...Izee's Thread

[Izee]

The GD Junior Partner...

I have related in prior posts, the big jerk who was a partner in that awful Law Firm I worked for.  I was proposed to become a partner in the Firm, I was developing a nice business and tax practice, the others mostly handled cases for Insurance Companies, and was bring a lot more money into the Firm than what they were paying me.  I had groused to the Senior Partner that I should be getting paid more, but he just figuratively patted me on my head and said, "Look, this is how you are investing into the partnership.  You will have to buy in, when we invite you to become a partner, and the money you are collecting now will be taken into account in setting the buy in."

Being me...I believed him...and continued to work a lot of hours, and worked to develop some regular business clients.  I had three of them when I left, they were all in Construction, and needed a lot of legal advice.  They also appreciated that, as a CPA, I could take the costs and risks of litigation in advising them.  The damn Junior Partner (JP) would make all sorts of promises to prospective clients in order to get as much money as possible.  One client was very happy when I got him out of a large lawsuit by giving the plaintiff $1,500, the other parties didn't settle and had to go through a month long Jury Trial.  (Their attorneys were DELIGHTED to earn a lot of money).

Their Partnership broke up a couple years after I left, and the partners sued each other.  I got called as witness, since as the Senior Associate, I was present during a lot of 'discussions' between the Senior and Junior Partners.  The JP subpoenaed me, he believed that I had seen, and knew, a LOT of facts that could help his case.  The Senior Partner was worried when I showed up at the Trial.  But...

...I just couldn't remember a lot of what he questioned me about.  I testified that I certainly wasn't present when they were discussing such confidential Firm matters, and had no recollection of others.  He worked on me for about 30 minutes, and then I was dismissed by the Judge because the JP was LOSING IT!  I mean, he was pacing back and forth, and raising his voice, and pounding the table as he angrily questioned me, and I just sat, calm, and replied that I either wasn't present during an event, or simply didn't remember it.  "It didn't involve me or any of my clients or cases, so I wasn't paying attention" I would say.  The JP was ACTUALLY having what looked like a TANTRUM at the end, and the Judge called a recess and sent me home.

A few months later, I was in the Judges office presenting an Ex Parte Motion, and he commented as he signed it..."You may want to get examined by a Neurologist, you seem to have memory problems..." but he was grinning as he said it.  I took the order, and replied, "I actually went to a Neuro to learn techniques on how to FORGET certain things.  Going through life burdened by bad memories is no fun."  The Judge laughed as I left...

...He had ruled against the JP on many matters and issues in the Partnership Dissolution Case...

[Izee]

I was a bit 'out of control' in my Frosh year of College.  I was enrolled in the Conservatory of Music, and kinda had it in for my Cello Professor.  I was a Performance Major, and had an hour long lesson with him each week.  Those could be the LONGEST hours of my life if I hadn't practiced enough...Emoji...but very uplifting when I was prepared for the lesson.  Early in my first year, he adjusted, very subtly, the way I held the bow, and that made a HUGE improvement in my ability to play quick notes.

I had a VERY strong facial resemblance to him, people thought that I was his daughter when we were together.  Once, I was standing by his desk, he also taught Harmony, and a girl said, very loudly, "Wow, they DO look alike!"  Me, with my juvenile sense of humor said, "Well, that's 'cause I been very sick, very very sick."  He replied, "Well, guess who just flunked the cello". 

One day, I had an "inspirational" idea, and enlisted (nagged) a guy to help me.  I bought a large piece of wallpaper that had bricks printed on it.  I also got tape, and borrowed a small step ladder, and the plan was to tape it over the door to his office when he was giving a lesson. The idea was that he would open the door, and see a brick wall in front of him.  I thought that would be funny.  Emoji  Well, he heard us when we just started, and opened the door.  I looked down at him, I was on the ladder, and just smiled.  We quickly packed up the stuff and stole away...

Well, we couldn't just let it go, so we went up to my Piano Professors Office, where I also underwent a weekly hour long lesson, and we were successful!  We got the door 'walled in', and took off.  We didn't stay for the end.  We heard that when he saw that he was walled in, he had his student stand back, and he jumped through the wall...a few other students were standing around...the girl he was teaching was very amused.  He was a VERY PROPER German Piano Professor.

I heard that he, somehow, figured out who did that.  When asked, he said,

..."I believe that it was a young cellist..."

[Izee]

..Only in California...

As is being well publicized, good ol' California is sinking into a third world country.   

San Francisco used to be one of the Premium Cities of the World, and now it is not safe to live or even visit anymore.  People are moving out of S.F. because of the crime and danger of all of the third world street people that Biden is flying in.  Long term stores are closing, and Hotels are shutting down. The Street People have claimed areas that even the POLICE will not enter because of the danger.  And, it is ALL BECAUSE OF THE DAMN LIBERALS that run the City.  Well, the idiots who live there voted them in, so they are paying the price.  Now...Guess who the Liberals are blaming?

...They are blaming the REPUBLICANS, because responsible Republicans are not winning elections!!!!!

...Hell's Bells, when the Liberals constitute about 80% of the voters, just HOW is a conservative Republican going to get elected?  Conservative Republicams are FLEEING the State!!!

Have you EVER HEARD of such a STUPID ARGUMENT???  The Democrats are saying, "Hey, we need Republicans to keep us in check, otherwise we Democrats will run a City AND a State into the ground!!!"

I have a personal obligation to stay in CA, I am living with my elderly Mother and helping her out, and paying most of the bills.  I have suggested moving, but she just does not want to move.  This house was built for my parents decades ago, and all of her cherished friends live nearby.  I respect that, we do live in a safe area of the Bay Area, and we have a burglar alarm, and well, I am armed.  I do not let Mom see my weapons, she would get very scared.  I sleep on the first floor now, so I can get up quickly if the alarm ever goes off in the night.

But, when the time comes when I have no obligations, I will gather up my stuff and head out.  And, hey, a LOT of Californians are doing just that.  So, If a Californian moves near you all in other States, get to know them and give them a chance.  They will probably be happy to be in a State and a City that is safe and sane.

[Izee]

...I need to add to the above...

The other thing fueling miserable life in California are the lax laws, and lax enforcement.  I mean, if you get caught stealing less than $950 from a Store, the police will just give you a citation and let you go!  So, the criminals just laugh, and the immigrants think that that is the way things are in the good old USA!  Storekeepers don't bother calling the Police anymore, since nothing is done, and the Police don't show up in less than 30-40 minutes if they are called.

[Izee]

...Easy to Entertain...

As I have previously posted, I am VERY easy to entertain.     Probably speaks to my mental maturity.  In business and practicing Law, I was very formidable.  I didn't smile, and wouldn't engage in casual conversation.  But, when in a relaxed area, my mind regressed to that of a child...so it was very easy to capture my attention and get me into whatever was going on.

In College, two upperclasswomen invited me to live with them in a nice Apt, and I was delighted to accept.  It was in a nice facility close to the campus, and it had a SWIMMING POOL!  They were fairly easy to live with, although when you have three young woman living together, things could get interesting.  Once, we didn't speak to each other for a week, and preparing meals was quite complicated, since we didn't want to be in the kitchen at the same time.  But, we had a similar sense of humor, and other people didn't always understand why we would laugh.  We did make a habit of having Sunday dinner together, we rotated preparing a dinner for all three of us, and we would watch a movie.  Cynthia and I would save our money when our turns approached, and both of us would spend all afternoon preparing a nice dinner.  We both REALLY lost it when Diane set pre-frozen chicken pot pies in front of us...she was a lazy person.

One time, we went to the theater and saw Dr. Zyvago (sp)  We LOVED it, and especially liked the scene where the Dr. and his wife return to the family mansion after the Communist Revolution, and find it full of street people.  The people are pillaging the place, and the Dr. doesn't know what to do, and then a local Communist Commissar walks in, stands by the door, and the street people all stop and look at him.  He doesn't say a word, he just has a baleful look on his face, and he snaps his fingers...and all of the street people leave! 

So, we three would play the scene.  I would be the Commissar and walk into the Apt, stop at the door, and look at them and snap my fingers.  They would pretend to get scared, and would quickly leave...and then come right back in and we would laugh.  Once, I did that when they had some male guests over, and the guests were startled when the women left, and I just stood there, staring at them for a minute.  We girls all thought it was funny, the guys just didn't get it.

The two were both bassoonists, and I was amazed at just how much time they spent making the mouthpiece reeds.  The oboe and the bassoon are 'doubled reed' instruments.  The reeds are lashed to a metal tube, and the bassoonist blows through the reeds to get air into the instrument.  There is only a small gap at the end of the reeds, so that is why bassoon and oboe players always have red faces when they play their horns.  I asked them when they actually practiced, and they said that they didn't...that the instrument was easy...you just had to get the reeds made right.   

...(There was more I wanted to chat about...but I FORGOT!!!  I took a walk before I started typing, so I guess the walk cleared my mind.)

Oh, and the Tchaikovsky 6th symphony.  The bassoon has the opening theme...and it is eerie and OMINOUS!!!  It hints of danger and loss ahead.  Please do listen to it, it has so much emotion expressed in it.  There is a carefree celebration, and much more...

[Izee]

...Dodgeball...

In High School, when it was raining, they would pull us all into the Gym and have indoor activities.  Usually, they split the boys and girls apart, and we did separate things.  But, at times they kept us together, and we played 'Dodgeball'.  They would place cones along a center line in the Gym, and then set 10 partially deflated volley balls along the line.  We would line up against the wall on our side, and when the whistle blew, we would rush to try to get the balls.  We would then throw them against the other side, and you had to stay on your side of the cones.  If you got hit by a ball, you were out, and had to go to the sidelines.

I LOVED IT!!!  It was more fun than calisthenics or dancing.  Sometimes they pitted the girls against the boys, and we girls always won!!!  Mainly because we were taking it seriously.  The guys would tease the girl that they liked, and do a 'dramatic death' scene when they got hit.  I liked it because it was fun, and I usually lasted a long time, I would dive to the floor if necessary to avoid getting hit.  But, sometimes they took away the cones, so you could run into the other side to pick off a targeted opponent. I liked that version the most, I would run, screaming, into the guys side and make them scatter, and then hit one with the ball and sprint back to my side.   

Once, it was just a guy and me left, and he got ALL the balls on his side.  I couldn't cross the center to try to snatch a ball and hit him, so the next 5 minutes were boring for everyone else.  He would pick up a ball that still had a lot of bounce, and throw it at me.  He was strong, so I would have to work hard to dodge it.  The ball would hit the back wall, and then roll back to his side.  He would be holding another ball, so if I tried to run after the ball, I would be an easy target.

The kids were booing, and cheering...and then I sensed...after 5 minutes of me just dodging, that they wanted to start a new game.  So, I came close to the line, and stood straight, and held my hands out to the side in the conventional 'Martyrs Pose', and figured he would hit me in the belly, and the game would be over.  The game did end...

...Bastard hit me in the face with a hard throw, and I was NOT acting when I fell down...

[Izee]

...Road Construction Companies...

I was the Chief Financial Officer for a Mid-size Road construction company for a few years.  As I have previously reported, it was a Conglomerate of Construction Companies, Rock Quarries, Asphalt Storage Plants, and a Mining Company.  It was spread all over CA and NV, and helped build roads and major freeways.  I was initially hired as an Internal Auditor, since I was from the CPA firm that audited them every year.  But, vacancies arouse above me, and I got promoted.  Some managers thought that the President should have hired more experienced male Accountants, but the President liked me, and, well...he liked having women in the Main Office.  He even let me have a Company Mercedes, and I drove regularly to the outside offices to check their books and help out.  I received mixed receptions at the outside offices, the accounting staff liked me, I treated them with respect and let them know that I was there to help, and not to tattle.

Well, the Line Engineers and Foremen had a different view of me.  They didn't like having someone come into their Offices and have full authority to adjust their books, or, they wanted their accounting staff to be working on accounting for the paving jobs they had rather than meeting with me.  I learned, over the years, to just not go to certain facilities during the busy season, and which men to watch out for.

One day, I had just hired a new Accountant, and I wanted to take him to a Field Office to see what they did, and to get to know the outside accountants.  I took him to one Construction Company, saying that we got along together real well with them, and that they would be happy to see us.  The visit went a bit differently than I expected...

We had just arrived, and we were with the field accountant, and one of the Job Foremen came in.  He was a large, dark, Portuguese Man, and also prepared estimates for jobs.  He started shouting at the field accountant, "GET RID OF THESE JERKS, I NEED THAT ESTIMATE WRITTEN UP!!!"  He glared at me, and said "WE HAVE NO TIME FOR YOU!!!"   Well...I gathered up my new accountant...and we left.

It was very quiet in my Mercedes as I drove us back, and then I casually said...

..."Well, you can see that we get along very well with that Office.  Now, just wait 'till we go to one that doesn't like us."

He sat, and stared at me, and started laughing.  So did I, and I had to pull over...

...It is NOT safe to be driving when you are laughing so hard that tears are rolling out of your eyes, and you are trying to keep mucus (snot) from running out of your nose...

But, that Job Foreman came to like me, and would want to socialize with me at Company parties.  He even asked me to handle a non-company legal matter for him after I left the Company and started working as an Attorney.

[Izee]

...Happy to see the Site back...THANK YOU!!!!!   

Here is a Symphonic work that has been going through my mind the past week or so.  I am feeling melancholy, no reason that I can see.  Just this time of year, which is difficult for me, and probably my mental illness acting up.  But, I am not taking any Rx's, the MD does watch over me and isn't concerned, except for my blood pressure.  So I stopped drinking and am trying to be more physically active, so my blood pressure is now at the lower normal range.  But this Symphony, which I have played in several times, jumps into my mind...especially the 2nd Movement.  Here is the link...

https://youtu.be/XMLyJNgd6LA?si=sFXPiNJkkUA_BwfK

The theme of the 2nd movement is so yearning...and the lower strings keep a beat going on underneath.  I always imagined that the movement was set on a train...there is a sad dialogue, or internal thoughts of a passenger...and the click of the train wheels just goes on and on.  It is a tiring work to play on the cello and bass.  You are playing short notes, but you can't just bounce the bow, the note would be too short.  So, you have to bring the bow down and let it briefly move on the string, and then pull it off.  But, you can't pull it too far off the string...you won't get the bow back down in time for the next note.  My arm would be a bit stiff after playing it.

[Izee]

...Playing the NOTES, vs playing the MUSIC...

Learning to play the piano was quite an experience.  Like all beginners, I was focused on just getting the correct finger to land on the correct key at the correct time.  As my technique developed, I wanted to play faster, and land more fingers on the keyboard to play complex chords.  So I spent hours every day practicing, and got more skilled.  But, sometimes I was just feeling cold as I played, nothing was being transmitted...

At Conservatory, I was amazed at how some students could have you on the edge of your seat listening as they played the piano, while with others you just slumped in your chair and looked at your watch and thought about other things.  That is when it began to sink in to me that a truly skilled musician can make the same note sound so different.  Try it the next time you are at a piano.  You can hold your wrist tight, and pound the piano with a stiff finger...you can gently bring your hand down...you can place your hand just above the keyboard and just drop a finger...and there is more.

(Shaping a note on the cello has more possibilities.  You can vary the pressure that the bow places on the string in many ways, and the note sounds different.  You can relax your shoulder and let the full weight of your arm fall onto the string, and you can use your fingers and wrist to modify the pressure.  Raising and lowering your right elbow also affects the sound.  And the left hand, well you can press with your fingers and you can also pull your hand back with your arm to put more pressure on the string.  And, of course...VIBRATO...It can be slow, and the note sounds moody...Or it can be fast and the note sounds happier)

In any work there are the important notes, and the 'fill in' notes.  Take the 1st movement of Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata.  It is simple to just press the keys down...but the work REQUIRES good note shaping to really bring it out.  Hidden in the piece are a lot of melodies and phrases.  The 1st note in some of the triplet passages have a descending or ascending melody in the triplet series.  Once I realized that, I labored hard to express the melody.  That is when playing the work became HARD!!!  I had to focus on HOW I brought each finger down, whether to pound or caress the keys.

THAT is when I became more of a Musician than just a Performer...

[Izee]

...Panthering... ....Grrrrrrrrrr

I have had several Chars that I lived as on Gorean Sites, and had some fun with all.  I was usually a FW, I just didn't have the self-discipline and confidence to r/p a slave.  I tried, a couple times, but washed out very quickly.

One of my fondest memories and fun times was when I attempted Panthering.  Rags was having the Annual Forest Event, and I entered as 'Izee' a Char inspired by Native North American Women.  I quickly met the 'Dreaded Kimba', and we HIT IT OFF!!!  She was a very imaginative r/per, and accepted me when I approached as Izee'.  I had a BLAST as Izee', I was the Lairs Huntress, there was the Firekeeper and some Scouts and Warriors, and had some good times.  Rags toyed with us a lot, and some male typists were kind enough to send Chars in to realistically hunt us, and we had a good time evading them and finally slaughtering them.     We had some humerous times.  Kimba would disguise me and herself to appear to be civilized FW Merchants, and we would go into a town.  Of course, things happened, Kim and I would beat feet, steal kaila, climb walls to escape when we were made.  Izee' at the time couldn't speak a lot of Gorean, so she spoke in short, simple sentences, and Izee' LOVES chocolate.  So, Kim would be dealing with a Merchant, and Izee' would be looking around for a Candy Seller to obtain chocolate and would nag Kim to get the Merchant to include chocolate in any deal.

But, we had challenging episodes, and sometimes one, or both of us, would get wounded.  Once, Izee' was badly injured, and Kim buried her, with only her head showing, in sand to heal.  Kim would attract male admirers, and Izee' would stay clear.  But, Izee' did encounter Marcus Hrolfson...and they became close and Companioned when they were living in a City.  Marcus was a very popular r/per, and the Ceremony and Feast when Marcus and Izee' Companioned was attended by a lot of typists. 

I mourned, r/t, when Marcus's Typist died, but couldn't speak much of his death to my r/t Husband.  He would have thought that I was cybering sexual encounters, but the Typist and I never did such.  We did r/p cuddling and kissing, and dealing with the aftermath, but never got down to describing who did what to whom, and how.  My Husband wasn't interested in r/p, especially Gorean.  I had gotten him to read one of the Novels, and he said it was the WORST and TRASHIEST novel he had ever read.

I did read, somewhere, that John Norman started writing the Gor Novels on a bet with Harlan Ellison that he could write SF Novels that were SO BAD that NOBODY would read them.  Shit, me, a refined woman with a lot of letters after my name read pretty much ALL of them...I confess.   

Anyway, Gorean r/p was a lot of fun, and also a real challenge to my sensibilities.  I also learned things about myself that were difficult at times, but actually helped me in r/t.  Funny thing...I would get partly into my Panther Huntress state of mind during a Jury Trial, and it was much easier to maintain control.  The other side would pull a fast one, and the Izee' in me would snort, and say, "That all ye got?"...and I would handle it well.  A few times the Observer that the Insurance Company would send to watch the Trial would tell me later that day, "How did you handle that?  I thought they got you."  I didn't tell him that I sicced Izee' on the other side...Izee' liked a good fight...

Hey, some truth about Jury Trials.  The LAWYERS are very important witnesses I learned.  Jurors will look at the Lawyers to see how they react to Evidence, that helps them decide what is true and what is important.  When the other side was putting on a good witness, I just sat and looked bored...I didn't scribble notes over what was being said...UNLESS it was SOMETHING that helped MY CASE!

[Izee]

...When I wimped out in a Jury Trial...

I had a very amusing case that I just couldn't handle...so I handled it in a very professional manner...

...I RE-ASSIGNED IT to my new Associate Attorney...

It wasn't a very large case, and liability was clear against my client, so it was just about keeping the damages as low as possible.  Problem was the PLAINTIFF'S ATTORNEY!!!!

Ever encounter someone who just rubbed you the wrong way when you first met them?  And then he kept doing so, no matter what you did?

The Attorney was a 'bottom feeder', he had a small practice and mostly handled low level criminal Cases assigned to him by the County because the Defendant couldn't afford to hire a real attorney.  I handled high level personal injury and business and tax cases,  , so I was out of his League.  He was Hispanic...I am half Hispanic, my Mother's maiden name was Rodriguez, and we just didn't mix.  He was FULL of himself, and he was a short, ugly little man with a Zapata mustache.  During discovery, he kept subtly needling me in ways that I had never encountered before.  I actually lost my temper during a deposition...first and ONLY time that ever happened...and I YELLED at him...ON THE RECORD!!!...and stomped out.  We had a Court Ordered Arbitration, and I ALMOST lost my temper again.  I won the Arbitration...he rejected it...so the case was ordered to a Jury Trial.

I STEWED in my Office trying to figure out how I was going to handle myself...you get THAT angry in front of a Jury...and you LOSE the case...unless they are also angry at the other side.  I FINALLY figured out what to do...I called in my newest attorney and said, "Hey, Trevor, you are going to have your first Jury Trial!"  He asked, "When?"...I responded, "In two weeks!"  He almost shit himself...

But, I worked closely with him every day, and helped him compose his Opening Statement, and assured him that since I was also the Attorney of Record, that I would sit in the Courtroom and watch and counsel him.  I also told him that if it was going sideways that I would step in and take it over...

So, we arrived at the Courthouse, and I helped him set up at the Table, and then stepped back across the bar and sat in the gallery...I was the ONLY person watching the trial.  The trial got going, and I consulted with Trevor and helped him select the Jury.  I tried to do as little as possible when the Jury was present...they might think that Trevor didn't know what he was doing.  Anyway, things were OK until the Opening Statements...

The Plaintiff Attorney went first, and gave the most BIZARRE opening statement that I have EVER HEARD!!!!  He was waxing eloquent on how his client used to sit in the backyard under a tree, and play his guitar while his wife lovingly watched and listened from the kitchen window, and both were devastated that he couldn't do it anymore.     I just sat, and looked bored...but Trevor was fidgeting...he was wondering if he should object.  I had an eye on the Jury, and they were getting pissed...it was a little fender bender auto accident...and the Plaintiff was a Construction Worker who looked very healthy. 

The other Attorney then made the most OUTRAGEOUS statement, and Trevor panicked!!!!  He actually turned in his chair and looked back at me for a sign of what to do.  I did my best to look calm and just shrugged...when my instincts were to stand up and give the Baseball "STAY" hand gestures that 3rd base coaches give to keep a runner on second!     He turned back around, and I could see a number of Jurors grinning...they saw where the Queen Bitch was sitting!  I just stayed quiet.

Trevor won the case, big time, and I only had to counsel him a few times on what to do.