My dog Cookie loves to play catch (or more aptly, I throw the ball and she chases it!). Shortly after we got her, one of my neighbors told us that on one side of the Mormon Church (2 blocks away) was a great grassy side yard, more or less fenced [Read More]
A few weeks ago, I participated in a panel at the California State Bar Convention discussing the "Ethical Duties of Eliminating Bias in the Legal Profession." While the topic sounds dry, our discussion was not. Even though our presentation was at 8:00 am on a Sunday morning, the audience became [Read More]
My mother passed away on February 24, 2013. It was expected yet unexpected; sudden yet not so sudden. She was 97 and å_ years old. A week before, she was thriving and everything was fine with her; but then, starting a few days before a scheduled assessment conference with the [Read More]
One of the jobs of a mediator is to provide a "reality check"; to be a neutral, dispassionate third party, who can be objective and discuss with a party the "downside" or "adverse consequences" to her side of dispute. The goal is to have that party accept what is being [Read More]
Argus Birth is a beginning and death a destination; But life is a journey. A going, a growing from stage to stage: From childhood to maturity and youth to old age. From innocence to awareness and ignorance to knowing; From foolishness to discretion and then perhaps, to wisdom. From weakness [Read More]
In early August, my mother turned 97 years old. Unfortunately, this wonderful event was accompanied by a sad one; my siblings and I moved our mother from an assisted living facility to a dementia unit. Recently, I attended a mediator training session put on by the U.S. District Court - [Read More]
My dog is dying. Of cancer. Argus was not eating with his usual gusto so I took him to the vet to figure out what was wrong. On the way to figuring out that he had irritable bowel syndrome, the vet did an ultra sound, showing a 9cm (3.5 inches) [Read More]
As a mediator, I am trained not to assume, and to ask questions. Sometimes, when I am acting as me (and not as a mediator), that training goes out the window; sometimes, it does not. Sometimes, I catch myself in time and reinforce a valuable lesson: never assume. How did [Read More]
