The Perpetual Student's Wife: Jury Duty

I got stuck with Jury Duty today. I have been called to serve in both Ohio and in Arizona but both had a call-ahead service in place and my group had been dismissed before the day even arrived in both of those cases. Not in Texas. I had to waste my morning downtown, hanging out in the Waiting Room. My number was called to go to the courthouse and be questioned for selection. 65 of us were assigned a number, asked to form lines numerically and wait to be seen. And wait. And wait. And wait. I had the good sense to take two books, thank goodness. As it turns out, one can read a lot when stranded in a hallway with nowhere to sit but the floor. We all spent 2 1/2 hours lined up in a hall. Bullcrap.

Turns out the guy decided to represent himself and went with a jail sentence. So the jurors were never needed and we were dismissed just after lunchtime. I am so glad I didn't have to go in and be questioned. I figured I would play the snarky card and the green blazer would be their memory of me. "We would like to dismiss Juror #63, the waaaay too liberal, sarcastic snot in the green blazer." Would you dismiss me for being too non-vanilla and opinionated?

But, books! I finally got to finish reading Kurt Vonnegut's "Cat's Cradle" and started re-reading Ron Rash's "The World Made Straight." "Cat's Cradle" was interesting, a relatively quick read, but I would like to read it again so I can make better memories of the made up terms that pertain to the made-up religion in discussion. I think I would have a more dynamic understanding of it with a second read-through. And "The World Made Straight" is just a great character driven novel, set in the South, focused on small-town decedents of a Civil War massacre that split allegiance between neighbors. The author is my mom's maid-of-honor's little brother, so I'm a bit biased, but if you're looking for a more heart-rending version of Fannie Flagg novels, he may be right up your alley. Ron Rash. Check him out.