Personal
I am a guy in my 50s, happily single and living in the great Pacific Northwest. I grew up firmly ensconced in the middle class, son to a law professor and art historian. Nixon kept me out of Vietnam by ending the draft after I'd drawn a very low number in the draft lottery. Whatever else you may think of Nixon, I am grateful to him for that. I have friends who went to 'Nam. Of those who came home, none of them recommended it as a vacation getaway.
I have traveled a bit during my life. In college, I spent six months on an Israeli kibbutz learning Hebrew in an ulpan. That's an intensive study course where we studied conversational Hebrew for 6 hours a day. I then spent my junior year in college at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, and also studying in an ultra-orthodox yeshiva. (A yeshiva is a Jewish religious school.) I learned that ultra-orthodoxy is not for me. I also spent several months studying history in Avignon, France, home to the Popes in exile. Avignon is a beautiful, walled city with lots of interesting history. After college, I joined the Peace Corps and spent 2 1/2 years in Senegal, West Africa. I lived in a remote village, had my very own mud hut with a grass roof, and I ate all manner of things you won't find even in the oddest specialty shops stateside. After law school I completed a graduate fellowship in Salzburg, Austria and then worked in Paris, France for several months.
I have traveled around the US, visiting all of the western states, and a fair number of eastern states. I attempted to ride a bicycle across the country, but only made it from New Haven, CT to upstate Michigan. My wandering route made that 1,000 miles. In the remote wilds of Michigan's upper peninsula I hurt my bike and couldn't fix it. There were no bike shops for a many miles in any direction. I took a bus the rest of the way home.
I enjoy climbing and hiking in the local mountains. Unfortunately, a series of back injuries has taken me off the trail. I've taken up cycling to keep fit and now cycle commute to and from work a couple or three times each week. I am perpetually training for the next big ride. I enjoy riding the annual Seattle to Portland ride, known as the “STP”, a 207 mile trip. Some people do that in a day. I am not one of them - two days will be enough of a workout for me!
Professional
By profession, I'm a lawyer in the antitrust and business law field. I have practiced a little of everything during my career. Most of my career has been spent in litigation of one sort or another. In legalese, "litigation" often means filing a lot of papers but rarely actually going into a courtroom. In my case, most of my career has been spent inside those courtrooms, making arguments to judges and trying cases to juries. I have worked both sides of the courtroom, trying both defense and plaintiff cases, and have handled huge and small cases alike. I have done a lot of criminal defense work, trying to ensure that justice is done even for the most unpopular members of society. I spent a few years being a civil rights lawyer and accidentally managed to have a case go all the way to the US Supreme Court. That case resulted in an unanimous decision in my client's favor.
I have also practiced some family law, but didn't care for it. I found that the parties in a disputed divorce case are more vicious than most criminal defendants. The parties in child custody cases could teach serial killers a thing or two about being mean. I have practiced in bankruptcy courts, administrative courts and federal and state trial courts. I have handled mental health commitments on both sides, personal injury suits, disputes against other attorneys, and an impossible variety of other types of cases. I have served as a judge pro tempore in several courts. I have also served as a mediator and as an arbitrator numerous times.
I consider the practice of law to be both honorable and interesting. I also consider lawyer jokes to be one of the highest art forms, though few people have actually mastered them.
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