Been a long time my friends
May. 31st, 2017 07:40 pmI returned to work full time in January, starting as an office temp through Kelly Services as a way to get my feet wet after so long outside of the regular 40 hour work world, and to start having some sort of income. In the interim I took a deep breath and reached out to potential mentors for my attorney licensing requirements (Vermont requires a completed six month mentorship as part of their newly revised licensing guidelines for attorneys).
And in looking for a mentor, I managed to also find a good starting position at a law firm. So I'm happy to share that since April 3rd I've been working as an Associate Attorney for a very small law firm. I'm also the receptionist, but the firm is literally 3 attorneys (the managing partner/attorney, two associates--including myself, and a part-time bookkeeper). So we all do a little bit of everything. The pay to start isn't great, but is better than I was making as clerical staff. And it's a way to get my foot in the door so to speak. On the super happy making side of things, I really love working with my boss and the other associate. Both are very supportive regarding health issues. And the working environment and attitudes of my co-workers tend to mesh well with my own personal beliefs and work ethic. So despite the fact that being an attorney, and a new attorney at that, is a stressful thing. I'm not nearly as stressed as I could be. I get to leave work primarily at work after I go home for the day (checking email occasionally to be sure no fires have arisen that need any attention). And my efforts at the office are appreciated by both the senior associate and our boss.
Also for a bit of "yes, Vermont is a small freaking state," I actually went to law school with the other associate. He was a year ahead of me and we didn't know each other well at the time. But there was definitely I moment of "wait, you look awfully familiar" when we first met.
So things are looking very optimistic and hopeful for me right now. I'm slowly working on getting all the mentorship requirements and activities done so I can keep my license. So many arbitrary hoops to jump through to be a lawyer. It can be more than a bit ridiculous at times. I'm enjoying the work I get to do for the most part, and learning a lot which is always a good thing. I'm still slogging through Lyme treatment and still slowly improving (though some days it is harder to tell than others). I still spend most of my downtime reading fanfic.
I can't promise that I will update more frequently. I often mean to, but don't get around to doing so. My social anxiety was really bad for a while, which ate up a lot of words and spoons. That's easing somewhat. So we shall see.
Much love to my friends here. I may not be very active online right now, but I still love the hell out of all of you.
And in looking for a mentor, I managed to also find a good starting position at a law firm. So I'm happy to share that since April 3rd I've been working as an Associate Attorney for a very small law firm. I'm also the receptionist, but the firm is literally 3 attorneys (the managing partner/attorney, two associates--including myself, and a part-time bookkeeper). So we all do a little bit of everything. The pay to start isn't great, but is better than I was making as clerical staff. And it's a way to get my foot in the door so to speak. On the super happy making side of things, I really love working with my boss and the other associate. Both are very supportive regarding health issues. And the working environment and attitudes of my co-workers tend to mesh well with my own personal beliefs and work ethic. So despite the fact that being an attorney, and a new attorney at that, is a stressful thing. I'm not nearly as stressed as I could be. I get to leave work primarily at work after I go home for the day (checking email occasionally to be sure no fires have arisen that need any attention). And my efforts at the office are appreciated by both the senior associate and our boss.
Also for a bit of "yes, Vermont is a small freaking state," I actually went to law school with the other associate. He was a year ahead of me and we didn't know each other well at the time. But there was definitely I moment of "wait, you look awfully familiar" when we first met.
So things are looking very optimistic and hopeful for me right now. I'm slowly working on getting all the mentorship requirements and activities done so I can keep my license. So many arbitrary hoops to jump through to be a lawyer. It can be more than a bit ridiculous at times. I'm enjoying the work I get to do for the most part, and learning a lot which is always a good thing. I'm still slogging through Lyme treatment and still slowly improving (though some days it is harder to tell than others). I still spend most of my downtime reading fanfic.
I can't promise that I will update more frequently. I often mean to, but don't get around to doing so. My social anxiety was really bad for a while, which ate up a lot of words and spoons. That's easing somewhat. So we shall see.
Much love to my friends here. I may not be very active online right now, but I still love the hell out of all of you.