Frustration

I run a small town news website - Happy Camp News - where I'm managing editor, publisher, head reporter, photographer, cook, bottle-washer, and everything else.

I've been trying to get the local sheriff's department to send me news releases since I started back in 2001. However I wasn't a real business until 2003, so at first I didn't press it. Here it is 2005 and I'm still having trouble with this.

What IRKS me is that the daily newspaper in our county seat gets news releases from the sheriff's department constantly. And I'm not asking for any extra consideration - I just want the same exact news they're giving to the daily newspaper. I pay a county business license fee and feel I'm as entitled to county sheriff department news as any other news agency in our county.

I've written to their PR Rep three or four times since January and went to see her once in person - she claimed she was in the process of getting used to a new computer system. bleah... how long does it take?

Our Sheriff will be here in town soon... and you KNOW what I'm going to be asking him about!

This week I finally got the first news release - check out my front page. "Evans Promoted to Sergeant". And this would be oh so great to hear except that it happened back in DECEMBER. I got the news release on March 18.

Working outside my home

I've been working at home for a few years now. I do webdesign and maintenance and write novels. But when I heard some of my friends were renting an office downtown I decided to ask if I could participate in the venture. Now I'll be sharing the office three ways, and it is a tiny little office... but I think if we all have different hours we won't get in each others' way too much. I'll be spending about four hours there, five or six days each week.