Happy Brooklyn-Queens Day
It’s Brooklyn-Queens Day! No one really likes Queens so we just say it’s Brooklyn Day. My students are glad to celebrate Brooklyn Day because they don’t have school. Twenty years ago, I celebrated Brooklyn Day in the hospital because I broke my arm rollerskating.
The teachers don’t love Brooklyn Day as much because we still have to go to school and have a professional day. This year, I postponed jury duty until this day because that was as much as I was allowed to postpone it for.
So I arrived for jury duty at the Brooklyn Courthouse on Adams Street at 8:15 a.m. We went through the metal detector and into the jury selection room. I was surprised that no id’s were checked upon entering the courthouse. We sat in the jury room which was suprisingly comfortable. Some people even brought a friend with them so they would have someone to talk with. Free wireless internet access was available and I loved that. I was sitting there chatting with everyone on Twitter and talking to some friends on AIM. At 9:30 am, the court officer gave us instructions and asked us to watch a short movie on the flat screen monitors hung all around the room. I sat on the left hand side in the front because those people are called first. I was called to a jury at 10:20 am. I went in and filled out the survey. Before collecting the survey, the two attorneys asked if anyone was a city worker. I raised my hand and said I was a teacher. They asked me to leave.
I was hoping to go home before lunch, but that is not the procedure for the court house. For lunch, I wanted to go to Chipolte, but the line was going out the door. Instead, I walked down to Montague Street and had a delicious salad. After lunch, I came back and sat in the jury room. I spoke with a guy and a girl who lived in Bay Ridge. We spoke about Bay Ridge and Brooklyn’s best schools, attorneys, shops and restaurants. Then Mrs. Sunshine who works for the courthouse announced that we would all be excused from jury duty for the next eight years. I left at 4:20 pm. It as a good and easy experience for me.
And no you shouldn’t be looking at my site to see: How to get out of jury duty in Brooklyn New York. It’s just wrong. Go serve – it’s not a big deal.
Tomorrow, the home inspector is visiting the new house. I’m crossing my fingers that everything is okay.
Hugs,
marlene
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