New Courtroom Design

I've only been with the State three years, but in that time I've seen three new courtrooms built.  What amazes me is that of the three of them, only one really took the time to include the court reporter's input (the Business Court - could be because I'm so darn pushy?  Maybe it's that my family at the Business Court understand I'm working hard, too.  I don't know, but I have a nice desk in the well, enough power, a comfy ergonomic chair, and the ability to MOVE my desk if I need to).

The other two were simply forgetful, at best. 

No clock.  No provision for a court reporter's desk - anywhere, and certainly not built in, like the bench (and clerk and witness stand).  The power at the front of the bench is right in front of the clerk's desk, on the opposite side of the room from the witness stand and jury box.  When I called to ask for an extension cord (because mine was only six feet long), they wanted me to sit over there.  To which I said, NO, I have to see the witness, and need to be as close as possible.  Really, telling me how to do my job?  Oy.   (Don't worry, I didn't say it to his face, but if they had just ASKED before finalizing the plans, all they would have had to do is move the power 15 feet the other way - of course, we still had to find a table for the reporter, and a chair... anyway).

The next courthouse is BEAUTIFUL.  All greenbuild stuff.  Working on LEED certification.  I was there on opening day.  You know how things are, punch list still being done, keycards being reset, codes being programmed, etc.  The main courtroom had no clock.  Had a lot of wasted space.  And, again, no provision for a court reporter's desk.

Seems to me that sometimes people don't realize the reality of court and that just because there are no court reporters on TV (or hidden somewhere far away, AS IF!) doesn't mean we don't exist.  I'm proud of my state for building all these fabulous new facilities, I just wish the pencil pushers understood what I and my colleagues do all day, because I can tell you, desks, chairs, and clocks are all necessities in my world.

Seems to me this is a call to arms, my friends, to stand up for our ability to be able to make a record in the courtroom.  Make friends with the folks who have a say in how the next new courtroom is going to be designed.  If we don't protect the record, who will?

Hacked?

Man.  I woke up today to a post on my Facebook page that my email had been hacked.  Great.  My passwords are very long.  I just  hate that these people do this with impunity.  I mean, who knows who got a "bad" email from me? 

I've reset my passwords - and they're really long and nothing someone would guess.  But really?  REALLY?  Welcome to the Brave New World that Aldous Huxley warned us about.  Some days I think, hmm, might it be better to be off the grid?

I'll regain my equanimity in a bit, but doesn't it just make you mad that you spend so much of your life using the tools of the Internet and someone who has nothing but time on their hands and malice in their heart can affect your work and your life with absolutely no effect on them? 

Change your passwords, folks.  Update the spyware/malware/antivirus stuff.  And as they used to say on Hill Street Blues, Be safe out there.

The Weekend Recharge

Okay, technically it was four days.  I went to Vegas on Thursday and came back on Sunday night (very late - actually, it's considered Monday morning, very early).  I didn't take a page of work.  Didn't take my software key.  I pawned a couple hundred pages off on my scopists and told them to have a great time working while I took a much-needed breather.

I went alone.  Did only things I wanted to do.  This included dinner at the Bellagio buffet (never did it before - it's awesome), breakfast at Mon Ami Gabi (Paris) on the patio watching the pedestrians, a day at the Canyon Ranch Spa, a show (David Spade - only there for Fri/Sat - got VIP pass), visited with old friends, had dinner at Bouchon (Thomas Keller of French Laundry fame), played slots like a crazy person, stayed up late, slept in.

In other words, I reveled in my freedom.  I feel so refreshed.  I have a lot of pages in the queue, with extensions (we know I don't like to get those) received and my scopists (yes, one of my babies is a CART provider with no summer school classes!) ready to crank the pages.  The light is there at the end of the tunnel and now, fully staffed and completely re-energized, I have full faith and confidence that I can and will meet every last one of those deadlines.

You're probably tired of hearing it, but I can't reiterate it too many times:  We work really hard and sometimes it's very important to just step away and do for ourselves.  This job is very stressful and we need to be sure to keep in balance, or get rebalanced, in any manner we can.

Thanks to Vegas, I'm back on track and ready to put those pages out.

The Friends We Make

I love the fact that this profession has brought me the gift of very good friends.  People whom I would not have met but for the fact that I love reporting and going to conventions to get re-energized about it.

This weekend my husband and I drove up to visit one such friend - well, actually two; a husband and wife team.  The reporter I met first; his wife, a former court reporter and now educator and scopist/proofer, a couple of conventions after.

These people are kindred spirits.  A little off.  Foodies.  Movie-speakers.  Thinkers.  And professionals passionate about their careers.  It's a joy to spend two days with like-minded people, just talking.  We never turned on the television or the radio.  It was non-stop conversation (and eating).

The beauty is that these two are just two of the many good friends I've made in my 20 years in the profession.  I'm thankful for every one of my friends - the ones who live around the corner, down the road, or several states away.  Court reporting has been very, very good to me.

When the deadline teaches you something

So I am not usually one who likes to request extensions of time to produce transcripts.  We have 60 days for civil trials, 65 for criminal, in which to produce our pages.  I had to break down this week and request one.

At first, I felt I wasn't living up to my own high standards and expectations.  I mean, really, why SHOULDN'T I be able to meet my deadline?  60 days is a long time to get out 2500 pages or so.  But when I stepped back and took stock of my situation, I realized that it was not something I could do and maintain the high quality of work product that I strive to produce with every transcript.

I won't deny that it's been a crazy month/six weeks.  I've spent a lot of time on the road.  One of my editors went back to the "real" workforce and my other editor had some family issues to deal with.  It just was NOT going to happen by May 5.  Nope, no way.  So I asked for an extension.  Already, I feel the weight/pressure lessening.  My editor has been able to get back into her groove, I've had a couple of days locally (in other words, not commuting too far out of county for court!), and the attorneys were simply FINE with my request for an extension.

So what was I worried about?  In the end, my care and concern for the record are what shines through here.  I could have, probably, working many late nights, produced all the pages and delivered them in a timely fashion.  But would they have really been up to my high standards?  I'd like to think so, but I can't say for certain that in my mental and physical state of quasi-exhaustion that I would have been as attentive as I always strive to be.

While I recognize that this is a tool I have at my disposal, these extensions, I do need to be sure that I don't abuse it and continue to manage my time as best as I can.  But in the end, I believe I did honor to the profession and to the record by giving myself a little bit of breathing room.


My transcript is now due on June 6.  Trust me, I will have it done by then - what a birthday present that will be.

Life is like a box of chocolates ...

I think about this quote from Forrest Gump as it applies to my career in court reporting quite a bit, and especially as it applies to my position as a roving reporter for our state.  This week had a very interesting box of chocolates on offer to me.

The first two days of my week were spent in Caswell County in a toxic tort case that counsel requested daily copy transcript in.  Fortunately, it was a bench trial and not very long.  And, fortunately, I didn't have two FULL days; rather, just about a day and a half.  I completed the daily copy transcripts same day (evenings, though late). 

Wednesday found me in Durham taking down some constitutional argument.  We all know that I'm one of those odd court reporters who loves to take down argument.  I find it mentally stimulating.  Some people love trials; me, I love motions.  Wednesday was no different.  I was not just reporting, but I was paying attention.  This sounds funny, I'm sure; but as most court reporters know, sometimes when we are reporting, we're hearing, but not always actively listening.  I was actively listening to the very interesting case.

Thursday I found myself in Johnston County (Smithfield) in a special proceeding about a land partition and timber.  And Friday, I was back in Johnston County again, in a criminal administrative session.

That was a well-rounded week, I think.  I found myself called upon to perform at the top of my game in terms of production, being mentally challenged by the legal argument, learning about timber and timber prices, and then hearing motions to suppress and pleas. 

My box of chocolates was wonderfully diverse.  I hope to continue to be gifted with the variety that is court reporting for a long time to come.

March Madness

I took the entire weekend off!  It was awesome.  We court reporters rarely have the luxury of a true weekend, and even though I have a LOT of pages pending, I just wanted to relax.  After last week's half marathon (I finished!) and a crazy travel week, I just wanted to chill out and watch a few basketball games.  Must say I was disappointed with the outcome of the KY/UNC game.

In addition to the traditional March Madness, I lost one of my scopers - she took a "real" job back in the private sector.  Of course, this comes at a time when I have a few thousand pages in the queue.  Then my other scoper has a family medical emergency (aging parent) and is not available for me as much as she and I would like - at least not right now.

Then, of course, there's the travel.  The State is still short reporters, so those of us who are rovers are really roving.  I've been to several eastern counties that I would not normally be assigned to. Adding between four and five hours to my days.  But the good news is I'm adding to my collection of courthouses - there are 100 counties in the state and I'm nearing 35 that I've reported in (I don't think I'll ever get all 100, but still, it's a pretty large percentage so far!).

So now I'll wrap up my March Madness with several late nights this week making sure I keep on track with my pages.  It'll be all right.  Of course, this is contingent upon the two-week daily copy trial that is supposed to start next Monday going away (as promised by defense counsel.).

Enjoy your March Madness - and I hope some of you haven't had your brackets completely busted!