Article content continued

“I don’t think it’s news, seriously,” she said, in typically self-deprecating style, when reached about the resignation.

She began the afternoon slot, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., in May 2016. The show is a mix of news, current affairs and lifestyle stories and required eight to 10 items a day, many of which she had to find on her own. So the pace was hectic, unrelenting.

“I always said I didn’t want a job with deadlines and homework and now I’ve got both,” she laughed.

Meehan said she found she was monitoring news constantly — seven days a week, morning, noon and night — to the point that she wasn’t “present” at home for her teenaged children. It particularly struck her after taking the summer off and turning down the news dial at home.

But, come September, it all came rushing back.

“I’m watching news at dinner, I’ve got the computer on in the morning, the paper’s flipping around, I’m watching every channel I can,” she said, lamenting the fire-hose of information that daily flows in the digital age.

And, after being a neutral reader and recorder of the news for her entire adult life, she was now a host required to have a sparkling on-air personality and interesting opinions every day, not to mention an instant expert on an ever-shifting list of topics.

“This was tougher than anything I’ve ever done in my life.”

So, after 18 months, she’s turning off the microphone and returning to her blog, to be updated at a more relaxing different pace.

To contact Kelly Egan, please call 613-726-5896 or email kegan@postmedia.com

Twitter.com/kellyegancolumn