For the Friday/weekend blog, this pic o’ day just seemed to fit the old principle of an eye for an eye. I guess it could also be “I see you seeing me”.
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For a Tuesday blog, I was influenced by Monday’s Labor Day. It seemed to be a bit of an oxymoron to be off on Labor Day. Although, it was a continuing reminder that our lives are certainly framed by our jobs. Moods and happiness are an extension of our daily labors.
Labor Day has an interesting origin. While it is observed to “celebrate the economic and social contributions of workers”; It also is a recognition that Labor was at strife with employers and government. Not until a number of workers died at the hands of the Military and the U.S Marshals, did President Grover Cleveland recognize it as a Federal holiday.
This is not a blog to provide a history lesson. Instead, Labor Day reminded me of why I am happy at my job.
There have been times in my life when I was not well enough to go to work for periods of time. I remember thinking “I just wish that I was back in my routine and could go to work”.
Now, when people give me the perfuntory greeting of “How am I doing?” I often wonder what expression they would give if I really decided to give a health answer, instead of “doing great”.
I could launch in to that I feel as though I am still rehabbing my knee that was surgically repaired 10 years ago. Is it starve a knee and feed a hip? I could add that I have no cavities in my wisdom teeth. I do have a great regimen of flossing and brushing. I’m so good at it that maybe my dentist will offer me a part-time position as a motivational speaker. I must be honest though, about my wisdom teeth health; I think that such tooth celebration is really more related to having those teeth removed when I was 17.
I could continue that I ingest heavy volumes of ice tea and coffee on a daily basis. I am highly caffeinated at all times; although, I have noticed withdrawal symptoms around 5 am each day. My kidney health is great and I regularly watch television, which shows that I have no exercise limitations.
My mental health is great and I have no voices in my head that are singing or counting cards. Barking dogs and crying children in restaurants don’t always erode my sanity.
I feel no real desire to go deer or turkey hunting but I do have keen eyesight and can spot good cheesecake from a far away seat. I am willing to try new types of activities and interests, as long as they do not involve airplanes. Flying does increase my blood pressure.
Yes, that’s how I am really doing. Instead, today I would just reply that I am doing great and glad to be back at work. Monday is a good reminder that I enjoy that I can labor.
For pic o’ day, I went with items from the blog. Well, maybe I’m reaching just a bit.
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For a Friday blog, sometimes you just have to hoot and holler!
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On Thursday, I attended the National Sports Collectors Convention in Baltimore, Maryland. The Baltimore Convention Center was filled with table after table of sports memorabilia and cards. This picture of me, looking a bit disheveled, was taken after I had walked about 4 straight hours.
I saw someone selling a game-worn Virginia Squires warm-up jersey. I really had no idea how much it would cost, but I would have guessed around $700. You could have knocked me over with a feather when he quoted $25,000.
I guess he’s assuming that there is an old Virginia Squires’ fan who will just have to have that. He didn’t even seem negotiable. It is interesting that “game-used” is worth more than new.
Most cannot understand why anyone would want to pay money for cardboard, just because it has pictures of football or baseball players. At the Convention, there were lines for past and present athletes who were signing autographs. Again, there are a lot of people who just don’t have any interest in someone signing their name; unless they are writing them a check.
To put someone’s likeness on a card usually means that you have to pay them something for the right to do so. Sometimes, that involves large-scale contracts that are entered into with an entire league, for the specific rights to distribute “picture cards”.
In April, Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck was preparing himself for the upcoming NFL draft. (Yes, he is an Indianapolis Colt, so I ask for your patience as I insert him in blogs over the coming years. That’s fandom). His advisors learned that the Leaf Card Company had printed this card to the left, and were beginning to distribute it as his rookie card.
According to USA Today, his lawyer sent them a “cease and desist” letter to tell them to stop distributing this card without his licensing permission. Leaf responded by filing suit against Luck, alleging that they had the absolute right to print and distribute because they owned the rights to the US Army All American Bowl, where he had just earlier played.
In May, the suit was quietly dropped. Neither party gave any details about the dismissal. I’m guessing that Leaf decided that they didn’t want to try to win the battle and lose the war of public relations, that might also effect their NFL contracts in the future.
Sports collecting is big business. A 1951 Mickey Mantle Bowman card sold for 600K a few years ago. Recently, a rookie Honus Wagner card sold for 1.2 million. The 2 1/2 by 1 1/2 inch card has such great value because of the scarcity. The American Tobacco Company sold the cards between 1909-1911. Because Wagner was against Tobacco, he managed to stop the distribution of his card, so that only a few were sold.
It stands for the premise that something is worth whatever someone is willing to pay for it.
For pic o’ day, I didn’t take this picture but I know what this feels like. Good for more walking. Guess it’s called a set of Escairs:
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I sent an email reply to say yes, for lunch. I had wanted to have lunch with this sales rep for a while. The scheduling had just not worked out and days had stretched into weeks without getting it on the calendar. It’s always good to learn about the market; and I thought that it was a good idea to get together, since I had never met him.
When I arrived at the restaurant, he was standing at a table and waved me over. He stood up, looked me right in the eye and shook my hand.
I glanced down at the menu and the rep told the waiter to just give us a couple more minutes. He then described that he had been in meetings all morning at the station and that the traffic on the way had been terrible; Maybe there had been an accident.
The waiter arrived with a basket of bread. We both ordered salads. Then, the rep told me about his vacation that he and his family had just taken. It was the first time that they had been to Disney World. His phone was sitting on the table. I hadn’t noticed it until it buzzed. He looked down at it and then said, “I’ll call him back. It’s my boss, to see if I’ve heard anything on a furniture account that I pitched yesterday.” He then told me about that pitch.
The salads arrived. He went on to describe their lack of a website and whether websites were really necessary in furniture selling. “I think that most people really want to feel and touch the product. It’s not something that you can just look at online”. He went on to talk about what a bad idea it was, for them to advertise in the newspaper.
During the meal, he told me about coaching his boy in soccer. He then showed me pictures on his cell phone of a recent game. The pictures did make me smile. It looked like there were about 8 coaches on the sideline.
I started to ask a question about advertising, but was briefly interrupted by the waiter to ask if we were finished with our plates and whether the check was separate or all together.
The rep then told me that their sales manager was probably going to be promoted. He used to think that he wanted to move into management but that he didn’t know if he could stand being stuck behind his desk. He described how long he had been at the station and how advertising sales had changed over the years. His phone buzzed again on the table and he looked down at it.
Then, he looked down at his watch and told me how much he appreciated having lunch with me. He went on to say that he really had been looking forward to meeting me. We stood and shook hands again, and that was lunch.
I heard a consultant recently say that the best way to learn about others is to listen to them. He added that his favorite phrase is “Tell me more”. This story was a bit fact/fiction but it is how I felt, after a recent lunch with a rep. I know that I had learned very little about advertising and kinda felt empty from the lunch.
Sometimes when I am interviewing potential employees, I catch myself talking too much about me and the firm. If I do that, I soon realize or later come to the conclusion that I had talked too much and had learned very little about the potential employee. A reminder to stop talking about myself and ask questions, followed with “Tell me more”.
For pic o’ day… sometimes you just have to get away!
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I suspect that you are wondering, “Joel, where are you going with this?” Well, the picture is from the TV show “Match Game”. It’s most famous versions were in the 70′s and 80′s. Recently, when Richard Dawson passed away; people were reminded of his role on the show, before he moved as host for “Family Feud” and his infamous contestant kissing and bellowing of “Survey Says?”
More history on Match Game can be found here. Although, you probably didn’t wake up craving some Match Game trivia today. This picture shows three of the regulars: Richard Dawson, Charles Nelson Reilly and Brett Somers (Jack Klugman’s ex-wife). The host was primarily Gene Rayburn (1962-1984). See, you are getting some real helpful information for the day!
The concept of the game was to match celebrity answers to the game’s question.
Gene Rayburn would read a question that required a fill-in-the-blank. The first question to the two contestants would be something like “Did you hear about the new religious group of dentists? They call themselves the Holy (blank)”, and the contestants would then give an answer, after the celebrities had written out their responses on cards.
At the end of the game, one contestant would pick one celebrity panelist, for the opportunity to match the answer and win the big money prize for the day. Richard Dawson kept getting picked as the celebrity. So, in 1978, the show instituted the “Star Wheel”; which would determine which celebrity was going to attempt a match with the contestant.
I promise, I’m getting to the point of the blog. Plus, you just don’t see this kind of TV show anymore. Now, contestants are singing, picking a mate for life or bouncing off moving targets and into the water. But… I digress! Here’s where the importance of detail becomes part of the story.
On Friday night, my wife and I had dinner with two other couples. One told the story of how he left Maine and went to California. Yep, he ended up on the Match Game.
It was sometime after 1978, because the Star Wheel was being used. He was the winning contestant, which meant that he got to play in the final round for the big cash daily prize.
When he stood up and went to the wheel, Gene Rayburn (host) kept asking him why he was acting nervous and looking down at his pants. He told Rayburn that he was concerned whether his zipper was down on national TV. Rayburn told him not to worry about that, “we have a zipper person that worries about that exact thing”.
That story makes me smile. It doesn’t surprise me but it is a reminder of the importance, behind the scenes. In law, of course, getting ready for trial has a lot of little things occurring. All medical bills to be introduced to the jury have to be redacted, meaning that any word that shows “insurance” or an insurance payment can not be shown to the jury. The existence of insurance or the mention of the word “insurance” is a basis for mistrial.
For witnesses, including the police officer, you remind them that no one can say “accident report”. It is up to the jury to decide fault; and if they hear about the accident report, they may put too much emphasis on who the officer cited, which is not admissible. Fault is up to the jury. So, the mere mention of accident report is a basis for mistrial. An important detail and preparation that is behind the scenes.
For pic o’ day, I went with one that is about… well, searching or details or survey says?
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A few years ago, I was sitting two rows off mid-court at the Washington Wizards basketball game. As a season ticket holder, I regularly would see their mascot, G-Wiz, teasing the fans.
He is also famous for his T-shirt launches and his acrobatic basketball jumps off the small trampoline. It’s typical mascot entertainment.
On this night, he had decided to get the fans involved; and by fans, I mean me. He had a can of something that he was shaking real fast. It turned out to be Silly String. When he sprayed it on me, it went on my sportcoat and just stuck; like dried cement.
The Wizards had ”assigned” someone to him, who would always be right behind him during games, as he performed his antics.
I guess that she saw the immediate problem on my jacket, because she came right up to me and immediately advised that he did not work directly for the Wizards. But, she handed me a card and let me know that they would pay for a dry-cleaning of my jacket.
I probably had a look something like “no thanks, I’ll just keep the jacket with the dried strings… and it sure will now look great with a skinny tie” expression on my face. At least he didn’t cause an injury.
I was reminded of my mascot experience when I saw the Reuters News story , about a lawsuit that has now been filed against the mascot for the baseball Philadelphia Phillies.
Suzanne Peirce is suing ”Phillie Phanatic”. She claims that she had been attending a wedding at the Golden Inn Hotel and Resort in New Jersey. She was sitting poolside, watching the mascot’s comedic routine.
All of a sudden, he came over to her, picked up the lounge chair that she was in; and threw her and the chair into the pool. Her lawsuit alleges that she suffered “shock, a herniated disc, and other severe and permanent injuries”.
Peirce filed suit against two men, Tom Burgoyne and Matt Mehler; because they both share mascot duties and she is not sure which one was in the suit that night. An attempt at comedic entertainment that went too far.
Sometimes, I wonder if the mascot suit makes them forget reality. Maybe you have to forget, to put on one of those suits!
For pic o’ day, I thought I’d go to the pool
And also remind you to wear sunscreen…
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At 3:30 am on June 12, 2012, Philip Corboy passed away at his Chicago residence, with his wife by his side. He was 87 years old.
I knew of him as a legend in personal injury law, even before I attended law school. I tried to read anything that he would write or was written about him, because he was known as one of the great trial lawyers.
In Illinois, he successfully worked to get laws passed that banned smoking in elevators. Nationally, he had impact when he caused the drug industry to adopt tamper-resistant packaging; as a result of his representation of families relating to the Tylenol poisoning cases in 1982.
On a personal level to lawyers, I remember that he wrote that he would never hire a lawyer who wore a toupee, because he believed that juries would consciously or unconsciously believe that the lawyer was hiding something.
In a “Super Lawyer” publication article, a former associate at his firm said that he required all lawyers at the Firm to clear their desks at the end of the day. He believed that it kept them more organized. Many former associates indicate that they have maintained that practice through the years.
The ABA Journal has quoted Illinois Appellate Judge Terrance Levin, former Corboy clerk in the 80′s, as calling Corboy the “Jack Nicklaus of lawyers”.
If you google his name, you will see many accomplishments. Loyola University named its Law Building after him. In 2002, Chicago Magazine compiled a “Tough Lawyer” list and attributed that quality to him. They said that he was the “type of lawyer that you did not want to see in the Courtroom… unless he was on your side”.
His Legacy is one of great influence. The Firm website lists many of his accomplishments. It also adds that:
When asked about his legacy, Phil said “personal injury trial lawyers are in the rare position of being able to level the playing field to help people in the war against organized money: insurance companies, corporations, healthcare providers, common carriers, manufacturers, cities, states and government.”
For pic o’ day, I felt it worthwhile to post a picture that makes me smile, but one that also ties in to the toughness attributed to this great lawyer.
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Hold on. This is a blog about a wild wedding that involves a professional athlete, a bride that got punched, a castle and lots of property damage.
Hopefully, I got your attention in the opening sentence. Plus, I even left out the lobster throwing.
Professional soccer player, Dannie Guthrie, rented one of Britain’s stately Castles that was once owned by the brother of King George IV. It promised to be a wedding reception to be remembered. And it was.
The first hint of trouble began at the wedding breakfast. There, a Lobster Thermidor food fight took place. That’s an unplanned Lobster toss event.
Then, violence spilled out onto the grounds of the Castle. That’s when the bride was punched. The venue staff managed to lock the castle after calm had been restored but the guests began kicking the doors down to gain re-entry. The police were called.
The Allerton Castle spokesman said that the event was “more Big Fat Gypsy Wedding than our usual clientele”. He went to add, “There were people staggering around drunk and sleeping on tables… behaving like peasants with money”.
So far, no one has stepped forward to pay for the damage. “We have not had as much as a phone call or letter of apology for this disgraceful and upsetting behavior. Thankfully, they were well away from the Castle itself”.
All of us will probably receive a few invitations to weddings this summer. I remember Norm Crosby joking that his high school was so tough “that the school newspaper had an obituary section”. I’m not sure that there will be many tougher wedding receptions than this one!
For pic o’ day, I thought we should head to some relaxing stretching and thinking… well something like that:
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William Gladstone and Benjamin Disraeli were vocal political adversaries in Great Britain. From 1874-1880, Disraeli was Prime Minister. He replaced Gladstone in 1874; and then Gladstone replaced him in 1880. So, the parallels of their lives were studied as was their personalities.
One lady had the opportunity to dine with both of them during a week leading up to election in 1867. When the reporter asked her to give her opinion of the two statesmen, she replied, “When I left the dining room after sitting next to Mr. Gladstone, I thought he was the cleverest man in England. But after sitting next to Mr. Disraeli, I thought I was the cleverest woman in England.”
I subscribe to a blog written by lawyer Don Keenan. He recently wrote about a trial that he had, when he was a “puppy lawyer”. It was a case involving some complex medicine and records. Keenan said that the defense lawyer was able to do his cross examination of the doctors without notes. He would even reference specific pages of “colloaborative studies”. The jury seemed mesmerized by the defense lawyer’s knowledge and delivery.
At the end of the case, the jury came back with a significant verdict for Keenan’s client. When the jury was dismissed, Keenan said that he had some expectation that they would come over to his table and congratulate him, just like he had seen in the movies.
Instead, the jury went right over to the defense lawyer and asked what they described as the question on all of their minds, “Tell us, you are a doctor as well as a lawyer, aren’t you?” Then, they continued to tell that defense lawyer just how impressed they were with him.
Finally, one of the jurors came over to Keenan. They told him that while they were impressed with the other lawyer that they really couldn’t understand much about what he was talking about. It made Keenan realize what was really important in the Courtroom.
Both of these stories are good reminders. Among other lessons, life really isn’t about trying to impress others with your own knowledge and skills; a real skill is to focus on what others want.
For pic o’ day I went cartoon. It makes me laugh. It seems like it really could happen:
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