After what seemed like the longest week EVER, I pulled into my driveway and was already reciting in my head the many reasons why this very moment...the moment of me unlocking my back door and placing my stuff on the kitchen floor... was absolutely fantastic. It's Friday evening, tomorrow is Saturday morning, I have no workouts tomorrow (rest day!), it's Friday night....tomorrow is Saturday as opposed to Monday, and so on. Anyway, good deal. As a matter of fact, as I closed the door behind me, I actually said out loud "Best Day Ever!". While not exactly the best day ever, the moment of the day was the best day ever. Anyway, Friday is great, we all know that. Friday after all obligations are done and gone is even better. Magnifique.
I put my things down and walked out front to check the mail. The mail lady does not usually bring me anything exciting, sometimes she brings me bills which I'm not fond of, other times she brings me all sorts of gifts that I forgot I ordered because it took so long to get here. Today she brought me an ad from Overstock.com, a water bill and a Jury Summons.
Ugh. Jury Summons suck. I have some mixed feelings about Jury Duty, mostly "Jury Duty Sucks" sort of feelings, but then logic sets in. This country would have no justice system if everyday people like me refused to do jury duty. I would hope if one day I was arrested for robbing a bank, a jury of my peers would gladly step up and vote me not guilty and allow me to go about the rest of my life in relative peace. It's too bad I'm not a cop. Cops rarely have to do jury duty. Unfortunately I don't think that flies for firefighters. Firefighters are more fair. If it were the summer that would be different, but it's been raining up here, so I don't think they'll buy me stating that my job needs me right now. They really don't.
You know what sucks the most about jury duty? I did not plan for this. It is not on my calendar. If people need me to be somewhere, they need to request my time a couple months in advanced. You do not say to me on Friday, "Be here at 9am on Wednesday" and expect me to have my schedule clear. Seriously people? How long have you had this trial scheduled? Yes, of course I have Wednesday free. I mean, I don't actually, I have to work, but work can do without me for a day. I'm more concerned with the fact that on Friday I will be driving up to Oregon to see my friend and will not be back until Monday evening and if the Superior Court of Siskiyou County thinks they're going to change that, they've got another thing coming.
I am also not cancelling my Thanksgiving plans to accomodate their schedule. I will be out of town for an entire week, not the two days that they'll adjourn court, but several days after that. No, I am not coming home early to do my civic duty and throw some jerk in jail.
And the first week in December I will be in Chico, CA to recertify my wilderness EMT certificate. Not canceling that either.
But yes, I do know that it is my civic duty to perform jury duty, and everyone is busy and has other things going on in their lives just like me. But in all honesty I really do not have the time for this. I put my family and friends on the back burner all summer long so that I'm available to go fight fires. I expect to be able to use my time in the winter to spend time with other people and not have to commit my time and energy elsewhere. Is that too much to ask?
And as it turns out, I now have at least two strips of poison oak on my left arm. It's showing up right now. From pile burning yesterday. I took a digger into the side of the hill which I'm sure didn't help, and then ate it again today going back and checking the piles. Face first into the rocks and poison oak. Twice in two days. I suppose that calls for a shower. Maybe. Right now though, I'm enjoying a glass of Batch 88 Starboard Dessert Wine from Quady. And scratching my arm. Poison oak sucks. Almost as much as jury duty. Yeah, I'd actually rather have a bad case of poison oak than go to jury duty.
Hmm...after reading this over, it's Wednesday the 14th, almost two weeks from now. Still, I do not have that time free, it has already been claimed by some ones who are more important. Maybe if I'm really loud and obnoxious they'll send me home.
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