Judge Lynn.com

Thank you Micca. You know, I have loved Sade in the past but had not listened to any of her new stuff. Soldier of Love. Oh My. The lyrics!!!!!!

Still wading through all of the song recommendations that I have gotten. My April surprise is delayed but still coming. Still working on my new website. I acknowledge that my prototype sent to my fan club members met with a tepid response. So I made changes based on your concerns. But you know your girl gets bored easily so I am forging ahead.

Already talked to Duchess this morning. My tennis game might be cancelled but I'm not sweating it because I have worked out every day this week and my legs hurt. You know I went to the doctor the other day for my annual and found that I have gained weight from last year even though I am working out more? My eating habits are better too. What's up with that?

I read a story the other day that broke my heart. A young lady killed herself because she felt she could not live up to her expectations. She was good at everything she did and felt pressured to maintain that excellence no mater what. Her family was supportive and not pushy. She just felt that SHE couldn't let anyone down.

That one hit close to home. Control freak and closet perfectionist that I am I want to please everybody. Of course, this applies only to matters of work and the kids – I am at peace with my domestic limitations. In fact I find myself amused more often than not by the gravity of my failures in that realm.

I don't feel like ending it of course, ( I was devastated for her and her family) but I do have this amazing ability to feel TEMPORARILY worthless when faced with failure. It drives E to distraction. Once I did something wrong and I said to him, all flustered and whatnot, "I never do anything right!."

He shook his head and said "Baby, I will never figure out how you keep score."

I don't stay that way long but I shouldn't go there at all so, as I mentioned on Facebook one day, I am going to make an effort to "Ride the Roller Coaster Well." Breath in my successes and exhale my failures.

What can I say? I'm working on it.

I love this Photo booth thing on my Mac. I can catch nonsense expressions at random!!!

Have a good weekend.

Well, I got it together.

Had a fabulous tennis lesson. I've "got my mind right"

I just tried to call Duchess but apparently she is out and about, That is always good. She is feeling well these days and I am grateful for that. It is not always a given anymore.

So we are considering – just considering – doing another Evening with Judge Lynn. It was fun in Birmingham but we didn't have as good of a turn out as we would have liked. Maybe a bigger city? We're thinking about it.

I am still working on updating my ipod. I asked folks on Facebook for suggestions. I have never heard of many of them (man, talk about feeling out of touch). Anyway, so far I've bought one Jennifer Hudson song. What are ya' gonna do? Can't seem to get with it.

Well, once I finish icing my knees I am of to. . . (yes, you guessed it) the grocery store. I have gone everyday this week. I would have failed Home Economics if they still taught it.

I also have to get new tennis shoes. Played right through these today.

Peace.

I took 17 out of school yesterday to take him to a doctor's appointment. I gave us plenty of time because I have a tendency to get turned around.

Well we drove around and around what I thought was the designated spot for an hour. Never found it.

The sad part is I had been there twice before. I called information to get the doctors phone number but I spelled it wrong and they didn't have it listed.

When I got home I called the office and I must have sounded frazzled. The lady kept telling me it's okay and we won't charge you for the missed visit. Lynn Toler in Full Foolish Mode!!! You have no idea how often MMR 6 comes in handy for me. My ability to get lost is a running joke around here.

Otherwise I do believe all is well. Hit a few bumps in the road but Life is rarely a smooth street.

And, yes, I am still working on my April surprise. Again, keep you expectations low. No more songs with Chaka Kahn kind of thing but something fun nonetheless.

Thanks to all of you who chimed in to keep the conversation going yesterday.

Peace.

start a conversation. Brain on vacation. No return date given.

Hello Everybody,

Someone on Facebook asked me why I became a judge. I knew I had addressed it in my book so I thought I would go there and just re-write what I wrote. Funny thing was I summed it up in just a couple of sentences, and I must say it wasn't very lucid.

So I will try again here. The thing is I don't like to claim grandeur when it just isn't the way things are. So I have no profound answer. I had no great calling or socio-political awakening that drew me to my job. Nor was it a life long dream.

As I have always said, and will continue to do so until new facts come in that make me change my mind, I am an accidental over-achiever that never planned to do the things I've done.

Truth is, I ran for judge because of circumstances. I was a 33 year old exhausted new mother who was working rough hours at a law firm when one of the partners at my firm said the judge in my municipality was retiring after 18 years on the bench and he thought I should run for her seat. He thought I would make a good judge and I thought a lot of him.

Not only that, the court house was just blocks from my house and judges work regular hours. Sounded like a plan to me.

I always considered myself level headed and understanding, not just about the law, but about people as well. I had appeared before a lot of judges in court and I felt I could do just as well, if not better. So I thought it was a good idea.

I won by 6 votes on election night and 6 years later I was re-elected with 80% of the vote. I worked hard there. Not just on the bench but at community out reach and with kids. My plan was to help people not come to me in the first place.

It was, I believe, a good fit. But I was getting a little bored by the end – considered running for a higher court when 20th Television called. You know the rest. Yet again, circumstances conspired to take me places I had no intention of going.

My mother said then, and still claims to this day, it was not a good move. She says my job is silly – and her position is not without support. But she is good humored about it and I enjoy my life. I also try to insert something meaningful in the midst of the voyeuristic madness.

That reminds me – someone asked me my judicial philosophy to put in an article but they never used it. It was supposed to be a light hearted article and they wanted a short pithy quote. I did the best I could but they just didn't use it. But since I wrote it I thought I might as well share it.

MIND YOU this is not the sum total of my judicial approach – it was just a short hand statement to give them an idea of what I was like. Being a judge is a hard thing if done well – complicated and filled with room for error. I used to stay up nights wondering if I did the right thing . E used to call me The Night Stalker. So for what it's worth:

Judicial Philosophy
Lynn C. Toler

While on the bench in Ohio my judicial philosophy was two fold: “the law almost always allows you to do the right thing but sometimes you have to work hard to make that happen and . . . . incarceration without elucidation is pointless.”

Now that I am on television dealing with matters of the heart and arguments over who gets the big screen TV my philosophy is: at some point before the end of the show I need to say at least one thing that has some socially redeeming value even if it’s as simple as ‘don’t get pregnant by a guy who doesn’t support the kids he already has.' You wouldn’t believe how many people get that one wrong.

Peace.