Nothing matters but deadline

Coffee was especially welcome and necessary this morning. Yesterday I traveled back from Long Beach, Calif., where I had covered the May 29 hearing conducted by the American Numismatic Association board of governors at which a complaint lodged by Dwight Manley against Don Kagin was handled. Unfortunately, I did not get back to Iola, Wis., until 1 o’clock this morning, so I am somewhat less than sharp as a tack.

Weather delays backed up the air traffic system in Chicago, so I was delayed by around two and a half hours.

I am not unhappy, though. I met deadline yesterday with my story for both the Numismatic News print run to Shawano and for the www.numismaticnews.net Web site.

It might seem surprising that I did not return to my office until Friday when the hearing was conducted on Tuesday. Part of this is certainly the travel factor, but mostly it was due to the waiting factor.

Though the hearing went from roughly 9 a.m. until 5:40 p.m. Tuesday, I spent the most time in the process simply waiting. I waited for the board to come out of its deliberations. This it did at roughly 7:30. I write “roughly,” because I was not parked outside the closed meeting room door. I was sitting in the hotel bar just off the lobby and I looked at my watch when I noticed the ANA president enter the area. I was eager to find out the result, but that entailed more waiting.

Executive Director Christopher Cipoletti soon arrived and told me that he would begin writing the decision document the next morning. It would be circulated to the six governors who decided the issue, the two parties would then be notified and then, and only then, would a public announcement be made.

Chasing the board members turned out to be harder than I expected. Both Alan Herbert and Prue Fitts and traveled back to their homes Wednesday, so the draft had to be passed by them electronically. Barry Stuppler had to undergo a previously scheduled medical procedure.

By the time all was said and done, it was very late Wednesday night. It was so late in fact, that I was sleeping. I did not finish my assignment until Thursday morning, but that made the paper and that is all that matters.