Futurelawyer

What The FutureLawyer's Office Looked Like Before I Bought A Scanner.

I still have a lot of paper files around the office. But, for ten years, I have been storing documents on my computer's hard drive, and in the cloud, after scanning them and destroying the paper. It's been a long slog; but, I am now scanning receipts as they are generated, a handful at a time, and I can show you a receipt for stuff I bought in 2011. What are you storing your documents in?

#PoetryFriday - Photograph ReDux.

He looked closely at the photograph.
It held an image of his youth.
He was filled with promise,
overflowing with optimism.
It was the face of hope,
unaware of the desolation ahead.

The photograph’s single dimension
reminded him of another self.
The young man in the photograph was
free to hope,
free to wonder,
free to grasp,
and looking for the future.

He remembered the photographer.
prodding,
annoying,
motioning,
and jostling with the hangers on
and the wannabes,
asking him to share his soul,
whether or not he wanted it.

He took a photograph in his mind,
moved to a new decade,
and wondered whether the wisdom of age
would bring the photograph to life.

Did it look at him
and laugh?

Why Have A Remote Lawyering Backup Plan? Ask The Hurricane.

After a day and a half of plus 75 mph winds, 24 inches of rain, downed power lines, and worse, I now have a real example for other lawyers who tell me that I don't need redundancy in my Internet and computer use. BTW, we in Pinellas County got the weakest part of the storm. South of us there is true devastation, and we should all be thinking of our colleagues there. I have 3 options for shelter during a storm. My home, My office, and the RV parked at the office. I have 3 methods of connection to the Internet, my cable modem at the office, my smart phones and smart hotspot from TMobile, and the Starlink Satellite dish on top of the RV. In this case, the power went out at the office, but stayed on at home. So, we rode out the storm at home. Had the home power gone out, we would have gone to the office; and, finding that power out, would have powered up the RV generator, which provides power for AC, lights, the Starlink dish, and charging capability for the smartphones. An 1800 watt solar powered generator acts as a backup to the gas generator on the RV. As long as cell service is available, I can use the TMobile hotspot for up to 100 gigs of bandwidth, and each smartphone supplies another 20 gigs if needed. The cost of all of this is not as much as you might think. The TMobile hotspot is $50 a month. The Starlink RV plan is $135 a month. The generator is powered by the sun, and has a 100 watt solar panel that folds up with a handle. Solar panels on the house keep the monthly electric bills manageable. My next big purchase will be a whole house solar battery for the house, which provides some backup to power outages at the house. I have several small backup batteries that can charge a notebook computer and smartphones up to 5 to 10 times. We can't control what fate brings us in the way of natural disasters; but, we certainly can prepare for them. Now, since I will be working from home the rest of the week, I am going to light a cigar, pour a couple ounces of single malt, and chill out in my chair. Enjoy the suck.

 

A Rose By Any Other Name Would Be Favorite Stuff.

Red Shoes Are Better Than Bacon. Sorry Jen; but, nothing is better than bacon. We do agree that you can never have too much stuff, and that you don't have to love something, or have a use for it, to keep it. I draw the line, however, at driving all of my stuff a thousand miles in a truck, only to have to hire someone from another country to move it again. You are my hero. And, bacon is better than just about everything, except maybe for sex.

FutureLawyer Celebrates 25th Anniversary.

1997 FutureLawyer Web Page. Yes, children, 25 years ago this month, the FutureLawyer website was born. Early websites, however, were pretty static, and comprised a bio of the author, and recent article length features. Not exactly a reason to visit every day, unless you were my mother. In 2005, a seminar by Kevin O'Keefe in Chicago motivated me to convert it to a blog, with daily updates on topics of interest to me. It is difficult to believe that, with very few off days, I have been writing every day for 18 years. I love web.archive.org, which stores pages from millions of websites since the beginning. This screen grab of my original title page features art that I paid for, and a design created for me. I merely supplied the content. Happy Anniversary to me.

 

Gen Z Goes To The Art Museum.

Alright, hold your judgments, boomers. It is possible they are viewing a digital docent describing the pieces in the museum. Of course, it is more likely they are ignoring the elephant in the room. You choose.

A Stoic's Guide To Hurricanes.

Stoicism And James Bond. "

In the center of Bond was a hurricane-room, the kind of citadel found in old-fashioned houses in the tropics. These rooms are small, strongly built cells in the heart of the house, in the middle of the ground floor and sometimes dug down into its foundations. To this cell the owner and his family retire if the storm threatens to destroy the house, and they stay there until the danger is past. Bond went to his hurricane-room only when the situation was beyond his control and no other possible action could be taken. Now he retired to this citadel, closed his mind to the hell of noise and violent movement, and focused on a single stitch in the back of the seat in front of him, waiting with slackened nerves for whatever fate had decided for B.E.A. Flight No. 130."

In Florida, we get a lot of hurricanes. Ian came through yesterday with a vengeance, and there are millions of Floridians dealing with the aftermath, and millions more who are facing it today and tomorrow. We in St. Petersburg had a lot of power loss; but, the brunt of the storm passed south of us, and we are fortunate. The whole experience has reinforced my Stoic beliefs, and my previous experience with Irma 5 years ago this month. Fate will do as it wills, and there is nothing any human can do about it. Flailing around trying to control outcomes is futile. We do what we can, and then we accept fate's results. Too often, when fate deals a blow, some of us spend days, months, or even years, allowing the memory to affect our lives. The key to Stoic reaction is resilience. We never give up. We never surrender. We find goodness and joy in every human experience, no matter how dire the experience looks or feels. Your spouse dies? Get up on your feet, and allow life to bring you another. Every time I say that, I get "But, how can you experience joy with another?" "How disrespectful", etc. In fact, it would be wrong to waste a life over something in the past and out of our control. Your house floats away in a hurricane? Sorry, but, if you are alive, you dig in, fight for insurance, and build another. Epictetus was in slavery his whole life. He lost a leg. Still, he persevered and became one of the wisest philosophers of his age, or any age. 

Back to James Bond. While his exploits seem unreal and impossible, the point is always his resilience. Nothing fazes him. He perseveres. He keeps his hurricane room, which is a metaphorical center of his reality that he goes to to await the next judgment of fate after he has done all he can in a given situation. Be like Bond. James Bond.

#WhyIAmASolo - Nobody Can Tell Me When, Or Where, I Can Work.

Office Mandates Heighten Standoff Between Law Firms And Workers. The Pandemic has highlighted the fact that lawyers and law workers don't need to be in a specific physical location to do their job. Some BigLaw firms are fighting this trend, because of a perceived lack of control over the work product. Many younger lawyers and workers are leaving the firms because they refuse to work without some flexibility provided by modern technology. A word to the wise BigLaw employers. Get with the program or find that the best employees are working for a more enlightened boss, like the FutureLawyer. Sorry, kids. The FutureLawyer office is just for me. But, you could start your own solo firm. Go see Carolyn Elefant, at MyShingle.com, and read her book, Solo By Choice.

What Happen To Your Parrots When You Die?

Florida Pet Trusts - Protect Your Animals And Birds.

Today, I am highlighting Section 736.0408 of the Florida Statutes, which authorizes enforceable Trusts for the care of any animal alive during the Settlor's lifetime. The assets placed in the Trust may only be used for the intended purpose, unless a Court determines that the amount in trust exceeds the amount necessary for the care of the animal. So, if there are any Leona Helmsley clones out there, Florida won't allow you to put Twelve Million Dollars in trust. The statute, which is only 3 paragraphs., legalizes such trusts. Animal trusts, however, can be as complex as necessary to meet the Settlor's needs.

Happiness In Marriage Starts With Acceptance.

Just as Stoics meet tragedy with acceptance, so also life's mysteries. The sooner you accept that you can't win, the happier your life will be. You have no control over external things. Get over it. Hey, there is a hurricane coming, dear. I have to work somewhere.