Ok, when I saw this article I thought that the picture was taken at the wake, and I was wondering why her eyes were open. Then I read the caption........

I don't know if I want to be that old, if that's how I'll look.......

A rare day off....

Ok, so I should be doing homework, or laundry, or......any number of a thousand things. And in a way, I did. I went to the tax office and cleaned up some extension stuff. But more remains. Funny how things tend to drag after tax season. Clients no longer have the sense of urgency to get things done. And actually, that's probably why they got extended in the first place.

Easter was nice. I won't bore you with details, because nothing happened of note, but it was nice to spend time with my family in a relaxed, sort of, atmosphere. I think it has to do with the semester winding down; I still feel pressure to be doing 'something', even when I'm trying to relax. I think I'll finally relax on May 19.

One nice thing about tax season ending is the gift of time. With that, I was able to turn in a draft for the first time all semester. A full draft, no partials. How nice. Even better, I was able to horn in on my fellow classmate's oral argument practice last night and get some of my own. I'll get more tomorrow when we argue a faux motion for summary judgment. My big moment comes Saturday. The fun part will be arguing in the Daley Center. I'll have to grab the classmates who argued tonight (hence my day off) and find out how it went. Of the five of us who practiced last night, I think I was the only one who was going on Saturday. The rest went tonight. I was going to try to write on for the Consumer Law Review, but they only gave us a week to write a 15-page article, and I didn't get that much time as a gift. So I'll shoot for Moot Court tryouts on May 2nd. Of course, that's the day of my Mom's b-day party, but she'll understand. I'll just arrive a bit late.

Happy Easter, everybunny!

Nerve-wracked

Had dinner last night with the parents. They expressed concern over my switching to full-time. Primarily, they're worried that I am biting off a big chunk - possibly more than I can chew. My Mom's biggest worry, of course, is whether I'll have enough to eat. My father's worried about the debt load. And me? Well, the list of things I'm not worried about is much shorter than the list of what I am worried about. I'm worried about taking a huge risk that might not pay off. I'm worried that, in my effort to give myself more time to dedicate to school, I'll find that I'm still stressed out over time. I'm worried about moving yet again - this time into the city. I'm worried about where the hell I'm going to store the motorcycle. I'm worried about having enough money. I'm worried about being able to find a part-time job. I worry about how much the COBRA insurance is going to cost. I worry about whether the school's health insurance will cover me in the summer next year, or if I have to sweat out an entire summer without insurance. The list goes on.

In the front of my mind, I tell myself there's no reward without risk. I tell myself that it will all work out, that I'll get a job, and be successful. I tell myself that I have my CPA and MBA to fall back on, that if worse comes to worse, I can go back to what I do now.

Despite my best efforts, this is going to be a long week.

I went to school today to pick up some materials for my paper. Donna was there, studying in the student lounge. At first I didn't notice her, she was so quiet. We talked for a bit, until I remembered that I'd only put fifty cents in the meter, good for half an hour, and that time had almost expired. Fortunately, no ticket. And Donna offered to help me find a place when I get back from Rome. I told Donna I was absolutely terrified of what I'd planned to do. She suggested I give notice on Monday, or first thing on Friday morning, but I want to do it privately, so I had planned on waiting until Friday afternoon. Let me tell you - Friday is going to be the most stressful day of my life so far. I told Donna that at this point, it would be much easier to get married. And despite the fact that I've never been close, I pretty much meant it. Of course, Donna would be a perfect wife, which is probably why her husband married her......

Frustrated......

(I wanted to quote the song by The Knack here, but I'm too tired to get up, pull out the album (yes, I have Get the Knack on vinyl), and play it to refresh my memory on the lyrics. C'est la vie.)

We are now fully into Easter Break. But still, I don't get anything done that I should. The best laid plans....

So the nurse has fallen off the end of the earth. I called her last night, and left a message, but no return call. She was nice, but truthfully, I don't think there was long term potential there. Too many 'odd' things about her. I won't go into them, but suffice to say, I wasn't totally comfortable. Plus, our schedules never meshed. I was available, she was busy. She was available, I was busy. But usually the former. And the warning flag was 'plans' last weekend, even though she had just come back from a week in Mexico. Maybe, I'll be surprised, but I doubt it.

So ladies, I am once again available for dating. Oh, wait, I was never "off" the market. Well, anyway, we here at Chez Greg are again accepting applications for potential girlfriends. Don't delay - this offer is guaranteed not to last long! Applicants must be able to tolerate fact that I will be gone for two months this summer, and will be unemployed (partially, at least) for much of the next two years. On the other hand.....I will have a nice job, hopefully.

I tried to book the flight to London tonight, but no luck. I had hurriedly signed up with Student Universe a while back, and foolishly forgot to write down my ID and password. Now I'm in a holding pattern, waiting for them to answer me back.

Had a conference with the Legal Writing instructor. Went well. She complimented me, which boosted my confidence. It had been lagging after writing this brief, but I feel better now.

The real issue is how tired I am right now. I am just SO not motivated. I could have slept all day, for what it was worth. And I spent most of the day at work screwing around aimlessly. I think the real issue is burnout, which I need to fight through and overcome. Otherwise, I'll get bounced before I fly away. Not a good thing. S told me she hasn't heard anything from the IBABY people either. Wonder what's taking them so long to do this background check.

Oh.
My.
God.
The couple on Blind Date is seeing a psychic. Pathetic. But then, I'm (partially) watching it, so what does it say about me? That there's nothing good on TV? yeah, that's it....

Ok, I'm having verklempt. Miracle Whip is neither a miracle, nor whipped. Discuss amongst yourselves. I'm going to bed.

A tax day story...

The scene wasn't an unfamiliar one. He was single, he lived alone. She, too, was single, lived alone. They differed in age by only a few years, and in height by only a few inches. They weren't in love, but good friends. She knew she could trust him, knew he'd look out for her, knew he'd do his best to help her out.

The ex hadn't been kind; there'd been words, volleys of hate which had signalled the death of the relationship in a violent, verbal spasm. It hadn't involved physical abuse, just a growing apart of two individuals who never grew together.

But the transition wasn't easy. He had done some things naturally, and she others. That which he did, she could do, but she could never understand them like he could, and he didn't understand them well himself. So they lingered. For years. First she promised she'd tackle them herself, then she swore she'd get them done, but all the while they lingered while time slipped quietly by.

Then she met him. And they became friends, occasionally sharing a drink, but more often an email, a phone call. Hi how are you, she'd ask, knowing that this time of year the question would be greated with a scoff, as he'd complain about the long hours, the stupid clients, and the tyrannical boss so evil, the staff ran an annual pool to see how long the front desk girl would last. This year, he'd told her he'd added law school to his to do list - a way of forgetting by punishment the woman who'd hurt him. And this year she'd needed him more than ever; her time was running out, and she needed the money.

She had called him and asked of his precious time. She only needed a night, she said, and she'd cook him dinner. Like any single guy who lived alone, the prospect of a home-cooked meal by anyone other than himself, some good company, and companionship for an evening was enough to entice him to make the hour-long drive to see her. He came over after eight, after a long day of work (even if it was Saturday), and greeted her with a smile. She started by informing him she didn't have any salad, or any bread, or any parmesean cheese. Good egg that he was (and how the women in his class described him), he offered to drive her to the store.

When they came back, she got serious about the dinner. She made sure the sauce, simmering all day, was just right - not too blah, not too spicy. She threw the angel hair pasta into the boiling water. She buttered the bread - sticking her tongue out at him when he asked how many cows she planned to kill to butter two sides of french bread. And when it was ready, she opened the oven, now thoroughly preheated, and went to toss in the bread to bake.

But she'd forgotten about the baking pans. And the knife. The wooden knife, now smoking as it had begun to singe. He laughed heartily, the laugh of someone who was under tremendous stress and hadn't had an outlet in weeks. She laughed in reaction, and tried to hide her embarrassment. But he wasn't embarrassed, he found it charming, her attempt to step out of character and be Susie Homemaker. Fortunately, the rest of dinner went well, and a few days later, he sent her a lovely present - her tax return, complete with refund. And she promised to make him steak next year. Without the knife.

Happy April 15th!!!!

The Friday Five, one day late (I'm always late, so for me it's on time):

1. What was the first band you saw in concert? Well, I won tix to see the Beach Boys when I was 13. But the first one I paid for was AC/DC. A very cool show. I couldn't hear for a week.

2. Who is your favorite artist/band now? Well, believe it or not, I still like AC/DC. But the Bon Scott version. Not the Brian Johnson version. Not any album after Back in Black. My tastes also run to Peter Gabriel, Bruce Springsteen, U2, Sinatra.......actually, they're all over the place. It depends on my mood - happy, sad, angry.....

3. What's your favorite song? See number #2. But some perennial faves: Lips Like Sugar (Echo & the Bunnymen), Blue Jean (Bowie), Under Pressure (Bowie & Queen), One Tree Hill (U2), Badlands (Bruce)....there's more, but I'm tired.

4. If you could play any instrument, what would it be? Guitar. But I'd rather sing. Singers get the girls. Accountants get the tax returns.

5. If you could meet any musical icon (past or present), who would it be and why? Elvis. Just to ask him what the fuck was he thinking?

So it's over.

But it's not.

But it is.

Huh?

Ok, so for all intents and purposes, my tax season is over. But there's those pesky extensions. Some are like P - they are actually done, but they owe, and they don't have the money, so they extend. Others are like D&C - they never give me everything they need to for me to finish. If they did, it wouldn't be an issue.

For as close as we are to April 15th, I had only 3 real appointments today. I expected more. Like, a full day. I managed to fill the day anyway, toiling away on yet another return where all the documents aren't included. Another extension, this one because the client doesn't call me back. Another client frets because we didn't include union dues, but since that's subject to a 2% floor, he won't be able to deduct them anyway. A parent is miffed because their daughter wasn't ready in time to join the parent at the office so I could do a two-for-one (two returns in one hour). Instead, she has to make a separate trip. I seriously underbill, expecting to get a tirade from the boss but it took me all of eight minutes to do her 1040EZ, so should I charge her the hour rate?

Meanwhile, the regular job has become a drag. Or maybe it's just burnout raising it's ugly head. I feel just totally lackluster this week, and don't really accomplish anything. At the tax office, I mope. At home, my apartment beckons, begging me to clean it. It's a filthy mess. I realize that it's been two years since I actually took a vacation. I want to sleep all day. I have over 100 emails in all of my inboxes, because I'm too lazy to clear them out. Blah.

I've just wasted 30 minutes surfing websites of people who are asking visitors to give them cash to pay various bills. I think I've seen everything now. Some of these people actually have succeeded. Others have gotten token amounts. I find it amazing that such a scheme works. Maybe I should start my own. Everybody send me a dollar, and help me pay for law school. Heck, I only need.......uh.......a hundred and twenty-seven thousand people to do that! Cool! So what are you waiting for? Be one of the first? Then I won't have this huge stress of HAVING to get the big bucks job, and I can do public interest law!!!

Thank god it’s the last week of tax season. I’m ready for it to be over. In fact, the weather and tax season can both take their leave of me now. I don’t need this frigid, arctic weather, and I would like my weekends back. As if it were somehow divined, I’ve suddenly come into a flood of personal tax clients. Of course, no one wants to do it early. It’s something I’ve never understood. Those who are getting their money back file early, and those who are paying not only file late, they prepare late, too. Now, I understand the wait-until-the-last-minute-to-pay thing. But it never fails that over half those people know they’re going to owe a substantial amount of money, but wait anyway, then fret about how much they owe, and “where am I going to get all this money?” It never dawns on them (even when I’ve told them time and time again) that if they prepared their return in January, the “where am I going to get the money?” question would have been much easier to answer. Sure, it wouldn’t reduce what they owe (that would have taken their thinking ahead before they take the money out of their 401(k)), but at least they wouldn’t find themselves in a cash crunch. Or better yet, like the guy, four years or so ago, who sat telling me all about the vacation he was planning for himself and his wife while I plugged away at his return. When I got done, he owed something like fifteen hundred dollars, because he’d taken a huge chunk of his 401(k) “to pay bills and other stuff” and, of course, was under 59 ½, and so incurred the 10% penalty. Of course I asked how he was going to pay for this wonderful vacation, and he responded, “with my refund. It’s my savings account.” Now, why you’d want a non-interest-bearing savings account is beyond me (although that’s pretty much what any passbook-style savings account is anymore), but plenty of people over-withhold and treat their tax refund as a windfall, instead of being a bit more prudent with their money all year long. Anyway, this guy was one of those people, and he was quite upset when I responded with “not this year. You owe.” And this guy was a big, biker-looking dude. And he was pissed. But there was nothing I could do – it was all his own doing. Needless to say, he didn’t come back the next year.

Saturday Entertainment, or how I survive tax season...


Recent searches which have lead people here:

1. Blog+lawisfun (Thanks! Just mark me as a favorite...)2. Officer caught having sex
3. Bar character & fitness
4. Demon dogs + CTA (referring to the flap between Demon Dogs hot dog stand and the CTA)
5. New Lenox & ugly
6. Fun for George Bush
7. Having sex with dog is considered (this guy came from the UK. Makes me wonder about people there.)
8. Hot couple having sex (nobody I know would fit that description, me included. Sorry.)
9. Law student + smoker
10. Tax law blogs (no, no, no. This is SO wrong...what a boring blog that would be)
11.New Lenox Mustangs (go Mustangs!!)
12. Desire to fuck my mother-in-law. (I'm sorry. Can I recommend a therapist? I have one as a client...)
13. Caught having sex. (Should I be noticing a theme here??)

I can just imagine the disappointment all those who came here to find a cheap thrill, only to find this blog. No, I can't. Wonder how many of them were doing this on company time??

While I can't help on the "hot couple having sex" thing, I can recommend a beautiful, intelligent woman's blog. And if you're (1) in California and (2) hiring (and not for something sleazy, either), she'd make a fine addition to your staff.

The premiere (here, at least) of the Friday Five:

1. How many houses/apartments have you lived in throughout your life? Three houses, two apartments. One house was with a friend who rented me a room. The other two were my parent's.

2. Which was your favorite and why? Apartment #1. It had a great view. I'll overlook the fact that it had no overhead cover, was located just below the elevator's ventilation shaft opening, and that that was like Club Med for pigeons, so that my balcony was always covered in pigeon crap. For six weeks, at least, I had a nice eighth floor apartment, with a great view. So what if the elevators only worked half the time? Details.

3. Do you find moving house more exciting or stressful? Why? Stressful. Who doesn't? Packing all that crap up, then unpacking? Yuck.

4. What's more important, location or price? Ummm....location always costs big money 'round here. So, price comes first. Who cares if you have a great view of Lake Shore Drive if you have no furniture, and no money?

5. What features does your dream house have (pool, spa bath, big yard, etc.)? A BASEMENT! Although I'll admit, I'd also like a nice downtown place with a view. And a big, honkin', palatial house with a huge garage, a huge basement, and a yard that takes TWO landscape companies to mow. And a pool. And..........well, I could go on, but first I need the cash.......

I love my job, I love my job........

How many times do I need to say that before I truly believe it? Ok, my job isnt that bad, but it can be frustrating, especially around this time of the month. The third, fourth and fifth workdays are always stressful, since they mark the end of the month-end close period. Today was no different. As usual, I was up against the wall, having discovered a crucial issue shortly before final numbers were supposed to be posted. And as one would expect, I committed the ultimate sin - I made a mistake. Not a big one, but here in LaLa Land, all my errors are major. Fortunately, I wasn't alone, so it may get overlooked. Or else I'll get slammed in November again, as was the case last year. Got hauled into a meeting and told that a letter was going into my personnel file because I'd failed to adequately support my departments - in September. Actually, it was stuff related to August. Never mind that I was learning an entirely new position (and basically, no more knowledgeable than a new hire) or that I didn't want the position in the first place; no, the benefit to this sandbagging was that they could justify a lower bonus and merit increase, and thereby come in under budget for the year.

You know, my job is that bad.

So why do I fret over whether I should switch to full time or not?

A new beginning (sort of)

So yesterday, April Fool's Day (of all days), was the first day of our new accounting system. I was cynical - I figured there would be huge numbers of errors, mass chaos, and God knows what else. But it wasn't that bad. Yes, there were issues, but for the most part, they seem to have been minor. It'll be interesting to see how the rest of the week plays out.

Of course, hiding behind all this is the fact that we are a large (over ten million) amount over budget, and the scramble is on. The bad news is that we are only halfway there. So the guess is that sooner or later, there will be a layoff. If I'm lucky, sooner, rather than later, and I'll be a part of it. That would make my decision much easier........

In other news.........

I need the help of a computer geek. I have pictures from the barrister's ball that I'd like to post, but.........I have no idea how. Help!

Training Day...

Going to the office downtown used to be more enjoyable than this. Go to the second floor, flash the company ID, and tailgate your way in. Now, because of our buddy Osama, security is much tighter.

On the drive in this morning, I had two thoughts. Well, three actually. But two related to work. The third was figuring out how the hell I was going to return my tux from the Barrister's Ball. The first work-related thought was that I couldn't remember which floor I was supposed to be on - the 10th or the 11th. I knew one was today, the other in two weeks. I also didn't know how I was going to get up there. I'd heard about the new security gates, which required a valid ID to pass through. And even if I got past that, I'd need to get onto the floor somehow. But complicating things was the fact that it was only 7:10, and Jennifer wouldn't be in until 7:30.

I called her right at 7:30, and got her voice mail. She was checking messages, and I was fairly close to downtown. Traffic wasn't as bad as I'd thought. I'd given myself an hour, and only 32 minutes later I was about 15 minutes from being downtown. Fortunately, she answered the second time.

"Where are you? Are you taking today off?" she asked.
"No, I'm on my way downtown, and I need a favor."
"Sure. What can I do for you?" She was making light of my request, pretending to be solicitous as a way of being funny. I laughed.
"On my desk, under the org charts is my training schedule. Can you tell me where I'm supposed to be, the 10th or the 11th floor?"
"Sure, hang on."

While she went, I realized that I should have asked about the class start time and for phone numbers of the three people I knew well enough in the building who could let me in. When she came back, she had most of the info I needed without asking, and I realized I was going to be forty-five minutes early.

I parked in the Sears Tower garage, which didn't require an upfront payment like the cheaper lots. This was good, since I only had about six dollars on me. I called Jen back, and got the phone numbers. By the time I found an ATM, bought a latte (hey, some things are more important than others), and gotten through to someone upstairs, it was after 8:10. Armed with Diane's promise to let me in if needed, I went to security, and followed the right procedure. I still had to tailgate onto the right floor, but that was surprisingly easy. The person even held the door for me.

Training was relatively uneventful, as long as you don't count the three times I killed the power for the room. It wasn't really my fault; the room was laid out so that the power cords and LAN connections were at my feet, and every time I moved them, something went out. It got to be a running gag. In the afternoon, I moved seats, and took one that had opened up when the person realized they were in the wrong class. So was I, but no one told me until the afternoon. Seems all the nuclear people were having their own, special version of this class, but I couldn't recall anything in the email which said that. Oh well.

I took lunch out from the Corner Bakery in the Sears Tower. Security there was equally tight, if not greater. The entrance to the building, once fairly fancy, is now barren and marred with metal detectors. What a sad state of affairs. Maybe someday it can go back to where it was.

Training let out early enough that I could make it all the way up to Montrose and Milwaukee to return the tux, and back down to Loyola, without any problem. I even had time for a leisurely dinner. And for the first time in over a month, I felt prepared for a class. I actually was ready for Contracts, and got more out of class than I had in a long time. Well, not counting Thursday, when Professor Contracts couldn't make class, and her husband, a professor at a competing school, filled in. Would it be bad to say he did a much better job than her? Most of the class thought so....

Tomorrow is a big day. The new financial system goes live. And I'm wondering what disaster will strike. Stay tuned.......

The Morning After
Rules on going to the Barrister's Ball:

1. Remember, you have to work in the morning. Getting in at 3:00 a.m. is NOT a good idea.
2. Being nice will get you everywhere. Even in to see George Clinton without a ticket.
3. Being nice will also get you the HOB's hostess' phone number.
4. Setting up a buffet dinner during lent is not a good idea for a Catholic University.
5. Beer before liquor, never sicker. Liquor before beer, never fear. And always eat before both.
6. Always remember, when the after party is at a bar, it's a good idea to bring your ID.
7. Bouncers are not known for their sense of humor.
8. When you are drunk, things you think are funny aren't always to others.
9. Combining #6, #7 & #8, is not a good idea.
10. The homeless guy flagging cabs will not take no for an answer - even if you try to just walk away.
11. Whoever invented caffeine is a god in my book. 'Nuff said.

For those of you who are law student wanna-bes who read this, a word to the wise: I have been pretty swamped with work lately. My trial level brief took over twelve hours to write, and I still think it sucks. Someday, I'm sure, it'll be a breeze to write a brief, but not right now. I spent Sunday catching up on Contracts, and used a day off on Monday to write my paper. It took so long, I missed both Civ Pro and Contracts. Too bad, too. Professor Contracts handed back the mid-terms. I got a check, which apparently is OK. I did get to talk to the Prof after class, and I determined that while I was on the right track, she didn't like the explanation. C'est la vie. But it's good to know I'm learning something. And that, despite being behind, I'm not clueless. Always good to know.

With the trial brief done, I can relax a bit. We did practice orals in class tonight, and I wound up going first. Based upon my classmates comments, I did pretty well. The real thing is at the end of April, and we drew names to find out who we were paired with. Originally, I drew Erin, but had to back out when the instructor said our trial would begin at 5:30, which is a pretty impossible time for me to make. So I switched with Molly (who apparently wanted to go during the week), and lo and behold, the only two guys in the class wind up facing each other. Should be interesting. I finally have gotten, in recent days, a chance to actually talk to Chad, and he seems like a really good guy. I'm actually looking forward to it.

Ok, I have to admit to being a bit lax lately, and not posting on a regular basis. C'est la vie. I've been kind of busy. Doing what, I'm not sure, but I've been very busy.

The week in review:

Monday was not a good day. I came to work in quite the surly mood, and upset two of my co-workers, whom I consider friends. It was so bad, I actually had to apologize, and mend fences. This is not a good thing. Fortunately, Jen is a good-natured person, and forgave me. Miguel was a little more piqued, and we didn't speak to each other on Tuesday. I finally sent him an email and apologized, offering to talk to him about it if he wanted to. He was ill Wednesday, but we did discuss the issue of my moodiness on Thursday, albiet briefly. I think we cleared the air. Until the next time, at least..........

Tuesday started out badly, as I mentioned. Plus, I thought that I'd lost my pocket-sized Black's the night before. I was not happy about leaving a $25 book (for a pocket-size softcover!) laying on the floor of the law school for just anyone to have. But, fortunately, I hadn't - it was in my locker. And I got even better news - an A on my legal writing research memo! I drove home with a big grin. I've been a bit more organized, too. I was able to file all of my friends' tax returns in a timely manner. Except for one, which rejected for no good reason. Unfortunately, communication with the tax office has been sparse, and I need to touch base there. Fortunately, I'll be there tonight, but I'm booked solid. Three more weeks.

Wednesday was two hours of Contracts. Professor Contracts had to be out of town Monday, so instead of one hour of Civ Pro, and two of Contracts, we had three hours of Civ Pro. At the end of class, Professor K decided to do a hypo on Class action, starring - me. Here I was, typing away on the laptop when I hear my name, and look up to find I'm the subject of the hypo. Now imagine how weird it was for me to write 'Greg v. Fly-By-Night Travel', all the while enduring the bemused looks of classmates who (for purposes of the hypo) had purchased, at my behest, a ski trip from the aforementioned travel company, only to find the lodge had yet to be built. The class finished with a debate on whether I was a qualified representative of the class, or if I had ulterior motives which disqualified me. Of course, Cisco the Cop was tossed out as a co-plaintiff (which prompted him to quip he'd never buy a trip from me in the first place). Class ended before the issues were resolved, so Monday should continue the fun.

Of course last night was Day 1 of March Madness. I'd post my brackets, if I could, but alas.....I cannot. Suffice to say that Notre Dame and Illinois both disappointed me by winning, and SIU disappointed me by losing. I have to admit to taking risks this year. I've been busy enough that I didn't really follow college B-ball (not that I do, anyway), so I kinda guessed a lot. And relied on ESPN's picks.

Last night also reminded me of why I don't go out after class on Thursday anymore. I get in too late, spend too much, and wind up wiped out on Friday. Given the number of meetings I have today, that's not a good thing. Helllooooo coffee.......

The law loveline....

One interesting thing you learn as you go through the first year is how people who seem intelligent can still do things that cause you to raise an eyebrow. M, considered by many to be the prettiest girl in class, got married over break. That's right, married. They've been dating for .... six months. He lives in NC (but is moving here), and she lives here. I hope for their sake that it works out. I also found out last night that C (who I've had a secret crush on) is back with the 5-year Boyfriend Who Can't Commit. She says this time he seems more serious. I told her I'd offer a shoulder if she needs one. In other news, our lovely Japanese law student has taken up with a classmate. She, too, supposedly had a boyfriend, though he was back in Seattle, from whence she came. I think she'd been shopping (she was always flirty with me), and he took her up on the opportunity. Apparently, it's gotten semi-serious, as she was seen drinking from his beer last night as if it were her own. And the cutie who sits in front of me supposedly broke it off with her boy-toy, while Em and hers are going hot and heavy. She's even bringing him to the "prom" (a/k/a Barrister's Ball) next week. Speaking of which, I rented a tux for the occasion last night. According to the rental guy, "if you're single and not involved, that's the place to be." So this should be interesting. What's really funny is how our class has divided on the issue - some all for the fun of playing dress-up, others deriding it as "prom". Methinks some people need to adjust their outlook, but I'm not saying which ones. I'll leave that to you. I'm done being the LLS gossip columnist. For now.

How to date like Greg, or what to expect when you go out with me.....

A typical date:

1. Meet attractive cardiac nurse on match.com
2. Exchange emails, have hours-long phone conversations.
3. Agree to meet for dinner on Saturday night at nice, Cajun-style seafood restaurant.
4. Get there to find 90-minute wait for a table.
5. Curse fact that restaurant doesn't accept reservations.
6. Give name and sidle up to the bar for a $5.50 Jack and Coke.
7. When date walks in, greet her and buy glass of wine.
8. Enjoy conversation.
9. Fruitlessly attempt to get seat at bar; have couple already seated at bar & eating take pity on you, hand you their number which is 20 lower than yours.
10. Hear number called within moments; total wait time 25 min. Feel confident about how things are going.
11. Enjoy dinner. Swallow hard and remember that topic of conversation is tipping when bill comes. Sign for $82 dinner.
12. Date suggests seeing movie. Feeling even better - she's enjoying evening, doesn't want to leave.
13. Drive to apt to drop off date's car.
14. Go to movie. Watch 'About Schmidt'. Enjoy, even if slow at points.
15. Leave theater. Hop in (fairly) new, low milage car.
16. Start car.
17. Begin backing out of parking space.
18. Look puzzled when car stalls 2/3 of way out of space, and won't restart.
19. Call OnStar. Act nonchalant when told tow truck will be there - in 90 minutes.
20. Realize even though apt is only 2 miles, too cold and too late to walk back.
21. Wait for tow truck. Explain to date this was not part of plan. Confidence level plummeting.
22. Tow truck arrives. Driver attempts to start car to no avail. Tow required. Beg for ride back to apt. Driver agrees.
23. Back at apartment, realize it's late and date has 1 hour drive home. Offer to let her spend night.

Ok, now you're her. What do you do?

Ahh...the weekend. Time to relax. Right.

Tax season is really starting to pick up. Tonight and next Friday are booked; tomorrow is end-to-end, starting at 10, and next Saturday is half-booked already. To think a month ago I was bored here at the tax office on a Saturday afternoon.

And the weather is picking up with it. Temps are expected to be in the 60's for the next few days, so......I may need to take the motorcycle out for a spin. I've been itching to ride.....maybe I'll get the license this year. Hmm....there's something else I need to do - get the license.

And the best news of all....I have a date tomorrow. With a lovely young nurse. Things have went well on the phone all week, though I didn't call her last night because I needed to get some work done. Maybe she'll call tonight. If not, I'll be dining with her tomorrow. And if dinner goes as well as the phone calls, I'm going to have a shit-eating grin on my face for a week.

It’s Thursday of Spring Break. By now, you would think I’ve used my time wisely, and gotten a lot done. And, in a way, I have. But in other ways, I haven’t. I haven’t done much work on the trial-level brief, which means I’ll be very busy this weekend. And forget reading, which means double the work.

On the other hand, my bathroom was absolutely disgusting, and is now clean. There is a definite measure of satisfaction in that. And I feel much better than I did last week, although the cough and sneezing are still there; I’m attributing at least some of it to the changing weather, which is expected to hit the 60’s by the weekend.

I spent Monday and Tuesday at a training session designed to familiarize us with the new accounting software that debuts in a few weeks. What an eye-opener; despite the illusion that the entire world is on the internet, there were at least 3 people out of a class of 12 that openly admitted to never having even opened Internet Explorer. Considering the new software is web-based, this is alarming. I was one of the more technologically advanced people there. As a result, I wound up helping the instructors with those who weren’t up to speed. The whole experience underlined one of the fatal flaws of my company – an unwillingness to make a full commitment to anything.

My initial suggestion to the instructors (one of whom was a former coworker who switched divisions) was that there should have been a skills test, so that everyone in a class was learning at the same pace. They agreed, and said one had been suggested, but people such as my boss’ boss had torpedoed the idea, saying they knew their staff’s skill levels, and no such test was needed. Needless to say, they were very wrong. In addition to the 3 who never used the internet, there was at least two more who didn’t belong in that class because they had no idea what accounting terminology such as depreciation, expense and asset meant. When you have remedial people in a class with advanced learners, you lose. The advanced people will get bored, and the remedials will get frustrated, and neither will accomplish what they could if they were handled separately. Additionally, the remedials will likely wind up leaving the company in a year or two. Or doing their best to totally sabotage the transition. Apparently, this type of thinking never occurred to the higher-ups.

To make matters worse, some supervisors were totally against sending staff to a two day course, claiming (a) they didn’t need it [wrong!] and (b) the department couldn’t spare the staff [too bad]. Based on what I saw, there should have been a push for a whole week of learning, not just two days. And any supervisor who complained should have been fired on the spot. Harsh? Sure, but this transition is costing the company millions, and supervisors with attitudes such as indicated aren’t supporting the company; they’re supporting their own self-interests. And in the long run, they hurt the individual and the company. There should be no place for that here.