Secret Confessions of an Enthusiastic Juror

Jury Duty. I'll admit it; I like it. I look forward to it. Honestly, it is one of the highlights of my year. I know that's a bit weird (although being weird is pretty normal for me), because the majority of adults dread Jury Duty. I, however, enjoy it. The way it is set up in my county (in the beautiful state of California), makes it a pleasure, not a curse. At least, it does for me.

Now, I am aware that there are (many) less juror friendly states, and possibly even other counties within my state, where Jury Duty is not a pleasure to serve. Places where Jury Duty really is a highly inconvenient (at best) experience. My MIL, for example, lives in Missouri, where jurors are "On Call" for Jury Service for a year at a time. For any jury trials that come up in her county during that year, she is called in and interviewed for the jury, and she ended up serving on multiple juries in a single twelve-month period during her most recent Jury Duty installment. I can see how that would be a major inconvenience to the continuity of work or school, or for an at-home parent who has to arrange child care for every trial instance during which they need to be away. However, Jury Duty is much simpler where I live, and that is a major part of the reason I enjoy it.

Jury Service in California lasts one day, or one trial. That's it. You show up, spend the day in the Prospective Juror Waiting Room--which is equipped with free wi-fi, an adjacent TV room, a Juror business center (private work cubicles, data ports, fax machines, and the like), big, comfy leather chairs, an adjacent cafeteria with an in-house coffee shop, a variety of tables and chairs available for working on whatever you have brought with you, and occasionally you get called for a Panel.

Now, when a panel of prospective jurors is called into a courtroom to be interviewed for assignment to a trial, it is fairly likely that that case will proceed to trial. However, nearly 8 out of 10 cases are resolved without having to go to trial, simply because we, the prospective jurors, are IMMEDIATELY AVAILABLE to be called onto a panel. The mere threat of actually going to jury trial is enough to inspire the conflicting parties (in a civil case) or prosecution and defense (in a criminal case), in many instances, to come to a resolution without actually going to trial. Which saves time, money and resources for everyone involved. And what do I have to do to help effect these timely and effective resolutions? Take a day out of my life to sit and read all day? Or work on a project or other task I need to do anyway? Oh, and did I mention that KIDS AREN'T ALLOWED? Which, of course, means that whatever I choose to work on while I am here, I will be UNINTERRUPTED BY MY CHILDREN…

I guess I should re-cap about now: I spend a day reading, writing, or working on a project in the Jury Waiting Room, guaranteed to be uninterrupted by my kids while doing so, and my mere presence helps resolve around eight of ten court cases before they even go to trial? Yeah, I will unabashedly admit it, I DO like Jury Duty. Truth be told, I kind of love it.

Of course, it's not all uninterrupted ‘Me Time;’ there have been times when I have been called to a panel, and I do have to pack up my reading or other project to go to a courtroom and be questioned for possible placement on a jury, but, after all, that's what I'm here to do. Eight out ten cases resolved without going to trial does leave a couple of cases that will go to trial out of every batch. And I could get bugged that I have to interrupt my reading to go DO THE JOB I WAS CALLED HERE TO DO, but, for me anyway, that would be ludicrous. Heading into the courtroom to be questioned for placement on a panel occasionally is a small price to pay for an uninterrupted eight hours of ‘Me Time’ once a year!

Update on Harry and Za Boo!

Za Boo's passion and excitement for reading have not waned a bit since she began reading 'Harry Potter and The Sorcerer's Stone,' five weeks ago! She is figuratively devouring the series, already on to book four, 'Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire,' and I am adoring it all the way!
She received some money and an Amazon gift card for Christmas from a few different relatives, and she is so excited about hte world of Harry Potter that she chose to use them them in combination to order a genuine Gryffindor scarf and a dvd of "Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban," the third Harry Potter movie. She wants to have all the movies (we already have the first and second movies in the family dvd collection) because "Even if it's not that good an adaption, I can't really compare [the books to the movies] if I haven't seen them all." ;)
She recognizes that the movies don't nearly do justice to the books now, but that, again, is one of the things I love about this all! I LOVE that she is loving reading the book, and I LOVE that she is excited to discuss it after reading. And I LOVE that she is recognizing the differences between the book and the movie, and discussing those differences with the rest of us.
I love that she is counting chapters as she reads, and keeping me updated on what part she is at in the books. I love that we are discussing the books as she reads, and that, for the first time, there really is discussion to be had regarding a book she is reading (the 'Jack Russell Dog Detective' books are wonderful beginning chapter books, and she has enjoyed them, but they don't really bring a lot of hearty discussion material to the table!).
I love that she can't wait to get back to her book, every chance she gets, and that she has already read more in the five weeks since she checked the first book out from the library than she read in eight months on the previous novel she completed (Ozma of Oz). At the rate she is going, she may finish the entire Harry Potter series in under three months! We better start thinking about which series to start her on next!

Za Boo and Harry Potter

Za Boo has been rather taken with Harry Potter these last few days. We watched the second movie (Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets) about a week ago and because she was so tiny when it came out and we all saw it in the theater, it was like a new movie to her. She proceeded to watch the first movie (Harry Potter and The Sorcerer's Stone) at the next opportunity, and subsequently asked whether she was old enough to read the books herself.
She is of course, at this age and reading ability, so she checked out the first one from the school library (our copy is a hardbound, and of one of the first print runs, so she didn't feel comfortable reading that copy).
She has been reading it avidly ever since, and at every opportunity.
She has taken the various cloaks, wands, scarves, ties, and other Harry Potter costumes and their accompanying accessories out of the costume bins in the closet, is dressing up in them, and settling down to read. I had to take a picture of her, dressed in her Ravenclaw necktie and Hogwart's robes, while she was immersed in reading her book, it was so adorable!
I love everything about this new phase of hers. I love that we have finally seen a book truly light that fire under her! It had happened with each of the boys: a particular book--and there was never any way to predict which one it would be--would light that fire that, when kindled, ignited into a life-long love of, and passion for, reading, and I have been waiting for it to happen with her!
And I simply cannot overstate how absolutely thrilled I am that it has happened at last with Za Boo!