Commentary, my editor called it.

Looking back, it seems a bit grandiose, but at the time I was a 17-year-old kid and thrilled out of my mind to have my name and picture on a newspaper column with such a grown-up and professional-sounding title.

My first hard-hitting offering addressed the controversial topic of time. It took a cold, tough look at how difficult it can be to get things done, blew the lid off of the proliferation of busy schedules, and drew the reader to the profound conclusion that people surely are busy these days.

Hardly an auspicious beginning. Good thing for me I was working for and learning from Tommy Toles, the finest editor ever to hold a press card. The Chief gave me my first professional break, and as I grew up in the business under his tutelage, Commentary grew up with me. The topics gradually changed from music, movies, and high school antics to foreign policy, public education, federal funding for the arts, allegations of scandalous doings in the state prison system, and various and sundry political and social issues. It was a gas, and Commentary was ultimately the recipient of four professional awards.

The Chief moved on, and, later, so did I, eventually to Chattanooga to develop The Hamilton Post, a neat little publication that deserved to live longer than it was allowed to. Each of the editors involved in production had a column in The Post, but I decided not to call mine Commentary . It just didn't seem right. New town, new paper.I needed a new column head.

Trouble was, my supervising editor and I could never agree on what to call it. He thought my choice was too avant-garde, I thought his suggestions were too benign, and my column rarely appeared under the same heading twice while we tried to come up with a mutually-agreeable title. It never happened. And never really mattered, because The Post had barely marked
six months of publication before it was killed, another casualty of
brilliant corporate-level decision-making.

But that's another story. Here I am now with Chattanooga Profile, an electronic publication that we hope will serve as something of a storybook about the Scenic City and the people, businesses, and attractions that make the Chattanooga area a great place to live. It's been in development for some time, and we hope you'll think it's worth the effort. I know I do.

And I knew, from stage one of development, that I'd bring Commentary back. It's probably silly, but launching Chattanooga Profile has made me feel that I've come full circle, back to the enthusiasm I had when I started out in the business 19 years ago. Commentary reminds me of the old days, and it's a tip of my fedora to The Chief. I owe him at least that much.

Do not, however, expect Commentary to completely live up to its name these days. The topics won't be heavy-no scandals, exposes, or investigative reports. It will simply be another avenue, a different style for telling stories. My stories, other people's stories.we're just going to have fun with it. Which is what Chattanooga Profile is all about.

It's been said that good stories last longer than technology (which I firmly believe and am thankful for), but we'll still see what we can do to preserve a few in electronic form. And hopefully we'll all have a good time in the process. Thanks for keeping us company on the ride.