Futurelawyer

There Are Two Types Of People In The World...

Bernie takes a ride on the Mars Lander. It is freezing up there.

Zoom Fatigue Is Real - Take A Break And Use Email.

Zoom Fatigue Is Real And Now We Know What Causes It. You know, by now, what it is like. When you are on a Zoom call, you are constantly looking at the camera so your correspondent doesn't think you are ignoring them. You are trapped in your chair, unless you make an excuse. Everything seems forced. Phone calls and emails leave you with a sense of control, and in person meetings do also. So, when considering a Zoom call, think about whether it is necessary, and whether email would be sufficient. For lawyers required to attend Zoom hearings and trials, consider that the old ways of traveling to, dressing for, and sitting in courtrooms, had their own stressors, and count your blessings.

Why We Like Teddy Bears.

Everybody, in their tender years, seems to have some stuffed animal or creature that gives them comfort. It is about feeling safe, I think. Our parents want us to know that we are secure. My brother, Marty, loves to wind me up, and can be very annoying. But, he has acquired a huge collection of family photos that he is publishing on the Internet, and bring back many memories. This one, with my Dad and my favorite Teddy Bear, is now one of my favorites. He died when I was 5, and there are very few images of him while still alive. I challenge all of my readers to post photos of their teddy bears or other early life creatures and friends. In challenging times, we need to share what is common to all of us. 

WordPerfect Versus Word - Can't We All Just Get Along?

WordPerfect Wars. I have been using WordPerfect and its predecessors for 2 decades. I have thousands of documents formatted for WordPerfect, and I know the software like the back of my hand. However, my chosen profession has adopted Microsoft Word as the dominant word processing software, so I must navigate between two worlds. The good news is that both formats must coalesce into a document standard to be used and passed around for collaboration, and, if filed in a Court, have to be ultimately converted into a PDF file. So, I have learned to get along with everyone, and my document world is a happier place. In fact, both document processors have gotten quite good at converting back and forth. They had to, because so many of their customers demanded it. These days I work primarily in WordPerfect; but, I publish to PDF for efiling and email transfer. I work with Word documents sent to me, and send them on their merry way. I guess you could call me a word processing multi-tasker. Now, go get some work done. It really doesn't matter how you get there.

Sibling Love In A Time Of Pandemic.

Anyone else relate to this? Sometimes, a little distance is just the thing.

#PoetryFriday - Cleaning Day.

Cleaning Day.

He surveyed the detritus of his life.
There was a scrap of paper on the floor
that had survived for many days
and its tattered edges
had become permanently affixed
to the fibers in the carpet.
Dust animals
populated the shelves
and shared a place
with old sports memorabilia
that chronicled long since traded players
of a sport now played
without fans
and without noise.
There wasn’t enough room
for all his stuff,
and he promised himself daily
that he would clean out his attic-like space,
with cleaning utensils
and caustic fluids
applied with old rags
that hopefully weren’t flammable.
Most cleaning,
he decided,
was just moving dirt around,
and he refused to waste his life,
already full of useless distractions,
on a job that would never end
until his last day on the planet.
But, then, he had an epiphany,
and spent a few minutes
scrubbing the offending paper,
and vacuuming the tiny bits that remained,
until the carpet was ready
for a new infusion of dirt,
in the endless cycle of life.

There Is Life On Mars...But It Is Very Cold.

Researchers were shocked when Perseverance started sending back images of the Martian landscape, and they realized that the freezing temperatures had not discouraged the development of intelligent life. 

#WhyIAmASolo - I Don't Have To Worry About Employee Morale.

Don't like working for me? Hit the bricks, Charley. If I don't like working here, I just have to go home. When I come back to work, I am still the only employee I care about. 

#TBT - China Doll.

This popped up in Facebook memories. We are all made of China, and spend our lives avoiding breakage. 

China Doll

She seemed so delicate

Her pure white skin

against his dark arm

He was afraid she would break

if he held her too tightly.

She spoke of secret desires

and he understood.

He desired her with a fire

eternal in its power.

Brightly lighting his life,

it threatened to burn

but he came closer anyway.

He wanted to feed her

with his power,

To hold her with his arms,

Seduce her with his intelligence.

His words

were his tools

to let her know

that deep inside

he wanted her to grasp his soul

and carry it to ecstasy.

He imagined that she sat

before a quiet stream

Next to a forest,

while he admired her from a secret place.

He approached, unseen,

and she leaned forward

to hear the passing water.

He knew that if she heard him coming

she would

deer-like

run away to a place of safety,

thinking him to be just another hunter

looking for a meal.

How could he show her

that he was, like her,

a frightened deer,

running away from the hunters

who chased after him,

and that,

together,

they could protect each other

from the destroyers

and the breakers of china?

#TBT - Why Sports Broadcasters Don't Know Anything.

Cowherd On Bucs Super Bowl Chances. For today's throwback Thursday, I give you Colin Cowherd, who, for those of you not football fans, is a well known, well paid, football pundit who pretends to know what the hell he is talking about, and gets paid big bucks to do it. Flashback to November 10, 2020, after the Bucs and new QB Tom Brady lost in a blowout to the New Orleans Saints. Cowherd thinks that the Bucs no longer have a chance to win the SuperBowl and that Brady can't win playoff games on the road. In fact, he picked the then current playoff leading teams, Seattle, Philadelphia and New Orleans to punctuate his point. In fact, Brady and the Bucs faced better teams, led by Super Bowl winning QBs Drew Brees and Aaron Rodgers, and then won the Super Bowl against the flashiest QB of them all, Patrick Mahomes. Every time Cowherd pretends to be a football expert, this short clip should be played. Colin, Colin, Colin. Never bet against the GOAT.