Jury Duty
One of the things I was glad about when we moved to rural Minnesota was that now that I was no longer in Hennepin County I wouldn't have to travel to downtown Minneapolis if I were ever called to Jury Duty. It was a silly thing to be glad about, but nonetheless I was. My husband served Jury Duty once while we lived there--two weeks of sitting in a waiting room in Minneapolis.
About a year ago I recieved a notice to report for Jury Duty down here. In my county, citizens are "on call" for FOUR MONTHS to report if the need for jurors arises. FOUR MONTHS! I called and pleaded to be released from the obligation. Surely Janet What's Her Name would have pity on an overworked mother of five and give me some mercy. My kids had never been in daycare--that's one of the main reasons I write and edit, so I can be home with the kids. It would be traumatic to suddenly thrust them into that unfamiliar atmosphere for who knew how long. Plus, since we didn't know the timing of Jem's arrival being with her would be key to her successful transition into our family. Good reasons, aren't they?
No such luck. Janet basically said, "Everyone serves jury duty--it's immoral to try to get out of it."
But, but... Was this woman even human? Surely she didn't have children. I'd left Willow in daycare for one week in the spring of 2004 while I did a publicity tour--the child waited on the stairs THE WHOLE DAY for mom to return and then cried for me to never leaver her there again!
It wasn't that I didn't like the idea of jury duty itself. It would probably provide fodder for lots of stories down the road, and I'd get some precious reading time I rarely get between loads of laundry, feeding the cow, and harvesting beets in my garden. I believe in every citizen's obligation to serve when their country calls, but I also feel that there is such a thing as better timing for such obligations. In the draft the Army doesn't take seventy-year-old men with flat feet to fight on the front lines. They want the young, able bodied men. Think of me as a seventy-year-old flat footed man who will get better with age!
I did finally convince her to at least delay my service so that we'd have time to bond with Jem. So, maybe the woman is more human than I've led you to believe. But now my time has come. Monday I report to the court house for who knows how long. My teenagers are engrossed in the tennis season so no "built in" babysitters at home. Panic again. Thank God a friend from church volunteered to help me out. I'm praying for an out-of-court settlement or a plea bargain.
There will be a time in my life, say in just five short years when all the kids are in school and the thirty or forty years to follow, that I'll be happy for such an excursion. There are few things I like more than to watch strangers and try to imagine what their lives must be like.
If I ran a multi-million dollar company that would suffer from my absence, the court would find a way to excuse me, but apparently being a full time mother of five isn't all that important.
Oh, well. At least maybe I'll get that book read I've been meaning to read.
More later,
Traci
About a year ago I recieved a notice to report for Jury Duty down here. In my county, citizens are "on call" for FOUR MONTHS to report if the need for jurors arises. FOUR MONTHS! I called and pleaded to be released from the obligation. Surely Janet What's Her Name would have pity on an overworked mother of five and give me some mercy. My kids had never been in daycare--that's one of the main reasons I write and edit, so I can be home with the kids. It would be traumatic to suddenly thrust them into that unfamiliar atmosphere for who knew how long. Plus, since we didn't know the timing of Jem's arrival being with her would be key to her successful transition into our family. Good reasons, aren't they?
No such luck. Janet basically said, "Everyone serves jury duty--it's immoral to try to get out of it."
But, but... Was this woman even human? Surely she didn't have children. I'd left Willow in daycare for one week in the spring of 2004 while I did a publicity tour--the child waited on the stairs THE WHOLE DAY for mom to return and then cried for me to never leaver her there again!
It wasn't that I didn't like the idea of jury duty itself. It would probably provide fodder for lots of stories down the road, and I'd get some precious reading time I rarely get between loads of laundry, feeding the cow, and harvesting beets in my garden. I believe in every citizen's obligation to serve when their country calls, but I also feel that there is such a thing as better timing for such obligations. In the draft the Army doesn't take seventy-year-old men with flat feet to fight on the front lines. They want the young, able bodied men. Think of me as a seventy-year-old flat footed man who will get better with age!
I did finally convince her to at least delay my service so that we'd have time to bond with Jem. So, maybe the woman is more human than I've led you to believe. But now my time has come. Monday I report to the court house for who knows how long. My teenagers are engrossed in the tennis season so no "built in" babysitters at home. Panic again. Thank God a friend from church volunteered to help me out. I'm praying for an out-of-court settlement or a plea bargain.
There will be a time in my life, say in just five short years when all the kids are in school and the thirty or forty years to follow, that I'll be happy for such an excursion. There are few things I like more than to watch strangers and try to imagine what their lives must be like.
If I ran a multi-million dollar company that would suffer from my absence, the court would find a way to excuse me, but apparently being a full time mother of five isn't all that important.
Oh, well. At least maybe I'll get that book read I've been meaning to read.
More later,
Traci
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