Non-electronic activities
Posted on May 21, 2010 by LJ Earnest
Categories: Techniques
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The letter arrived early in May. I have been selected for Federal Jury Duty.
I am not looking forward to this. And please don’t email me about how it is a privilege to serve on a jury of peers, yadda yadda yadda. I know all this, and as much as I appreciate the features of the US Criminal Justice system, I’m being honest. Jury duty is nowhere in my top 1000 things to do. Six years of working with the local police department, dealing with equipment in the jail and sorting mugshots, have left in me a strong aversion to those in the system.
Anyway.
Having done jury duty before, I know that if I am called up to form a selection pool, I will sit around for hours until selected to go into a courtroom. Those hours sitting in the potential juror room are long and boring. You can’t leave. You simply wait.
Besides the inconvenience of having to take off work, I was informed that I am not allowed to bring my cell phone, PDA, MP3 or computer to the courthouse. So I’m left thinking, “What on earth am I going to do as I sit around waiting to be pulled into preliminary selection?”
Sure, there are books. I can read. I can knit. I can blog longhand. But so much of what I do on a day-to-day basis is now electronic that I am not sure what I will do with all that sitting-in-one-place non-electronic time.
Any suggestions? Let me know below.
Photo by bloomsberries
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Comments (4)
Stuff to do on jury duty:
1. Make friends with other folks waiting around. Seriously, the human contact will make time go quickly and pleasantly. Then you’ll have people to go on lunch break with, too!
2. Bring some wonderful stationery and write hand-written letters to your cherished friends, family members, colleagues and clients. People love correspondence with the personal touch more than ever.
Awesome suggestions! I’m such an introvert that I don’t think of connecting. (Actually, I’m an extrovert by midwestern standards — I look at other people’s shoes when I talk)
And I love to get letters, so why wouldn’t other people? Great ideas! Thanks!
Think about long term life goals and write about them in a journal. Don’t often have time where we’re forced to be still and can do long term planning and thinking.
Another great idea! I was just thinking yesterday that it would be great if I could have a chunk of time away from home and family to do this type of planning. It never occurred to me that the Federal Government was going to provide me with the opportunity!