For the past few months, I've been assisting in the editing/marketing operations of a newsletter distributed in the Pacific Northwest. While I make considerable contributions to the design and content of the newsletter itself, much of my time is spent proofreading each and every letter waiting to go into print.

I'm very detail oriented, so honing in on synonyms and syntax isn't as irritating as one may believe. However, after countless hours of staring at words, the text from rough drafts and outlines are no longer letters and numbers. They are a militia of cryptographic characters that render me illiterate.

3's blur into 8's. Columns merge into thick, dark blobs.

When speaking to friends and co-workers, I find myself sounding out logograms and punctuations marks:
"Go ask the editor hyphen in hyphen chief"
"I had a peanut butter ampersand jelly sandwich"
"Look exclamation point It's Brad Pitt exclamation point exclamation point exclamation point"

Other than the occasional blurring of vision and extended verbal communication, my proofreading duties have proven rewarding. I've gained insight into the operations of how to stay afloat amongst the hectic operations of meeting deadlines under strict guidelines. Because producing quality work under time pressure takes both talent and practice, I am sure this experience will prove beneficial down the road period