So. I got picked.

I told you I would.

But here's the thing: the trial's not over, so I can't talk about the trial. I WANT to, but I can't. Yet.

I CAN, however, talk about the selection process and how I was almost outta there, but it didn't happen, and I got picked.

When we got there, they seated us in juror number order. You will recall that my juror number was very high, and indeed, I was in the last chair.

There were 22 people in that room, and they pick six. And they pick them starting with the first person, so I just KNEW I was going to get to go soon.

After the civics lesson, and the judge's long-winded "thank you for being a juror" speech (in which he mentioned God, family, fighting in combat, family and his life story, including his education and other cases he's worked on) we got down to business.

The first thing the Assistant DA asked of the judge was a "jury shuffle"

SHIT.

I was placed in seat number 12 after the shuffle. Since each attorney could strike six jurors, I was likely to be on this panel if I didn't make myself undesirable, and get stricken myself.

But I am white, educated, well-spoken, reasonably non-creepy looking, and work for a non-profit and therefore must have a heart, so of course, I am on the jury.

My comments about Johnny Cochran and CourtTV seem only to have charmed the attorneys.

And I'm not TOTALLY pissed about it. I really am so idealistic and altruistic, I feel that this is an honor and a privledge to get to serve.

On the other hand, my work is PILING UP at the office, and that's just no fun. I am in the middle of two different projects right now that I want to finish up, and I just can't do that while I'm sitting in a jury box, listening to people argue a case.

It should all be over tomorrow. And then boy... do I have a story to tell YOU!

Did you donate your jury duty compensation to charity? That 's an option in Dallas. I didn't get picked to sit on the jury. Have fun, I guess.