Special Powers Can Be So Much Fun.

It's always good to have dinner with friends in downtown Big City. Working in Small Town is nice, but it has no friggin' culture at all. We left the Irish pub stuffed from Shepard's Pie and beer. Some of us, those without children, decided to head up a few blocks to a martini bar. The cold November air was nice. It made a nice counterpoint to my slightly beered up and warm condition.

Our conversation went something like this:
Friend: So Wolfrham congrats on the job. Does this mean you can arrest people now?

Me: Yeah, one of my special powers is that I CAN ARREST PEOPLE NOW!

About 10 feet in front of us two young black males, age 18-25, stopped what they were doing and looked around. The three of us walked right by.

Me: OMG! Did those two black guys just stop when I said I can arrest people?

Friend: YES! That was pretty cool. You should say that again loudly so we can see what people likely are troublemakers.

Christmas Comes The Day After Thanksgiving.

I bought my laptop before going back to school. It was a factory refurbished model to save a little money. The laptop is well over 5 years old and I wouldn't be surprised it it was 6 years old. In laptop years that is ancient. A 800 MHz Celeron with 384 MB of RAM (memory) simply can't handle modern antivirus software or modern webpages. If I could run an antivirus program without bringing the laptop to a grinding halt I would try to postpone buying a new laptop. The money isn't quite there for a decent replacement.

However what was 'old reliable' in law school is now quickly dying. While Dells kept dying among my classmates my Gateway hummed along. This week I had to salvage my data to an external hard drive and reformat and reinstall Windows. This is the second time in six months I've done that. While not chattering currently, I hear the hard drive chattering excessively this week. A few times this week Windows has booted up and shut down in the span of an hour instead of a few minutes. The Gateway is on life support even with my best tricks.

The internet is a beautiful thing. I brought up the websites for Gateway, Dell, and HP. Laptop shopping is like shopping for a car: you'll never get a true apples to apples comparison. It took some time but I managed to configure a laptop from each that was roughly the same. The Gateway I liked ended up $200 more than the HP. The Dell I created was $50 more than the HP. The HP had what I viewed as a superior processor, a new Core 2 Duo from Intel. It was the slowest version of that most current chip, but it is the most current tech out there. The HP had a separate video card with 128MB RAM so it wouldn't share memory with the system. A free upgrade to a 120GB hard drive. Built-in wireless LAN, USB 2.0 ports, and 2GB RAM so Microsuck Windows Vista will run nicely. Holy crap it was a great laptop! I'm amazed at the amount of hardware you can get for well under $1,000 these days. Even with shipping and handling it's still a 3 figure deal.

The killer part is my parents decided to make it my Christmas present. I was speechless. I give my parents grief at times. They love me but don't understand how my world works. The legal world and my life is so different than their simpler world. But they love me and they want to see me happy. I wish I could say a material possession like a new laptop isn't the key to my happiness, but right now it is. Thanks Mom and Dad.

Black Friday

No way in Hell am I going out near a shopping mall or a strip mall with a large big box like Best Buy or Buy More today.

Shopping online is my friend.

I Already Knew I Was Going To Hell

The Dante's Inferno Test has banished you to the Fifth Level of Hell!
Here is how you matched up against all the levels:

Level	Score
Purgatory (Repenting Believers)	Very Low
Level 1 - Limbo (Virtuous Non-Believers)	Very Low
Level 2 (Lustful)	Very High
Level 3 (Gluttonous)	Very High
Level 4 (Prodigal and Avaricious)	Low
Level 5 (Wrathful and Gloomy)	Very High
Level 6 - The City of Dis (Heretics)	High
Level 7 (Violent)	High
Level 8- the Malebolge (Fraudulent, Malicious, Panderers)	High
Level 9 - Cocytus (Treacherous)	High

Take the Dante's Inferno Hell Test

Springing Around

Yet I love autumn as well. The pretty colors, football, and all. However I do love spring because it means winter is over.

Your Power Element is Wood

Your power colors: green and brown Your energy: generative Your season: spring Like a tree, you are always growing and changing. And while your life is dynamic, you are firmly grounded. You have high morals and great confidence in yourself and others. You have a wide set of interests, and you make for intersting company.

What's Your Power Element?

The Dark Side

Ugh. I feel like I've been hit from 20 different directions for the past few days. My time is not my own. I realized that going in, but to actually live it is a eye opening experience. Random phone calls, random pieces of paper, random extra files just pop out of nowhere. Instead of being paid as an attorney I should be paid as a fireman. I've been putting out lots of fires lately.

For some reason one judge is most unfriendly to the types of cases I handle. Everyone says he's a great judge, but he isn't the most understanding person for certain things. Of course those are the things I handle. Who knew he was a firestarter? Friday he let me know he had a problem with a case. The case didn't have a real problem; it simply ruffled his feathers. I would get one chance to fix the problem. Judicial discretion, what a pain! It took a lot of sleuthing, but I found my victim. I hoped my victim would be cooperative. My victim decided against cooperation. I understood the reasoning. Sometimes you are faced with a no-win scenario so the victim wanted to select the least worst option.

I win some, I lose some. I accept that. I hate losing before the battle begins.

It Sounds Like A Joke But Isn't.

I had to explain the new job to some friends. To truly explain the more interesting aspects of the job I gave 4 factors for my friends.

When in doubt every file has at least one, if not two, of the following:
1. Alcohol
2. Meth
3. Cocaine
4. A trailer

Monday Monday

I can't say today was a bad day. It was certainly a rough day. Things that take 15 minutes took 60 minutes. Things I've done once or twice before I completely forgot how to do today. A deposition I was covering for took twice as long as I expected.

The one file that I didn't get to last week because it was a guilty plea I got to today. About 10 minutes before the hearing I noticed the guilty plea was to a charge not originally filed. That might be okay if an amended charge was in the file, but I didn't see one. I saw some trial notes so the case looked like it was going to trial before a plea was accepted. Okay why was the accepted charge so low compared to the original charges? The attorney in that court noted that I would have to file a continuance and amend the charges. The judge lightly grilled me. I hate not having answers to questions. Thankfully defense counsel supplied a few answers. Ugh. At least no jail time is involved for this case so the defendant isn't getting screwed that way. I'm sure he just wants some finality.

"Can you fill in for a few hearings?" It sounded like a simple request. I could take notes about dates and times of the next hearings. Oh wait here's a surprise probation violation with the probation officer here. I'm so glad the defense lawyers do most of the work in the hearings. I'm hoping my deer in the headlights look wasn't too obvious.

I've never cross edited two documents at the same time before. After 3 or 4 hardcopies I managed to get both docs straightened out. It didn't help they were the same motion for 2 different cases.

Mondays just suck sometimes.

Nerd Test

What Be Your Nerd Type? Your Result: Science/Math Nerd   (Absolute Insane Laughter as you pour toxic chemicals into a foaming tub of death!) Well, maybe you aren't this extreme, but you're in league with the crazy scientists/mathmeticians of today. Very few people have the talent of math and science is something takes a lot of brains as well. Thank whosever God you worship, or don't worship, so thank no deity whatsoever in your case, for you people! Most of us would have died off without your help.
Social Nerd
Literature Nerd
Musician
Drama Nerd
Gamer/Computer Nerd
Anime Nerd
Artistic Nerd
What Be Your Nerd Type? Quizzes for MySpace

Call Me Spock

You Should Be a Mechanic

You are logical, calm, and detail oriented. You're rational when things are chaotic, and for you, reason always prevails. And while you are guided by logic, you aren't a slave to it. You're flexible when it counts. You are always open to being wrong. You do best when you: - Work with your hands - Can use tools, machines, or equipment You would also be a good architect or carpenter.

What Should You Be When You Grow Up?

A Cool Breeze.

Speaking of the new fan, it feels great in my office. A coworker thought it was a great fan. If I get the hottest office then I need the coolest fan. FYI: the low setting has he power of a jet engine. High is a mini-tornado.

Oh well back to the paperwork tomorrow.

Beer!

If I could figure out a way to embed the video I would.

Finally Some Climate Control.

My office is hot. I'm talking jungle hot. The rest of the offices have decent air conditioning. When the temps outside are below 80 my office ends up around Death Valley instead of solar surface temps. All I wanted was a fan.

Sadly those are out of season. Target, Wal-Mart, and a few other big box stores didn't have a medium-sized oscillating fan that would fit on my desk. I guess they're just summer items. On a whim I tried Fry's Electronics. They seem to have plenty of small electric devices, perhaps fans would be one of them. Fans were in the very last row.

I found one that wasn't made of plastic, but metal. For $30 it seems a very nice fan. I can't wait to try it out tomorrow. Sometimes it is the mundane things that are so important.

The Paycheck Is Not In The Mail.

A good thing too since I wrote some checks last night. Direct deposit is a beautiful thing. If I found my paycheck on the desk Monday I think something would have bounced. I wish it was a full paycheck and not a partial one. Once I know what to truly expect paywise then I can work on a budget. I'm going to take a guess that the numbers might work out okay, but the real issue will be timing of outgoing bills and incoming paychecks. I'll find out soon enough.

Day 6: A Little Bit Of Justice?

This would be my third(?) hearing. No wait, I think it was my second hearing. The guy already accepted the plea agreement so I needed to just answer a few questions and say a few major words. The judge, defense counsel, and the defendant would do most of the heavy lifting. I may be new to this real world lawyer thing, but I've been around the block a few times.

Most people say they're sorry when they get caught. This guy was different. His rehab had been going well for the year. He was on Step 8 on the 12 Step Program. Even the judge didn't know what Step 8 was since no one ever seems to get that far. The sponsoring witness remarked how much more mature and less angry the defendant was compared to the beginning of the program. Could this be the 1 in 100 guy who realizes that is downward slope in life really needs to be stopped before he hits rock bottom?

Few people live a charmed life. My own life has lots of rough patches. When looking at these people I know my life could be like theirs but for a few choices or circumstances difference. On paper I wanted to throw the book at him. I had to press for a severe punishment, but I was curious about the ruling. The judge was crafty and came up with something just and fair. He had to stay in rehab, that time would count towards his sentence, but it wasn't good time so no days off the sentence for good behavior. If he screwed up the full sentence would be imposed.

Okay sir you get a shot to better your life. I hope you make good use of your second chance.

Cutting The Safety Line.

I haven't worked since mid-June. Needless to say money is tight. When the roommate's rent check comes in I dance an Irish jig for joy. Last year I was working that first job my degree opened up for me. I was scheduled for a night job as well. I decided to work the night job as well. It would only last 4 or 5 weeks and I could use the extra money. Then the day job disappeared through no fault of my own. Stupid non-profits never have good cash flow. I was suddenly very happy to have that night job. It was a good safety line to have some cash coming in.

In a twist of fate I was scheduled to work that same temp night job again starting Thursday night. I'm not certain what hours and days my upcoming new day job will have, but I'm pretty certain I couldn't get to the night job by 5:30. It starts at 5:30 and there is no way around that. They're very draconian in many ways. I admit it: I'm paranoid. Far too many times what I thought would be THE JOB was yanked out from underneath me. Sometimes after the job starts, sometimes before it started. Regardless I'm tired of being yanked around as if I were the chew toy to the fates.

Day job should be my first real start in my legal career. Their funding is secure (relatively speaking) and provided I learn quickly and don't screw things up my job should be secure as well (relatively speaking, security is ultimately a illusion we delude ourselves with). Yet I was very nervous calling the night job to let them know I wouldn't be starting. I explained that I found a new day job and there was no reasonable way I could get to their place by 5:30. All true and the lady congratulated me for my good luck getting the job. The night job doesn't really need me since they have a few hundred of us doing their grunt work. Yet that safety cord felt good to have. I always fear getting screwed over because so far I have been.

Pretraining

I have this job offer. The laptop keys are silent. The printer isn't printing off any resumes. The stamps aren't being used. The email server is not sending anything from me today. It's such a weird change of pace compared to before. I couldn't help it, but I had to check out one website. I saw a few new ads there. Both looked very interesting. Both would be full time positions. Yet I've verbally accepted this one job so I should stick to it.


It'll be a long drive to this job. I decided to do a test drive to see how long it would take and what the traffic would be like in the morning. The rush hour traffic is flowing the other direction, but there are some natural bottlenecks that slow things down. The trip is slightly less than an hour. I don't see any way to significantly reduce that time. Almost as important a question is what quality of radio will I have for such a long drive. I like the local AM station for their traffic reports. Once I get off the interstate I won't care about traffic reports. My fav FM station does surprisingly well through most of the journey until I get right into Small Town. The last five minutes are what a CD player is for!

I'll start reviewing some class notes and PMBR CDs tomorrow. I haven't touched certain areas of law since the bar exam.

The Light At The End Of The Tunnel?

He left a message on my cell phone. If a potential employer is calling back to leave a message to call him back it must be good news. Sadly I just got the potential employer's voice mail when I called back. Oh great we're playing phone tag. He was rushed when he called back, but he asked if I was still interested in the job? Naturally I said yes. It isn't as if I have any other offers. He wants me to come in next Friday for paperwork and stuff with my first official day being the following Monday.

Am I happy that I have a job offer? Yes. Am I disappointed that it's merely a part time job and one heck of a commute? Yes. Will I get good experience? Yes. Why do I sound so depressed about such good news? Simple, I've had lots of good news yanked out from me before. Will something go horribly wrong before I start? It's happened before. Will I get started working and then get screwed again in a few weeks? It's happened before. Right now I feel a cautious and weary optimism. If things go well I'll believe it when I see it. Until I start seeing positive things in my life I'm going to be weary though. If this opportunity goes through I intend to make the most of it, but I suspect it'll be a long time before I stop worrying about when the other shoe will drop.

I'm So Tired Of This.

Sorry, but the client is going with the team members they currently have. If they expand the team we'll be let you know.

Okay it wasn't phrased like that but that was the jist. Dammit give me a job even if it is a temporary position!

It's sad when the checking account gets to $64. At least there was some money in savings and a small check to deposit. How the hell can things be this bad for me?

Movie Review: The Simpsons Movie

The problem with many movies made from a TV show is they don't scale up well to movie sized plots and times. A half hour comedy is only 21 minutes once you get rid of the commercials. That and after 16 seasons The Simpsons is well past it's prime. Seasons 4, 5, and 6 are generally regarded as the high watermark of the series.

Oh dear was it disappointing. They had some funny stuff and a couple of good jokes. Just not enough of them. After the movie I felt like it would have been funnier if they condensed into a 21 minute episode. It's a shame to watch The Simpsons now. It's only a shadow of itself. You don't want to see the things you used to enjoy go, but sometimes you have to know when to say goodbye. Perhaps the time has come for Fox to finally let go of the classic.