Gotta Get In Shape!

I am slowly get my life back after law school and taking and passing the bar exam. I have been doing some intensive spring cleaning--clearing out clothes from 10-15 years ago that I forgot I have. Books I didn't want to read when I bought them. And shoes that I will never wear again. It is making me feel great. Now I need to get in shape. I have been reading some liporexall reviews. Maybe I can use some fat burners!

What Stays In Vegas....

It has been years since I have been to Vegas. I was just there once, and had a very good time. Stayed at Circus Circus and won enough money off a dime slot machine in my hotel to pay for my whole trip. To me, that was big! A lot has changed since I have been there. I am a boring gambler, but there is plenty to do there besides gamble. They have added a lot of Vegas hotels since I have been there. I would really like to go to the Jimmy Buffett restaurant. Vegas is also a good starting point for a vacation out west. Do what we did: stay for a few days in Vegas and then rent a car to go to the Grand Canyon or Santa Fe. Can't beat the Painted Desert.

Work Smart To End Career On Good Note

It is always sad to me when I hear about someone who ends up retiring on a bad note or who has been pushed out of the workplace. You think that after someone has worked for 30+ years, particularly at one company, it would be a time of celebration of hard work and loyalty. But too many times, you hear about such people leaving under a cloud of some sort. I know two such people right now.

Granted, I am not privy to their workplaces or the conversations and interactions that go on there, and I have only heard their side of the stories.

But from what I can gather, neither of these people have "worked smart." There are a number of ways you can work smart, but I am going to mention two that might apply to these situations.

One of them is a woman in her 70s, who has fabulous credentials and has worked hard all of her life. Young acting and thinking, you would think she is 10 years younger. But she is under a cloud right now and for all practical purposes is being targeted and forced out. What does it sound like to me? After talking with her and others who work in that department, it sounds as if some impressions were made about her early on when there was a change of leadership at the top. A rumor had gotten around that she was adverse to change, something all too simple to put at the head of an older person, but that is not the case. But she did not work smart to directly change that impression. I think she should have talked to the higher ups about this impression early and told them that it was not correct and then reinforce that through her actions. She did not see the need to do this at the time and is now struggling to turn things around when it may be too late. A bad early impression is really hard to change.

The second friend is a good 20 years younger, a man in his 50s. His problem is work overload. He is very behind in his work, which is time sensitive. His higher up has targeted him for this and written him up, the first step towards a termination. I think he should have tried to figure out a way to get his work down faster, or ask for help. Again, I am not in his shoes and have only heard his side of the story. But one thing I know is that today you have to work smarter. Even before this bad economy, you had to learn to work not only smarter but faster. I don't mean cutting corners but figuring out how to be more efficient. In my previous job, I had to do that. I had to figure out how to manage editing a magazine and all that entails faster at a time when my job suddenly was laden down with a lot more meetings. Somehow I was able to do that. But you have to be aware you have to do it and then actually work at doing it. I think too many people don't see the need to change the way they work or don't know how to change. Awareness of the need is the first step.

Area Rugs May Be My Solution

Right now I am so uptight about the woman who owns the condo below me. She has been complaining about one thing after another. Her tenants claimed there was too much noise from my condo above--barking dog, could hear animal running around, TV on too load. Yadda, yadda, yadda. OK, so maybe I was a little lax. I started keeping the barking collar on my dog all the time. Hate to do that, but I guess I have too. I have kept the TV lower. Can't help the dog walking around. I have hardwood floors, so maybe area rugs would help muffle the sound. Or is it my two kittens chasing after each other that they are hearing? I am doing the best I can. I don't want any more complaints from her. I have talked with the tenants, and they say it is much better, so that is OK for me.

Tot Mom's Lawyer Jose Baez Apparently Had Trouble With Character And Fitness

First of all--does anyone not know who the Tot Mom is?

I admit it--I watch Nancy Grace, and she coined that phrase. It is not that good of a phrase, because it makes it sound like the the mom is a tot, not that the mom is the mom of a tot.

But semantics aside, most of us know that the Tot Mom is Casey Anthony, who is accused of murdering her daughter Caylee.

Her lawyer is Jose Baez, who seems to have a perpetual smirk on his face. What is up with that?

I heard on Grace's show that Baez had had trouble with his character and fitness interview in Florida. Of course, my ears perk up, as I had my character and fitness interview not that long ago.

The Orlando Sentinel ran a great article about this issue. It said that when a case comes up in the supreme court about character and fitness, they don't use the defendant's name bu the initials. The initials of the defendant were JAB, the same as Baez's. The article points out the similarities between JAB and Baez, down to the letter. It is pretty obvious it is Baez.

The article said Baez had trouble because he had a bankruptcy, had defaulted on a student loan and had a lot of debt. That he was behind on child support and had omitted mentioning on his application about writing a bad check and going into a pretrial diversion program because of it.

That is some serious stuff. Apparently, he wasn't allowed to practice law for 8 years after graduating because of it. Eventually he proved that he had rehabilited himself and was admitted to the Florida bar.

A lot of us in school were worried about our character and fitness interviews. I was worried because of my debt. But I have never defaulted on a loan or done anything like he did. As a matter of fact, I have not heard of anyone else being denied to the point that he had been denied. He is rehabilitated, and that is good. But my classmates and I had nothing to worry about in regards to our interviews.

I Have My BPR Number--Now What????

I am feeling more like a lawyer now. I got my BPR number, the number assigned to you by the Board of Professional Responsibility. I am still not quite the real deal--I have to be sworn in before the state supreme court. But for all practical purposes I am an attorney now. Still hard for me to believe. When will it hit me for real?

I Have My Temporary Law License--Now What????

I hit another milestone--I received my temporary law license, embossed and everything. That will last me until I get my real license, sometime after I am sworn in. Last week, I also went to get my PBR number from the Board of Professional Responsibility.

This is all very exciting, but it hasn't sunk in yet. It probably won't until I am sworn in. I think I am a little scared--after all I am a real lawyer now, and what if someone expects something from me I can't deliver? I am trying not to worry about that. I tell myself to relish the moment, and I will learn things as I need to.