Many of the Gazette's observant readers had our phones abuzz Thursday morning, and rightfully so, as page 3A contained news and events from March instead of what had occurred on Wednesday.
Specifically, several callers were curious about a black cat story that was teased on Thursday's front page and was to run on, you guessed it, Thursday's page 3A.
Where was the story? What happened?
Well, essentially the wrong file, an older file, got selected when assembling Thursday's edition.
Not to make light of the situation, but some invoked dark humor about the misplaced page.
Most of us at the Gazette are pet lovers and proud, responsible pet owners.
However, some of us aren't as smitten with kittens, or cats, for that matter.
One person in that camp jokingly blamed the disappearance of the correct 3A content on . you guessed it, the black cat story.
"That black cat story jinxed the page," the person quipped. "Bad luck."
He and I know better. There was a production glitch for sure, but it had nothing to do with long-held, misguided superstitions regarding black cats. The black cats shouldn't get the bad rap that they do.
The black cat story was originally slated for Thursday's run to coincide with Aug. 16 being National Black Cat Appreciation Day.
But actual events that occurred on Thursday, which you can read about in Lori Dunn's story in today's edition, made the black cat story even better.
How purrfect, at least for that story.
Another animal-related story ducked out of Thursday's 3A, but also appears in today's edition.
The longtime, popular Texarkana Duck Race, benefiting CHRISTUS St. Michael's Friends of the Foundation, begins at 10 a.m. Saturday at Holiday Springs Waterpark.
And what about the stories from March that republished in Thursday's edition?
The March 30 veteran's event is over.
I realize the gravity of the wrong page appearing in the paper. It's like a former co-worker says, "When we make mistakes, everyone knows."
Indeed.
Additionally, I'm not excusing or dismissing what happened.
All we could do come Thursday morning was field the calls and emails, address the problem on our social media platforms and sincerely apologize.
Yet, finding levity when things don't go as planned is a good survival skill to develop and possess. It goes a long way in seeing us through trying times.
A sense of humor, which contributes to our outlook and attitude, can make us a light in another person's world.
Let's face it, there's a lot of stress, dissension, fear and anger in our country. In many instances, people are feeling unsettled and uncertain, and it has nothing to do with the absence or appearance of a black cat story in a newspaper.
I'm hoping the tale in today's edition about black cats, especially one cat, gives you a light-hearted feeling.
After all, you had to wait a little longer for it.