Oh, to have had today's tech back then

If only we knew then what we know now. And, oh, if only we had then what we have now! 

A lament on behalf of an unwell brother over a project I joined him on more years ago than might be wise to mention.

Sacrilege

Peter, who in worked communications in the Thames Valley region, near, Auckland, decided that the area could do with a free newspaper and issued on a Sunday at that, and certainly delivered on the sacred day itself. Nothing so novel about that today, you might think.

But back then, free newspapers were just about unheard of and a newspaper on Sunday! Sacrilege!

What would a community that shunned shopping on Sundays make of such commercialism? Pioneering spirit that he had, Peter didn't seem too worried by that and pushed ahead with the idea.

All the local news fit to print

He proposed that the two of us, plus a vitally needed secretary to help with the typing, would find all the local news fit to print, as the famous saying goes, and do it by ourselves.

And we did. Near the week's end, the stories and layout would go to a commercial printer who would produce the free Sunday paper.

You'll have spotted the problem already. Three mouths to feed, and now a commercial printer to pay. Printing didn't come much cheaper even in those days.

Somehow Valley News appeared each week and was delivered by hand, by the two of us, to houses all round the district. Often the newspaper included hot topics, for we were not afraid to take on slack councillors and officials.

Man shall not live on bread alone, as the biblical quote goes, and nor on a lack of it, which soon became the situation with we three workers. 

Continues on the blogs for my ocean sailing adventure book, Sailing to Purgatory, at SailingToPurgatory.com