You’ve probably noticed the subtle hints: The occasional yard sign, popping up like an early-season flower. The slowly increasing barrage of ads on the TV, radio and your favorite websites. Your mailbox, groaning under the load of direct-mail pitches for one candidate or another.

Not to mention the steadily increasing flow of election-themed letters to the editor.

There’s no doubt about it: We’re in the heart of election season.

And with the primary election just about seven weeks away, let’s talk about the deadlines for your election-themed letters to the editor.

Let’s start with a couple of obvious observations: Although the Chieftain has a growing website, which can accommodate an infinite number of letters, we only publish one printed edition each week. That means our print space for letters is limited. And after today’s edition, we have just seven Wednesday editions before Election Day on May 21.

So, if you wanted to be sure that your letter gets printed in the paper edition, you’d be well-advised to send it to us by April 30. We’ll do our best to accommodate election letters that come to us after that date, but those letters might have to run only on our website.

Although I love Oregon’s vote-by-mail system, it presents challenges for news outlets planning campaign coverage. That’s because some voters operate with an enviable efficiency: They vote as soon as the ballot arrives, and ballots are mailed beginning May 1. And so that date — May 1 — is when we’re planning to publish the last of our county commission profiles. (I know what you’re thinking: What on Earth will the Chieftain write about on May 8, 15 and 22? We’ll think of something.)

Speaking of the May 22 edition, it is a little annoying that we print that paper before the polls close on Tuesday, May 21. But we’ll be posting results on our website, wallowa.com, on that Tuesday night as soon as they’re available.

So fire up your laptop and start pounding out those election letters now. (And be sure you’re registered to vote: The deadline for that also is April 30.)

‘Office hours’ were a hit

Thanks to everyone who took us up on our offer to swing by the Chieftain’s offices last Wednesday for the “Office Hours” event.

For a couple of fun hours, our offices were filled with people who just wanted to chat about the newspaper.

This was the second time I’ve held one of these “Office Hours” sessions, and the conversations always have been engaging — and, occasionally, challenging. But it’s a good thing to be able to work on a newspaper in a county that cares enough about our work to take the time to tell us what stories we’re missing, what we could be doing better — and, every so often, give us a pat on the back.

If you want to check out the next installment of “Office Hours,” grab your calendar and a pencil. I’m tentatively scheduling the next session for the week of April 28. When I have the details worked out, I’ll list them in my weekly email and make sure they’re noted at least a couple of times in the pages of the Chieftain.

The conversation between a newspaper and the community it serves is important. I look forward to keeping that discussion going strong.

Of course, you don’t need to wait for the next edition of “Office Hours” to send us a note about the Chieftain: You always can send an email to editor@wallowa.com or mmcinally@wallowa.com.