I can finally say it: I feel guilty that I am no longer a journalist.

It all started last week, when my subscription to The CA suddenly stopped. Turns out they hadn’t sent me a bill, but the point is that it took me THREE DAYS to call and re-up. Did I miss that dead-tree reading experience? A little, I guess, but the online version was almost as good.

Then I got a Kindle. You know, one of those handheld reading devices that Amazon sells. (Actually, I am borrowing the St. Mary’s “review copy” of a Kindle, but it lives in my house, so I guess it’s mine.) And you know what? I really like it. The device sort of disappears as you use it — you just read your story, you forget you’re not actually holding a book — and it’s easy to figure out. I am reading the daily New York Times on the Kindle, too.

So you can see why I’m worried that I’m about to get struck by lightning. All those years making a living in print journalism. All those great stories I never got to tell. Never mind that the industry is imploding and fewer reporters are doing more work in less depth. And forget, for a moment, that I really am enjoying my new life as a private school fundraiser/communicator.

I still miss journalism.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg by Ruven Afanador for the New York Times

It was the cover story of last Sunday’s New York Times magazine, and several of my more plugged-in girlfriends have mentioned it to me since: A terrific interview by Emily Bazelon with Ruth Bader Ginsburg, now the only woman on the United States Supreme Court, about the upcoming confirmation hearing of Sonia Sotomayor. Depending on who was talking, we all see ourselves in her: My friend W. loved how Ginsburg pointed out that when she talked at a judicial conference, no one heard her, but when the guys at the table said the same thing, it was a brilliant idea. What I loved was hearing her certainty about the big issues of our time: Abortion (she points out that “women of means” will always get to choose now, so it’s an issue about poor women), racial discrimination, and civility.

Long live Ruth!

… which is how I have decided the jump from The Commercial Appeal to St. Mary’s, three months in, should really be described. It’s definitely not a bad thing, not at all. I was thrilled to be going to St. Mary’s, and I am really enjoying my new work there.

But I completely underestimated the enormous change I was bringing on myself. Read the rest of this entry »

Well, it took a little longer than I thought, but I’m thrilled to be back blogging at iDivamemphis, this time as a civilian … no longer an employee of The Commercial Appeal or skirt! magazine.

In order, here are the most frequent questions people have asked me since my departure. The answers? Well, here’s what I know. We’ll puzzle out the rest as we go along.

Dear Diva watchers: Beginning tomorrow, my blog will be untied (decoupled? unhitched?) from The Commercial Appeal’s Web site, and I will begin blogging early next week as the civilian I will soon become. My tech gurus assure me this is doable, but there might be a little down time as we figure everything out. Please stick with me … and come back … and link me with your (other) favorite blogs … and tell your friends. Let’s keep this conversation going. I can’t wait!