As I said in my “goodbye column” when I left six months ago, this is a crazy business.
For those who remember me, I was here last year reporting for the Mirror, but I’ve been down in Langford (just this side of Victoria) for the past six months, working for one of the Mirror’s sister papers, the
Goldstream News Gazette.
And now I’m back, apparently.
So…what did I miss?
Never mind. I’ll find out shortly, I’m sure, as I dig back in and re-acquaint myself with the community.
I must say, I had a pretty great time working at the Gazette. As a journalist charged with telling people what’s happening around them, it was fun – though challenging – to learn about a place from scratch while doing so.
All I knew of Langford before I arrived was that it’s just a quick jaunt up the highway from Victoria, but I ended up meeting a ton of interesting people who are doing interesting things, and felt privileged to be able to share their stories with the world.
And then just as I thought I was settled in, knew who I needed to know, had filled my digital rolodex with the numbers I needed to do the job well, knew when various councils and committees met and didn’t have to look at the map every time I left the office to know where I was going, the Mirror called.
“We need you to come back, Mike!” they exclaimed. “We never should have let you go!” they cried. They begged. They pleaded. They offered me a huge raise, showered me with praise and said they’d do whatever it took to make things right with the world and get me back in this office. It was really quite embarrassing.
Okay…none of that happened.
They did, however, decide that there was enough happening in the community that another person with some skill in story sharing was required in order to give people a more thorough sense of what’s happening around them.
And I guess I didn’t wear on them too much when I was here last.
Or maybe they didn’t get any other applications for the position.
Hard to say, really.
In any case, here I am.
It sounds, based on the rumour around the office, like I’ll be on the crime beat this time around, but I’m hoping I’ll also get to share some good-news stories, as well.
As some of you may well remember, I’m kind of all about community initiatives and sharing the stories of good people doing good things, and I’m looking forward to getting back to writing those kinds of stories again in Campbell River.
I think I’ll also be relaunching my Mike’s Musings column, where I just kind of ramble about the world and hopefully make some kind of point – or get people thinking, at least.
We’ll see.
For now, though, while we work out all the details about who will be covering what and when, feel free to contact me at miked@campbellrivermirror.com or on Twitter @PaperguyDavies with anything you think is newsworthy or interesting for the community to know about.
I’ll pass it on to the appropriate people if it’s not me who gets to help you share it, I promise.
It’s great to be home.
miked@campbellrivermirror.com