First Day of the Rest of . . . oh, you know

I know, I know -- a new year, a fresh start. I should think this way, but for all sorts of reasons, I've been dreading this week. And, really, there's no reason for unease, let alone dread.

I have to go to Philadelphia tomorrow to do some legal research for my pro bono case. It's a manageable amount of research, and when I get home on Thursday, I have some motions to draft. Now, that would be a lot of work, but for the fact that I don't have to do everything to the Philadelphia Large Law Firm level. Still, case law is important.

I did one smart thing. I contacted one of the computer-based legal research companies and explained that I wasn't making any money as a lawyer, I just need to do some research for this one pro bono case. The rep seemed to understand, and thinks (keep your fingers crossed!) he can get me a password for a week's free trial! That would be awesome and would make such a huge difference. Thank you, Mike!

So what am I afraid of? Well, it's not the work, and it's not being a lawyer, although I have a tepid affection/hate relationship with my profession. I think it has something to do with the transition from December (not a great month for me historically, and 2007 didn't exactly break the trend) to January, when things have to happen. I have a long list of stuff I have to do, and while I could reasonably put it off during the holidays, the holidays are officially over so everything is now on project status. The lawsuit, the wedding planning, our trip to the U.K., my impending surgery -- it's all on. Makes me want to pull the covers over my head!

But that's not an option. Starman has dug out the Honda (it's so light -- great for gas mileage savings, but lousy on a snowy dirt road) for my trip, and I have to pull together all the documents I need for my research. I also need to contact the people we need to see while we're in England: the caterers, the florist, and the supermarket where we'll order the cake (remember the cake?!). Yup, we have to do all that and more -- we need to register so that we can actually get married (this, mysteriously, involves stopping by a registrar's office when we get to England and then stopping by when we leave -- as long as those two events are a week apart, we're good to go) and shopping for Starman & his brother's suits.

Okay, so writing all that down was very helpful, and I feel less overwhelmed. I can do this -- heck, people with real jobs and real lives do that much, right? I'll quit my griping and just get on with it. After I huddle under the covers for a while, that is...