The Quiet of the Morning
I couldn't have anticipated an announcement of such enormous magnitude. Mark Bennett, running for the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, is huge, and there was no way I was going to miss the opportunity to have my say.
But truth be told, I was bored. After this post, I figured it wouldn't be much of a stretch to wake up and enjoy the ideas and writing of others. The next morning, I sat there, staring at the screen, my fingers twitching. Dan Hull left me a comment that said "writers gotta write." I told him it was a pretty smart thing to say, but he informed me it was something I once told him.
With a lot of free time on my hands, I read stuff that I had previously neglected. Some of it was scary bad, ranging from dead wrong to numbingly superficial, and saw how ignorance feeds upon itself. My joke is that it's like giving nuclear waste to a group of kindergartners and telling them to figure out a good way to dispose of it. Rather than come to the realization that the risky shift was at work, and their mutual hugs and support of poor ideas might not be a great way to turn them into lawyers, they circled the prams to defend their right to think like children.
There were a ton of stories, cases and issues that arose during my hiatus, and left unmentioned in the blawgosphere. Some blawgers complained that there was no reason for them to write because I was too prolific, writing about matters before they got a chance and leaving them only the crumbs. So without a peep out of me, I figured they would step it up. Still, my RSS readers was pretty barren every morning. Very disappointing.
Not every blawg by a young or new lawyer made me wince. Not by a long shot. One young Philly lawyer, Fishtown's own Jordan Rushie, really cranked up the machine and showed he's got both the moxie and the desire to be a lawyer. As much as others made me feel badly about not being the cranky old lawyer who throws a wet blanket on the babies' beach blanket bingo, Jordan reminded me that there are young lawyers who want nothing more than to serve their clients. How could I not be there for him?
All of the reasons that compelled me to stand down remain. They were there long before February 13th, and they are likely to remain for a long time to come. As much as I appreciate (and I sincerely do) all the comments, posts, emails and phone calls, blawging can be a huge burden. As I continually emphasize, the social media marketers are utterly full of it. This is not the way to get rich and famous. This is not the path to success and prestige. It's just a pie eating contest where the prize is more pie. Eventually, you have your fill of pie.
So when I wake up in the morning and crank up the computer, chances are pretty good that I'll have something to write about. Whether it will be the same as before, I don't know. Whether I'll be crankier, more curmudgeonly, seems awfully likely. If SJ didn't suit your style before, don't expect it to be warmer or fuzzier. But there will be words on the screen for as long as the need to write something strikes me.
Writers gotta write. At least for now. Thanks for reading and enjoy a slice of pie.
But truth be told, I was bored. After this post, I figured it wouldn't be much of a stretch to wake up and enjoy the ideas and writing of others. The next morning, I sat there, staring at the screen, my fingers twitching. Dan Hull left me a comment that said "writers gotta write." I told him it was a pretty smart thing to say, but he informed me it was something I once told him.
With a lot of free time on my hands, I read stuff that I had previously neglected. Some of it was scary bad, ranging from dead wrong to numbingly superficial, and saw how ignorance feeds upon itself. My joke is that it's like giving nuclear waste to a group of kindergartners and telling them to figure out a good way to dispose of it. Rather than come to the realization that the risky shift was at work, and their mutual hugs and support of poor ideas might not be a great way to turn them into lawyers, they circled the prams to defend their right to think like children.
There were a ton of stories, cases and issues that arose during my hiatus, and left unmentioned in the blawgosphere. Some blawgers complained that there was no reason for them to write because I was too prolific, writing about matters before they got a chance and leaving them only the crumbs. So without a peep out of me, I figured they would step it up. Still, my RSS readers was pretty barren every morning. Very disappointing.
Not every blawg by a young or new lawyer made me wince. Not by a long shot. One young Philly lawyer, Fishtown's own Jordan Rushie, really cranked up the machine and showed he's got both the moxie and the desire to be a lawyer. As much as others made me feel badly about not being the cranky old lawyer who throws a wet blanket on the babies' beach blanket bingo, Jordan reminded me that there are young lawyers who want nothing more than to serve their clients. How could I not be there for him?
All of the reasons that compelled me to stand down remain. They were there long before February 13th, and they are likely to remain for a long time to come. As much as I appreciate (and I sincerely do) all the comments, posts, emails and phone calls, blawging can be a huge burden. As I continually emphasize, the social media marketers are utterly full of it. This is not the way to get rich and famous. This is not the path to success and prestige. It's just a pie eating contest where the prize is more pie. Eventually, you have your fill of pie.
So when I wake up in the morning and crank up the computer, chances are pretty good that I'll have something to write about. Whether it will be the same as before, I don't know. Whether I'll be crankier, more curmudgeonly, seems awfully likely. If SJ didn't suit your style before, don't expect it to be warmer or fuzzier. But there will be words on the screen for as long as the need to write something strikes me.
Writers gotta write. At least for now. Thanks for reading and enjoy a slice of pie.
Come on Scott, we all know what really happened.
You went to Glover the White to discuss the future of legal blogging. He implored you to join him and SEOron in conquering Middleblawg, and when you refused, he imprisoned you on top of Isenflawg.
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Yeah, that was it. Whatever the heck you're talking about.
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Very happy to see new posts from you though reading some, like the one about the White Plains police killing of Kenneth Chamberlain, is a really sucky way to start the day. Makes you just want to throw in the towel.
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I tend not to write too much about Happy News. There are others for that.
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Nice to see you Scott. Yep, writers gotta write. There's too much running around in that head of yours to keep inside. It's just not healthy.
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Plus, if my head explodes, it would make a terrible, gooey mess.
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I'm afraid so...mine too.
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When I saw the post about Mark Bennett I was sure you'd be back. If you've been hooked on something it doesn't matter how long you stay away from it. So I'm back to reading Simple Justice every day, but I'm only going to read a couple.
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Glad you're back because ... ahem ... readers gotta read.
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"Whether I'll be crankier, more curmudgeonly, seems awfully likely."
Yes, please.
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As I've been silent, you've come back.
Coincidence?
Nah.
But delighted to see you return to the fold. Welcome back. We've missed you out here.
And thanks to Bennett for providing the impetus.
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So I take it that you're due a debt of gratitude as well? Maybe we're the same person, but you have the better 'stache?
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While I welcomed the additional time I had everyday that used to be spent reading your words I found that it was not so well spent - I was poorer for the lack of substance.
I'm feeling a lot richer at the moment. Nice to have you back.
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Alright, alright everbody, that's enough. He's gonna get a big head here if we keep this up.
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Good news. Missed you.
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I took "writers gotta write" as a more direct version of the Abraham Maslow quote... but whoever said it, it's good to have you back.
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Being a huge fan of Maslow, I'm good with that.
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I purposely refrained from creating compelling content on my blog* so that you would be lulled back to posting here. Glad you fell for it.
*The fact that this is consistent with my prior practice is purely coincidental.
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Never seen a better-looking post. Welcome back.
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