Anniversaries Aplenty

 

Ahoy, readers!  After an informal hiatus (yet again), I’m back to post!  When I started this blog, I wasn’t planning to take this long to write individual posts.  Since most of my life these days revolves around confidential work, I haven’t had anything interesting that I can share.  However, as December 2021 rolls around, I’m coming up on several major milestones that I thought were worth reflecting on through writing.  So, with the new year coming up, let’s look to the past and see how far I’ve come.

First, there’s the obvious one: as of October 3, I have now officially been a lawyer for 2 whole years!  Though my swearing into the Oregon State Bar was 2 Octobers ago, it still feels like only 2 months since I took the oath, pinned on my shiny new Oregon State Bar lapel pin, and immediately started panicking about finding a job in the oversaturated legal market.  Two years later, I’m running a small law office and haven’t been disbarred; I guess I’m doing something right!

A photo of me solemnly taking the oath needed to be admitted to the bar.

A not-very-solemn photo of me showing off my new lapel pin.  I still have this pin and wear it from time to time, but I've now got a collection I like to cycle through.

 

On a less dry note, October saw a very lovely anniversary; I have now been in a relationship with Cthulhu for 6 years!  Our relationship has seen some interesting obstacles throughout the years: we’ve both gone through law school and spent over a year separated by COVID-19 distancing requirements.  Despite these challenges, our relationship remains strong as ever; I till take the time to see them in Salem, Oregon every weekend, taking an hour and a half to get there (it used to be 2–3 hours, but some road work completion has made it a shorter journey).  I look forward to many more years of hitting up farmers’ markets together, enjoying our usual haunts together, playing video games together, and bonding over our law-dominated lives. :)

Speaking of the 1.5-hour journey, I celebrated my 2-year anniversary with Tillamook County this November.  As a city kid at heart born in New York City, raised partially in the suburbs of Kailua, and educated in Salem, Oregon, moving to a completely rural area isn’t something I predicted happening in my lifetime.  Nonetheless, I’ve now spent 2 years in the Dairylands, including an entire year where I was restricted from leaving thanks to COVID restrictions.  I’ve had my share of adjusting over the months; I no longer notice the faint smell of manure in the air, I’m used to seeing cows urinating/defacating/humping at the side of the road, and no longer feel conscious about being the only person in a suit as I walk down the street.  I don’t know how much longer I’ll be in Tillamook, but I have no doubt that I’ll continue to see new things (especially now that the COVID-19 pandemic is winding down) and stepping out of my comfort zone.

One thing I’ll continue to do in coming months is representing clients in court, which I have now been doing for 2 years.  While there are times where I still feel like a rookie, I’ve changed over time.  I’ve gone from misdemeanors and probation violations to major felonies over the course of 24 months (though I have yet to come even close to a murder case).  I’ve gotten much more confident with time; I no longer get phased by hostile clients, even when they’re yelling slurs at me over the phone.  I’ve seen convictions, acquittals, and a whole lot of plea negotiations.  The ebb and flow of court procedures has taken getting used to, but, like living in Tillamook, I’ve done a fair amount of adjusting.  No matter how tough things get, I don’t back down, I keep a strong smile on my face, and I keep up the good fight—defending the guilty, protecting the innocent, and sticking it to the man.

Finally, there’s one anniversary that I can’t help but bring up here.  The blog you are reading—Benjamin Fischberg: A[pprenti]ce Attorney—is now 2 years old.  This is a longer blog than I’ve written before; my prior blogs only covered a few months each (shameless plug: http://benfinlondon.blogspot.com/2013/08/theresa-half-packed-suitcase-in-my.html http://benfinsalem.blogspot.com/2014/04/here-we-go-again.html).  This blog has been a bit different in another major way; I haven’t had that many adventures to write about.  Part of this is due to the confidential nature of my work, and part of this is being housebound for over a year due to COVID.  I’ve wanted to write more, but it’s been hard to find the time to write and things to write about.  Still, I plan to keep up when I can and write as much as I am able.  To close off this vague promise to be better, here’s the return of an old feature:

 

GREAT MOMENTS IN TILLAMOOK JURISPRUDENCE

*insert sophisticated music*

Episode VII: Accusations from the Accused

Judge: Have you reviewed this petition with your lawyer?

Client: Yes.

J: Has Mr. Fischberg answered all your questions?

C: Yes, he has.

J: Have you had any problems with his representation?

C: Actually, yeah; he cheated me out of a thousand bucks.

*beat*

C: *breaks into huge smile* Nah, I’m just kidding; he was great.  No problems with his representation.

[court hearing continues and concludes with no further difficulties]

 

Hair

 

Hello, everyone; your favorite blogging lawyer (I hope) is back with a new entry!  I would write more often, but relatively little has happened in my life for the past 3 months (at least, little that I can legally or ethically write about).  The most notable thing to mention is that the COVID-19 pandemic has flared up again here in Tillamook County.  In part thanks to some people insisting on not getting vaccinated, there have been several deaths in the county, a few government workers got sick, and the court has resumed everything by video.  My trials are therefore getting pushed back yet again, my parents had to cancel a long-awaited visit, and I once again find myself in splendid isolation (though I have been able to eat at restaurants on occasion and visit Cthulhu on weekends).  Grrrr, lousy pandemic…

Alright, I don’t want to focus on the negative; time to get positive!  A lot of the troubles I had in June have now been resolved thanks to some hard work and a little bit of luck.  I also hit some milestones in my career, trying my first felony trial this summer.  However, the arguably biggest change I recently underwent was, of all things, finally getting a haircut.  Before the pandemic hit, my hair was already a little on the long side (for me, anyway).  Just when I was getting ready for a new haircut, I found myself staying at home and yadda yadda yadda, 18 months without a haircut went by.

 

Pictured: results of 18 months without a haircut

When the pandemic first started showing signs of receding, I thought I would finally have my chance to get a prompt haircut.  Unfortunately, car troubles and overbooked barber shops conspired to keep my hair long and shaggy up until late July.  Delays and complications overcome, I finally got my long-awaited haircut and ended my tenure as a scruffy-looking nerf herder.

 

That's better.

You might be asking, “if you got a haircut in July, why did you wait until now to write about it?”  Well, hypothetical reader who is somehow interested in my mundane life, I wanted to give my hair a chance to grow in before showing it off for the interwebs (that and me constantly being busy/lazy).  Enjoy my new and fresh lawyer look!

 

Much better!

Random side-note 1: I recently got a nameplate for my office door.   Just looking at it makes me happy. :)

 

 

Random side-note 2: Rosh Hashanah caught me off guard this year.  Thankfully, my landlord has been recently keeping the kitchen regularly stocked with apples.  Shana Tova, everyone!

 

Pride Along

 

That’s right, it’s time for a new entry!  I can’t even remember the last time I completed two entries in one month, but writing this blog gives me a sort of control over my life, no matter how chaotic things can get.  As such, it feels good to be writing something that isn’t a motion or work email for once.

June has been a mixed month for me.  The COVID-19 pandemic continues to wind down, which means more restrictions are being lifted.  As such, I’ve been able to restore more elements of my pre-quarantine life.  I’ve been hitting the gym every week, I’ve been able to eat out more, and I’ve even been talking to my parents about arranging a long-awaited visit—either here or in Hawaii.  Normally, all this news would mean that life is on the up-and-up.  Unfortunately, every yin has a yang; for each thing going right, there seems to be something going wrong.  Be it computer troubles, phone troubles, car troubles, insomnia, civic duties, workplace difficulties, or trials coming up, there always seems to be something going wrong or breaking down.  So far, I’ve been able to endure it all with relative grace under pressure.  While things can sometimes get extremely difficult, I keep up to the best of my ability, adapting as necessary and seeking relevant help whenever pertinent.  With a smile on my face and my eyes on a stable future, I’ll continue to conquer every challenge.  Having faced a global pandemic in the near past, I have no doubt I’ll be able to straighten things out in the coming weeks.

Still, no matter how rough things get, some things continue to brighten my days.  I’ve been able to see Cthulhu on a semi-regular basis.  We’ve hit up restaurants new and old, tried to revive our social lives, and generally have been there for each other through life’s trials and tribulations.  During one such visit, we attended a Pride event in Keizer together.  As an ally of the LGBTQ community, it’s a little weird that I’ve never been to a Pride event; it was time to rectify that!  The event was a low-key and casual affair, so there wasn’t a major parade or display.  Nonetheless, it was a pleasant and welcoming experience.  In some ways, it felt like a harbinger of things to come; with a dwindling pandemic, new and wonderful events are on the horizon, and I’m ready to embrace them.

 

The event had rock painting; I took part by painting a rock with some of my favorite colors.

Chalk art at pride.

Denny's shortbread pancakes drizzled with caramel: my go-to dinner for rough days at work.

Switcheroo

 

I’m back, everyone!  I’ve been out of the blog game for most of the year, but I finally found the time to take a breather and take stock in what the f*** has been happening recently.  To be honest, a whole lot has happened since my last post (where, if you might recall, I observed that not much had changed from last year), personally and publicly.  A full list of everything could be a little time-consuming/Russian novel-length/TMI, so I’ll stick to the big picture.

One major shift (which provided me inspiration for the post title) is that after months of hesitation and Wii U gaming, I caved and bought a Nintendo Switch during President’s Day sales, purchasing half a dozen games to go with it.

 

I expect quarantine (or what’s left of it) should be at least a little more entertaining.  I’ve already put some of these games to good use (while still experimenting with computer modding and mobile gaming at various intervals), and I plan to get back into gaming as I try to restructure my schedule going forward.  In a way, this whole experience is getting me to get back to my gaming roots; most of the games I got are remakes from my youth, including one special virtual download: Star Wars: Episode I: Racer, the very first video game I ever played (which I downloaded onto my Switch on Star Wars Day).  The circle is now complete, and I am now born again as a gamer.  Once more, I shall collect stars, hunt bounties, catch them all, and become King of Mario Kart!

 

Whether it's the Tillamook County Jail or the Oovo IV Detention Center, I frequently find myself conducting business behind bars

(For those that don’t know, I once won a Mario Kart 8 tournament in college.  Wins can sometimes go to my head).

However, the biggest switch to my life by far in recent months is one for the books: I am now fully vaccinated from COVID-19!  It took a while for me to find the opportunity, but thanks to my constant working at the county jail, I was able to get on the list of people prioritized to get the COVID-19 vaccine.  After 2 shots and 2 weeks, I’m fully vaccinated and able to move around more than I have in months.  Case in point: I’ve been hitting up my favorite local restaurants and I even made it down to Salem to see Cthulhu a few times!  After over a year de facto confined to Tillamook (specifically, home and workplace-centered), being able to travel, even for a little, feels like a massive relief.

Shot 1

Shot 2

Denny's, I missed you

                                                  

Tora Sushi Lounge, it's good to be back

                                                                                   

The familiar Golden Man greets me in Salem

 

With the ability to go outside, and a strong incentive to stay inside, 2021 is shaping up to be better than last year.  I’m still ironing out a fair amount of kinks: I’ve got to clean my room, I’ve got various appointments to catch up on, and I’m still working remotely on most days.  With any luck, life will return to normal (or some semblance of normal) soon enough, I’ll be able to enjoy my hobbies in peace, I’ll be able to continue my journey as a growing attorney, and I won’t wait 5 months to post my next blog entry.  Fingers crossed!

New Year, Old Problems

 

Happy (Extremely Belated) Holidays/New Year, everyone!  I hope everyone’s 2021 is off to a decent start.

Despite the best efforts of health authorities everywhere, COVID-19 is still very much a serious problem.  This made the 2020 holiday season a bit less jolly than usual and kept celebrations to a minimum.  Ironically, this didn’t make a huge difference for me, as I spent most of the previous holiday season indoors and alone as well.  Still, I did what I could: I called my loved ones, kept my little electric menorah lit, and gorged myself on peppermint bark.

As December came to an end, so did 2020.  This was a doozy of a year that just about everyone was happy to see go (including yours truly).  The United States had a toxic presidential election where partisanship was prevalent as ever.  Police brutality (already a massive social problem that I occasionally run across at work) escalated to horrific new levels in response to peaceful protests and frightening riots alike. The West Coast became an inferno triggered by wildfires, leading to apocalyptic orange skies and hellish storms of smoke.  Worst of all, the COVID-19 pandemic threw the entire world into disarray and fear.  I was not immune from these troubles: I haven't been with Cthulhu since March, I spent most of summer devoid of personal human contact, the wildfires in Oregon caused me no end of fear, and I've been handling a variety of serious/unpleasant cases since becoming major felony-certified. Still, as troubling as this year was, it had a lot of significance for me in one major way: this was my first full year practicing as a lawyer.  I tried cases, learned the complexities of running a law office, interacted with a wide variety of clients, became major felony-certified, and gained no end of experience.  Although I won’t have the fondest memories of 2020, it was undoubtedly an extremely important year for me and my career.

Although 2021 is shaping up to be a year where things could get a lot better, it started with an unpleasant bang.  On January 6, there was an ugly riot in Washington, D.C. that almost escalated into a full-scale insurrection.  I won’t go into detail here (as previously mentioned, serious political discourse is outside the scope of this goofy slice-of-life blog; look this up in your search engine or newspaper of choice), but I will mention that that particular day was agonizing.  I spent most of the afternoon trying to stay calm and praying that a civil war wouldn’t break out.  Eventually, the chaos subsided (though the aftereffects will be felt for quite a while).  I was so shaken by the events, I was actually relieved to have an extremely uneventful birthday.  As with last year, I was far away from friends and family on the day in question.  Unlike last year, a deadly virus was on the loose, so I didn’t have the means to eat out or to leave the county for a birthday celebration.  As such, my birthday celebrations were limited to reaching out to friends/loved ones, playing computer games from my youth, and gorging myself on cake.  It wasn’t an ideal way to spend a birthday, but it works just fine for me in the shadow of civil war and disease.  I still have my friends and loved ones, I’m still a practicing attorney, and I’m still alive—that’s certainly worthy of celebration, no matter how small-scale.

Revolts aside, this year has a lot of the same issues as last year so far.  My room is still a mess, finances are as complicated as ever, cases are as complicated as ever, new technology is as complicated as ever, Donald Trump is still the President (for future readers not paying attention in history class, Donald Trump was a controversial real estate tycoon elected President in 2016 who lost re-election in 2020—now please pay more attention in class), crimes are still committed, everything is in lockdown thanks to the pandemic, I still sleep too much on weekends, and I’m still figuring out how to be a competent lawyer.  I’ll address these old problems as I did last year: a combination of determination, support, and gorging myself on ice cream.  With any luck, my second full year as an attorney will be smoother than my first.

Thanks for the Memories

Happy Th…ree Days After Thanksgiving, everyone! I meant to write this entry on Thanksgiving, but the bottle of Guinness I had with dinner had other plans. Having slept a whole lot and properly digested, I’m back into the writing fray. Compared to last year, Thanksgiving was a quiet affair; I barricaded myself into my room with several packs of dinner rolls (my favorite Thanksgiving food) along with some fruit and libations, enjoying a slow, methodical meal. More than ever, I miss my parents, Cthulhu, and Cthulhu’s family. That being said, there are plenty of things to feel grateful for right now. As corny as it is, I’ve decided to follow up on last year’s Thanksgiving special and jot down exactly what I’m thankful for this year.

First of all, I’m very thankful for my health. As I write this, COVID-19 continues to surge around the world. The United States has been hit especially hard, and life continues to be on regular lockdown. Even Tillamook County has been hit, as cases have emerged among jail and courthouse staff. I’ve tried to do my part to fight the epidemic by staying home all the time, minimizing my trips outside, consistently wearing a mask, and meeting with clients only telephonically. Still, I occasionally put myself at risk with my duties, having to visit the county jail and meet with clients in my office. There are many opportunities that I’ve had to catch the virus, and I’m very fortunate to have not caught it. As much as I take precautions, there is no doubt that luck has played a part in my safety. Although there are potential vaccines in sight, I will continue to be careful and hope that Fortune will continue to favor me.

Next, I’m really grateful for the economic security that I have maintained throughout this crisis. As part of the lockdowns brought on by the pandemic, many people have lost their jobs or have seen their pay cut (because of this, more people than usual are considered eligible for court-appointed counsel, something that has been consistent throughout the epidemic). Unlike many, I have continued to be paid regularly throughout the pandemic and have not had any difficulty with paying rent or for groceries. While part of this stability comes from working hard in school and finding the right job, I have no doubt that good fortune (again) played a major role in ensuring financial security. I’ll be sure to make the most of my fortunate position by continuing to help the less fortunate through defending the indigent.

Furthermore, I’m extremely grateful to still have numerous friends and relatives still supporting me. Between being buried in work and bunkered in my rented room, I don’t have a lot of opportunities to socialize or travel these days. Thanks to social media, various video chat programs, and good old-fashioned text messages, I’ve been able to stay in to touch with friends and family. Whether it’s my usual D&D online session, occasionally touching base with my parents, or catching up with an old university chum, I’ve tried to maintain some kind of social life through quarantine and quandaries. I haven’t been the best at staying in touch, but I promise to step up my contact game, friends (it’s a bit early, but I guess this counts as a New Year’s resolution—this post is now a Thanksgiving AND New Year’s special)!

Finally (like last year), I’m thankful all the little and/or stupid things in life that continue make my life a little more pleasant: pasta, TV Tropes, dried fruit, cat/puppy videos, naps, affectionate cats, Star Wars, tuna melts, almonds, Spotify, online shopping, sushi, Ace Attorney, cheese, wholesome Internet memes, cake, Honest Trailers, soft pretzels, classic rock radio stations, sourdough bread, online quizzes, salt, Cinema Snob reviews, Random Encounters videos, ASMR videos, chocolate, late-night talk shows, Pokémon, Death Battle, s****y coffee, fancy mochas from Starbucks, video games, ice cream, tie-dye t-shirts, my growing lapel pin collection, modding computer games, custom ringtones, having the technology to keep in touch with friends throughout a global ordeal, and this blog (which I am still writing for after an entire year).

Happy Belated Thanksgiving/Black Friday, everyone! L’Chayyim!

Anything Less than the Best is a Felony

It’s Month 8, Day I’ve-Lost-Track of quarantine.  The last 4 months or so have really flown by, each of which had their own flavor.  Because of quarantine, I haven’t had much to write about.  Now that several months have passed, I think I’ve amassed enough interesting subjects to write about now.

July was quite a busy month: I was flooded with 4 trials in 4 weeks, which is a lot more than I usually handle.  I was also assigned a flood of new cases, ranging from shoplifting (usually easy to resolve) to domestic violence (which is definitely my least favorite kind of case at this point).  Although social distancing guidelines are still in place, the circuit court started picking up steam, with cases no longer being delayed.  With cases being assigned and hearings coming up, I’ve found myself leaving the house 4 or 5 days a week and constantly going in and out of court.  Sometimes, I even have to burn the midnight oil, watching body cam footage on my laptop to make sure I stay on top of everything.  After several months of court being frozen out, it’s a little reassuring to have work starting to return to normal…or at least it was, until new restrictions by the state in mid-November caused the county to start delaying trials yet again.  As such, it’s back to working from home and staying isolated for the good of the realm.

As opposed to July, August was a fairly barren month in regard to trials.  I only had 1 trial scheduled at the end of the month (that ended up settling at the last second), so my court outings this month were limited to pretrial hearings.  Still, I endured the annoyances and boredoms of August and survived the Summer of Quarantine.

September is when things got kind of intense.  Early in the month, the entire West Coast was engulfed in wildfires.  The exact causes of the fires varied from location to location, but Tillamook County saw some massive conflagrations due to some downed power cables (which also caused a blackout for several terrifying hours; the first of several recent technical problems).  As a result of the rampaging fires, we were treated to an Oregon sky that looked like this.

The view from my room.

Yeah.  It was bad.

Because of the incredibly unhealthy, smog-filled air, everyone was encouraged to stay indoors (already kind of a given during a massive pandemic).  Life dragged on for 6 days under the orange sun, when we were then greeted by an old Oregon friend: rain.  Lots and lots of rain.

Here's the view from my car, taken close to the county jail.

Like all things, good and bad, the dramatic sky eventually came to a close, though it was gradual.  It wasn’t until the end of September that I was able to look out from the courthouse steps and see a view like this.

Moving on to more positive news, I recently passed several milestones.  I have now officially been a lawyer, a resident of Tillamook, the owner of a law office, and the writer of this blog for an entire year!  Furthermore, I am now major felony-certified (hence the title of this post).  What does this mean?  To put it simply, I am now allowed to try any criminal case in Oregon except murder (and possibly treason, but that’s a bit of a grey area).  This means I’m now in the big leagues.  Sure, I’ll be taking on gnarlier cases (like sex crimes and felonies with mandatory minimums), but it’s all part of the escalating journey that is my legal career.

Because of work and quarantine, I was unable to find a costume for Halloween.  Given that I typically dress like a cross between Phoenix Wright and the Winter Soldier on any given workday, I figured I was fine in the costume department anyway.

As the year 2020 keeps chugging towards its conclusion, things can still feel somewhat overwhelming.  The global pandemic is still raging, the United States just finished a toxic election season, and I haven’t seen Cthulhu in person for 8 months.  With the holiday season coming up, there’s a lot of potential for things to get better or worse.  No matter what happens, I’ll try to stay alive, stay positive, and stay strong in the face of craziness.