First I read that Western Union has gotten out of the telegram business. Today I read that Del Monte is going to phase out its pineapple operations in Hawaii.

    Dole, which has about one-third as many union workers, plans to stay in the game. Good move, because apparently there’s going to be quite the labor pool available.

    How hard can it be to harvest pineapples? Fair question. But I have found too many times that some tasks are harder than they look.

    (Not that I am awash in special skills. But thanks to two stints at Dawn Donuts, I do know how the jelly filling gets inside.)

    So with diversification and outsourcing changing the faces of some of our oldest companies, what’s next? Newspapers getting out of the print business?

    Kidding, kidding. At least until the technology for electronic tablets greatly improves.

    Bargain of the day: $12.99 for a dozen roses and frills at Foodland. My daughter the actress has a show opening tonight, and flowers are de riguere.

    This post originally appeared on ourMidland.com, the online home of the Midland (MI) Daily News. Republished with permission.