When Miss Manners Discovers Clip Art; Suzanne monitored our every movement with the zeal of a dictator, but she never saw the big picture.

Publication: Newsweek

Publication Date: 26-JUL-04

Bookmark this article Print this article Link to this article Email this article Digg It! Add to del.icio.us RSS

COPYRIGHT 2004 Newsweek, Inc. All rights reserved. Any reuse, distribution or alteration without express written permission of Newsweek is prohibited. For permission: www.newsweek.com

Byline: Kate Hahn (Hahn lives in Los Angeles.)

The copy machine at my old job was the size of a small heifer. It stood in a stall made of three cubicle walls. Shredded paper was strewn on the floor like a sparse layer of hay. I could have sent an intern there to make copies for me. But doing it myself was a chance to get on my feet, stand next to the machine's warm flank and listen to the rhythmic sound of paper moving through its gut.

Each day, my pastoral moment was marred by a fresh sign pinned above the copier. please, it said, in 128-point italicized serif type, REFILL PAPER TRAY AFTER USE. The words "paper tray" cast a forward shadow of black ink onto the page, as if the...

Read the full article for free courtesy of your local library.