a month of cultural whiplash

Two weeks ago I went to the TED conference for the first time. This is four days of intense introspection on the part of humanity — deep explorations of war, science, space, ethics, art, design. The speakers included Nobel laureates, an ex-president, inventors…and it brought most of us to tears more than once. You can’t help but be moved, especially if you’re like me. It challenges us all to be more thoughtful and ambitious as humans.

I came back and immediately  reported for Jury Duty. Jury selection took three days. More than seventy people were in the jury pool, and by the time we were done seating the jury, only 8 were leftover. That means more than 50 were interviewed and let go for one reason or another. I was the last one. I should have been let go.

It was a prostitution trial, and I have a schizophrenic sister who has been on and off the street for 20+ years, and I assume that she’s done a lot of prostitution in that time. She was last arrested for trying to light my mother’s hair on fire, but that’s another story. Because of Julie (my sister) I’ve thought a lot about life on the street as a drug user, homeless person, prostitute. My feelings are complicated.

Jury selection took 3 days. The trial took 2 hours and consisted of only one witness (a cop) and a tape recording in which the defendant wasn’t named. Deliberations took two days. We found her guilty.

The cross-section of humanity — from humbling masterworks of science, art, culture to the mundane brutality of life in the gutter. By the end of the trial I could barely maintain a conversation, there was so much to process. I’m still at a loss.