From December to January...

The End of the Year... a time to reflect on what we've learned, things we've done and some things we never finished. Friends we never connected with even though they're nearby; old friends we've rediscovered.. and the time we ponder how we will live in the upcoming year.

Here is a list of my top accomplishments for 2008:

• New Job with the State of NC (and I LOVE IT!)
• State-of-the-art equipment for my profession (still learning them)
• Doctor's release after the 10th anniversary of my cancer diagnosis

Here are my goals for 2009 (keep me honest, please! Ask me how I'm doing):

• Take and pass the CRR (certified realtime reporter) exam and earn a 15% raise
• Attend the training workshop for my software to I can be more efficient at work
• Increase my social time with my friends - esp. those I've missed this year
• Assist students and new reporters are they make the transition to this profession
• Eat better and exercise more (isn't that on everybody's list?)

Happy New Year... May 2009 be full of all good things.

Counting Counties

There are 100 counties in North Carolina. So far as a rover, since February, I've worked in 14 of them. Some of them are pretty far-flung, too! This past week, due to illness in the family, my vacation to Las Vegas was nixed, so I became "available" to work Wednesday/Thursday/Friday.

I was "picked up" by my boss - she called Tuesday afternoon - for the remainder of the week in Rowan County. Now, since I'm not a native of NC, I wasn't really sure where that was. Turns out, that's Salisbury (almost to Charlotte!). Now, driving from Wake Forest, that was going to be two-plus hours. Needless to say, I packed my suitcase.

It was an interesting week - with a tainted jury pool, a member of the venire cited for criminal contempt of court (that was interesting), then another trial (communicating threats) that ended up with an acquittal... and then, the killer day, Friday - probation violation calendar. From start to finish, 9:30 a.m. to 4:53 p.m., we handled over 100 cases. With two judges! First judge sent the jury out for deliberations, and then left; second judge did probation court and took the verdict. Bizarre day.

Never a dull moment in court! Only 86 more counties to go. We'll see how long it takes.

Fall... finally

October and November are great months, two of my favorites. I love the snap in the air - sleeping with the windows open - and the wonderful smell of leaves. This past month has been busy, with driving to Goldsboro a couple of days, lots of time to Raleigh, and then, today, to Newton, NC.

It's a three-hour drive to Catawba County from my home in Wake Forest. It was dark when I left, but as the sun rose, I was driving along the interstate and saw some really pretty foliage in the morning light. Wow, how pretty. Golds, reds, oranges on both sides of the road - and the scarlets were the best. The sky was Carolina Blue, the autumn hues were fabulous, and the temperature was moderate.

Not a bad day for a drive. Get out there!

State Service

Last weekend, in New Bern, my term as president of the state association ended. It was a fun run, but long... and it was time for a new person to step in and assume the reins. I'm looking forward to what Katie and Suzanne and Jenny will do.

It was an honor to serve my fellow reporters, trying to make sure they stayed in touch with each other, with what's happening locally, and what's happening in the world of court reporting. We are working in an ever-changing field, fully loaded with technology and information. In order to stay current, we must be vigilant. I hope I helped.

My term was capped off, after turning over the gavel to the new president, by an award of a plaque thanking me for my service. Wasn't expecting it. Nope, sure wasn't. I do this stuff because I love what I do. But to know my peers appreciate me doing it, that's REALLY NICE. It will be hanging in my office very soon.

But I won't stop giving, I promise. Thanks for the ride, my friends.

Civil Trials

Now, traveling is something I love to do. I was assigned to Greensboro all week last week, and I decided to commute. Not a GREAT drive, but a little under 90 minutes each way.

I was not assigned to pleas. Nor was I assigned to criminal court. The reporters in Guilford County, bless them, assigned me to a big civil case. I love civil. It was construction. I love construction.

Great attorneys. Wonderful clerk. Fabulous - record-conscious - judge. I had a FANTASTIC WEEK! And, I even get to produce a transcript.

I just wish I were going to be able to hear "the rest of the story" - but I'm not assigned there this week. I'm going to have to find out from the reporter taking over what the jury thought.

This is a pretty fun job, I gotta say!

Social networking

So as a 40-something, I came to computers later in my life than the younger generations - I think I took a class in 1981 (which was way over my head) and didn't start using them in my work until the '90s. I certainly used a Wang word processor... and my brother had a Commodore 64 when he was younger.

But for me the computer age didn't start until I started on a forum.

That was in 1992, the Compuserve Court Reporters Forum. (I'm still participating!) We had weekly "chats" there and great message boards. I spent a lot of time there. In the early 2000s, I spent to much time on the NCRA forum that they tapped me to be an assistant sysop. I had written MANY posts.

Now, I'm new to the social stuff, but this Facebook thing is amazing! I started last Saturday. I uploaded pix, searched for some friends, joined groups, played a game or two. It's now a week later and I have close to 50 friends (hey, I was in court all week!!) and requests for many more.

I've spent A LOT of time playing the games and looking up people from my past. I can see how this could be a really great time killer. But if life is not about maintaining friendships and developing more, then what is it about? After all, the more people you meet, the more experiences and viewpoints you are exposed to. Knowledge is power.

Make new friends, and find your old ones. See you online.

Remembering Jan

This week a colleague of mine passed away after having fought valiantly against an inoperable brain tumor. Jan was full of energy and passion - and she just LOVED court reporting. She was an inspiration to us all; she gave of her time selflessly to the benefit of our association and profession.

But what she did on a personal front was even more inspiring. She got the treatment she could, and accepted with Grace her diagnosis. She didn't rail at God or ask "Why me?" Instead, she believed that this was the path that she was chosen for and followed it through.

She's with God now and is surely one of the brightest stars in Heaven.