Like a distance runner gradually building up stamina, I'm beginning to get used to the long hours at the firm. Friday, they let me go at 6:30 pm and it felt a little weird- like I didn't know what to do with myself. As long as I get time to go for my jogs, have two meals a day where I'm not rushed to eat, have an hour after work to just unwind, and then get about 7 hours sleep, I'm good to keep going. Some days at the firm, it's pushing my time to have all of that. But most days, I can pull it off on schedule and stay in the groove. The most stress comes when I have an extra personal errand that has to be done during the day. It can throw off my whole schedule. Such details of life are inevitable, though, and I'm trying to get better at dealing with that stress when the situation arises.
Some reading this blog entry might think that this is not the life for them. They may be right. It is not easy. Spending time with a family would be challenging on this schedule. You just have to evaluate what you want out of life and what your value system is.
As for me, I like where I am at and the work that I am doing. The partners, attorneys and staff have all been very generous and supportive. I want to do good work for them and make a legitimate contribution to the firm's success. The founding partner, Mr. Crump, did me a tremendous favor by reaching out and hiring me for the summer. This is a great opportunity. I'm just trying to show my appreciation and that he did not make a mistake in bringing me on board.
When I tell other law school students where I am at and what I am doing for the summer, you can see the wheels turning in their heads and the jealousy in their eyes. They would trade places with me in a second. This firm has a great reputation in the community, and the people here work hard and play hard. I'm in a good place.
Universal Health Care Now,
Nathan Marshburn
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Friday, June 19, 2009
8 O'Clock Shadow
This week, I started my clerkship at Parks & Crump law firm. Mr. Crump told me that it was going to be "Baptism by Fire," and he wasn't joking. The amount of hours that I am working has escalated significantly compared to the job I just finished as a mentor in the Summer for Undergraduates Program. Now, I get into work between 8 and 8:30 am, and usually don't leave until after 8 and 9 pm. I'll be doing some research for the firm this weekend as well.
I'm not complaining. Mr. Crump was very gracious to give me this opportunity. Most students in between their first and second year of law school right now do not have paid clerkships. And there are many students who are in between their second and third year of school (and even some that have graduated) who do not have paid employment and would gladly trade places with me.
Parks & Crump is giving me the chance to learn a lot about tort law and the operation of a plaintiff's law firm. It is a model that I want to understand very well. This firm was established in 1995 by two graduates of Florida State Law. They didn't have much money to begin a firm, but Parks & Crump's steady climb to become one of the most successful personal injury firms in Florida is truly remarkable. So I'm doing my best to imitate a sponge and soak in everything I see and hear. Working long hours is just an understood necessity for success.
After 8 pm one night earlier this week, I went to the office bathroom to wash my hands and face. I was dressed in a full suit. As I wiped my face with a paper towel and looked in the mirror, I thought, "Man, I need to shave."
In fact, I had shaved that morning before coming to work. I'd never had a problem with 5 o'clock shadow- but I guess 8 o'clock is a different story.
I suppose my facial hair has been growing like this for a while, but it is the first time in my life that I noted it. A quote from Hyman Roth in The Godfather, Part II also flashed through my mind as I looked at myself in the mirror and realized I had been at the office and in a suit for over 12 hours straight... "This is the business we've chosen."
But I'm not working any more than what the partners of the firm did and do. And I've seen the alternatives. There were times in my life when I was carrying mail for 12 hours a day in Washington, DC. Office work is a piece of cake compared to that, and I'm lucky and happy to be at Parks & Crump employed as a law clerk.
Universal Health Care Now,
Nathan Marshburn
I'm not complaining. Mr. Crump was very gracious to give me this opportunity. Most students in between their first and second year of law school right now do not have paid clerkships. And there are many students who are in between their second and third year of school (and even some that have graduated) who do not have paid employment and would gladly trade places with me.
Parks & Crump is giving me the chance to learn a lot about tort law and the operation of a plaintiff's law firm. It is a model that I want to understand very well. This firm was established in 1995 by two graduates of Florida State Law. They didn't have much money to begin a firm, but Parks & Crump's steady climb to become one of the most successful personal injury firms in Florida is truly remarkable. So I'm doing my best to imitate a sponge and soak in everything I see and hear. Working long hours is just an understood necessity for success.
After 8 pm one night earlier this week, I went to the office bathroom to wash my hands and face. I was dressed in a full suit. As I wiped my face with a paper towel and looked in the mirror, I thought, "Man, I need to shave."
In fact, I had shaved that morning before coming to work. I'd never had a problem with 5 o'clock shadow- but I guess 8 o'clock is a different story.
I suppose my facial hair has been growing like this for a while, but it is the first time in my life that I noted it. A quote from Hyman Roth in The Godfather, Part II also flashed through my mind as I looked at myself in the mirror and realized I had been at the office and in a suit for over 12 hours straight... "This is the business we've chosen."
But I'm not working any more than what the partners of the firm did and do. And I've seen the alternatives. There were times in my life when I was carrying mail for 12 hours a day in Washington, DC. Office work is a piece of cake compared to that, and I'm lucky and happy to be at Parks & Crump employed as a law clerk.
Universal Health Care Now,
Nathan Marshburn
Friday, June 12, 2009
The Summer for Undergraduates Program
I write this entry for my 61 new friends who just finished the Summer for Undergraduates Program.
It was great to meet you, and I was impressed with how smart you are, your positive attitudes, and how curious you are about law school and life in general.
This month flew by, and my role as your mentor was one of the best and easiest jobs that I've ever had. You guys made my job easy. I enjoyed being around you, and I hope you can say that the stories of my experiences were useful to you. I also hope that after this program you learned a lot about where you want to go in life- be it law school or not.
If I can ever be of any assistance to you, just let me know. College is often the best years of a person's life. While I wish you all great futures of even more happiness, take time to enjoy how things are now. You made many friends at this law camp. You did things the right way. Remember what made you happy and successful here, and keep living your life that way.
Best Wishes,
Nathan Marshburn
It was great to meet you, and I was impressed with how smart you are, your positive attitudes, and how curious you are about law school and life in general.
This month flew by, and my role as your mentor was one of the best and easiest jobs that I've ever had. You guys made my job easy. I enjoyed being around you, and I hope you can say that the stories of my experiences were useful to you. I also hope that after this program you learned a lot about where you want to go in life- be it law school or not.
If I can ever be of any assistance to you, just let me know. College is often the best years of a person's life. While I wish you all great futures of even more happiness, take time to enjoy how things are now. You made many friends at this law camp. You did things the right way. Remember what made you happy and successful here, and keep living your life that way.
Best Wishes,
Nathan Marshburn
Saturday, June 6, 2009
Tallahassee Sunsets
As I get older, I've learned that one of the secrets to happiness, or at least to my own personal happiness, is to stay busy.
Now that school is out for the summer, I'm not studying and working all the time. That will change on June 15th, when I begin working for a wrongful death firm. But until then, I find that most of my evenings are free.
About five times during this past week, I had the chance to go for an early evening run. After I finished the jogs, I decided to stay busy by hopping on my bike and riding for an hour or so until the sun set.
I go for bike rides in Innovation Park. The Park contains various buildings dedicated to industrial and technological pursuits, such as the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory and the FSU/FAMU School of Engineering. Innovation Park is where I ride my bike because there are many open spaces of woods or fields (the FSU golf course flanks one side of the park). Each day, I stopped somewhere to watch the fabulous pinks, purples, oranges and yellows that colored the clouds as the sun went down.
The other things in nature that I come across on my bike rides are also fascinating. One day I saw a red fox lying in the grass, watching me with curiosity. It kept sitting up and laying back down, trying to decide if it should run away. Another day, I saw a fox (perhaps the same one) trot rapidly away from me as I rounded a curve and spotted her. The fox carried one of her pups in her mouth as she slinked away into the woods.
Twice, a red shouldered hawk has flown over me as I rode. The first time, the hawk had a small snake in its talons. The second time, it looked like it had a mouse.
I also startled a Great Blue Heron standing in a creek. It flapped its large wings and took off deeper into the woods.
As the day ends and the sky turns from bright blue to darker shades and then black, bats come out. They curve toward me and then away from me very fast, relying on their built-in sonar. Thousands of frogs start chirping away right as the sun disappears, too.
When the sun goes down, I decide to head back to my apartment. The last half mile is all down hill and I don't have to pedal. I can get up some nice speed, and the evening air hitting my face and hair is one of the best sensations on earth. It brings back memories of summer rides when I was a boy. Freedom.
One night as I finished a run, I heard what sounded like a insane human, laughing at me from up in a tree. I quickly deduced that it was an owl... The owls are great, here, too. I can hear them often at night when I'm lying in bed... Shortly after the laughing stopped, out of the corner of my eye I caught three large owls, one right behind the other like fighter planes in tight formation, swooping across the parking lot and then disappearing into darkness. The only noise they made was the slightest rustling of wind- a noise that I would not have noticed had I not turned my head to look right at them. I'm not sure what kind of owls they were, but their undersides were white.
If the weather is good, I'll go for another bike ride today. It is a great way to spend an hour around sunset in Tallahassee.
Universal Health Care Now,
Nathan Marshburn
Now that school is out for the summer, I'm not studying and working all the time. That will change on June 15th, when I begin working for a wrongful death firm. But until then, I find that most of my evenings are free.
About five times during this past week, I had the chance to go for an early evening run. After I finished the jogs, I decided to stay busy by hopping on my bike and riding for an hour or so until the sun set.
I go for bike rides in Innovation Park. The Park contains various buildings dedicated to industrial and technological pursuits, such as the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory and the FSU/FAMU School of Engineering. Innovation Park is where I ride my bike because there are many open spaces of woods or fields (the FSU golf course flanks one side of the park). Each day, I stopped somewhere to watch the fabulous pinks, purples, oranges and yellows that colored the clouds as the sun went down.
The other things in nature that I come across on my bike rides are also fascinating. One day I saw a red fox lying in the grass, watching me with curiosity. It kept sitting up and laying back down, trying to decide if it should run away. Another day, I saw a fox (perhaps the same one) trot rapidly away from me as I rounded a curve and spotted her. The fox carried one of her pups in her mouth as she slinked away into the woods.
Twice, a red shouldered hawk has flown over me as I rode. The first time, the hawk had a small snake in its talons. The second time, it looked like it had a mouse.
I also startled a Great Blue Heron standing in a creek. It flapped its large wings and took off deeper into the woods.
As the day ends and the sky turns from bright blue to darker shades and then black, bats come out. They curve toward me and then away from me very fast, relying on their built-in sonar. Thousands of frogs start chirping away right as the sun disappears, too.
When the sun goes down, I decide to head back to my apartment. The last half mile is all down hill and I don't have to pedal. I can get up some nice speed, and the evening air hitting my face and hair is one of the best sensations on earth. It brings back memories of summer rides when I was a boy. Freedom.
One night as I finished a run, I heard what sounded like a insane human, laughing at me from up in a tree. I quickly deduced that it was an owl... The owls are great, here, too. I can hear them often at night when I'm lying in bed... Shortly after the laughing stopped, out of the corner of my eye I caught three large owls, one right behind the other like fighter planes in tight formation, swooping across the parking lot and then disappearing into darkness. The only noise they made was the slightest rustling of wind- a noise that I would not have noticed had I not turned my head to look right at them. I'm not sure what kind of owls they were, but their undersides were white.
If the weather is good, I'll go for another bike ride today. It is a great way to spend an hour around sunset in Tallahassee.
Universal Health Care Now,
Nathan Marshburn
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