Side-tracked; no pun intended (well..maybe just a little)

I created this blog for two important reasons. First, I wanted to chronicle my 'life' and growth as a public defender. Honestly, when I started the blog I wasn't sure how long I was going to last in the public defenders office. Though it has not quite been three years yet I must admit I have been at it a lot longer than I thought I would and I have learned way more than I ever realized I never knew (pause for a minute and re-read it. I know it looks wordy but it makes sense. Promise.)

The second reason is because I love writing. As a little girl I wrote, as a teenager I wrote, as a young adult I wrote and now, as an early thirty-something still trying to figure out what I want to be when I grow up 'for real', my dream, my passion, my love and my life has always been and continues to be intertwined in writing.

It is for the second reason I am blogging today. Amtrak has opened up an amazing opportunity to writers and as green as my writing and I may be, I would regret it forever if I did not jump at the opportunity to be considered.  By creating the #AmtrakResidency Program the company will award up to 24 writers with a 2-5 day overnight trip in a sleeper car in order for them to focus on their craft with limited interruptions. As a public defender, as a single mother and as a full-time worrier, this is an opportunity that would bring me to "I-just-met-Johnny-Depp-AND-Dolvett-Quince" tears.

While this is not an opportunity that will be determined based on the number of votes someone receives, the terms and official rules do state "[t]he ideal candidate will possess strong writing skills as well as extensive social media connections." My hope is that, if there are any of you out there actually reading and enjoying the thoughts, gripes, fears and worries of an anonymous public defender, that you will 'like' them on Facebook, 'follow' them on Instagram and blow up their Twitter feed with support for yours truly.

I cannot promise you that the trip will end with me in possession of the next great American novel, but I can promise you I will spend every single minute in that car striving for just that.

Until next time,

Be blessed, be careful, never consent and never confess (what? I'm still a lawyer lol)

~LT