I dread it when a writer comes into my office, asks to talk to me and closes the door with a sad look on his or her face. I know what is coming next. I restrain myself from allowing my head to fall forward or bite my tongue to avoid saying, “Oh no.” Then it happens. That dreaded introductory phrase that more often than not sends me into deep depression: “I’ve enjoyed working here, but…” Man, do I hate that dreaded coordinating conjunction, “but.” It inevitably leads to a valuable writer giving two-week’s notice.

The loss of such a writer hurts worse when he or she is an incredible person, in addition to being one of the best staff members ever to sport a Picayune press badge. Some people you just like to be around, and Eleni Himaras is one of those people. So, when I recognized the drill that I’ve been through too many times during my 15 years as the Picayune’s editor, I didn’t bother trying to restrain from dropping my head.

It seems like just a couple of months ago that a similarly well-liked staff writer did likewise after less than a year on the job. Will Pafford left after winning a highly coveted first-place plaque for news writing in the Texas Press Association Better Newspaper Contest. Receiving notice of his departure was painful, but he led off with news that he had been accepted into the Florida State Law School, and that he was giving me more than one-month’s notice. So it would have been selfish of me to drop my head in that situation. But it still hurt, and I came so close that I felt like one of those bobble head figures.

Eleni is happy that she and an old friend found a great, affordable apartment in Brooklyn, N.Y., closer to home, and she is optimistic about soon continuing her career as a writer. Although she doesn’t have a job lined up yet, I’m equally optimistic that she will be successful in whatever job she lands.

Like Will, Eleni also gave more than a month’s notice instead of the standard two weeks because, well, that’s just the kind of thoughtful, considerate person she is.

We bid farewell to Eleni with a party Tuesday and wished her nothing but the best. She feels that her service to the Picayune and this community was a satisfying experience. She is a special person who we miss already.

It’s an arduous task to wade through the more than 110 applications that we routinely receive when we advertise a job opening for a staff writer, but I feel certain that any one of the top six applicants for the job could make an attempt at filling Eleni’s shoes and be a perfect fit. Then again, almost all 10 of the extremely talented applicants that I interviewed would be great assets for any community newspaper. We aren’t quite ready to announce the name of our new staff member, but I am happy to report that one old adage has proven to be true: Every cloud really does have a silver lining.