At long last, we have new look

We are going to assume that you have noticed the change in News-Barometer this week.

It’s nothing Earth shattering. It’s just a little bit of redesign work that we hope will make the product a little more palatable to the eye..What we do hasn’t changed. We still want to focus on the news and events that shape our lives, and we still rely on you to help us find those things.

My wife calls this move the seven-year itch. We have been at the helm of the paper for just over seven years. It was time to freshen it up some and give it a new look.

There was a lot of discussion about this endeavor. Holly and I have been talking about it for nearly two years, but time didn’t allow me to tackle it on my own.

We put Amy in place, and that gave me the time to look at the project more closely, and someone better at the software than me to make it all work. Thanks for that.

We have been through our share of not-so-great employees, but for the most part, we have been extremely lucky, more so than many other small businesses we are acquainted with.

Patty handled our pagination chores for about three years. She was good, she was fast, and she had a great rapport with the clients who make this all possible. Her husband (dang the man) got busy with his own business endeavors and needed her help. Since we couldn’t offer her enough money to overcome the pull of a loving relationship (not enough in the world for that one) she went to help him. We were sorry to see her go.

About a year later, Amy came along. She had a great history in graphic design, and a willingness to try new things. She constantly asks me for more responsibility, but I guess I’m just not quite ready to let the baby stay out on its own for too long.

The time is coming, though.

So what you see is mostly Amy’s talents, with a blending of ideas from all over the office. She took each idea and made it work. I like that about her.

And, she had the good sense to know which ideas weren’t really serious. And I had a lot of those, usually brought out after late nights working on other projects, or after a karaoke night (with the requisite courage-enhancing beer).

I went to her one day and told her to just wipe out the existing template and we’d start from scratch.

She ignored me. Thanks for that. I like that about her.

Believe it or not (and I know many of you find it ghastly hard to believe) I’m at my best when the staff ignores me on a regular basis.

Sometimes I feel like the black sheep uncle of the family. You know the one. Everybody knows he’s related, but no one talks about him. And when he shows up to speak, you nod your head convincingly and allow his prattle to go in one ear and out the other. Then you do what you know should be done anyway.

I like that about them.Sometimes I have to ask who is really the boss here? They all point to me. But I know that

somewhere behind their backs the fingers are crossed, and that as soon as I leave the room, they have forgotten what it is I said, passed it off as an Alzheimer’s moment (which I don’t have yet) and gone about their business.

I like that about them.

So take a look at our new look. It is brighter, fresher and more Keysy than what we had. It is the first in what will now be a small series of changes as we tweak the product to try and make it more pleasing for you, our readers.

But remember this. Like so many other product improvements, the changes are just on the surface.

Like the new, improved dish soap you buy off the grocery store shelf, the contents of the bottle remain the same, it’s just the packaging on the outside that’s different.

And if you’re so inclined, give us a call, or an email, or a letter and let us know what you think.

I trust the staff will be able to ignore the unreal ideas from everyone else as well as they are able to ignore them from me.

I like that about them.

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