My kids, the kittens, and Hobby Lobby

They are back!

And my heart is full again -- as is my house.  They are beautiful and fantastic and wonderful and annoying and messy!  And we've adopted two kittens who are beyond adorable and deserve an entire post unto themselves.

 

In the mean time, I've had a killer June as far as work goes!  Fantastic!  Now, I just have to keep it up!  Since about March of this year I've been working on increasing my advertising and it really seems to be working.  It makes a difference when you actively tell people you are open for business.  In June alone, I opened up 15 new files! That's huge since I only had about 15 files opened between January and May.  And, to be honest, May was a little sad when it comes to collections.  The true test will be if the stream of clients continues to flow in the coming months.  One of my biggest efforts was to hire a graphic designer to create a flier containing a "Legal Checklist for New Parents."

Anyway, I've had a wonderful group of ladies (each of whom I happen to call "friend" as well as "Doctor") who have agreed to include these gems in the new-parent goodie bag at their obstetrical office.  Do you call it an obstetrical office or obstetrician's office, or OBGYN office, or Baby Doc office or Vag Docs Office or what?  I don't know, and clearly I have digressed.  Back to the subject at hand.  I owe them big time!  Of course, it may not turn into anything, but my fingers are crossed that new parents will take the advice and plan for their child's future, even if they contact a different attorney to address their needs.  You'd be amazed how many young parents do not have wills. Absolutely unbelievable.


And while I'm on the subject of work, I'm going to have a little rant about something closely related to work - the Hobby Lobby ruling this week.  Wow!  I mean, really, WOW!  What a response people are having to this ruling.  But really, as much as I have used (and continue to use birth control), I cannot get behind the people who are announcing this ruling as SCOTUS allowing a corporation to come between a woman and her birth control.  Um, seriously?  No. That was not the holding.  Not. At. All.  Wendy Davis (my neighbor and community leader here in Fort Worth), your statement was flat out wrong and misleading.  Puh-lease!  I don't care if you disagree with the holding (because that's what makes our legal system so amazing!), but at least make true statements.  That's all I ask.

And now people are going to boycott Hobby Lobby in the same fashion as Chik-fil-a.  Ohhhh-kaaaayyyy.  I actually have only been in the store two times. That's it.  I have no intention of changing my shopping habits in any way after this legal decision, and since I've only been there 2 times, it's not really an issue. I also didn't stop eating at Chik-fil-a when all that was hot and heavy (except to avoid the outrageously long lines when the "Christians" lined up to support them during the storm - yeah, I stopped eating there at that time just to avoid the long lines).  I simply don't feel personally offended by the actions of the owners, because everyone is entitled to have their own opinion and religious beliefs so that we can continue to have "religious freedom".  In the same way, I wouldn't stop shopping at a store if it turned out that the owners were misogynistic bastards.  I just don't care enough.  Okay, totally opening a floodgate of responses, but, again, this is just one woman's opinion.

 

If I worked for Hobby Lobby right now, the only thing that happened is that the Court said I can have any form of birth control I want to use - a right that was never in question, by the way - but Hobby Lobby doesn't have to pay for it.  Why?  Because Hobby Lobby is a closely held corporation whose small number of owners don't believe in abortive birth control.  All the court said was that the government can't make Hobby Lobby (and, in turn, the owners of Hobby Lobby) pay for their employees birth control if it violates their religious beliefs.  "Their" - meaning the small number of individuals who own the corporation.  That doesn't mean the employees can't have birth control.  They can!  Of course they can!  The difference is simply that Hobby Lobby doesn't have to pay for the birth control. 

So, just like how I've had to pay for my birth control when I was employed in the past (including while working at my own law firm right now), these employees will have to pay for their own birth control if they want it.  That's it. That's the entire effect.  Are their potentially opened doors by this ruling?  Maybe, but only because every single sentence the Supreme Court writes in an opinion opens the door for interpretation.  But the likely answer, is "no" we haven't opened the door so far as to allow companies to rely on religion so that they can deny others their basic rights.  This overreaction is ridiculous in my opinion.  And here are some other reputable articles that will support my opinion (which, by the way, is simply my opinion - not republican, democrat, Green, independent or otherwise - just my own personal opinion).

WALL STREET JOURNAL

FORBES

TIME

Okay, stepping off my soapbox now.  And please don't hate me.  I actually think it would be great if everyone had free access to birth control and  paid maternity leave and no bullying in our schools and no homeless people on the streets and lots and lots of other things.  But, I also agree with the Court that we can't infringe on someone else's constitutional rights so that we can all have what we want.  Just my two cents and it's probably not even worth two cents.

And, I'll be back with fun stuff later!