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Showing posts from June, 2008

Staring Down a Squirrel

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"Squirrel, move! Move, Squirrel!" I was out for a walk in the neighborhood. I have a gym membership, but sometimes I just like to walk outdoors and look at the trees, people, and dogs. As I walked down my block at a brisk pace, I happened upon a woman staring down a squirrel. The woman carried a drink cup from a fast food restaurant and was intent on going through a metal gate to enter a building complex. The problem was that there was a squirrel already perched on top of the metal gate, minding its own business, and enjoying a meal. The woman stared him down in frustration and kept repeating, "Move, squirrel." She could not continue on with her day, with her plans, until this squirrel got out of her way. She was stuck there, immobile, until the situation changed and she had no control over when or if that would happen. I was reminded of how often I face situations and demand that they change before I can proceed. How many times have I "stared down a squirrel&q

Jury Duty-Induced Adult Onslaught ADD

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I heard computer keys clicking when fingernails typed on them. The woman next to me spoke exceedingly loudly on her cell phone as she made her power entertainment deals at 9am. "I can offer you five hundred per day", she told the person at the other end of the line. A man walked up to her and said, "Could you stop talking so loud? I'm trying to read. This isn't a phone booth." She replied, "This isn't a library either." As the gentleman walked away, she looked at me and asked, "am I really loud?" I nodded my head and grinned. She responded by speaking more softly. No, this was not the library and not a phone booth; this was the jury assembly room. It was cold, boring and I felt as if I'd developed ADD within the first two hours of being there. I'd already read half of Barbara Walter's autobiography while laying on my back at the window wearing sunglasses to protect my eyes from the glare. My trusty jacked served as a pillo