Summertime

I used to think "summer" here in Florida was kind of a hollow term, after all it's warm and generally beautiful here year round. If you really think about it the months of June- August are actually the worst weather here, at least the most extreme. But now that my children are school age, I find that old feeling I had as a kid in summer has returned. It's less about the weather and more about freedom from schedules, swimming in the pool everyday, staying up past the normally rigorously enforced "bedtime," visiting relatives and just plain having fun. I know that I too need some time out just to unwind, stop the routine and goof off. I read recently that the U.S. population has the least amount of vacation time for any industrialized country. So I plan during this summertime period to make the most of it.

News

I am a news junkie. I know the news channel numbers on my cable box by heart and the truth is I consider nothing more satisfying than devoting a solid hour reading the paper from front to back. My Husband frequently sends me e-mail updates of interesting news items and many of friends and other family members let me know where and when the latest was heard. I have often thought that if I hadn't become a lawyer I would have wanted to be a journalist. In fact, my Grandparents, ran a local newspaper when I was a kid. During Junior High I was lucky enough to get to hang out at The Pender Post after school with them and travel Burgaw with my Granddaddy in search of some interesting scoops. The paper's office was right downtown across from the Courthouse where we frequently traveled to see what was going on or talk to those "in the know." Mostly though people seemed to just stop by their office and tell them what they had heard. Despite the town's small size, I was absolutely enthralled and rapt with attention at what was gonna happen next! One interesting blog containing up to the minute legal interest items is the Wall Street Journal's law blog. Try it and let me know what you think.

New legislation

For those of you following developments in the family law arena, check out Florida Senate Bill 2532. According to the Senate's website Governor Crist signed the bill late last month. It appears to encompass a great variety of changes to existing law in this area. One of the most interesting aspects of practicing law is the fact that the law itself is not static but is constantly being written, revised and interpreted. It makes our work anything but dull!

Mediation versus litigation

Many people ask me why bother with mediation? After all if they could agree they wouldn't be here, need me, etc... But the fact is with mediation, or for that matter any alternative dispute resolution vehicle, the parties are really in the "driver's seat". Instead of the Court telling the parties the results, the parties make the decisions that are best for their family themselves. Lawyers are useful at mediation to help the parties know the likely results in Court and to help the parties stay on task actively working on resolution. In mediation, lawyers serve mostly as problem solvers rather than adversarial litigators. Some cases can't or aren't solved through mediation and some are solved beforehand through direct discussion. But on the whole, for most cases mediation is very useful resource. This week I attended 1 mediation and I believe I have 5 or 6 set in then next 30 days. My hope is that all of them end with a satisfactory agreement.

Father's Day

I was contemplating what story I should tell about my Dad in light of Father's Day this coming Sunday. There are so many that come to mind. My Dad has always been like a steady solid rock to me. He is funny, smart and strong.

Once when we lived on a pond he built a bridge to cross to the other side where my Grandparents lived. Now of my Dad's talents engineering and building are not high on the list, so the building of this bridge was quite the project. When it was finally complete he worried that my sister and I could fall in and wondered what we would do if we did. So one day soon after the three of us walked down the bridge he knocked me in with his right hand and her in with his left hand. Of course we hooted and hollered and finally scrambled out of the murky water. I was much more upset about the possibility of swimming with snakes than of getting wet. But ultimately my Dad saw that we could both swim well and take care of ourselves. Then I guess he felt a little better about the bridge.

Not to long ago I was trying to teach my oldest to ride her bike. It was quite a grueling process, mainly because she was so scared of falling down. She had dressed herself in layers of long clothing, put knee and elbow pads on and strapped on her helmet to mitigate the perceived threat despite the sizzling temperatures. So finally in an attempt to quell her fears, when she was standing in the grass barely balancing with one foot down I reached over and nudged her over. She fell on the grass with the bike on top unhurt but a little shocked and yelled, "Hey Mom, Why'd you knock me over!?" Well like my Dad my ultimate goal is to know that she can take care of herself. But even more I want her to know that she can take care of herself. She rides now, probably in spite of me, but I do feel a little better. Hopefully she does too.

Technological advances

Technology is a truly double-edged sword. How many of us have accidentally sent an e-mail to someone we didn't mean to? Maybe hit forward instead of reply or vice versa. I made that error once back when e-mail was just becoming common place, at least common place for me. I think it was in law school. But once was definitely enough.

Of course with all this technology we have the ability to be instantly connected and to see new information continuously updated. Generally that is a good thing. I am enjoying having this space and certainly enjoying the feedback I have received about this blog. The interactive characteristics of a blog and the ability to update it so easily, as opposed to a website, make it full of possibilities. As I said I so look forward to your comments. Keep them coming!

Back and Forth

So I came in and worked over last weekend. I followed up on a variety of relatively small matters that had been sitting on my desk awaiting my attention. I typed up lots of memos to my Assistant and action plans to follow-up on.

Now four days later all of those items are back in my office. My Assistant did follow-up. But now they are back to me for some further action I must take.

When she just deposited 10 additional files on my desk she kind of snickered. So now my office looked like hers did. I do not begrudge the work by any means but somehow I do prefer my desk being clear. I guess she does too.

I know some people feel the sign of a messy desk is the sign of major work underway and I cannot dispute that notion but I much prefer organization on my desk. I generally make lists of the work needed to be done with priority preference identified. So then my desk top is actually clear but for that list. But I also know some who would say why waste the time on a list and just dive right in.

Let me know which system you prefer; but for now I am off to "dive in!"

Being Present

As I run through life busy with errands, dinner, and meetings, I often find myself briskly answering my children's questions with the shortest, most "to-the-point" answer possible. I generally think of my straight forward bottom line analysis as a positive character trait. Especially when it seems a fast answer is important.

But lately at home it seems I am constantly in a hurry, just trying to get from point A to point B. And then on occasion, one of their thoughts or questions stops me dead in my tracks. I can almost see the gears turning in their heads and I am just amazed by the depth of their thought or question. It is in these little moments when I can really be present with them that I feel like I am right on the edge of realizing the so called meaning of life. Enjoying their growth, their curiosity and their imagination is just such a gift; I have to remind myself more frequently to slow down and listen.