A Poignant Sunday - April 14th 2013

I want to thank Rick Martinez for inviting me to the Sunday Press farewell. As I entered the building from the north entrance I was struck with the sweet aroma of ink. Smells really do trigger memories, and at 155 Michigan Sunday April 14th a flood of memories overwhelmed me. The poignancy deepened when passing the empty marketing department, but I could hear music coming from editorial. A brief round of hellos and plumbing the depths of ackwardness ensued. Kept asking what I assumed were former employees what they were doing now. Only to discover they were still current employees. Ooops, I'm really outta of touch, and only knew about the farewell because of Rick.

Soon I felt a bit like a party crasher, and had an urge to visit other areas of the building. The first spot I went to was  just outside the editorial photo department. On 9-11-01 I was standing watching a little TV perched on a pillar with many others in the newsroom as tower 1 burned. Then the second plane hit. I can still hear the newsroom gasp in my head, and the instant realization that this wasn't any accident. Next I went to Photo, Imaging, and Dispatch as Rick and I visited. I slipped away to visit where my desk had been in marketing, and headed back towards editorial. When I reached the double doors at the top of the escalator I saw the banners from the pinnacle of the Press's achievements were still hanging. "We're on Top of the World" declared the middle one.  I looked down the escalator toward the lobby. Then went to the lobby to visit the press room window - all that was left was the bed of concrete and steel that use to house the presses.  This is what I saw, and it was enough contrast for the day.