The torrential rains over night have stopped, main street Naracoorte is slowly filling with the sound of steel tray utes and beef road trains.

I am 10 minutes late for my first day at the Herald….shit!!

This is the production team my boss tells me, work station carrels, lay out sheets and the smooth grey laminate of office space surrounds me.

Sub-editing sports results from the weekend and learning the house style, a short dabble in layout and organising my plan of attack  for the week all before lunch.

Organisation, Organisation, Organisation!

Make an institution of your organisational skills I urge you!

Everyone from the editor to the sports journos in the news room speak in short, concise sentences, you get it, you note it and you get more of it.

There is no room for poetic prose or pop culture references here.

The editor trudges up a quarter of the flight of stairs and speaks to the sports editor in a language that is foreign to me on my first day.

But I am unravelling, I am deciphering, I am becoming  more short, sharp and concise.

Already I see the value in working two rows back, one to the side and three rows or maybe five backwards to push this mighty boat onwards.

Rain scheduled for the rest of the week.

Time to grab an oar….