Did I fall in Elmo's potty?
No. I did not fall in Elmo's potty. I got called to jury duty.
Let me tell you that I was SO EXCITED when I got my letter. I have been waiting to be called to jury duty since I turned 18. And here was my summons. *cue angels singing*
I'm one of those weirdos who LIKES to do my duty as a citizen. I'm proud to vote. Lots of ladies, and some men, fought long and hard so women like me would have the right to vote.
I've always, always wanted to serve jury duty. Everyone acts like it's such a chore. But you get to dress up in nice clothes! And go to the courthouse! And be all "Law & Order!" And they were going to pay me 12 bucks a day. That's 12 bucks more a day than I'm making now. Awesome.
Then my heart dropped. Who would take care of M while I was on jury duty? Our family lives over 600 miles away in another state. All of our friends work during the day. Daycares don't accept children on an abrupt and inconsistent basis. The cheapest babysitter I could find was going to charge me $120 A DAY. And I don't know her. And I wasn't comfy leaving M with her. And I couldn't find anyone else. I had no choice but to ask for a postponement until the summer, when one of my teacher friends could watch her for me. So I went to talk to the jury coordinator and they ended up excusing me. As in, you need to go away now. We do not want your Law & Order. We do not want to give you our $12.00. We will validate your parking ticket. What? You lost it? Sorry, we can't help you with that.
I was crushed. You remember the sad music on Charlie Brown? That was me, all slumpy shouldered and trudging the 8 blocks back to my car. Then I got M and myself in the car and thought of something. Hubs and my fervent prayer over the last four days was for this to work out in whatever way was BEST for our family. Sure, I really did want to serve on jury duty, but I realized that it wouldn't have been best. Best is not serving at all. Second best is postponing. So we got what we prayed for. And I had to laugh, because it's one of those situations where what you want is not necessarily what you get, but you get what's best for you. Then M piped up from the back seat, "I love you, Mommy. Listen Princess song now?" I glanced at her in the mirror and realized that yes, I would have enjoyed serving on jury duty. But I'm going to enjoy the time with her more.
You can't wear a tutu in court.
3 comments:
I think Jury Duty is pretty cool. I find the workings of the judicial system fascinating. I find the location of my main county courthouse disgusting, however, and loathe having to drive deep into the heart of methville to perform my civic duty. We do, however, have an alternative courthouse in the mountains near Bass Lake (google it, it's gorgeous) and I felt magnificent the day I showed up for my jury service. The case, unfortunately, settled that morning and I didn't have a chance to see much except the court work through it's calendar for the morning. Umm - I think twelve hearings and ten were drug related? Makes you feel really secure about the area you live in.
Anyway - you'll get another chance. ;-) I hope you actually get picked for trial to make your time worth it. It kind of bursts your bubble when you hear all about the case and watch the jury selection and you don't even get called for questioning.
I love voting and never miss an election! Jury duty...not so much! You have a great attitude! :)
I've gotten summoned twice for jury duty, but was excused because I was in college 35 miles away. Fun times.
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