Page Two

Summer, as you read this (and based on the Friday publication date), arrives tomorrow. We are in the midst of it here at the Chronicle, and fully aware of the contradictions between this slow, lazy season that was designed for long naps and little work and the relentless pace of weekly publication.

It is also vacation time at the Chronicle, which means on any given week between three and five staffers are gone. This will get more intense going into July, yet the size of the issues doesn't change that much anymore. The work goes on. The summer spreads around us. The issues continue to come out, one after the other.

Last week, I was at the North by Northeast conference in Toronto, Canada -- three nights, 25 clubs, 350 bands. This week is Austin, Texas, no clubs, and five trips to day camp.

Summer means the everyday visit to one city pool or another during the short run they are open. On the weekends, we try to go twice a day. It's a good way to wile away the heat.

The paper goes through changes, and issues are bigger than ever. We say goodbye to former art director Ben Plimpton, whose covers have been wonderful, as he returns to school in Baltimore. New art director Taylor Holland officially begins with this issue but has been filling in since the beginning of June. The transition has been painless, the future exciting. Both Plimpton and Holland worked their way up through this beast that is referred to as the Chronicle production staff.

The Chronicle's future staff is in good shape as well. Paul Abraham Steinberg was welcomed into the world on June 6, the nine-and-a-quarter-pound son of Richard Steinberg and Pamela Bruce. Both mother and father are longtime writers for our paper, Steinberg being best known for his syndicated column, "Mr. Smarty Pants." All three Steinbergs are well and happy -- this is not information read in a book, a magazine, or the newspaper, heard on the radio, seen on television, or overheard at a party. We send them our fondest congratulations.

The "Best of Austin" ballots are being counted, the short stories are being read, and The Austin Chronicle Hot Sauce Festival is being prepared. No "issues" in "Page Two" this time, just the stories to read and the summer to enjoy.