Strange Days

Strange days are upon us

At least they’re pretty ones?

I imagine this holds true for most professions, but I think lawyers, in particular, find themselves frequently marveling as they do things they never envisioned to be part of  ”practicing law.” I found myself in that situation today while I stood in Publix sending a text message to a local judge that simply said, “Your pickles are on the cheese aisle.” 

We’re now well into this new reality, but I wouldn’t say many of us have completely adjusted. My first two cars were older cars, and while not unreliable, the fact that they would start and go from point A to point B was never a sure thing. When I graduated college my parents gave me a new car to send me off into adulthood. During my ten years of never having an issue with it (if someone at Honda would like to send me a check I’ll happily go into more detail) I’m not sure I ever contemplated what a luxury it was to not have to consider that my car might not go. Editor’s note: You figure our all the “not”s in that sentence, I’m done trying.

In similar fashion, most of us have been fortunate to live in a country where we can rely on grocery stores to have our basic necessities. I frequently complain about my ability to get outside skirt steak and tri-tip, but I never worry about getting eggs, butter, and flour. In the future our kids will wonder why we keep such a stock of staples in the house. Day 12 of no bread flour. One day we’ll get to make a pizza. 

Not long ago I saw a video that showed the evolution of an office desk. It started with a typewriter, transitioned to a big desktop computer, a smaller desktop computer, a large laptop, a small laptop, and an iPad. Through the video various things move from physical to virtual, a calendar comes off the wall, pictures move into the computer, a Rolodex, a clock, and so on.  

That transition is fairly accurate. I know people that don’t have a computer simply because they can do everything they need on an iPad. It is amazing what you can do on your phone or iPad. This website was initially created and maintained 100% on my phone. I have reworked it on a desktop, but I still largely write, edit, and style from my phone.

Today in an effort to help my wife have a little time to do her job remotely I attempted to work remotely. My office phone rolls to my cellphone and I can do most light documents and email from my iPad, so aside from having to bat children away or keep Vera from trying to type emails with her toes while I work, I can usually get by. Today, not so much. I got a call and an assignment and that assignment needed research, documents to be merged, and had a deadline. After about 15 minutes of frustration I picked up my iPad and went to the office.

What they don’t show in that video is that after everything moves onto the iPad the  office computer re-emerges armed with multiple large monitors and a scroll wheel mouse. Multiple monitors might be the only reason desktop computers still exist. So today I worked remotely from the comfort of my office desk. Unbathed and in workout shorts and a t-shirt, my desk phone still rolling to my cell phone. 

I’m currently writing this (on my phone) in the backyard as I enjoy the beautiful weather, a cold beer, and grill some hot dogs. Every year about this time a solitary carpenter bee bravely determines to bore a hole in the grill table I built. They’re tough little buggers, I generally swat and knock them to the ground a few times until eventually I find them in the hole their father started the year before and I blast them with some poison. After I kill the one I never see another until the next spring.

This years generation has emerged and is just as persistent, but maybe not as bright. As we danced our dance and I knocked and he bounced back for more. Until he made one wrong move. Instead of flying right he took a quick beeline left, bouncing off the top of the open grill, through the grate, and directly into the hot coals. Just a small poof and not even the faintest sizzle. Poor bee. Probably better than being blasted with wasp spray though.