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I was born and raised in the same town I now live in. Many people think the small scope of my geographic experience is a disadvantage, and there are certain things about staying in the same place your whole life that can get monotonous or even boring. But I believe that it is within this very monotony that the blessings of same town life can be found.

Nothing better illustrates the solace found in the reliable than the weekly local newspaper. It has been, and I hope will always be, there when I need it. When I was in high school and wanted to know who I had to put down in order to make myself feel better, it gave me a list of the kids in my class who’d made honor roll. After I’d graduated college and needed a score card to tell me my status in the grand scheme of things, it stepped up and provided me the names of the kids in my class who’d gotten married. That one time I walked home from a bar and woke up to find that I’d lost my ID and had a vague memory of talking to a cop, its thorough coverage of recent police activity told me weather or not I was wanted by authorities.

These are all important reasons to receive a weekly account of announcements from local businesses and minutes from the city council meeting. I’m lucky enough to live in a town with two separate local newspapers. This is important because it helps make sure the news is reported objectively and that the human interest stories don’t get skewed and show too much interest in humans.

Because of the importance of local news papers to me I have a sense of calm knowing that they will never not be delivered. Even when I don’t have the three dollars the delivery kids come begging around for every six months, even when I yell obscenities and throw a box of wine at the begging delivery kids, no matter what I know that the small circular will find its way to the spot on the front porch always wet because of a leaky gutter. This past week I was shown just how reliable they will be for me. In the middle of a level 3 snow emergence, when parts of the city didn't even have mail deliverey, both of the weekly local newspapers I’ve come to depend on found their ways to my door step.