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Friday, August 24, 2007

Aug 21, 2007

Dear Sis~
I've fallen behind in all my letter writing as I've devoted the last few weeks to cobbling together my cert petition. Tonight I received the big batch of US Supreme Court cases which I've been waiting on to finish up. The cert petition has three separate issues (called "Questions Presented") and I've completed two of them; this last one, which is the first one in the petition, is the most complex and difficult to put together. My game plan is to have the whole thing done and in the mail to my lawyers by next Monday morning. It should be typed up and back in my hands by around Sept 6th or so, at which point I can begin editing it for the final version (as my lawyers will be doing simultaneously). Our deadline for filing is Oct 12th, so I'm in pretty good shape. As with any big project, it will be a huge relief when I wrap it up & mail it off. I've got a stack of about 25 unread magazines sitting next to my bunk which I've had to put aside while I've focused on my legal work, so I'll have plenty of reading to catch up on...
When I explained the problem with your computer's speakers to my neighbor, Bill (he's a fairly sophisticated audiophile) he suggested that it is probably your sound card, which you can remove & replace. You can have it checked out by someone, but of course, that will cost you. He said it could be a number of different things, but his best guess is that it's a fault in your sound card. He also said you can go online & look up what a sound card is (if you're interested in learning about it) and see how it can be removed & replaced (it goes into a slot, I'm told). Anyway, I hope that helps. Otherwise, it's time to call the Geek Squad!
Okay, Sis, I'm going to hit the hay (it's just past midnight now) so I can get up early and get back to work. Tomorrow should prove to be a productive day.
With Love, Bill

Thursday, August 09, 2007

August 7, 2007

Dear Sis~
I'm sitting on my bunk, taking a break from cobbling together my cert petition. I spent another 5 or 6 hours writing this morning & afternoon but I've now reached the point where I cannot continue until I receive a batch of cases I've requested from my lawyer. Right now I'm about 60% done with this draft and I hope to finish it up and get it in the mail to my attorney within the next 10 days. My due date for filing is October 14th, so I'm leaving plenty of time for us to work on this & come up with a final, polished product. I feel good about the three issues I'm raising, but the reality is that no matter how good your issues are, getting the US Supreme Court to grant certiorari review is a statistical long shot. Anyway, I'm doing my part, which is all I can do ...

I've never been much of a cartoon guy (not since I was a kid, anyway) and I'd never watched an episode of the Simpson's until a couple of months ago when, in a fit of boredom, I decided to check it out. I surprised myself by enjoying it a lot ; the writing was excellent, very clever, with a lot of pointed social commentary (disguised in humor). These writers are really sharp and I found myself laughing more than I have in a long time. Since then, I've watched a couple dozen episodes & I now understand why the show is so popular...

Remember Jennifer Capriati, the tennis player? I hadn't heard anything about her in about 2 years until yesterday when I read a short story about her. Jennifer was always my favorite tennis player; she's tough and spunky and not pretentious, and she has that very human quality about her (you may recall she had her share of personal problems with drugs, etc...) Anyway, she's had chronic shoulder injury which has prevented her from playing for over 2 years, and she may never recover enough to compete again. Now (if you believe the article) Jennifer is severely depressed, wrestling with thoughts of suicide. It was sad to read about her feelings of hopelessness and inadequacy. Clearly, she's allowed herself to be defined by her sport, to the extent that she cannot see herself as anything other than a tennis player. You wish she'd understand that there's a lot more to life than any sport, or any particular career. She's 31 years old now - old for a professional tennis player, but still young in the game of life - and she has her whole life in front of her to find something meaningful to do, something that appeals to her own unique spirit. I hope she conjures up the inner strength to get out of her funk and find some peace & happiness...

Alright, Sis, I'm closing this up & mailing it off. Give yourself a big hug from me!
Love, Bill