Making a Decision

Several months ago, I heard the State Attorney, Willie Meggs talk about what he takes into consideration when deciding whether to prosecute someone and what level of charges to make. It was an extremely interesting talk, and I came away impressed with the sorts of matters that influence what, on its face, is a fairly routine question of acts of the accused and the applicable law. Similarly, in my position, I make decisions about what matters to raise with my superiors and which not, what matters to spend my time on now and which to simmer for later. It is necessary to discern which complaints will provide restitution to the largest number of people, or prevent future harm to a large group of people, or prevent great harm to a few, from those cases where you are just tilting at windmills.

Getting Out and About

Before I filed to run for office, I spoke with a woman who was supposedly very experienced with local elections. She said to me, "I never heard of you, you've got to get out and about." So I have been dutifully getting out and about. This week I went to the Women's Pavilion at TMH to talk about breast prosthetics and their usefulness in getting on with your life, portions of that interview were shown on a local newscast. I also gave a talk to the Military Officer's Association of America about Consumer Law issues for Military Personnel and Veterans. It was fun having people see my name in the paper and say that they saw me on tv.

http://www.wctv6.com/home/headlines/2347166.html

It's the fourth article down the page:
http://www.tdo.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060222/NEWS01/602220328&SearchID=73236648965136

Tallahassee Marathon

I was the honorary starter at the Tallahassee Marathon this morning. It was fun. I got to talk through a bull horn, and say, "Ready, set" and then turn a siren on to start the race. There were over 300 people starting the marathon and half marathon at 8:00 am, and it was very cool.

I haven't run a marathon myself since my early twenties, after which I decided that a half marathon was really far enough for anybody, and then in my late twenties I discovered sprint triathalons, and those are the best. I can train in three different sports, and I just don't get the injuries I did when I only ran.

The Civitan Club

One of the things I do for my job is give talks about consumer law to civic groups. Yesterday I gave a talk to the Tallahassee Civitan Club, and they had unusually cogent questions, including one from an engineer about weighing science questions in the courtroom. Just as I was winding up the questions, a member said, "A couple of hours ago, a man asked me to sign a petition for his wife to run for judge. Are you running for judge?" And I, embarrassed, said that yes I was, but that I couldn't talk about it now because I was on company time. He said that he wasn't on company time and that he thought I'd be a good judge. So, indirectly, my husband probably got me twenty votes by standing outside a state office building asking people to sign petitions to get me on the ballot.

League of Women Voters

What I like about the League of Women Voters is that they like to vote, and they think that people should do more, not less of it. So if you ask someone in the League of Women Voters if they will sign a petition so you can run for office, they almost always say yes. This is particularly cheering for those of us who are plodding along on the campaign trail, because it is refreshing to find people who think running for office is a good and noble thing to do.

My Husband the Hero

My spouse is personally reserved, but he has gone the extra mile for me in helping to gather petitions. He has stood around and asked complete strangers to sign petitions to get me on the ballot. He has told his acquaintances that I am running. He says he has made it his goal to get me on the ballot. After being married to him for 10 years, I'm surprised. Happily, gratefully, surprised.

Rainy & Cold

The Unity in the Community festival at Kleman Plaza has been cancelled for today because of the weather. In the midst of gathering the necessary 2140 petitions for submission to the Leon County Elections Supervisor to qualify to appear on the ballot, bad weather is particularly disheartening. The weather will probably affect turnout at the dedication ceremony this afternoon at the VFW, when they name the street leading to the VFW after a young service member killed in action in Iraq, Robert Wise. There was a nice article about it in the Democrat this morning.
http://www.tdo.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060211/NEWS01/602110323/1010

Advice

I was introduced to a guy who ran for judge in another circuit. His advice was to stay the course, and do my best to look and act prudently, because the race isn't the last race, nor the last appointment that will be available. In raising my visibility, I will have higher visibility for appointments of all kinds, as long as I appear to be a sound and credible candidate. He also had good advice for a county race, to remember its low visibility, and the necessity of patience and humility. So I am sticking with my plan, and trying to remember his advice when I am tired or discouraged.

Gathering Petitions

In Florida, you have the choice of paying a qualifying fee to have your name placed on the ballot, or to qualify by petition. For most local offices, it is cheapest and easiest to qualify by petition. For example, to qualify to run for school board in Leon County, you need to gather fewer than 400 petitions to appear on the ballot, although the Elections Supervisor's Office recommends you gather more in case some signatures don't qualify. As County Court Judge is a County-wide race, I need 1,712, and the Supervisor's office recommends turning in 2,140. If I don't qualify by petition, the qualifying fee is $4,680. So we're gathering petitions. If you're reading this and are registered to vote in Leon County, do e-mail us and we'll get a petition to you. We have to submit our petitions by April 11, 2006 at noon.