoping that no one complains. 

And she does it all with so much grace.

After Shelby left and before J.T came on not only did Alyssa put out the paper but she was still writing stories-really good ones. 

I work here and I see the work that goes into the paper but until I literally put on the hat that Alyssa wears each week, I had no idea the amount of pressure she must feel each week. 

Marshfield, Webster County, you have no idea how lucky we are to have Alyssa. She gracefully, though hesitantly, stepped into the role of editor and she has truly given it her all. We are lucky to have someone as passionate about our community and eloquent leading our team here at the Marshfield Mail. 

This week, if you see something that isn’t quite right-I ask that you don’t yell at her. Please don’t call the paper and complain that she didn’t do it right. This week it wasn’t her, it’s me, and she does not deserve half the tongue lashings she gets from the public-but especially not this week. 

My email is listed under every one of my stories and at least for today you can send your complaints to me.