Whenever someone gets a new job, nothing can be more stressful than the first day. From traveling somewhere you have never gone before, to meeting all of your new co-workers – to having to learn all of your duties – the first day of any job can certainly take its toll. But I have to say that my first day at The Nassau Herald was by far the best one I ever experienced – giving me a clear indication that I made the right decision by taking this job – and returning to my original career choice.

The office is located in West Hempstead, Long Island, which means that I have to take the Long Island Rail Road to get there. Having only taken it a few times in the past many years ago – I am completely clueless about the system. So in addition to having to prepare for my first day as Editor – I had to try and decipher the maze that is the LIRR, which I thankfully did successfully.

When I finally arrived at the paper, I must confess that I was a little intimidated. Having not been an Editor for almost a decade, I was nervous that I would be a little rusty, and need quite a while to get back into the journalistic swing of things – but I am proud to say that just like riding a bike – I hopped right on and got the hang of the job pretty quickly. From re-organizing how we prepare for each new edition, to setting up the Community Calendar – to laying out the paper itself – I can see that my choice to return to The Fourth Estate was a sound one.

As for the staff, who could ask for better? My reporter, Andrew Coen – is both a great guy and an excellent reporter. He knows the Five Towns area like the back of his hand, he is willing to do whatever it takes to get the next issue to bed – and we instantly clicked, which will make for a very good team in the newsroom. The rest of the staff is also great and were very welcoming. Everyone wished me good luck in my new position after introducing themselves – and told me to come to them if I needed anything. That made me feel a lot more at ease, because nothing makes a better working environment than a good staff to work with.

At the end of the day, which felt only like a few hours, it seemed as if I had worked there for a long time, meaning that yesterday did not feel like my first day at all – but rather my return from a long vacation – which in a way, it was – because once again – I am running a newspaper, which I now realize is something I was destined to do – and will continue to do for the rest of my career. For lack of a better example, my jump back into the journalistic pool was the right one – because the water is warm.

So now, I sit on the West Hempstead train of the Long Island Rail Road heading toward the Lakeview Station and my second day as Editor of The Nassau Herald…

…hoping the train carries me there a little quicker.