The Morning Paper

Post date: May 10, 2011 9:50:54 PM

In the late-80s anime classic Bubblegum Crisis, there is a short segment that chronicles the early morning routine of one of the main characters. At one point she walks over to a computer, presses a button, and the machine prints out the morning paper for her to enjoy while she eats her breakfast.

Back when I originally watched the series over a dozen years ago, this scene seemed so futuristic. Though I was using e-mail and browsing the Web back then, the idea that an entire newspaper's worth of information could be accessed so quickly and easily via her computer seemed mindboggling. Of course, if I were to watch that particular Bubblegum Crisis scene today, I'd think "I can't believe she printed that out!"

But, I must say, there is something about a printed newspaper that is still really appealing to me. This past week a teen was going door-to-door selling subscriptions to our local newspaper and my wife decided "Ah, what the heck?" and went for it. And, after not receiving the paper for the past half-decade, I didn't expect that it would actually be really fun!

Sadly, our town's newspaper is a shell of its former self, which I assume is the case just about everywhere. I actually found myself wondering where the rest of it was, only to realize this is the rest of it. Dang, it's so thin! We live in a different world than we did during the era of thick newspapers. Much of the information that is no longer included in the newspaper would probably be called "LOLz OLD'd" by most readers, anyway. So, the paper has evolved into something of a leisurely and supplemental source of information than one of breaking news. I kind of like that.

The only real problem is the physical act of reading the paper is something of a chore. I have to slow down and find time to read it, which is not always easy with two young children. This morning I snuck in reading the paper while my son was still asleep and my daughter was sitting in her high chair eating breakfast.

Oh, and I suppose there is one other problem: the news is often really depressing! I made a conscious effort a couple years ago to stop paying attention to the news as much as possible, and my life has been a lot less stressful as a result. So, what have I found myself doing with my daily newspaper? Skipping to the fun stuff, like the comics and movie reviews!

For ten bucks a month, receiving a physical newspaper each day is not a bad deal at all. Sure, there are other avenues for acquiring the information presented in the newspaper's pages, but it's a format I still enjoy. Perhaps the creators of Bubblegum Crisis realized that even in a high-tech world, there's nothing quite like holding an actual physical newspaper while you sit down to morning coffee and toast.