Skinny

We deal in clichés – a good thing, too, since there’s nothing better than a good cliché – and one came to mind this week: You don’t miss people until they’re gone. That’s because Bill Magavern, who has represented the Sierra Club for more than a decade and served as director of Sierra Club California, is leaving his gig to head home and care for an ill relative. Despite the chores and stresses of environmental advocacy, Magavern took the time to educate reporters about critical issues – and their stories were better for it. The internal politics of the Sierra Club probably are as turbulent – even more so – than the politics of the Capitol or your average newsroom, but Magavern always was serene, unruffled and informed. Naturally, we tried to fix that, but couldn’t …. Speaking of changes, Andrew LaMar, former daily newsie and spokesman for former Senate Leader Don Perata and the California Medical Association, is back in familiar territory: the state Senate. He’s the new communications director for Sen. Ellen Corbett, D-San Leandro. He’s clearly enjoying his new job – but we’ll fix that, too.