He's baaaack
So I thought I'd start my first post in six weeks by explaining why it's my first post in six weeks.
Ever run into somebody and ask the obligatory question, "How are you doing?" And they proceed to tell you that their wife's been in an accident, and they're barely getting by what with what they have to spend on college for the kids, and they had to have their gall bladder taken out, and one of their best friends' kids OD'd? And you say, "Whatever happened to 'Fine. You?'"
Well, my answer to the obligatory question, if I was being truthful, would be, "I've got cancer, my wife's got Alzheimer's, and I'm lying awake at night thinking about the work I have to do."
The cancer part's not a big deal. Here's my tip for the day: if you've got a choice of which cancer to get, pick prostate cancer. The chances are very great that you're going to die with it, not of it. Sure, there are the radiation treatments, where they shoot x-rays into your prostate, five days a week for nine weeks, but that's about it. Beats the hell out of chemo.
My treatment was a bit problematic, to be sure. The nurse would interview me each week to see how I was doing. The third week in, she asked me if I had any burning. "Only my desire for you," I replied.
So I was kicked out of there, and wound up with one of the less reputable medical providers, Frank's Oncology Center and Tire Store. The staff could have used a bit more training; kind of unsettling when the nurse escorting you to the X-ray station shouts out "Dead man walking!"
The part about having prostate cancer and the treatments is true; the rest, not so much.
The part about Alzheimer's is true, too. Karen's been in an assisted living facility for the past two years. I cannot begin to tell you how horrible it is to go there every night and feed someone you've been married to for thirty-six years, and who has no idea who you are other than that you're someone who comes to feed her every night. Believe me, it takes a lot out of you.
The work's true, too. I've got a massive appeal in Federal court on a Medicare fraud case due next Monday. No extensions. Two-thousand page transcript, 1100 exhibits, and I've got nothing. I've read the transcript and the exhibits, but I haven't started the brief yet - I'm writing this instead, which gives you an indication of where my priorities are. Still, I'll get it done, because I always do. If only that were the only thing I have on the horizon.
But, on the bright side, it was better this past year than in 2016. That year, I did no fewer than 33 briefs, six in the Supreme Court. That's way, way too much.
So I really haven't had time to do the blog the way I want to, not only because of the stuff above, but because I'll waste time watching TV or playing solitaire on the computer or surfing the Internet as an escape. And in May, I'll have been doing the blog for twelve years. That's a long time.
But then I get emails from people telling me that something they read here really helped them win a case, or like one last week about how they highly recommend the site to other lawyers. Plus, I enjoy writing, and this gives me an outlet. Plus, it keeps me informed about the law.
That's a lot of pluses.
So I'm going to keep plodding on. It'll probably only be three posts a week, at least until I get out from some other stuff. I'll have an 8th District roundup tomorrow, and something else on Friday. See you then.
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