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There's a stretch of coastline we pass each morning that was introduced to us by one early a.m. collector as "Marble Beach".
With persistence, and a bit of luck, old marbles can be found among the far more common bits of sea glass, shells, and other beach gems. The man who told us about the marbles said some are antiques, but we don't know whether there's anything special among our finds.
Maybe there's a marble buff out there who can tell us what we've found so far.
Kaaawa marbles
(click for larger photo)
The Star-Bulletin ran a big spread earlier this week on a workshop being offered--for a fee--on the topic of bullying, complete with a nearly half-page photo. Important topic. But searching for the credentials of the workshop leader, all I found was this description: "a Northwestern media personality and inspirational speaker". Huh? Any expertise in the subject? Any training? Any research background in these issues? The crazy thing is that Kamehameha Schools brought in one of the nation's leading experts on bullying just a few months ago for a workshop offered to educators for free as a community service. That was probably a speaker who deserved to be featured. But they weren't selling a product, so it didn't make news.
Don Kendall, president of Oahu Publications (the corporate entity created by David Black to own the Star-Bulletin and MidWeek), spent an hour or more in the newsroom discussing the state of the S-B, plans, goals, performance, etc. Nothing earth shattering, or so I'm told, but the meeting was appreciated. Kendall told those present that circulation is up, single copy sales are starting to perk up, neighbor island sales up, and mail subscriptions are available again. Circulation problems appear to be under control, with the number of daily complaints dropping down into the "normal" range. Unfortunately, I talked to my friend in town yesterday, and she's still been unable to get the Star-Bulletin delivered to her house, but she's going to give it another try.I'm still running at less than full speed, still considering options. There's no shortage of freelance writing opportunities around town, even for the type of things I like to muck around in, but none are really financially viable. The amount paid just can't cover the amount of digging that goes into an investigative story. So either you do it for reasons other than the money, and there obviously are lots of such reasons, or you keep stoking the coals of inspiration, hoping for a sudden spark. I'm drifting into doing both--some writing commitments while continuing to imagine options. My gut says if you're going to work for next to nothing, why not work for yourself and do something that has potential for developing into something more? But my brain, running somewhat behind, is still pondering just what such a project would look like.
So it goes at the end of this week.
A strongly worded email yesterday disputed several of the critical accounts from within the Star-Bulletin newsroom cited earlier this week. It's a much appreciated viewpoint."I don't notice any tension between Midweek and S-B staff in the newsroom. In fact, the Midweek people I've worked with have been cordial, competent, flexible and helpful," this writer says. "As for people not falling all over themselves to do a good job, that's crap."
He proudly cites coverage of last week's freeway shooting, the Navy's court of inquiry and other military issues, the new sections being produced by the features ["And they're doing it with style and panache (boring section name notwithstanding)."], the expanded editorial section, and the expanded presentation of national and international news. There was more in the list, but you get the idea.
"We ARE falling all over ourselves to do a good job. Your mole might have some hangups, but the rest of us are still the Star-Bulletin."
The Nashville Scene features a long assessment of how their local daily, The Tennessean, has fared since being taken over by Gannett. Very interesting reading.
Finally, a bit of clear thinking down at the Star-Bulletin.A memo announcing a staff meeting appeared in mail boxes yesterday. Don Kendall will meet with staff this afternoon to give an update and answer questions. A very good decision, folks.
When MidWeek's marketing and sales crew moved into the 5th floor down at Restaurant Row, a Star-Bulletin telemarketing operation was set up in the midst of MidWeek's editorial offices out in Kaneohe, and they're still in the process of working out that relationship. Tensions continue, as they do between some MidWeek and Star-Bulletin staff in and around the Bulletin's newsroom.
The Star-Bulletin is still limited to two daily sections, while they're awaiting delivery of the missing part that will allow MidWeek's press to regularly produce additional sections. I think I can hear the grinding of section editors' teeth from out here in Kaaawa.
My Verizon DSL hookup finally was up and fully running yesterday. I've been in a troubleshooting mode for several days, and it appears the problem wasn't with DSL but with the ethernet connection on my computer. I couldn't get my desktop Mac to recognize the DSL modem, but when I brought in the iBook yesterday, it worked like a charm. So later today I'll be trying to diagnose the ethernet problem to determine whether it's hardware or software related.
I did manage to finally update the photo gallery, so click on the gallery banner at the top of the page to view the new pics.
The teachers' strike appears to be over after a contract offer was accepted by the union's bargaining committee last night. What a relief for everybody.I did receive several responses to Saturday's outburst. Here's part of one:
I believe this hypocrisy issue runs amuck in the entire journalism field, or at least at the papers and magazines where I have worked. I thought it was me. I thought I caused the problems in those companies by not sitting quietly by and letting those in charge get away with their bs. But, thanks to you, I realize it isn't me and it certainly isn't you.That's why I continue to work toward being my own boss in a profession that reeks from the incompetence of those who seem to rise to top in our industry. I've worked for the same kinds of people everywhere. And I'm sick of it. To my soul. Thank you for speaking out about what was really happening behind the scenes and helping me realize that my impression of my chosen career isn't only limited to the places I've worked. You've helped me in more ways than you'll ever know. Let me just end this by saying I completely agree with the idea that we as journalist need to tell the whole truth, no matter how difficult, if we strive to do a great job.
What else can I say?
I found myself chasing cats over the weekend in an attempt to field test the camera I bought to replace the one stolen on Friday the 13th eve. For those interested, this one is a Canon S10, which is now selling for a very reasonable price, under $400. It is similar to but a much improved version of the older A50, which I still have.
This is Harriet (a.k.a. Harry) striking a couple of poses.
The bottom photo was in response to one making the Internet rounds this week. Two friends sent me that "big kitty" picture, featuring what purports to be a man carrying his 85-pound house cat.
You can just about hear the sound effects..Here, KITTY, KITTY...in a very low register.
It prompted me to pose Big Harry down at the beach, the closest we've got to an appropriate supply of kitty litter.
The crazy thing is that sometimes our eight cats seem to expand to this size in our consciousness.
"Go!" went quickly.Go!, the snappy name given to the Star-Bulletin's new Sunday travel section, bit the dust less than a month after its debut, replaced in yesterday's edition by the traditional "Travel". According to newsroom scuttlebutt, the retreat was made at the insistence an existing or potential advertiser uncomfortable with the creative approach. Not sure if that's an accurate assessment of the decision, but it's worrisome that at least some staff were left with that impression.
Another change. I'm told there were no newsroom festivities following the Hawaii Publishers Association competition, where Star-Bulletin staffers brought home a respectable number of top awards. Pizza for lunch had become a tradition in the old Star-Bulletin newsroom, serving both to recognize staff accomplishments and build morale. Not in the "new" newsroom, though. No pizza. No lunch. Not even a staff meeting.
According to one newsroom observer, staff are now totally in the dark, cut off from information or influence. The new management has stifled the spirit that kept the Star-Bulletin alive during those long months of uncertainty. Nobody talks to anybody anymore. Management decisions are seen as being made through layers of Canadian consultants.
"They have no clue, no design sense. No sense of what star bulletin was or is. And they don't care."We save the sb and they dismantle it, or are dismantling it.
Basically its a weekly. They know how to do a weekly. What's a daily? A weekly that you do everyday.
As a result,, nobody is falling all over themselves to do a good job anymore."
Yesterday's entry had enough beef to last several days, so I'll keep it short today.This note from a Kaneohe resident came in yesterday's mail:
In a feeble attempt to support the HSB as an independent paper, about 3 weeks ago I used their website to order their Sunday paper. No response, no confirmation, no paper. Still reading the Sunday Advertiser.
Even some S-B employees say they're still having similar problems getting the paper at home. Although complaints from subscribers have tapered off, it might simply be because they're tired of complaining. Newsroom staff say they've heard the circulation department, operating out of MidWeek's building in Kaneohe, is having problems hiring and then retaining employees, which contributes to the ongoing problems. But staffers also say the newsroom has been cut off from news of the broader Star-Bulletin operation, so they have little info about problems and no opportunity to contribute to their solution.
Dawn, Kaaawa, April 21
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