So yesterday I had jury duty. You are suppose to call in the night before and find out if they are going to need you or not. So I called Tuesday night and this is what the message said, "Please call back tomorrow, Wednesday March 10, at 12 noon for further instructions." That was it. No other details.
I had arranged childcare for the day, but the people watching my children were going to a lot of trouble to do it. On top of that Daniel would have to miss a meeting to take the kids to my friend's house, so I could get to the court house by 8:00. Since I knew I would be home at least in the morning, I called and canceled the childcare plans. This worked out great for Daniel, who now didn't have to worry about missing his meeting. And a friend said she could come over in the afternoon to watch the kids if needed. So things were falling into place nicely.
Then the "What If's" started:
What if I call at noon and they need me to be there by 1:00? I would have to wait until my friend could get here (she lives 30 minutes away) and then show her where everything is and then get to downtown Raleigh, park and walk to the court house. I don't think I would be able to make it there by 1:00. I worried about this most of the morning.
At noon I called and the recording said we were to report in at 2:00. So that was a relief. Two hours was plenty of time for my friend to get here and then for me to get to the court house. It would have been nice to have known that the earliest they would need us was 2:00. I wish that the message the night before had said, "Please call back at 12 noon tomorrow for further instructions. The earliest you will be requested to come in would be 2:oopm." That little detail would have saved me a lot of worrying.
A little before 2:00 I got to the jury lounge. They show us a video that says, "the average length of service for jury duty is one week." ONE WEEK! Here come the "What If's" again: What if I get chosen for a jury and they need me for a whole week? What if I can't find people to watch my kids?
To add to my stress, on Friday I am attending a conference that I have been looking forward to for a LONG TIME. What if I am selected for a jury and they need me to be there on Friday. I will miss this conference that we have already paid for and that I am really looking forward to.
I sat there worrying about these things until about 4:00, when the jury clerk came in and told us that the defendant had changed their plea to guilty and we were free to leave.
So this was a stressful day, but the stress was of my own making. Each time I pictured the worst case scenario and each time the best case scenario happened. It really couldn't have worked out better. Daniel was able to go to his morning meeting. I didn't have to sit around the court house all day doing nothing. I was not selected for a jury, but I am still considered as having "served", so I will not have to serve again for at least two years.
