So, first off, Ventura. Ventura, CA is where the appellate courts are located, so if we have to file an appeal, that is where we have to do it. It's quite a bit farther away from the office than the courthouse downtown, so sending me down there to deliver our Writ to an attorney service for possible filing was a bit of a production. I got out of going Monday the 22nd (the same day I had jury duty, but got out of that as well) because we were able to get the Writ done and delivered to our local attorney service who couriored it down to Attorneys Diversified in Ventura. It was one of those up and down days where I wasn't quite sure what I might be doing. At first it was the jury duty (Will I be called or will I be excused?), then the drive to Ventura (Should I go fill up my gas tank now, or should I wait?). Neither adventure panned out, and I left work that day feeling a little relieved, a little disappointed, and a lot tired!

The next day we learned that a few changes had been made to the infamous Writ, and that I would be having to go to Ventura anyway. DeeDee and I busted our butts to get the Writ done before noon, so I could get on the road, and get to Ventura before Attorneys Diversified closed. Well, not-so-long story short, I made it. I exchanged the copies of the revised Writ for the copies of the original Writ we'd sent down the day before. I reitterated yet again that the Writ should not be filed until and unless they hear from us, then I stopped by the Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf and enjoyed a relaxing English breakfast tea latte. I'd been seriously craving one since the day before (I hadn't planned on being able to have one until I met up with Jewel October 2nd, but the possibility of getting one sooner had my mouth watering!), and it was as delicious as I remembered!

I already wrote about The Great Winery Tour I took with Pammy Sue and DeeDee, and I guess I really don't have anything more to say about that. At least nothing I'm going to write about here. So, moving right along . . .

DeeDee's last day of work and as a resident of the state of California, was September 30th. The Firm had a Farewell Luncheon for her, which was very nice. We went to a Mexican place, and several people gave her going away gifts - stuff for her new horse and barn, a Firm T-shirt; stuff like that. She was her usual manic, energetic self all day. I'm really going to miss that. I stayed after work to help her pack up her office - which she hadn't done yet - and carry stuff to her already loaded up car. We said good-bye in the parking lot. I've had mixed emotions ever since she left. On the one hand I miss her friendship, her energy, and the fascinating dramas that seemed to always erupt in some part of her life. On the other hand, I really don't miss the manic-panic atmosphere that sometimes hovered over our area when something needed to be done yesterday, and DeeDee was stressing. Her stress would more often than not become my stress as I was instructed to get to the courthouse before they closed at 4:00 p.m., and it was currently 4:45. More often than not, I made it, but even if I didn't, I could still time-stamp the document and put it in the drop box. The stuff in the drop box are taken in at 5, and are file stamped the same day. Anything after five would be filed the following day. (Not to be confusing to those of you who might not know the many intricacies of the law, but let's just say the date a document is filed can sometimes make or break a case.) It was quite a while before I even realized I had until five to get a document filed, and was a bit annoyed to learn I'd been made to stress out for, basically, nothing. But, like all things, I got over it, and moved on. I put a positive spin on the court runs, and learned to stop stressing and start enjoying my trips out of the office.

Just a couple days after DeeDee moved, I took some vacation time to run down south to visit my friend Jewel, and go with her to Catalina Island. I know that I will eventually get around to writing a long, detailed entry about The Great Catalina Adventure, so I'll skip all that for now, and just concentrate on the before and after. When I arrived on Thursday, Jewel and I decided to get manicures. (We'd planned a Day of Beauty at a spa on the Island, but were only getting pedicures, facials and scalp treatments.) Somewhere along the way I decided to go ahead and get a full set of acrylics. The reason was two-fold: 1) I'm on vacation; and 2) I'm hoping having acrylics will encourage me to take better care of my cuticles. So, I got the nails, and the little Asian girl also did some abstract floral design on my two ring fingers. It's pretty cool, but getting old fast. I'll probably take it off sometime this weekend, and just have plain white tips.

Before, during and after Catalina both Jewel and I ate poorly. Lots of fried calamari, red meat and potato dinners, pancake, egg and sausage breakfasts, and more than the usual amount of alcoholic beverages. It was good. So very good! I was terrified to step on the scale when I got home, but was pleasantly surprised to find I only managed to gain 1/2 a pound. Must've been all the walking around we did. It had to be, because we'd done nothing else. We'd planned on visiting her new gym and doing a work out, but that never happened. (Though we did do a drive-by of her gym, and it's truly awesome! The cardio area - which you can see through the large glass wall on the one side - has dozens of treamills, bikes and ellipticals, and several big-screen television sets. Jewel told me it also has a swimming pool (or was it two?), weight rooms, Executive locker rooms where you get your own locker with your name on it, and valet parking. Valet parking! At a gym!) Anyway, we drove by it, but never went in. The only exercise we got was from walking, which was apparently sufficient. I have yet to get my fitness program started up again, because when I look at the calendar and see JournalCon coming next week, I figure, what's the point? I'll just wait till I get back, and start over then.

Well, I think that I'm pretty much caught up now. Currently I'm looking forward to a restful weekend, then an awesome trip to Texas! I still have swags to make, but I should be able to get them done over the weekend, and I should have enough for everybody. Should. Hopefully. Anyway . . . that's it. For now.