At the end of a day

This morning began in an unbelievable state of control. I was able to go to the office first thing and make copies of the discovery documents for the criminal case in Lamar County. I drove very leisurely down to Barnesville and got into the courtroom about twenty minutes before court was scheduled to begin. There were very few people in the courtroom. I was the only one with any official capacity until the assistant clerk arrived.

When I arrived for court, I had forgotten what my client looked like. I don't know if this is pathological but it happens from time to time to me. I have had several occurrences of going into court and not remembering what my client looked like. I don't know if this is normal or not. There are so many clients and they tend to run together unless there is something remarkable about the client or his or her situation. When I got to court this morning the only thing I had was a remark that Lisa had made in which she opined that my client looked like Patti's oldest son.

As I waited for court to begin, I kept looking at everyone who entered the courtroom, looking for someone who looked like Dillon Clark. Oddly, it was relatively easy since my client looked amazingly like DJ. They could be brother and sister. Later, before court began in earnest, my client motioned for my attention and I went back to speak with her. She was clearly nervous and wanted to know what was going to happen and what was going to happen to her that day. Despite what the constitutional law cases say about an arraignment being an "important" phase in the criminal process, the arraignment is really no sweat. Everyone but the actual accuseds are relaxed and even celebratory in the way they react to one another.

I was feeling no anxiety and the whole experience was so nonchalant. Even when my client's case was called there was no anticipation or stress. I just went up to the front and entered a plea to the judge. Later when they had handed me a copy of the discovery for the case, everyone was so cordial and friendly. I left the courtroom with my client and just told her we would take care of the situation. Everything was so controlled, quiet and in hand.

From there, my day unravelled. Every hour added another bit of stress as people would call me to get things down now. I had my share of upset people and my equal share of the satisfied and happy. I held the hands of the upset and shook the hands of the others. By the end of the day, I took a file with me intending to work on it tonight, but there was an equal share of stress at home and I ended up going to the grocery several times and trying to get supper for everyone (not really), but mainly watching television a bit to relax.

In the morning, I need to be able to jump on it early and get things done. I have two real closings, one probate report and one set of divorce pleadings to prepare for tomorrow. I also have to get ready for two other closings at the beginning of the next week.

I bought breakfast items for tomorrow. I am actually looking forward to breakfast tomorrow. Odd.

It is so odd when I consider how sweet my growing up was for me. I look at programs on television where people reveal how bleak their lives were. I wonder. I remember Don Crossley talking about life being like a soap opera. Was he referring to his own life? Was that his frame of reference? How sad. I think he was estranged from his parents in the end and divorced and blustery. How strange that so many of my friends in college are divorced, some for multiple marriages. How sad. Was there something about the environment or the people who found their way to the environment? So few of these guys are married to the same person they married in the first place. George Ballantyne and George Berry are two that I can think of. But there are so many who aren't. What is the common thread? Are the divorced ones guys who were ego-centric? Are the married ones balanced? It would be interesting to do a psychological study of them to determine the differences and the common threads.

I treasure those years in high school and college. Even law school had its moments. But you can't hold on to those guys. I wish I knew where all those guys were. I wish I had some contact with them.

I found that picture of Eddie Cameron from the College Football Hall of Fame. The All-American from W&L. The picture looks like somebody I could have gone to school with. In some ways I think a lot of the guys who played football at W&L in the scholarship days were more like me. They came from working families and public schools. Some of their lives were pretty rough. But they weren't snooty, rich sobs. There were plenty of those at W&L; something tells me its still the same there.

This is rambling a bit too much for my taste. I'm afraid my original prediction is coming to fruition. Maybe I should have cut this loose and killed it at the beginning. Maybe I should try for quality rather than quantity. Well, tomorrow is another day.