I Heart Steve Cooley

I went to this information session today that was conducted by the L.A. County District Attorney's Office. I was told by one of the new-hire trainers that it would be a good thing so I could get some face time with The Boss. Aside from that, I was told it would be a couple of attorneys with the office going over the benefits of the job, salary stuff, yada yada yada. I know what you're thinking. Booooring. And yeah, I suspected it was going to be pretty blah, but I figured, how bad could it really be?

What I thought would happen:
I would just sit there and listen to the yada yada with my three other girlfriends, and then when it's all over, I'd walk up to Cooley, introduce myself and see how it goes; face time basically.

What actually happened:
DA 1 stands up and talks about the logistics of the office. He talks about pay, office locations and the structure of employment as an attorney with the office. This was the yada yada I expected we were going to be doing the entire time. So he goes on for about 10 minutes and then he's done. All-in-all, not too boring really. Plus he's the guy who interviewed me for my Senior Clerk position so I enjoyed watching him in a more relaxed atmosphere. Come to find, he's a really nice guy and very, very bright.

Cooley gets up immediately thereafter and talks about more yada yada. But he really sold me his yada. I really believed him when he told us that our potential future jobs would be the most meaningful work we would ever have. At this point I realized that I officially heart Steve Cooley. Wow, I never thought those words would ever come out of my mouth.

Next we get DA 2, who gets up and starts talking about how much he loves his job. This guy has college-aged children, come to find, and he looks about 35. Awesome. From this guy I learned that you can be a lawyer and age well. So DA 2 keeps talking and I'm listening, and he keeps just going on and on and on about how much he loves his job. By this time I've moved on from his appearance and I'm really listening to what this guy has to say. He's talking about gang murders, sex crimes, all the really juicy stuff our office has to offer. Right about then, as he was speaking, I was thinking to myself, "Yeah, stick it to those bad guys. You go guy!"

Then comes DA 3, the guy who got me to come to the session in the first place. He tells us that the man who wrote Jim Carrey's, "The Cable Guy" is an attorney with the office. Apparently we have child actors in the office too. I'll have to go find those guys and ask for autographs. I bet that's a good way to get me hired for this next class. Not. After the office stats were over he talks about how we make a difference as prosecutors. He tells us stories about how we save lives by putting away the guy who "almost" beat his wife to death the last time they fought. About how the gang members we put in jail on LWOP's can't kill anymore innocent people. I bet you can tell what I was doing at this point. It was all I could do to not jump right out of my chair and holler a whooping, "Amen brotha". Needless to say, I was all worked up by now.

Then DA 4 comes out to speak (a baby DA), and she shares her stories about trying 10 felonies in her first year and a half at the office. It was like taking a syringe of pure adrenaline and injecting it into my veins.

By the end of the mini Q&A sesh that immediately followed, I was Superstar Eager Wanna-be Prosecutor Girl, with clammy hands and a nervous stomach to boot. I almost did "spirit fingers" for Chrissake. So I immediately jump up out of my seat the moment the applause ends, anxious to be the first one to shake hands with The Boss, feeling like I did when I first realized why I wanted to be a District Attorney. I felt like I was going to change the world. And then I met Steve. Mr. Cooley. Boss-man. How he understood anything that was frantically coming out of my mouth at top-speed was beyond me, but suffice it to say, the man gave me some great advice. Then I made my rounds and I was out. All-in-all I'd say it was a fairly lovely and successful evening for a hopeful prosecutor like myself. Just dandy.