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Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Equipoise: Back In Blog
Is anyone here? Likely not. There may have been some passers-by recently, but it would take only a glance to see there has been quite an absence around here.
When I started this site, there was no one around. That changed, slowly, over time. One by one, folks who enjoyed its content found their way here, and many returned. I took a few breaks from the site, but never long ones. It was incredible fun.
Things reached a tipping point of sorts in late 2007. I had undertaken a pro bono project that I needed an extraordinary amount of time to complete, and something needed to be pushed aside. The blog lost. I told myself I would return when my practice and other activities were back in balance and I could give the site the attention it needed. That wound up taking many months.
I recall an oral argument I had in December 2007. I had not posted since October 31 -- about six weeks earlier. At the end of the argument, but before the next pair of attorneys made their way forward, one of the judges on the bench said something like this: "By the way, Mr. Conigliaro, what's happened to Abstract Appeal? Your last post was October 31. October 31!"
I am glad the absence was noticed. I wish my departure had been over then, but I had much to do on some fantastic cases. And there was that whole Goofy set of races I discussed when I finally returned. I needed to get things back in balance.
When the blog did churn back to life in 2008, I started the process of catching up with state cases I had missed. I spent months moving that forward when a new set of my own cases began taking their toll on me, day and night. The pendulum had quickly swung again. By late summer of 2008, I was so steeped in work that I had to step away from here again, and once again I told myself that I would not return until I could give the site real attention. I tried popping back for an isolated post or two in the Fall, but that was unrewarding. Blogs are not meant to be occasional creatures. They need life.
So as Fall made way for Winter, and as the changing political and economic climates grasped most people's attention, I kept trying to bring my own world back into balance. I continued to have a fascinating and rewarding caseload that I could not possibly complain about, especially with so many attorneys and firms out there in real need of work. I also ran -- literally -- through a few injuries that ruined what had been plans for a series of marathons in late 2008 and early 2009.
However, in late January of this year, I ran without pain for the first time in a long time. So I set my sights on salvaging my running season and getting ready for the Gasparilla Marathon in Tampa on March 1. You could probably say that, in February, if I was not working, I was running. When March 1 came, I did it. Despite blustery conditions in Tampa, I not only completed the full marathon but took 11 minutes off my prior personal record, finishing in 3:36:57. I will catch that quick judge over in Daytona yet. There is something about running that is just good for the soul. It gets you away and clears things up.
Then I made an unexpected decision. Just when I was ready to return here, when I had caught up with my cases, with running, and with a few other less public things, I decided to apply for what I will simply call an appointment. I will keep this discussion to a minimum but I will say that having never completed such an application before, it took time. Lots of time. Rewarding time -- in the sense it forced me to stop and think about where I have been, what I have done, why I have done it, and what I want to do. I am extremely happy with my present situation, but if given the opportunity to serve I would do so with vigor.
And there went March.
Now, I think things are in balance. It is time to bring this blog back into the fold. It needs work, and that will take time. On one hand, I cannot wait. Florida law is as fascinating as ever, and there is much to cover. On the other hand, I am going to take a lesson from the running world and pace myself. As I tell the runners I help coach, pace is the key. So here goes...
