Slusher: A suspicious envelope in a nervous age

We were briefly the subject of the news Thursday, rather than merely reporters of it. The event disrupted our day. It scared some of us, angered others. But it had broader consequences, too, some of them shamefully wasteful, some actually positive, some simply telling indicators of the times in which we live.

It started with a single envelope that mail handler Jim Hanlon came across as he started his day around 7 a.m. as he often has over the course of his nearly 30 years with the Daily Herald, sorting the mail. The envelope was an odd shape, and there was no return address. When he shook it, it seemed to have something loose rattling around inside. Then he found several others just like it, all addressed to different individuals, none with any identifying characteristics. Jim knows the world we live in. He reads the newspaper he works for. Only two days ago, a suspicious envelope was found at the White House. He got nervous.

Rather than merely pass the mystery along to others, he contacted people responsible for the safety of our building. They weren't sure what we had either and in an abundance of caution, contacted police. Within an hour, the Daily Herald's main office building in Arlington Heights was ringed with fire trucks, police cars, ambulances, hazardous materials trailers and other emergency vehicles, red and blue lights flashing like psychedelic popcorn. Employees already in the building were evacuated, and those arriving for work were turned away.

Our own reporters and photographers began reporting for our website, and radio, television and online broadcasters around Chicago shared the story. For many employees, it was one of those oddly confusing experiences when you don't know whether to be amused or terrified.

In the end - by about noon - we were relieved to find we got to be amused. It was nothing serious, nothing dangerous. For some of us, relief bubbled into anger when we considered the immense amount of resources that had gone into assuring everyone's safety because of something some knucklehead decided to put into the mail.

But the anger was tempered with other realizations, too.

For one, it was interesting to see how little such an event actually disrupted our business. Thanks to the miracles of the digital age, many of our employees were able to simply turn around and go home to work while the office situation was sorted out. For another, it was gratifying to see the commitment both from the company and from all those police, fire and emergency workers from Arlington Heights and numerous surrounding communities to the protection of the people who work here.

And perhaps above all else, it was impressive to see the professionalism and skill that those emergency workers brought to their jobs. It is said that people don't appreciate police or firefighters until they need them. We see a lot of them and have plenty of reason to be impressed, but the feeling is still never quite so emphatic as when it directly involves you.

In the end, it was not so bad to find ourselves briefly subjects of the news as well as reporters of it. And oddly, we found much to appreciate in spite of the hassle.

Jim Slusher, jslusher@dailyherald.com, is an assistant managing editor at the Daily Herald. Follow him on Facebook at facebook.com/jim.slusher1 and on Twitter at @JimSlusher.