Sunday, February 03, 2008
unPATRIOTic (just for today)
History shmistory. I don't care if they're 18 and 0. The Dolphins already achieved perfection. Besides, the Giants are the underdogs, and if I hear one more person drool on about Tom Brady I'm gonna puke. Just throwing out my $.02. Go Giants!
Friday, February 01, 2008
No such thing as a stupid question? Yeah right!
I can't remember the last time I was really embarrassed about anything. I'm talking about the kind of burning embarrassment where you can actually feel the blood rushing to your face without anybody having to point it out. Until today, that is.
The DA's office in Tulare County is known for providing excellent training. Our office is certified by the state bar to have our trainings count towards mandatory continuing legal education (MCLE) requirements for active attorneys. We usually do trainings on Friday afternoons, and the last two weeks have been an intriguing course called "Homicide on Call," dealing with a multitude of issues surrounding homicide investigations and prosecutions. The course has been videotaped, and instruction has been provided by senior attorneys within our office as well as outside experts from different agencies within the county. My goal in attending, as in most of what I've been doing the past three weeks, has been to learn as much as I can without screwing up too badly.
The final speaker today got up and started explaining the county's witness relocation and assistance program. When he was finished he inquired if there were any questions. I noted that he hadn't specified who he was with and whether the program was administered through our office's Bureau of Investigations or another agency, perhaps the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office. After a moment's hesitation, I raised my hand and asked him to clarify. To my dismay the courtroom (yeah, we were meeting in one of the courtrooms) erupted in laughter. Apparently this particular instructor has been with our office since like forever and nobody could believe that this new kid would pose such an inane question. Amidst the chuckles and giggles I could hear supervising attorneys and senior deputies from the other side of the room saying, "Who was that?" "That's [and here's where my first and last name get inserted, only I'm leaving them out because the last thing I need at this point is for anybody from the office (besides Darla, who, coincidentally, I met today and whose parents in Michigan somehow found my blog and asked her about it) stumbling across this blog through a Google search for "Idiot".]"
So yeah, I was embarrassed. But what are ya gonna do, right? They say you shouldn't worry about what people think of you, but I think it's only natural for someone who's launching a new career to want to be well received by their peers, especially when those peers are professionals. I think I distinguished myself today- unfortunately it was not in a positive way. All I could do was shake the guy's hand afterwards, ask him to please excuse my ignorance, and explain that I've been in the office a total of three weeks and I'm still trying to get everyone straight and figure out what's going on (in an office with over 200 people including 70 plus attorneys in four different branches).
Anyway, I actually have some positive work-related items to blog about, most notable of which is that I have two trials scheduled for next week- one a court trial involving driving on a suspended license, which will probably end up getting postponed; the other is a DUI case with a defendant who is in custody and has asserted his right to a speedy jury trial, so it's on! I'm excited about it and will be doing trial prep this weekend, but right now I'm off to Fresno to play mindless video games with friends. If you've got an embarrassing tale of your own, be sure to post a comment about it so I can laugh at somebody else for a change
The DA's office in Tulare County is known for providing excellent training. Our office is certified by the state bar to have our trainings count towards mandatory continuing legal education (MCLE) requirements for active attorneys. We usually do trainings on Friday afternoons, and the last two weeks have been an intriguing course called "Homicide on Call," dealing with a multitude of issues surrounding homicide investigations and prosecutions. The course has been videotaped, and instruction has been provided by senior attorneys within our office as well as outside experts from different agencies within the county. My goal in attending, as in most of what I've been doing the past three weeks, has been to learn as much as I can without screwing up too badly.
The final speaker today got up and started explaining the county's witness relocation and assistance program. When he was finished he inquired if there were any questions. I noted that he hadn't specified who he was with and whether the program was administered through our office's Bureau of Investigations or another agency, perhaps the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office. After a moment's hesitation, I raised my hand and asked him to clarify. To my dismay the courtroom (yeah, we were meeting in one of the courtrooms) erupted in laughter. Apparently this particular instructor has been with our office since like forever and nobody could believe that this new kid would pose such an inane question. Amidst the chuckles and giggles I could hear supervising attorneys and senior deputies from the other side of the room saying, "Who was that?" "That's [and here's where my first and last name get inserted, only I'm leaving them out because the last thing I need at this point is for anybody from the office (besides Darla, who, coincidentally, I met today and whose parents in Michigan somehow found my blog and asked her about it) stumbling across this blog through a Google search for "Idiot".]"
So yeah, I was embarrassed. But what are ya gonna do, right? They say you shouldn't worry about what people think of you, but I think it's only natural for someone who's launching a new career to want to be well received by their peers, especially when those peers are professionals. I think I distinguished myself today- unfortunately it was not in a positive way. All I could do was shake the guy's hand afterwards, ask him to please excuse my ignorance, and explain that I've been in the office a total of three weeks and I'm still trying to get everyone straight and figure out what's going on (in an office with over 200 people including 70 plus attorneys in four different branches).
Anyway, I actually have some positive work-related items to blog about, most notable of which is that I have two trials scheduled for next week- one a court trial involving driving on a suspended license, which will probably end up getting postponed; the other is a DUI case with a defendant who is in custody and has asserted his right to a speedy jury trial, so it's on! I'm excited about it and will be doing trial prep this weekend, but right now I'm off to Fresno to play mindless video games with friends. If you've got an embarrassing tale of your own, be sure to post a comment about it so I can laugh at somebody else for a change
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