The

Undeniable

Ruth

®

…and the Ruth shall set you free!

  • Minimalist Packing

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    Ruth Carter

    I went to a wedding last weekend and I used it as an opportunity to practicing minimalism in packing. Historically, I’m the person who goes on a 9-day trip and brings 20 shirts. Once I learned that rolling your clothes lets you fit so much more into your bag, I filled every nook and cranny of my suitcase with wardrobe options – just in case.

    For this trip, I decided to try to only bring what I thought I actually needed for the 3 days I was gone. Here’s what I brought with me: 1 pair jeans, 1 pair yoga pants, 2 tank tops, 2 t-shirts, 1 long-sleeved shirt, 1 zip-up sweatshirt (aka a “zippy”), 1 windbreaker, 1 dress, 1 cardigan, dress shoes, sneakers, 1 set workout gear, 1 bra, 2 pairs of socks, 3 pairs of underwear, pajamas.

    Here’s what I actually wore:

    Friday’s Activities:
    Fly out: Jeans, t-shirt #1, zippy, socks #1, sneakers.
    Meet friend for lunch: Add windbreaker (it was raining).
    Dinner with coaches: Remove windbreaker; exchange t-shirt for long-sleeved shirt & bra (it was cold).
    Sleep: Pajamas.

    At Lindsey's wedding with my Teammates - Photo by Erika Brown
    At Lindsey’s wedding with my Teammates – Photo by Erika Brown

    Saturday’s Activities:
    Lounge around friend’s house: Yoga pants, tank top #1, zippy, socks #2.
    Lunch with other friend: Exchange yoga pants for jeans (I rarely go out in yoga pants); add sneakers. (Note: I was going to wear t-shirt #2 to go out but it was warmer than I expected. I also realized I forgot my glasses case so I used t-shirt #2 to wrap my glasses instead so it was still used.)
    Wedding: Dress, dress shoes, cardigan.
    Sleep: Pajamas.

    Sunday’s Activities:
    Workout: Workout gear (shorts, shirt, sports bra, running socks, sneakers).
    Brunch and fly home: Jeans, tank top #2, zippy, socks #2, sneakers. (I thought I’d wear my running socks all day but they were way too sweaty so I wore socks #2 instead.)

    Post-Brunch Handstand - Photo by Erika Brown
    Post-Brunch Handstand – Photo by Erika Brown

    Since every garment I packed on this trip was used, it made unpacking fast. Everything was tossed in the laundry basket except my cardigan and the shirt that protected my glasses. It was easy to unpack my toiletries because I only brought things I knew I’d use.

    The only things I packed that didn’t get used were my laptop and my Kindle. I brought my laptop so I could write and my Kindle was to read if I finished reading Everything That Remains by The Minimalists. So I still bring tech gear with me just in case and I suspect that’s not going to change – and I’m OK with that.

    This post was inspired by the The Minimalists who recently released a video about how they packed for their 100-city book tour.

  • Arizona Health Stats – The Good, Bad, & Disturbing

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    Ruth Carter

    When I heard that the latest Arizona State Health Assessment was out, I had to poke around to see how my state’s doing. Most of it was bad; some of it was disturbing; but there were a few glimmers of hope in the mix.

    In some areas, Arizona is doing better than the national average.

    AZ Better than Nat'l Average

    The fact that more than 1 in 4 people in Arizona is obese is disturbing, as is the fact that that makes us better than the national obesity rate. To put this statistic into context, Arizona has had 19% increase in the number of overweight and obese people since 1993 – the largest increase in the U.S.! The stats also show an increase in adult diabetes in Arizona from 7.5% in 2005 to 9.1% in 2010.

    Thankfully not everything about Arizona’s health is bad. We’ve had a 29% decrease in teen pregnancy since 2007. I don’t care if it’s abstinence or birth control that made this happen, but good job kids for being responsible!

    So how are we killing ourselves in Arizona? In 2010, cancer was the leading cause of death followed by heart disease. Accidents were the #4 cause of death overall (2,834), mostly due to poisoning/overdose (879), falls (762), and motor vehicle accidents (711); but there are always some weird accidental deaths:

    • Aircraft accidents = 16
    • Railroad accidents = 12
    • Hit by lightning = 1
    • Electrocuted = 4
    • Venomous snake or lizard = 1
    • Choked on food = 39
    • Choked on some other object = 57 (What are you putting in your mouths?)

    This was scary – accidents were the leading cause of death for people under age 45 and the cause of disability for all age groups. (If you don’t have disability insurance, go get some!)

    Suicide was the 8th leading cause of death (1,070), but the 5th leading cause for men – likely due to the fact that more men use firearms to commit suicide than women. Women were also more like than men to get routine check-ups (71.3% vs. 59.7% respectively); which hopefully is helping medical professionals identify and refer people who need mental health services.

    I think the saddest statistic I read in the study was 20% of Arizonans reported that they have no social-emotional supports. That’s 1 in 5 people saying they have no one. That is beyond disturbing! In our digitally connected world, we don’t have to know our neighbors to have someone to talk to anymore; but on the flip side, it can lead to physical and social isolation.

    I will say that Phoenix is not the easiest city to get to know new people, but if you put yourself out there and get involved (and there are tons of ways to do that), you’ll make friends.

  • Dealing with the Lawyer Stereotype

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    Ruth Carter

    The legal profession has an image problem. One of the reasons why lawyer jokes are funny is because there is a kernel of truth to them. When you hear about lawyers on the news, it’s related to a newsworthy case or lawyers who did something severely unethical or illegal. These are the lawyers who are painting the picture of the profession.

    And here’s what it looks like. I posted a simple question on Facebook and Reddit: “When you hear the word “lawyer” what phrases, stereotypes, gut reactions, or ideas come to mind?” Here are some of the responses I got:

    Jerk Center by Sarah_Ackerman
    Jerk Center by Sarah_Ackerman from Flickr (Creative Commons License)

    Gladiators
    Addicts
    Selfish
    Expensive
    Rip off
    Money grubbers
    Dishonest
    Smart
    Patronizing
    Insensitive
    Sharks
    Narcissists
    Power-hungry
    Slick
    Ambulance chaser
    Snakes
    I won’t be in a hurry to be friends with them, but I’d rather them be friends than enemies.
    They’ll do whatever it takes to lie for their client, even if it means letting a murderer go free, as long as their paid.
    Always synonymous with human filth

    A lot of these responses came from my Facebook friends – people who like me and know what I do for a living.

    Sometimes I forget that there’s a nasty stereotype associated with the legal profession. I’m reminded of it when I do speaking engagements where I get feedback like this:

    • “I have heard several students say that it was the most helpful lecture they have attended. I also heard that they really enjoyed having a lawyer that added life to the room!”
    • “I feared it was going to be boring, but I figured it’d be like eating broccoli: Not fun, but good for you. I was delighted by Ruth’s presentation. She was engaging and funny – like eating broccoli covered in delicious queso.”
    Shark Car Ornament by peggydavis66 from Flickr (Creative Commons License)
    Shark Car Ornament by peggydavis66 from Flickr (Creative Commons License)

    I know I’m not a typical lawyer in terms of personality and hobbies, but I forget that it is strikingly different than what a lot of people think of when they think of a lawyer. Even though I don’t fit the stereotype, I don’t see myself as that different from my counterparts in regards to work ethic, an enjoyment of the law, and a desire to help people – the things that really matter to potential clients.

    So what’s the solution to the awful lawyer stereotype? I don’t know. The only thing I can think of is since we’re a self-regulating profession, we should have an expectation that we all follow Wheaton’s Law (“Don’t be a dick”). We shouldn’t tolerate arrogance, narcissism, or insensitivity in our dealings with our clients or each other. I wish more law schools would reject applicants and law firms would turn down candidates or fire people for being jerks. I don’t know what else we can do to show that the lawyers who make it on the news are the exception and not the rule for what it means to be a lawyer.

    I was pleased to see that a few responses to my question that showed not everyone hates lawyers. One said a lawyer is a “[t]rusted advisor, hopefully.” Another said we’re the “[d]efenders of the weak.” At least some people know we’re not all bad.

    See also: Lawyers’ Bad Reputations Start with Arrogant Law Students.