Two Quick Trips

TENNESSEE

This week, I just had two hearings that were seperated by a couple of days. It started off Flying on Sunday from SLC to Charlotte, NC, renting a car, and driving 3 1/2 hours in the middle of the night to Morristown, TN. I imagined that the drive was really pretty, as I climbed higher and higher through the Appalachians. Then the rain came. It soon turned into a midnight monsoon and lightning extravaganza as I drove West through backwoods Tennessee. I finally pulled into town, went to bed and woke up a few hours later for my hearing. My client had seen this Judge before, and this Judge had already denied her claim once a couple of years ago. He didn't like her then and he didn't like her now. That was pretty clear. The hearing was basically over in about 10-15 minutes, and the Judge waved me out of the hearing room in a hurry. I took a quick drive through Morristown, saw some old buildings, but nothing worth getting out of the car for, and off I was again, through the Appalachians and back to Charlotte to fly back to SLC.





On the way back, I decided to stop and check out Biltmore, an estate in Asheville, NC, whose grounds were designed by Fredrick Olmstead, landscape designer of Central Park and the World Fair in Chicago. I had just finished reading "The Devil In the White City" by Erik Larson, and had learned a bit about Olmstead and wanted to check out his work. I wish I could have gone through the house/castle at Biltmore, but I was starting to run out of time for my flight. I still don't understand how with only a 10 minute hearing, I was still cutting it short for my flight, but it happens. I drove quickly back to Charlotte, skipping even the bathroom breaks (thank you, Powerade Bottle!). I made my flight and was back home about 24 hours and 2 trips cross country later.



WYOMING

A few days later, I was on the road again to Evanston, WY. This was just a quick 1 1/2 hour drive from home and I did it in the morning and was back by the afternoon. I did, however, take the time to buy a few 'not-found-in-Utah' type fireworks from my good friends at Pyro City Fireworks. Good times to follow....or I blow my hand off and apply for disability. Either way.