This is a weird time of year. Here in Berkeley it's a gorgeous day, sunny, though chilly. The magnolias are already blooming. It's not spring yet, not even winter. The looming New Year makes a guy think about transitions, the passage of time, new stuff—the usual. The numeral 2005 sounds new—shiny and pristine, just out of the box, wheareas 2004 sounds (already), old, scratched, a little battered, like my camera cellphone (which I bought in 2004).
This blog is one of the transitions for the new year. I've started it This is a weird time of year. Here in Berkeley it's a gorgeous day, sunny, though chilly. The magnolias are already blooming. It's not spring yet, not even winter. The looming New Year makes a guy think about transitions, the passage of time, new stuff—the usual. The numeral 2005 sounds new—shiny and pristine, just out of the box, wheareas 2004 sounds (already), old, scratched, a little battered, like my camera cellphone (which I bought in 2004).
This blog is one This is a weird time of year. Here in Berkeley it's a gorgeous day, sunny, though chilly. The magnolias are already blooming. It's not spring yet, not even winter. The looming New Year makes a guy think about transitions, the passage of time, new stuff—the usual. The numeral 2005 sounds new—shiny and pristine, just out of the box, wheareas 2004 sounds (already), old, scratched, a little battered, like my camera This is a weird time of year. Here in Berkeley it's a gorgeous day, sunny, though chilly. The magnolias are already blooming. It's not spring yet, not even winter. The looming New Year makes a guy think about transitions, the passage of time, new stuff—the usual. The numeral 2005 sounds new—shiny and pristine, just out of the box, wheareas 2004
2:36 PM Monday, July 24, 2006
[The human mind is a strange thing]
Last week, the Association of Trial Lawyers of America had their annual convention in Seattle. According to a radio broadcast, one item on their agenda was a possible change in the name of the organization. It seems that the motion passed on July 21 according to a Seattle newspaper.
Meanwhile, 670 miles from Seattle, we have been having a heat wave, like much of the rest of the world. I went Sunday to one of my favorite cafes for an iced coffee. It would have been nice to sit outside on the terrace, where recently there were elegant wrought-iron chairs and table and stylish huge umbrellas sheltering the tables from the sun. Some chairs and tables are still there, but the umbrellas have been missing for a while (see the before/after photo above.) The bare expanse of baking pavement was all but deserted. I asked a barista about the missing umbrellas and was told that the wind had blown over one of the umbrellas, and "injured a lady." Therefore, "we can't have umbrellas any more." Now, I am sorry to hear that the lady was injured. I hope her injury was not serious. But is that a reason to remove all the umbrellas? I recalled that American Airlines no longer serves peanuts but only high-carbohydrate, diabetes-aggravating snacks because someone got an allergy attack from peanuts. (That's what the flight attendant told me.) I for one am willing to dodge falling umbrellas in windy weather, in fact, to avoid altogether sitting in their lee in heavy weather.
The human mind is a strange thing, especially when addled by excessive heat. Take mine, for instance. As soon as I heard the barista's tale, peculiar, mysterious words began to pop up in my own head, words like "pettifogging" and "barratry." I thought about the widely held belief that the quality of life in the USA has deteriorated greatly since the 1950's, due to fear of lawsuits and liability. And then a question occurred to me: could there be some kind of a connection between trial lawyers and the absence of umbrellas at the cafe? I will not attempt to answer that question in Jonathan's Coffeeblog. I have written elsewhere that I work in the health care industry. I do not believe that I could be objective in answering my own question. And so, in the interest of justice, I will recuse myself from stating an opinion. The former Association of Trial Lawyers of America would certainly approve of my decision to recuse myself from stating an opinion. After all, their new name is the American Association for Justice.
More links: Heatwave Lawsuit
Art and Images: Umbrella
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