Hello Everyone,

August 2019

It's been over 3 years since I have posted any material.

Today I begin with a trilogy based off a challenge someone gave me.

Enjoy the read

~g

July 14, 2010

AndMore....More Jury Duty Hell

AndMore....More Jury Duty Hell


Try as I might to plan ahead, life does like to make an example out of me. I made sure to go online and get the 'latest' bus schedule and stops to and from court. Theoretically, the bus picks me up a block from my apartment (like the last time), leaves me 4 blocks from the court house. I walk 3 blocks to take the same bus home that leaves me a block from my apartment. This bus should run hourly. For arguments sake we will call this bus Purgatory to Patterson PTP for short.

After a sleepless night of coughing and a slight fever, I manage to nod off sometime after 4am. The alarm sounds at 6am and I try my best to get up. The bus time for me to board is 8:04 so I hit snooze on the alarm for an hour. I finally get up and the shower but it doesn't wake me. The 2 cups of cappucino didn't either. I get to the bus stop at 7:55am (sometimes these buses are either early or really late). It was on time. YEAH. Since I didn't have much to walk, I wore heels. PAUSE

PAUSE REASON: I am not a heels person, unless I am going from point a to b in a car and barely walking, I will opt for flats. I'm in my 40's my back and legs just can't handle it. But for some insane reason I thought to be adventurous.

END OF PAUSE: Now the heels were only about 2 inches, but with the heat the one block walk made them feel like 3 inches. I also didn't take into consideration the deceiving side walks in my town that are hilly. I board the PTP and it's only the driver and me. Once we leave Pleasantville and head into Dante's Inferno that is Patterson, the Mexicans begin to board. It is amazing that it's only Mexicans. One in particular sat next to me. I don't know what was worse - the early morning stench of drunk breath or the urine odor.

Try as I might to let him know that I needed to get up (and move the hell out of there) he snored in a dead pan sleep. The driver seemed to be in a hurry taking winding roads like they were straight. People barely completely getting on and he would just step on it. Each time watching passengers try with all their might to reach an open seat without flying into the back of the bus. Within a few stops the bus was full (could be the HOURLY time schedule). I keep thinking that my persistent cold is due to this bus, the last time I couldn't help but feel that inoculations should have been required when boarding.

I begin to pray. Truly this jury duty obligation is a religious experience.

The driver leaves me at the stop and I go to the court house, same as last time. I am told that the actual Grand Jury Duty is held 2 blocks away. It is now 8:50, my feet are swollen from both the heat and walking, my knee is throbbing; reminding me that it was at one time injured. The heat seemed to intensify with each minute and soon my hair was stuck to my face in sweat. My pants felt like a wet suit and the stench from the PTP drunk was still taking residence in my nose.

I get to the brick building, walk through the metal detector that would of course go off. I made sure not to wear anything with metal thanks to the last time. However, brassieres for my girls are best worn with metal. I get the wand treatment and the officer is just staring at me. I stare back. WTF????

I am instructed to go to the second floor, the elevator is broken. My toes and heel feel as though they were sliced, I walk up the stairs. I see a sign for ladies room and walk in, I look in the mirror and almost scream at the sight. I do my best to fix up and look around. If I had walked into an alley it would have felt cleaner. I should have purchased depends. My cough has increased to the point where my shoulder blades now hurt. Again, I have lost my voice. Good thing since I was planning on telling the Judge that they should just fence up that town, throw gas and let God sort them out.

We are sworn to secrecy on the cases so I will only speak of the fellow jurors. You can't escape them. Those people. The ones that question everything. That clearly don't listen to instruction or take notes; then decides to ask a million questions. Our task is simple. Listen to a series of cases, one at a time and vote whether to indict or not. No judging. Simply hear the case from the Prosecutor and witness/es and decide whether there is enough to say, Yes, this is something that should go to court. One Jackass in particular would question everything, the prosecutor, the witness. Even if it was simple. For example and using something non related to any case. A person takes a knife and stabs another, confesses and has bloody hands. Jackass Juror = was there any witness? Was the persons prints on the knife?

Again - our duty is just to see if there is enough to say, this is an actual crime and there is enough to indict the person. The actual trial will handle the rest.

We are in a room that I am sure was built before there was frost, ever. The air conditioner had conveniently broken down. The water delivery was not made so no coffee. And just as icing on the cake...our foreman is about 300 years old and hard of hearing.

The heat increased the swelling of my feet, the pain was now up to my thighs. I put my hair up and still felt the trickles of sweat coming down. Luckily I brought a bottle of water and drank it like a hamster to make it last.

Full day of cases = You're FU_CKED! Your staying here and you'll like it. Interesting how the court employees, prosecutor included always had something to get or do in another room that had air conditioning.

The court day finally ends. The bus stop of two weeks is no more. Literally. I have to walk SIX blocks to the bus stop. I could feel calluses growing on my feet. I stand there for 72 minutes, in the sweltering heat, in front of an adult entertainment club. I KID YOU NOT. All there is on that street is that club and across the street is a tin box Mexican restaurant, one of dozens in the six block walk.

Same driver going back, faster speed. At this point I didn't care if we hit the side rail that protected one from going over the cliff, at least it would stop my pain. I see the slumps of that town disappearing and more trees in sight. A sign that I am close to Pleasantville. A block prior to my stop I ring the bell that tells the driver to stop. He doesn't. I shuffle to the front incapable of walking with the shoes that are now welded on. STOP!!!!

He says 'Bus no stop there no more'. I say, 'It stopped there this morning to pick me up on the other side.' He said.........................'Ju lucky'. He stops 3 blocks from where I live.

I shuffle home and I swear, I literally swear as I got closer my feet began to give up. Instead of walking faster I was shuffling baby steps. I no longer could feel my toes but the pain in my heels was unbearable. The heat along with my pace slowing gave the effect of my block moving away from me. I began to sing in my head 'I think I can - I think I can', the Blue engine that could.
I don't remember going up the wooden stairs or looking for my keys, I just know that I suddenly found myself sitting on Ole Faithful (my futon) with both my feet in a bucket of ice cold water, the A/C miraculously was on and I felt my body begin to adjust.
I showered barely feeling my feet, I could have been on the stumps of my ankles for all I cared. I went back to Ole Faithful and I cried.
I hate Jury Duty. I hate that FU_CKING bus. I want all Mexicans taken to the border. I want the judge held in a cell with no A/C, water or shoes for a month and made to walk on glass. I hate this cough. I hate that I lost my voice again. I JUST FU_CKING HATE THE DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tomorrow I go back.
~g

No comments:

Post a Comment