I haven’t been sleeping very well, lately, and – as the saying goes – I know the reason why. It’s not that I fear an imminent zombie apocalypse or soon-to-be hostile alien takeover (hey, it could happen); I’m not sick or otherwise incapacitated; and while I do suffer from an overactive imagination (dreams, nightmares and the like ... typically involving zombie apocalypses or alien invasions), I usually manage to sleep my way through the night.

The truth be told, it’s an upcoming vacation that has me up and shivering in the wee hours of the morning. To be more specific, our esteemed editor’s upcoming (and well-deserved, I might add) vacation.

Why should that scare the living daylights out of me, you ask? Hey, Golden, don’t be a wimp, it’s only two days, you say? Because a good portion of the responsibility involved in piecing together Chenango County’s Hometown Daily (since 1891, no less) will be mine for a couple of days.

I know, I know, it can’t be that bad, right?

I’ll let you know on Monday.

Needless to say, I’ve been training ... perhaps not rigorously ... but steadily over the past two weeks for the task, one that I’m honestly excited for (the constant worrying just adds to the excitement ... really). Do I think I can handle it? Well, that’s not really the problem, because I’m sure I can ... and will ... somehow. No, my problem is quite the opposite.

I tend to over-stress myself (needlessly, most of the time) when faced with any new responsibility, whether I already know I can do it or not. It’s kind of like stage fright, in that regard.

And it’s not like I’ve got much of a choice, when you think about it, considering Ed. – as you ‘30 Seconds’ addicts know him – is certainly not going to miss out on his vacation.

I don’t blame him one bit ... as I said, it’s well deserved.

To be honest, I faced a similar sort of fear when I first took over The Evening Sun’s police/fire/EMS/court beat all those months ago. Can you blame me? It’s not like there’s any formal training for the job; it involves dealing with some of our county’s more significant leaders, not to mention the criminal element involved; and ... for lack of a better reason, it’s probably the most sought-after beat.