After Nala died I fled to New York for a few weeks. Partly to visit Noelle but also to avoid being in the house on Queen Anne hill. Where Nala lived with me for 13 of her 16 years.
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Head out from the cabin with Nala. Turn right. Go down the long hill that follows the path of the river. The roadway is empty. Cabins mainly vacant. It is off season. The county is just commong off an executive order banning Airbnb rentals due to the pandemic.
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My website was old.
Ten years ago (at age 47 if you must know) finished my stint as President of the Washington State Trial Lawyers Association. Our organization had helped the citizens of our state survive two consecutive initiative battles - caps on medical negligence damages and a roll back of the Insurance Fair Conduct Act. We were bashed by the insurance industry in the process via millions in TV ads.
Took on the small personal mission of sharing the inner workings of life as a plaintiff lawyer. Hoping that through transparency, others might see that lawyers were real people too.
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I leave Nala at home. Today is a half day mediation. At my office. We will be done by 1:00. I can then come home and let her out. She will be fine for four hours.
The mediation drags a bit. Colleen Barrett is the mediator. First time I've used her. She was a defense attorney. Had several cases against her. Always liked her.
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Oh goodie. Oh goodie. Yay. Yippee.
We are up here at the cabin. Am looking out the window in the living room. Watching her carry the little blue kayak down the hill. She is trying to mimic Sol who balances the big kayaks on top of his head. Oops. There it goes over to the left. She hefts it up. Then it slops over again. She looks like a wobbly blue turtle as she makes her way down.
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Anne has started off the new year with a Fitbit. Her goal - add steps to her sedentary work day. Tearing herself away from her desk has proven difficult. Anne always has more work than she can complete.
Enter Nala. She comes to work most days. There are many hours spent lying on the floor, chewing an old antler, digging the stuffing out of her bed, and otherwise being bored. She doesn't complain though. Afterwards we typically go for a run.
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Today Nala almost killed herself.
It is drizzling. We are running around the neighborhood. Both of us in our rain gear. Splish. Splash. It starts pouring. Get home. Wash off the dirt. Towel her. Repeat process with myself.
Need to file a brief this morning. A discovery teleconference is scheduled to start soon.
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Am wound up tight. Aggressive tendencies barely restrained. Okay, maybe not restrained at all. In full warrior mode.
The defense lawyers haven't been too bad lately. Wish they were bad. Then could have an outlet for this simmering fury.
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The Today show has its annual best of the best contest. The top three dogs are competing for the grand prize. Doggie #1 pushes a mini shopping cart. Doggie #2 gets a can of beer for his buddy. And Doggie #3 - well, you just have to see what he can do. Oh, and yes, he is a Brittany. Just like Nala.
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We are running my favorite route. The sun is shining. Oh it is so fun to do this. Love to do this. Ooh I see you bird. Wish could jump out of this harness thing She has strapped around me. It fastens in front. She thinks it will stop me from pulling her. Don't know why She thinks that. But it does feel better than being pulled by the neck. Am not complaining. Love being outside. Even though She runs way too slow. But am not complaining.
We get to Myrtle Edwards park. Ooh I see you bird. This is where the trouble starts. Ooh that little boy wants to pet me. She doesn't stop. Nice try little boy.
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The clerk sends an email on Thursday. Our trial starts Monday. Or it is supposed to. This case has been scheduled for trial for over a year. But SNAP! Just like that. A criminal case pushes its way past us. This happens in November.
Fast forward. We are now set to start the same trial June 4. After a six month delay. Everyone is ready to go. Some of the witnesses have booked flights and hotels. But wait. SNAP! Just like that. We are bumped again. By another criminal case. We are now supposed to start this whole thing over again in October. Supposedly.
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The ringing is obnoxious. Reach over and turn off the alarm. Sleep in for hours it seems until finally get up at…7:45! What time did I set it for good grief.
Do my thing and out the house to see if Nala will do her thing. As usual it will depend on what’s going on out there. Oh dear. Another dog is walking its woman. Nala stays at attention until they pass by. Lunges and begins to act all crazy but a stern talking to makes her (kind of) behave. A car whizzes by – freeze and point. A leaf blows in the wind – freeze and point. Throw in some squirrels and birds. The dog drives me bonkers. Time is of the essence here. Which she ultimately remembers and finally gets the job done.
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She's been on quite good behavior. For Nala. Probably because she ran and swam at the dog park yesterday and then went on a run with me.
Meet Alysha at Whole Foods for lunch (salad bar heaven) and pick up a bone for Nala. It is pre-wrapped but don't want to touch it. Get little baggy from bulk foods and use that to scoop it up.
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Nala likes me to do her bidding. She takes me for her walks. She puts her head or paw on my foot when we are sitting here in the office. We will have staring contests which she almost always wins before I give up and blink. Am okay with that.
Could have chosen to follow the instructions from the doggie obedience school (who had Nala trained perfectly for an entire month before we undid everything). But was happier with letting Nala's own perky personality rule the day (and us).
Read MoreMy toe is throbbing and I suppose I should tell you why.
Am also not going to edit this blog. You’ll see it needs to be. The p key just fell off the lapto. In order to hit the p I have to pause and touch it just perfectly which is a real pain. It isn’t actually a key anymore, just a little blue nub. All missing letters will be pees. Sure hoe Ryan can fix this in the morning.
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I’m happy today. Actually I’m just about always happy. I like being in this little cozy compartment with this dirty brown fuzzy pad in it. It smells nice. The music today is groovy. Yep. This is the life. Can’t wait to do whatever is going to happen next.
Wait. What’s that smell. Do I smell something different. Doesn’t smell just like car fumes and pavement. Sniff. Sniff. Oh my. Do I dare to dream. Yippee. Yes it is. It is! Oops. Sorry about that. I know she doesn’t like it when I bark in the car. But I know where we are. Oooh. Yay! I’m so happy.
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Hempfest - Seattle's Ode to All things Marijuana - clogs up the park I want to run through Sunday afternoon. So I decide to try Discovery Park. I would actually like to run to it, but there is no trail leading into it. By now you will have noticed my running pattern involves avoiding streets. What's wrong with streets? Hmmmm. Being hit by a car is the number one reason. But also, I don't like having to turn up my ipod all the way to drown out the car noise. Plus inhaling the exhaust fumes mentally (if not physically) defeats the goal of enhancing health. Plus I don't want to get hit by a car. Nala either.
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