Futurelawyer

#PoetryFriday - The Watcher.

I watched you smile the first time.

I watched you move in and out of the car.

I listened as you spoke kind words,

and I watched what you did when I looked at you.

I heard you speak the words of love,

even though I wasn’t listening.

I pretended that you weren’t real,

because I couldn’t believe that you were.

I acted impulsively when I was near you,

but not as quickly as I wanted.

I learned to watch and listen,

even when you thought I was being ridiculous.

I watched as you moved gracefully through life,

while I struggled to cope.

I was jealous of the attention you gave,

to everything and everyone else.

I was selfish and you were generous.

I never believed that you would leave me.

When you did,

I watched with anguish

and didn’t understand.

I watched you die,

and was amazed at your calm.

I cried when I kissed you the last time.

I wished I had done it more often.

I would like to believe that you are now watching me,

as I live a life that will certainly end someday.

I have found happiness again.

I don’t know whether your consciousness

lives in another realm.

If it does, I hope that you approve,

even though we can never know

what lays on the other side of midnight.

When I wake up in the early morning light,

I watch as the sun comes up.

I watch my lover sleeping.

She watches me back,

and I watch over her.

We have both watched other lovers speaking,

and moving,

and loving,

and dying.

 

We have days ahead

to watch and learn and love again.

28 Years Of The Internet And Lawyering Has Come A Long Way.

As I prepare for my 50th Florida Bar Convention in June, at which I will be presenting on being a mobile lawyer, using the power of the Internet and Technology, I came across this photo of my first Florida Bar Convention in which we were demonstrating the power of the Internet and Web Browsing. My Committee and I set up a dozen computers and connected to the Internet via telephone lines, and showed lawyers what the power of a world of connected computers could do for lawyers. Lawyers deal with information and using it to advise and counsel, and the Internet made the search for information light years faster and more accurate. It was 1994, and we called it "Surfin' The Net". I kept the graphics banners as symbols of that milestone. I started the FutureLawyer site that same year, and 10 years later, turned it into a blog, which I have posted to almost every day since. I have stored almost 16,000 posts over that time period, and it occurs to me that you could follow them for a pretty comprehensive picture of the progress of legal technology.

Humans Cause Parrot Behavior Problems, Not Parrots.

If you have a problem parrot, look at your actions, or those of its prior parent. With patience, most parrot behavioral problems can be solved.

The FutureLawyer Has Been Doing RV Law For Many Years.

Here is the whole post from 9 years ago:

Sunday Morning Fun. I am always looking for ways to show my readers the benefits of new technology. So, when I got my RV back after having the engine rebuilt (long story), I parked it in front of the house this weekend to work on it. It cost $98 to fill the gas tank (I think gas was $1.50 a gallon when I had it last), and $150 to update the Registration; but I am willing to go the extra mile for my readers. Photo One shows the ancient beast sitting in my front yard. It occurred to me that the old road warrior still had some life in her. Nobody in my family will set foot in it, since they are afraid it will break down again. Oh, they of little faith. But, it occurred to me that that wasn't necessarily a bad thing. I had dreams of solitary weekends in the great outdoors, with a comfortable bed and air conditioning waiting for me at night, and listening to the birds and the animals all night long, and fishing or swimming all day. But, I digress. How could I survive without Internet access? How could I show my readers what it is like to be in the wild? Then, I discovered the old 32 inch LCD TV I had left in the coach. Eureka! As you know, I just bought a small, light Chromebook last week, and the Acer model C7 has an HDMI out port. So, just for fun, I plugged the Chromebook into the TV, and found that my front yard has access to my home DSL router. Internet! This post is being written on the RV desk, while I am in the front yard communing with nature through the RV window. Photo Two shows what it looks like to camp out in the FutureLawyer universe.

Hey! I could park this thing in the Courthouse parking lot, and practice law out of it? This reminds me of the Seventies TV series, Petrocelli. If you are too young to remember it, look it up. Or, when we thought a great adventure was camping out in the back yard! Oh, youth. Oh, happy days. I think I feel a solo road trip coming on.

#WhyIAmASolo - I Don't Have To Make Small Talk At The Coffee Machine.

I also can have parrots at the office.

Been There. Done That.

Why old people need two pairs of glasses.

#WhyIAmASolo - I Don't Have To Wear A Tie To Work.

Unless I have a court hearing, I wear what I like to work. Most clients don't care. They hire me for what is between my ears, not on my shirt. I realize that WFH has weakened dress codes at BigLaw; but, I suspect there are still requirements that big firms enforce. The older we get, the less we worry about what we wear, and comfortable becomes the key.

My Next RV Will Be A Spaceship.

Postcard From The Future.

Follow The Science.

I cringe every time someone tells me to "follow the science". Science is the state of daily discovery; and, what was science yesterday, is the false narrative of today. We need to develop a healthy skepticism about what others say about science. Lawyers become quite familiar with so called "expert witnesses", and their questionable "scientific analysis". I tend to play the odds. When scientists tell me that an experimental vaccine is protection against a virus, I recognize that they can't be certain. But, I look at the odds, and decide to get vaccinated. I am not "following the science". I am judging the advantages, risks, and disadvantages, and making a personal decision. Fifty years ago, this is what passed for science in the field of medicine:

Julie Andrews Hates Fragile Lipstick.

Wince and groan all you want. You know you are going to share this with someone else.