Monday, December 14, 2009

Still on the jury...

I'm on a jury. The trial is supposed to last two weeks, but we hear it might go a day or two longer. Which means it will get dangerously close to Christmas.

We celebrate both Chanukah and Christmas in our family. At home, we've been lighting our candles nightly, and it is quite beautiful. Then next week we plan to head to my parents' house, a six-hour drive away, to enjoy their Christmas tree and lots of presents and food. I was hoping to drive north on the 22nd, but...I could still be in court. I'm thinking the judge won't like it if I skip town...

I've barely cracked a book during the trial, because I've had no time to do any of my part-time work, regular errands, Christmas shopping, or kid stuff during the day. Due to the trial, I'm missing one child's family history presentation at school, and another's teacher-appreciation party. My third is in the middle of finals week, so in honor of that, I thought I'd post a little list of vocabulary words for y'all to ponder.

My eighth-grader (13-year-old) read To Kill a Mockingbird this semester in his English class. This is the list of vocabulary words, mostly gleaned from that book, that he has to know the definition of for tomorrow's exam. I thought it was a pretty good list for a 13-year-old to know. You can quiz yourself on how many you know :)

morbid
prowess
expound
nebulous
rue
articulate
fractious
furtive
perpetrate
temerity
mitigate
indolent
affable
deplorable
solicitous
amenity
distraught
urbane
truculence
terse
righteous
reconcile
conjecture
patronize
lurid
dexterity
discourse
protract
restive
indiscriminate
countenance
cultivated
uncanny
duress
repose
inordinate
assuage
venerable
ingenuous
intricate
exuberant
vehement
disposition

10 comments:

litlove said...

What great words! Now we've all got to get them into sentences, right? :)

I feel for you with jury duty so close to Christmas. I feel like I'm behind on everything and I have absolutely no excuse! Hope the family are helping out while you're stuck in court.

Jeane said...

That's a lot of words to know! I actually remember enjoying getting vocab lists in school, especially if they were from books we read (weird, I know)

I've never gotten selected to be on a jury. Hopefully it doesn't drag on too long and interrupt your holidays!

Gentle Reader said...

litlove--I'm so behind. Thank goodness for online shopping!

Jeane--studying vocabulary with my son reminded me of taking the SATs! Yikes!

Tara said...

What a hard time of year to be on a jury! So many things to get done and school events. On the other hand, you might get out of some not-so-favorite things. Hmm. That's quite a vocab list!

Ti said...

Oh man, I hope that case ends soon for you or at least breaks soon so that you can get some of your stuff done. What a crazy time to be on a panel.

As for the vocab words...I know them but if you asked me write out the definitions I'd probably be stumped.

Anonymous said...

I hope it winds up quickly! Or, that the judge decides to break early.

Rosemary Brennan said...

Hope your jury duty finishes up soon! During my bout last jury duty, I sat on a 3 day trial--we passed time by learning how to play soudoku. It was a few years back when it was getting really popular. One of the jurors was a pro and the rest of us were impressed! :)

Rebecca H. said...

Wow, what awful timing with that trial. You certainly are doing your civic duty here! I've always moved quickly enough that no one could catch me in time for jury duty, but surely that will change at some point.

Gentle Reader said...

Tara--I did get out of some things I didn't want to do, I have to be honest :)

Ti--Got a break in the middle and got a little shopping done!

Jill--We did get a break in the middle, which was the only way I got through it, I think!

Rosemary--I wish I had learned something cool and interesting but instead I had to listen to mind-numbing testimony!

Dorothy--Keep moving--don't let them catch you!

Iliana said...

Oh goodness I cannot imagine being on a jury. I think that would stress me out too much!

Anyway, hope you were able to get everything done in time for the holidays. Wishing you a wonderful time with your family.