The e-mail about the all-employees meeting came on my day off, so I headed in to the Star Tribune with my Zoe in tow.

You’ve probably all heard by now: 145 jobs will be cut from the company’s 2,100 positions. Most will come from buy-outs and if those don’t do it, lay-offs will probably follow. As our publisher and editor lay out the dire state of the newspaper industry and answered questions, Zoe sat on the floor and took her pink-and-green sandals off. And on. And off. And on. She clambered onto political editor Doug Tice’s chair and spun around. And around.

Don’t kids just help you put it all in perspective. The little girl walking through the newsroom was probably the only thing that prompted any smiles that Monday. For me, it was a reminder there’s life outside and that a job is just a job. Even if it’s one that helps define you. But the potential loss of a job, when you’ve got a family to feed and a house to pay for, is also a little scarier than when you’re single and footloose and free to move on to the next city.

Kay and I are still here, for now. But as people begin to contemplate the terms of the buy-out, who knows what the next few weeks will bring?

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