Growing up in Nevada none of us are unaware of the long reach of the federal government. With over 87% of the land in Nevada controlled and managed by some alphabet soup agency based in Washington D.C., we identify as Nevadans first because of those federal relationships that run our lives and THEN by some party affiliation or other – elephants or donkeys.
We’re all familiar with the DOD, BIA, BLM, USFS, USDA, BOR, DOE; they go on and on and on regulating some part of life from recreation to making a living. We in the west cannot flee from this fact.
And then – then… there is the U.S. Postal Service. Neither agency nor service.
All we really want to do is put out our little paper and provide regular, local news and all the great things that happen in our community. We do it online and now we do it in print which means now we must maintain a lovely, productive relationship with federal regulations and federal employees. Not something we ever considered would be a part of our newspapering – we just thought we would write stories about everyone else having to do it.
Sitting here writing this, my left eye has begun to twitch.
We’ve been ten weeks navigating a postal permitting process, running the gauntlet that is federal forms. We are sleazily intimate with 3500, 3548, 3541, and now we even know 3602-R. We’ve read and re-read, and now printed out and created a neat little binder in which the handbook for periodical mail will live forever in the shop with Becky.
We haven’t been rejected out of the process as of yet, and for that, I remain eternally grateful. However, the chance still exists. I fear my sleep pattern is permanently altered from the abject fear of not getting the approval we need.
This process is eating up staff time, taking a toll on our senses of humor, and bonding us with postal regulators who are still working remotely in New York City. Yes, the feds are your friends. They can be. They have been lovely and supportive and patient, and we wish we could send them flowers. Or chocolates. Or pie. You’re kidding yourself if you think we haven’t sent flowers to 89406. Those poor folks have to deal with us every week, part of the team that’s getting you your papers and without them, it wouldn’t happen.
At any rate, I’m just venting. We’re still having the time of our lives, we just want to ratchet up to the next step of excellence for you and I’m impatient as all hell. But while we wait for that approval, know we will be right here…
…keeping you Posted.
Rach
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