100th Blog....Merry Christmas!

"Christ is the biggest part of Christmas." ~A church billboard



I love that my 100th Blog fell on Christmas. I was recently reading about the First Christmas, and loved the way the author explained it.

All is now ready for the most important event in human history. It is an event planned even before the creation of the world. It is the keeping of a promise made to Abraham over 2000 years earlier. It is the fulfillment of a host of prophecies regarding a Messiah who would come to establish his kingdom. Most importantly, it is the beginning of a dynamically new relationship between God and man. The event is the coming of the Savior of the world, the Messiah--or, as referred to in the Greek, the Christ.

Who is this Christ, this Messiah? His name is Jesus. His symbolic name, Immanuel (meaning "God with us"), signifies his deity. He is man, to be sure, but God as well; and he is God--the God of Creation--but man as well. God lowers himself so that man might be elevted. He leaves heaven so that mn might enter it. To man, who cannot begin to understand the ways of God, it is clearly a great mystery. But what a marvelous and wonderful mystery it is!

I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas! As we celebrate, remember all of the blessings that have been given to you.

Lawyer's Night Before Christmas

"Most girls my age are looking for a rich man to marry. I'm looking for a rich man to sue." ~Me to my family at Thanksgiving, explaining my single status :)

One of the secertaries at the firm emailed this a couple weeks ago. I thought it was really funny, although I realize my non-lawyer friends probably will get through the first paragraph, say a curseword with regard to all attorneys, and close the blog. :) Anyway, I thought since it IS the night before Christmas, I'd share!




THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS in Legalese
(Author unknown)


Whereas, on or about the night prior to Christmas, there did occur at a certain improved piece of real property (hereinafter "the House") a general lack of stirring by all creatures therein, including, but not limited to a mouse.


A variety of foot apparel, e.g., stocking, socks, etc., had been affixed by and around the chimney in said House in the hope and/or belief that St. Nick a/k/a/ St. Nicholas a/k/a/ Santa Claus (hereinafter "Claus") would arrive at sometime thereafter. The minor residents, i.e. the children, of the aforementioned House were located in their individual beds and were engaged in nocturnal hallucinations, i.e. dreams, wherein vision of confectionery treats, including, but not limited to, candies, nuts and/or sugar plums, did dance, cavort and otherwise appear in said dreams.


Whereupon the party of the first part (sometimes hereinafter referred to as ("I"), being the joint-owner in fee simple of the House with the party of the second part (hereinafter "Mamma"), and said Mamma had retired for a sustained period of sleep. (At such time, the parties were clad in various forms of headgear, e.g., kerchief and cap.


Suddenly, and without prior notice or warning, there did occur upon the unimproved real property adjacent and appurtenant to said House, i.e., the lawn, a certain disruption of unknown nature, cause and/or circumstance. The party of the first part did immediately rush to a window in the House to investigate the cause of such disturbance.

At that time, the party of the first part did observe, with some degree of wonder and/or disbelief, a miniature sleigh (hereinafter "the Vehicle") being pulled and/or drawn very rapidly through the air by approximately eight (8) reindeer. The driver of the Vehicle appeared to be and in fact was, the previously referenced Claus.


Said Claus was providing specific direction, instruction and guidance to the approximately eight (8) reindeer and specifically identified the animal co-conspirators by name: Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner and Blitzen (hereinafter "the Deer"). (Upon information and belief, it is further asserted that an additional co- conspirator named "Rudolph" may have been involved.)


The party of the first part witnessed Claus, the Vehicle and the Deer intentionally and willfully trespass upon the roofs of several residences located adjacent to and in the vicinity of the House, and noted that the Vehicle was heavily laden with packages, toys and other items of unknown origin or nature. Suddenly, without prior invitation or permission, either express or implied, the Vehicle arrived at the House, and Claus entered said House via the chimney.


Said Claus was clad in a red fur suit, which was partially covered with residue from the chimney, and he carried a large sack containing a portion of the aforementioned packages, toys, and other unknown items. He was smoking what appeared to be tobacco in a small pipe in blatant violation of local ordinances and health regulations.


Claus did not speak, but immediately began to fill the stocking of the minor children, which hung adjacent to the chimney, with toys and other small gifts. (Said items did not, however, constitute "gifts" to said minor pursuant to the applicable provisions of the U.S. Tax Code.)


Upon completion of such task, Claus touched the side of his nose and flew, rose and/or ascended up the chimney of the House to the roof where the Vehicle and Deer waited and/or served as "lookouts." Claus immediately departed for an unknown destination.

However, prior to the departure of the Vehicle, Deer and Claus from said House, the party of the first part did hear Claus state and/or exclaim: "Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!" Or words to that effect.

Daddy Won't Sell The Farm Is Here!!

"Success comes in cans, not cant's." ~Unknown

Those of you who are my facebook friends have already heard this on my status....but for those of you who are not, my law review article has been published! I tried to take a picture of it, but my camera flash photographing the white cover didn't so much work out.

Now, just a little background.....I had to write this paper to graduate from law school (sort of like a thesis for a masters) and I finished it last spring. Then I submitted it to some journals, and got offers to publish it. I went with the San Joaquin Agricultural Law Review, out of Clovis, California. Here's their website: http://www.sjcl.edu/SJALRIssues/Volume18/tabid/621/Default.aspx

So I sent them my article, they made some suggestions and edits, they did a cite check (which means they went through my whole box of sources to be sure I was accurate) and then off to the publisher it went! It was a lot of work and sort of a pain, but it was pretty exciting to see my name in print! Those of you with Westlaw or Lexis access can check it out soon at 18 S.J. Agric. L. Rev. 127.

Anyway, the article's full title is: Daddy Won't Sell The Farm: Drafting Right to Farm Statutes to Protect Small Family Producers. You'll see more about the topic soon on the blog for Family Farm Fridays, but really quickly these are laws that most states have in order to prevent city folk from moving out into the country next to an established farm or ranch, and then sue for an injunction to make the farmer stop farming because it's too loud, or too dusty or smells bad. These laws are becoming more and more important as people move to rural areas, and we need to be sure they are well-drafted. And there is two sentences explaining what my 30 page paper is all about!

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas....

"Let us keep Christmas. Whatever else be lost among the years, Let us keep Christmas still a shining thing; Whatever doubts assail us, or what fears, Let us hold close one day, remembering It's poignant meaning for the hearts of men. Let us get back our childlike faith again." ~Grace Noll Crowell

Well this holiday is a season of firsts for me. I thought I'd share a couple.

So my friend Brett-Brett and his family invited me to the New Mexico Bowl....first bowl of the season!
And I think they may have ruined me forever! We were in the Presidential Suite and sat in the warmth in these cozy leather chairs the whole game. Add in the free pre-game buffet, drinks and popcorn, it was pretty much amazing!
And here's the view from the suite. See the tv's up there? Yea, they were everywhere. Before the game started, we watched Texas/UNC basketball. Once the game started it was on so you could see the instant replays and everything. Best of both worlds!

Here's the field prior to kickoff of the 2009 New Mexico Bowl.....Fresno State Bulldogs v. University of Wyoming Cowboys.

So the game ended up going into double over time, but Wyoming pulled it out and the fans rushed the field. What a great Saturday afternoon and a good first bowl game!

And from football to Christmas decorations (can you see why I love this time of year!?!?) here is my little tree!

And the run-down on a couple of my ornaments--this one was made by my cousin Carol, who sends one to everyone in the family every year. I'm very excited to start out my collection!This one is a sock monkey, just like the one that my grandma used to have at her house when I was a kid. It had to go on the tree!

It's also not Christmas without a nativity, so I found this little set...complete with a lamb, of course!

I've finally found my collectors item for all my trips....Christmas ornaments! Too bad I didn't hink of this while I was actually traveling. (NOTE: If you're going to NYC, DC, Switzerland, France, Cozumel....hook me up!)

At the Vatican in Rome I got this Rosary, so I figured it could serve as my Rome ornament for now.

And last, but certainly not least, my OSU ornament from the Blonde Oklahoma Girl! No tree is complete without one!

So, I'd say my first bowl game and first tree were both successes! Hope you are having a wonderful holiday season as well!

An Innocent Man....

"God help us, if ever in this great country, we turn our heads while people who have not had fair trials are executed." ~Judge Frank H. Seay

Photo by: Steve Nesius/ AP

Imagine being in prison for 35 years. That's longer than I've been alive. Now imagine you were innocent the entire time. Imagine being labled a kidnapper and child rapist and wearing the label for those 35 years. That's exactly what happened to James Bain, a Florida man who was set free last week after DNA testing proved that he was innocent.

Mr. Bain wasn't angry (although he had 35 years of a right to be!) when he was interviewed. He spoke of a deep faith, a desire to return to school, and an excitement to see his 77 year old mother who is in poor health. I guess the things that matter to you probably change after something like this.

My thoughts and prayers go out to Mr. Bain and his family, along with the victim and his family, who now probably realize they did not get justice 35 years ago. Instead, another injustice was committed. For his trouble, the state of Florida owes Mr. Bain $1.75 million dollars. Serves them right.

So far in the United States, 264 inmates have been exhonerated and set free by the use of DNA testing. Mr. Bain's attorneys had petitioned the court several times for DNA testing to be used in his case, only to have those petitions denied. Finally, a judge took a chance on Mr. Bain, which led to his being set free.

In general, I try to stay away from law or politics on the blog.....but I think this is something very important that needs to be addressed. There is simply no need for people to sit in prison for decades when DNA testing is available and not used. It's a horrible miscarriage of justice and it should be stopped. Even worse than the people sitting in prison, are those sitting on death row or those who have already been put to death. Before we take away a person's life or liberty forever, we should be sure we have exhausted every possible avenue of finding the truth.

What if it were you in prison? Or your child, brother, sister, parent or friend? Wouldn't you want the DNA test run? Regardless of your view on criminal sanctions or the death penalty, when we have the ability to run simple tests to prove man's innocence to prevent him from dying in prison or dying at the hands of the state, and that technology is not used, it's simply unacceptable.

New Plan: Family Farm Fridays!

"The fight to save family farms isn't just about farmers. It's about making sure that there is a safe and healthy food supply for all of us. It's about jobs, from Main Street to Wall Street. It's about a better America." ~Willie Nelson

Okay, because Guest Blog Friday seems to be running out of steam, for 2010, we're going to start up Family Farm Friday. My plan is every Friday to have an article or advertisement or story about family farms. Hopefully people who read my blog will learn something and share it with others around them!

As you know from the blog, I'm a huge proponent of the family farm. I recently came across these advertisements for family farmers in South Dakota. I think these are exactly what the agriculture industry needs to be doing----we need to promote not only our products, but our way of life! Way to go Ag United and South Dakota! I hope more stated will catch on!

Guest Blog Friday Failure.....

"It's not who you are that holds you back, it's who you think you're not." ~Unknown

Note: this picture has nothing to do with anything, but I think it's cute and felt like the blog needed a cute picture for the day.

So, for the first time, Guest Blog Friday is a failure. I've had several people say they want to write blogs, but none were ready this week. You can blame this on them.....most of them are my relatives, believe it or not! :) (i.e. Matthew, Emily, Denton....)

Anyway, if you want to do a guest blog, send it to me and you can be it next Friday. Otherwise, Guest Blog Friday may go away forever and I'll have another day to rant about things......

Throwback Thursday #7: Since It Was Vacation

"Sleep 'til you're hungry, eat 'til you're sleepy!" ~Unknown

As promised, here is a blog full of pictures of the food I ate in Europe. I did my best to capture the amazing cuisine! It wasn't easy--there was lots of eye rolling from my travleing partners/cousins, Swiss Mister and Whitney, every time I would whip out my camera at the table. Anyway, enjoy your look at the food that took me two months to run off when I got back to the good ol' USA.

Wouldn't be a vacation without a little ice cream....so that was the first thing we ate when we arrived in Switzerland! We'll start with the before shot.....

And then the after! :) This would be Coupe Danemark. Probably the best thing I've ever eaten in my life. The tiny restaurant in Cully served it. It was three scoops of homeade ice cream. Then add on fresh whipped cream (I mean real here people, not that junk you buy in the store). Then top with almond slivers. Finally, you pour the little boat of Nestle's chocolate sauce over the top. Mmmm.....worth the 8 hour flight from NYC to Geneva and the hour train ride to Cully just for this!

After the ice cream, let's start with our fanciest meal. There was another little restaurant in Cully that was very ritzy...everyone was all dressed up, the food was super expensive, and apparently Ronald Reagan ate there once. Now, you all have probably heard my story about going to fancy restaurants.....they intimidate me. I never know what the food is or what to order. Now, imagine that....in French. So, I stuck with my usual approach and ordered the closest thing to grilled chicken. :)Whitney also stuck with an oldie but a goodie, filet de perche. This is because I swear this was one of the only things Sean knows how to say in French, so he orders it everywhere!As our fearless leader, Cousin Sean was more daring. He opted for filet de beuff de tartar. This basically meant a filet mignon (and if that were all I would have ordered it) with beef tartar (aka raw round beef) on top. I'll stick with my chicken, thanks.And, of course, we had to taste some of the local wine from the vineyards we hiked around in. Much safer to sample the grapes here than in the actual vineyards. As we were hiking Cousin Swiss Mister wanted to steal a grape. I told him no...farmers are the same everywhere and he'd totally get shot at! Here, it was safe. :)And, of course, dinner's not dinner without a littlel spot of dessert. Again, a before and after. So..from fancy to non-fancy....here was a hotdog we ate the first night after our boat cruise. We were STARVING....so this might have been the meal I was most grateful to eat! Anyway, it was wierd...they poke a hole in the bread and the hotdog goes in there after they squirt in mustard. It was interesting.
Like I said, it's not a vacation without some ice cream. This was one of the best ice cream bars I've ever had. I didn't feel guilty, since it was vacation....

And as I mentioned last week, at the cheese factory, we had to have fondue for lunch. It was gruyere fondue (what else would they feed you in Gruyere Switzerland??) made with white wine. Excellent. And no doubt very fattening.

So by this point I feel like I've eaten everything in Switzerland, so we move on to Rome! Let me tell you....I was in for it! First off....appetizers. In Roma, you order bruschetta! There are all different kinds...some with cheese, some with tomatoes, some with meats....but all very fresh on delicious bread. This one was hands down the best bruschetta ever--it had cheese and fresh tomatoes. I don't even like tomatoes, but I'm telling you this was to die for. It was in some little hole in the wall restaurant we stumbled on while we were lost, so I'll never be able to find it again no doubt!

And.....since it was vaction......We did our best to sample the best that Italy had to offer...homeade pastas, lasagna and pizza!

This was with some sort of meat....not pepperoni....it was even better.

And the winner for the best food in Italy....this homeade lasagna from a family owned place right outside St. Peter's Square.

And because it was vacation.....

Finally, for Michaelangelo's.......this place is owned by an Italian guy who went to college in the US where he played some sport...baseball maybe? I don't remember for sure, but I do know he has a very, very attractive Italian son. :) Anyway, some friends recommended we go, and we had a blast! We had SO much food, then he brought out "Sexy Wine" which tasted like really good grape juice. Then he brought out fresh watermelon. Oh, it was wonderful!! If you ever go to Rome---go here! It's right behind the Pantheon. You will see the little American flag.And, a photo with the owner himself, Michaelangelo.You might wonder if I picked up any Italian language while I was there? I did......"Gelateria." Since it was vacation. :)
Stay tuned next week for our trip to the Olympic Museum in Lausanne, Switzerland!

The Blind Side

"A man's true wealth hereafter is the good that he does in this world to his fellows." ~Moliere

I went a couple weekends ago to see The Blind Side. I honestly think that this was one of the best movies I've seen in a long time. It's a great story about good people doing a wonderful thing to help a stranger. But it's really, really funny! I'm a total Sandra Bullock fan, but of all her movies, this one is hands down the best. There are some lines in that movie that made me just about fall on the floor laughing. Here are a couple...

Sean Touhy (the dad): "Who would've thougth we'd have a black son before we met a Democrat?"

Leigh Anne Touhy (the mom): "If you so much as set foot downtown you will be sorry. I'm in a prayer group with the D.A., I'm a member of the NRA, and I'm always packing!"

It really is an amazing story. I knew that the movie was based on the truth, but as I watched it I figured a lot of it was dramatized for entertainment value. Turns out, not much of it was! Here's a link to an interview of the actual family. If you haven't seen the movie....you probably don't want to watch this. It gives it all away. :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FhlbsJUJ9Q

Anyway, I just think it's a great example of how people can truly be kind and generous and change the lives of other people who they come across. Maybe you and I can't afford to take in some kid off the street, but there probably are a lot of little things we can do every day to make a difference for someone in our lives.

The NFR....Long Live Cowboys!

"There's something about the outside of a horse that's good for the inside of a man." ~Winston Churchill

I hope that everyone got to watch at least a round or two....but for those of you who didn't, the last 10 days were the NFR in Las Vegas. For those of you who think I'm speaking Greek, that is the National Finals Rodeo. What does this mean? It means that the best cowboys and cowgirls in the world go to Vegas to see who emerges the world champion in 7 different events.

It's with a lot of frustration I write this blog. Not that I'm frustrated with the NFR....goodness knows those are 10 of my favorite days of the year!! I am frustrated with the lack of pictures from the NFR available online. I wanted to put up pictures of all of my favorite moments, but gave up on that. I found a few and decided to go ahead and write the blog with those, instead of waiting longer!

Here are a few of my favorites from the week:

1. Round 10

Usually, by the last night (which is the 10th Round), pretty much all of the events have been won and it's just a formality. Not this year---it was chaos and all but one event came down to the 10th Round to determine the world champion. And that 10th Round was crazy!!


In the bulldogging, it came down to Luke Branquinho and Lee Graves to win the world. Luke was winning the average. (I should explain....if you win the the average over the 10 rounds at the NFR you win like 50 grand. So a lot of times, that is super important for the world championship). Anyway, Luke goes and throws the calf fast...about 3.6 or so, but the judges said he didn't have a hand on the steer when he went down. That means he gets a no-time. Also means he loses the world championship. Ouch. Instant replay will be at next year's NFR because of this. Mark my words!


Calf roping had similar drama. Cody Ohl, who is just a phenominal roper, comes out and ropes one in like 7.3......which means fast. The rule is the calf has to stay tied for 6 seconds. Cody's calf lasted about 5.5 seconds and got up. That meant he lost the world championship. Trevor Brazile came in, roped his calf and won the world. Chaos.


2. Billy Etbauer Wins His 50th Round.....Then His 51st!


If you are going to watch one guy at a rodeo in your entire life, you'd choose Billy. He's a legend. The Brett Favre of rodeo they call him. He's 46 years old. He's like 5'5. And he's awesome. Over his career, he has won 51 rounds at the NFR. Let me tell you, when he wins, people go crazy. He won Round 10 and got a standing ovation from the crowd. He's well respected, with good reason. This guy is what the sport is all about.


3. Duke.....Enough Said!


I like horses. All horses really......and growing up on a ranch, we have had lots of different horses. I've had friends who rodeo and a brother who ropes. I judged horses for years in high school and at one contest in college. My point is this, I've seen a few horses in my life.....but hands down, the most beautiful horse I have ever seen was at the NFR. Duke is a palamino barrel horse owned by this year's world champion, Brittany Pozzi. I'm telling you, if you want to see a horse, you need to see Duke! I'm ALSO telling you.....there are some GOOD LOOKING cowboys at the NFR...but Duke was probably the best looking guy in the Thomas and Mack!


4. Tuf Cooper Wins The Average

If you don't follow rodeo, you don't really know why this is a top 5 moment. The Coopers are sort of like the Kennedy's of rodeo.....it's a family affair. Roy Cooper, the father, was one of the best all-time cowboys to rodeo. His daughter, Shada, married Trevor Brazile who I mentioned won calf roping and was also named the all around cowboy for the 7th time. Roy has a couple of sons who have roped before...Clint and I forget the other one's name. Well this year, his 19 year old son, Tuf, came to his second NFR. He's little snot nosed kid, but he can throw a rope and he won the calf roping average. Watching Roy in the stands as he watched his son was really cool. Oh, and Tuf had to switch horses...his horse got hurt in Round 7.....no worries, brother in law Trevor came to the rescue and shared. Talk about having connections!


5. Team Roping World Record Broken....Twice In One Night
Now this just had to fry some guys. Team roping is where two guys pair up to rope the calf---the header ropes the calf's head and the heeler ropes both back feet. The arena and world record for team roping was 3.5 seconds. In Round 9, the world record was broken by Jojo LeMond and Randon Adams who caught in 3.4. The Thomas and Mack Center went nuts. They were celebrating, happy cowboys. For about five minutes. Five runs later, their world record was broken by Chad Masters and Jake Corkill, who caught in 3.3. SO much for that victory lap for Jojo and Randon!

Hopefully this will give you a little insight into the sport of rodeo. Next December, hit me up and we'll watch the NFR! I've been saying for years I want to go....and yes....those of you who are wondering, it is on the bucket list! I am hoping maybe 2010 will be my year!