Futurelawyer

The Real Reason I Went To Law School

Too Cool For School - St. Pete...Say What?

Visit St. Pete. When I came to St. Petersburg, Florida, for law school in the late Sixties, it was a sleepy little town that rolled up the streets at 10 P.M every night. Fast forward 50 years, and we are the new, cool kid on the block. Many have discovered what we always knew. The combination of weather, sun, surf, and a laid back attitude makes for a great place to live. This article in the Washington Post tells the rest of the world what we already knew. Now, the question is, whether we want all you snow birds to come down here. I'll have to think about that a bit.

#WhyIAmASolo - If They Pay You, They Get To Tell You What To Do

Today's Daily Stoic email touched a chord with me. It discusses the fact that Cato and Marcus Aurelius refused gifts, inheritances, and payment from others, in order to keep their independence, which they valued more highly. Seneca, on the other hand, accepted many gifts over the years from the Emperor Nero, and discovered, too late, that he couldn't get away. Ultimately, it cost him his life. Whether it is a big salary, big gifts, outright bribes, or other form of payment, money carries with it an implicit burden of loyalty to the giver, and the temptation of it can ruin the best of us. Always remember: "If they pay you, they get to tell you what to do".  

When You Absolutely, Positively Only Want To Carry One Lens - Tamron 18-400

Tamron 18-400 Zoom Lens. I own a lot of camera bodies and lenses, which I have accumulated over the years, since the Eighties. The early film cameras are still in my den, reminders of the days when I spent hours in a darkroom, developing film, and making prints from slides with Cibachrome. In recent years, the development of digital cameras has reached a point where a compact, light, and easy to carry system like the Canon Rebel T6 is the only camera I bring when I travel. Now, for a paltry $649, I only need to carry one lens, the Tamron 18-400 Zoom, to shoot anything under the sun. Really. I can shoot animals in motion, landscapes without vibration, and anything in between. I don't have to get too close to my subjects. I am a lazy photographer, and tend to plant myself wherever, and zoom in and out at will. I don't even take a tripod with me anymore. The image stabilization built in to the lens (Tamron calls it vibration compensation) will correct up to 2 1/2 stops of movement, and gives rock solid focus at all times. Yes, Smartphone cameras have gotten pretty good over the years; but, there is no substitute for a good SLR matched to a good lens. See you in the field.

You Can't Fix Stupid.

Regret Is A Useless Emotion

Regret nothing. It won't do any good anyway.

#WhyIAmASolo - Dragon Anywhere - Digital Secretary For $15 A Month

Dragon Anywhere. There are many things a legal secretary or a paralegal can do that are essential to many modern day law practices. However, a semi-retired solo lawyer doesn't need, or can't afford, a full time employee of that caliber. But, it is no longer a world in which a lawyer needs to carry around a recording device to do dictation, and then hand a tape cassette to a typist for transcription. I never needed to do that in the office for many tasks, being a competent typist myself. (Thanks, mom, for making me take a summer in high school to take typing classes instead of playing baseball all day). But, when I am away from my office and my notebook computer setup, I still may want to create letters, documents, or other tasks that I want to have in digital form. Enter modern tech, and a $15 a month service from Dragon...Dragon Anywhere. This Android and iOS app brings professional grade dictation to the Smartphone, and automatically creates digital text that is saved in the cloud for later use. You carry your smartphone everywhere. Use it.

#ParrotSunday - Quaker Parrot Saves Girl's Life

Hero Parrot. Parrots are one of the most intelligent bird species, and their ability to mimic human sound makes them great for alerting humans to things they see around them. Willie, a Quaker parrot, was next to a toddler when the babysitter left for a moment. The parrot started screaming "Mommy, Baby"! when the little girl choked on her food. The babysitter returned to find the girl turning blue, and executed the Heimlich maneuver in time to save her life. Good job, Willie.

#ParrotSunday - Quaker Parrot Saves Girl's Life

Hero Parrot. Parrots are one of the most intelligent bird species, and their ability to mimic human sound makes them great for alerting humans to things they see around them. Willie, a Quaker parrot, was next to a toddler when the babysitter left for a moment. The parrot started screaming "Mommy, Baby"! when the little girl choked on her food. The babysitter returned to find the girl turning blue, and executed the Heimlich maneuver in time to save her life. Good job, Willie.

#ComputerSecurity - Back Up That Computer...Your Life Is On There!

My PNY Pro Elite 1 Terabyte SSD was delivered today, and I am imaging my hard drive as we speak. This thing is really TINY. My data and programs only take up around 210 Gigabytes, so I have room for several backups. It is a set it and forget it process, except that I have to stay until it finishes. Since it connects to USB-C the data transfer is really fast. Once done, I have a complete image of everything in the unlikely event the computer drive crashes or is lost or stolen. If you aren't backing up your programs and data regularly, you are risking your practice and your life. Keep the drive in a separate location, and just do it.