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Taking the Kathryn Challenge

Okay, Kathryn, here goes:

1. First and foremost, be the kind of mom my kids are proud of.

2. Be the kind of wife my husband looks forward to waking up with every day.

3. Take at least two family vacations out of state/country a year.

4. Qualify in all three legs of the NCRA speed contest in one sitting before I die.

Added by Tami on May 25, 2009 at 18:29 — 4 Comments

Turning 50...

...ain't so nifty. No, I usually do not say ain't, but I don't usually turn 50, either. For the past week or so I've felt like Linda Blair. What a gift I got this year, menopause. Today some guy yelled at me hanging out of the window of his truck, telling me to SLOW DOWN! (I was at a stop sign, just starting up again -- not speeding.) As soon as he did that, the new demons that are occupying my body screamed right back at the guy, BLEEP BLEEP! If he had stopped, I probably would have gotten… Continue

Added by Janet on May 25, 2009 at 17:45 — 5 Comments

Court Reporters, Time-and-Day Questions from Your Proofreader

Hi. In the interest of managing my struggling business as a freelance proofreader, I hope you can help me establish a baseline for structuring my turnaround and delivery times. If you have time, kindly respond to the following questions:

1. At which time/s of the day do you usually send out jobs to your proofreader?

2. On which day/s of the week are you not likely to send out jobs to your proofreader?

I appreciate your interest in replying to the questions above.… Continue

Added by Randy Renier Espinoza on May 24, 2009 at 20:00 — 2 Comments

What would you do in this situation?

Here is the testimony. I don't know why I didn't ask them afterward. It was a long day and I was tired.

Q What's his address in Florida?

A It is 10 Main Street.

MR. SMITH: Why don't we deal with giving you the address privately, can we agree on that? My client's been shot at by somebody. I don't want his address in a public document.

MS. JONES: You mean you just want this off the record, his address?

MR. SMITH: Yeah. Can we strike the part about the… Continue

Added by Lisa Breiter on May 24, 2009 at 9:26 — 10 Comments

Bike riding

Well, today I bought a bike. We moved to Irvine a couple of years ago, and there's lots of trails and things. My daughter is five now. It will be nice for the whole family to be able to go bike riding together.

I got a nice purple beach cruiser.

I have to tell you, I haven't been on a bike in over 25 years, maybe 30. I was terrified. I was pretty sure I would be able to ride it once I got it going on. The hard part for me is getting on and getting off without falling over.… Continue

Added by Kyung on May 23, 2009 at 18:30 — No Comments

Kathryn's Bucket List

Well, I can't reply to Kathryn directly on her page because that would necessitate my making a list of goals -- something I've never done to my recollection. I've always fallen into things: reporting, parenthood, homeownership.

Kathryn, you are so driven. I admire that so much. Just isn't in my hardwiring at all. I don't care a lick about letters behind my name, about being published, about contests. I do like helping students, especially those nearly ready to work. I'd like to get… Continue

Added by Brenda Rogers on May 23, 2009 at 13:54 — 2 Comments

Word of CAUTION before accepting work

After experiencing a very unpleasant event, I feel compelled to post this. If you take a job from someone on CSRNation, even if you have spoken to them on the phone and all the terms are delineated, make sure you have them sign a contract with all terms explicitly set out.

E-mail me if you want the details @ pmclaughlinrpr@gmail.com.

Tricia

Added by Tricia McLaughlin on May 22, 2009 at 22:00 — 12 Comments

Best Courtroom Comeback Ever?

If you ever testify in court, you might wish you could have been as sharp as this policeman. He was being cross-examined by a defense attorney during a felony trial. The lawyer was trying to undermine the policeman's credibility...

Q: 'Officer -- did you see my client fleeing the scene?'

A: 'No sir. But I subsequently observed a person matching the description of the offender, running several blocks away.'

Q: 'Officer -- who provided this… Continue

Added by Steve Godsey on May 22, 2009 at 19:54 — 3 Comments

Maintenance

So I'm down to my last three packs of paper. So I go to Steno Doctor to buy another case.

I've been thinking about going paperless for a while now. But my ink ribbon is still good. I want to time it so that I run out of paper and ink at the same time, but that's never going to happen. While I'm there, they tell me Stenograph is going out of the paper business, which I vaguely remember getting an e-mail about them selling off that part of the business to Pengad or some other business… Continue

Added by Kyung on May 22, 2009 at 14:25 — 4 Comments

Frustration continues

I have resolved that I am going to get my payment come hell or high water.

My husband is helping me in this endeavor by calling their office 3 times today and is going there tomorrow to get the "promised" check that probably won't be there.

The e-mails I am getting from the owner seem to be the runaround like I'll Fed Ex a check and don't send your husband here, he is bothering my staff.

i just sent an e-mail saying that since they didn't pay me, I can only… Continue

Added by Lisa Breiter on May 21, 2009 at 17:17 — 6 Comments

PLEASE TAKE MY PAPER!!

I HAVE A FULL BOX OF PAPER THAT IS CLUTTERING MY OFFICE!! PLEASE TAKE IT IF YOU WANT IT!! FREE!! I DON'T CARE! I JUST WANT IT G-O-N-E!! THANKS!! :)

Added by Kathy Mannlein on May 21, 2009 at 8:11 — 4 Comments

A CRUSHING GOODBYE

At 9:30 last night I had to make one of the most painful and difficult decisions ever. And today, I'm feeling so lost, quite empty and crushed by the weight of that decision.

My dog Bam-Bam is gone. Forever. And it was totally unexpected.

I've never loved an animal like I love him. He loved me unconditionally, was a great friend and the best keeper of secrets. Smart too. I miss him so much it hurts.

I've had cats throughout my life, but Bam was my first dog. Sought… Continue

Added by April McMillan, CRR, RPR, CSR on May 20, 2009 at 11:13 — 26 Comments

Frustration sets in because I can't get paid

In January, when my main agency was slow, I took a few jobs for another agency. It was either not work at all or take a chance. I had worked for them many years ago and they were very slow in paying and it took a while but I finally got paid from them. I had also heard rumors that now they didn't pay at all and to be careful. Why, oh, why didn't I listen to those rumors? I decided it would only be a few jobs and I would not extend much credit. I even told the scheduler that I had heard these… Continue

Added by Lisa Breiter on May 18, 2009 at 11:07 — 12 Comments

WHAT'S GOING ON?!?!?!?!

What is going on in court reporting?!?! Is everyone as slow as I am? Please tell me it's just a cyclical thing and that it's going to turn around SOON! Anybody have any thoughts on this??

Added by Karen on May 18, 2009 at 10:51 — 5 Comments

double-wide asterisk?

I want to switch to using wide keys. I notice that Mark only uses the single-wide asterisk key. Is there a reason I shouldn't order the double-wide? It seems that I can get better use out of using my left index finger as well as my right. Also, is it better to extend the TS or the DZ key? Thanks for your help.

Added by Kim Begg on May 15, 2009 at 8:16 — 8 Comments

Panic Has Set In

Ok. My computer crashed last week. The tech had to erase my entire hard-drive. He was SUPPOSED to do my personal dictionary but I have searched everywhere and it is not here! Even simple things like THE COURT: are not in there! I cannot possibly test like this!!! Is there a way that someone can copy theirs and send it to someone? Please help me, I will try ANYTHING!!!!

Added by Angela McPherson on May 14, 2009 at 18:19 — 23 Comments

Eclipse scopist, anyone?

I've tried searching for Eclipse scopists on this site and I keep getting "no members match my search criteria" but I know darn well this web site is loaded with scopers. So here I am putting out a blog hoping to get some hits. I need a reliable Eclipse scopist to work with. I a working reporter, micro agency owner, who is just too busy to scope my stuff anymore. Waayyy to overwhelmed. I have one scopist that I currently work with but she has other reporters who keep her pretty well busy so… Continue

Added by Deborah Morin on May 14, 2009 at 13:59 — 12 Comments

INTERNET RATES

How would you consider invoicing a Livenote internet streaming depo which has five people viewing remotely? If the agency is getting a fee, shouldn't the reporter be getting a percentage of that?

Added by anita t. shemin on May 13, 2009 at 9:04 — 6 Comments

Attorney Funnies

I love the attorneys' sayings down here in the South. The other day, we had this exchange (names have been changed) and I thought it was so cute. The (male) witness didn't even blink an eye when the (female) questioning attorney said it to him, either. In another state, I'm not sure it would fly:

Q. I appreciate the clarification, Mr. Jones.
A. You bet.
Q. I don't need the sass. How about that?
A. I'm just making sure we're clear.

Cute, right?

Added by Sue Baker on May 11, 2009 at 9:34 — 2 Comments

David Alan Grier

So we went to the Improv last night to see David Alan Grier. The man has gotten older, but he is still very funny.

At one point, I was laughing so hard my stomach was hurting. I thought I was going to die if I didn't start laughing so hard. So funny!!!

Added by Kyung on May 10, 2009 at 20:59 — 1 Comment