At least I’m not staring at a wall all the time – as was the case during my time working at home when the pandemic struck.

For the most part of my three-plus decades here at the Register office, I have been in working from the four-cubicle space in what we call “the middle room” (we have a basement and second floor, for those who have never visited the office at 97 Townsend). Our advertising stalwarts, Kathy Frizzell and Sarah Morley, were my “neighbors” for a while but they moved into offices off the middle room. A host of reporters and assistant editors have taken up residence in the quad over the years and currently, reporters Bill Pearson and Joseph Charpentier work near me (the fourth desk sits empty). Musical desks and chairs, except for me.

I used to sit in the space Bill takes up next to the entry to the front office, but when the air conditioning unit was installed several years ago and Kathy moved into her office, I claimed her spot! This building gets warm in the summer and I had a hard time concentrating on my work. The AC helps immensely.

Besides facing a bulletin board filled with photos of family members, former co-workers, the Beatles, a granddaughter’s artwork, a crow sitting atop a spruce tree (a personal favorite), holiday cards from friend Susan Quinby (sometimes quirky but fun), a squirrel’s tail encased in plastic (a real conversation piece) provided by friend Fran Nicoletta (who read my column on not seeing many squirrels a year or two back), and a few quotes, I also have a “window to the world” beside the AC unit.

Back when Lynn Cartwright and David McKown were my co-workers, they erected to the tree outside my window a wooden, “dual-seater” for the squirrels to play on. The duo would put handfuls of corn on the seats for the rodents. Now, the contraption hangs off balance, has rotted, and the squirrels don’t come around anymore. Miss them all.

This summer, especially, I have seen more people walking their dogs up and down Union Street (the street I face when I turn my head away from the laptop screen and my bulletin board). I wished I had taken photos of each and every one of them as the variety was wonderful. I could have filled a few pages and done an online gallery with those photos.

Maybe next summer I can turn my desk around, or finally leave the quad and set up my desk outside so I can get those photos.

Happy autumn, everyone!