Superbowl Halftime

The Who was awesome. Yeah, they've been around a while, but they know exactly who they are and don't give a shit what you think. It was the best halftime show since U2 in the Superbowl after 9/11. Next year, though, it's time for the big guns. I'm pushing for Chuck Mangione.



By the way, we're picking a jury in federal court tomorrow, a woman fired after she came back from cancer. I may not be blogging for a little while, as a result. Please, try to cope, as hard as the thought may be.

8 O'Clock Ranch

No one should be this excited about meat. Nilda and I signed up for a CSA ("community sponsored agriculture") with 8 O'Clock Ranch, a beef, pork and lamb ranch in up up upstate New York near the border of Canada. A CSA essentially allows you to purchase a "share" of a particular farm, a designated amount for a specific price. This means that between March and May, Nilda and I will be getting a shitload of meat. Here's why this is awesome:

• All of the cattle and sheep are grass fed, like they always were until corporate agriculture thought it would be cheaper to change everything and feed them grains.
• The fat in the meats have a yellowish twinge, from the beta-carotene in the grass.
• A six-ounce piece of grass-fed beef has about 100 calories less than its grain-fed counterpart.
• The animals are "humanely raised," meaning that there are no unhealthy living conditions or feedlots and the animals are free to pasture. Babies stay with their moms until weaned.
• The meat is dry-aged, which you won't find at the grocery store and makes the meat taste so much better.
• It's a tastier, better steak than I've ever had before. We got NY strip steaks before and it was the best I'd ever had. Even the ground beef is better than the supermarket.
• We had tried beef from a different ranch about a year ago that was good, but no where near as good as 8 O'Clock.
• They do not use any pesticides, hormones or herbicides. They only use antibiotics if the animal has a life-threatening illness (the last time was 3 years ago) and, then they will not include it in their herd.
• They are not "certified organic," which is because they don't want to have to comply with the expensive and, they say, unnecessary paperwork requirements to be designated organic.
• The bacon is, literally, the best bacon I've ever had.
• It's surprisingly well-priced. Not cheap, but no where near what you'd expect, and definitely cheaper than the specialty meat shops.
• It's a small family-owned organization that works the land themselves. When you call to place your order, you're talking to one of the owners. Nilda and Kassandra are on a first-name basis.
• The cuts are individually vacuum-sealed and delivered frozen by overnight delivery.

Since the CSA half-share we got doesn't start until March, the right thing to do was buy a shit-load of meat to last us the rest of February. The pic above is what we just got delivered. To prove it, here's the receipt:

Here are the short ribs Nilda's making on Sunday, when Andrew and Harley come over with the kids for the Superbowl:

Harley's not allowed to have any. And check out this porterhouse:

Food tastes better when you know where it's coming from. Btw, Food, Inc. was nominated for an Oscar. Holla!

Jon Stewart On Obama's Meeting With The GOP

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The Wire: Season 1

I promised Irene that if she lent me Season 1 of The Wire, I'd follow up in a blog post, so here it is, Irene. Yes, The Wire is incredible. An amazing show. Even Nilda loved it and, believe me, it was not easy to get her to start watching. Even then, it still took a few episodes to get her into it.

In trying to write why I like the show, I realize that I'm only blogging for the people who read this who actually watch The Wire. Both of them. Irene and Jeff. Hey, guys. You got me to watch it so thanks. Everything about it is complicated. Even at the big conclusion, no one is happy about the resolution. A cop show that I could actually like. Season 2: Disc 1 is number one on the netflix queue. Ok, that's enough.

By the way, Irene, this post on your "blog" was amazing. (It's about the relative size of everything in the universe so save your comments, people.)

Live Blogging The State Of The Union

Man, is this boring. I feel like I should watch it but I don't want to. Let's move on.

Yes, The Wire is a great show. We're up to episode 6 of the first season and we're totally into it. Naturally, I looked it up on wikipedia. It's written by a former police reporter who had previously worked on Homicide: Life on the Streets. NBC didn't like the show's pessimism so he took The Wire to HBO. HBO didn't want a police drama, but took a shot and here we are. More than a police drama, it's about life in a city, where everything is interconnected.

I need a new email address. It used to be that creating a clever email address was as important as coming up with a great answering machine message. Now, the kids can't come up with anything better than firstname_lastname@gmail.com. Therefore, my email address that is not only "boywonder" but is on aol!!! is just not cool enough. Kids today. Humpf.

Nilda and I had dinner at the CIA over the weekend (which was great) and discovered the Vesper martini. 3 parts gin, 1 part vodka, 1/2 part lillet blanc, shaken over ice, not stirred, until cold. It's what James Bond drinks. How is this not perfect?

We stayed at a bed & breakfast when we were upstate for the weekend. Bed & breakfasts are weird. You're basically staying at a stranger's house and then they make you eat there in the morning. What kind of a person wants to invite strangers over to their house and make them eat stuffed french toast the next morning? I don't get it. Still had a great time.

Tips For New Laywers

• The law is like Tetris. You get yourself into problems and have to work your way out of them.
• Legal research is probably your most significant task at this point. It is representative of everything else you will do in the law. If one query doesn't work, keep finding another way around the issue and don't give up.
• Do not underestimate the importance of picking up lunch during a trial. It's one of the most important jobs you have.
• Write it correctly the first time. It's less work over all. Don't wait to insert citations later on.
• Trusting your client doesn't mean believing everything he says. It's your job to make sure his story makes sense, and that means questioning his story.
• Simplify your writing. Think about what you want to say, then say it. Put your main point of the paragraph in the first sentence of the paragraph. Don't try to write your way out of a problem.
• One of the worst things that can happen to you is if your client lies. The smallest lie is harder to deal with than biggest truth.
• Taking a deposition is like riding a bike. It looks really hard, until you learn how to do it. Then it makes sense.
• Any douchebag can point out the problems. The valuable douchebags solve those problems.
• Prepare fallback arguments for oral argument. Know what you will say if the judge rejects your main argument.
• Prepare a backup to your backup.
• Do not lose the moral high ground by making an argument that even you don't agree with.
• When the judge starts talking, shut your mouth.
• If the judge is making your case for you, shut your mouth.
• Don't piss off court clerks. They can be miserable people who hate their jobs, but they have entirely too much power for you to piss them off.
• Experience is the only way you will ever truly learn.
• Deal with small problems before they become big problems.
• Do not be fooled by the comfort of inaction. It may be easier to do nothing, but it's never a good idea.
• If you get nervous about a deposition or a court appearance, remember that no one in the world is better prepared or more capable than you are because you know the topic better than anyone else.
• If you are given responsibility for something, it means you can do it.
• Do your homework. Google is your best research device.
• Decide carefully how you will do things. The habits that you develop now will stay with you for the rest of your life.
• Keep track of your hours. Find a system that works for you and use it.
• For God's sake, keep your desk clean. If you're done with a file, put it away.
• Don't make arguments that don't make any sense. This is harder than it sounds when you're following the letter of the law.
• Don't think out loud, especially in front of your adversary.
• Your value is your ability to make decisions on your own.
• Be willing to stand up to your boss. If you don't show him or her that you have a backbone, they won't think you'll have one with anyone else. Don't push it.
• When all else fails, make a scene.

Books

It's amazing how productive calling Mary out on her lack of blogging has been. Good job so far, Mary. I'm making a note to put in your permanent record. Anyway, everyone seems to be blogging about the books they're reading and I'm not going to be left out. Let the fun begin:

• Game Change: This is the book by the NYMag columnist I like and some other guy that tells the behind the scenes story of the 2008 election. I read the excerpt in NYMag about John and Elizabeth Edwards. I love reading histories of social movements and this one reads like a thriller. It's an obvious choice for me.


• K2: Life and Death On the World's Most Dangerous Mountain: Everest: Beyond the Limit got me interested in mountain climbing again and the article in last Sunday's NYTimes about K2 got me interested in that mountain. This book just came out in October and is a history of different expeditions to climb K2, including the 2008 disaster that led to the deaths of many climbers. I was hesitant to get this one because it was written by Ed Viesturs, a master climber which therefore makes him a douchebag whose book I don't want to read. But this one seems to good to pass up. Matt called dibs.


• Teach Yourself Better Handwriting: Because I'm making an effort. I've always had bad handwriting. Yes, people from work, I recognize there is a problem. I remember that at the end of second grade, my teacher showed me something I had written at the beginning of the year and something I wrote the day before. She said, "Look how much better your penmanship was at the beginning of the year." And she was write, my handwriting had been much better at the beginning of the year. Unfortunately, it's only gotten worse over time and now only I can read what I write. On the other hand, I'm an excellent typer. Or is it typist? Either way, pens are for dorks.


• American Pastoral: This is a 1997 Philip Roth book that won the Pulitzer. I've started it and it's incredible, absolutely amazing. I was enveloped within a few pages. The only words I can use are visual. It's a beautiful, intricate book. I'm on page 37.

On another note, Nilda and I are two episodes in to season 1 of The Wire. It's hard to get into a show that's been so hyped up, but we're giving it a shot. Thanks to Irene and Jeff for recommending the subtitles, it's a big help. I'm impressed so far with how many levels the show operates on, how conflicted and how real the issues appear. Like the sergeant who wants is upset that one of his officers hit a kid and blinded him in one eye, yet still feels compelled to defend him. We'll see.