The

Undeniable

Ruth

®

…and the Ruth shall set you free!

  • Undeniable Recap of 2022

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    Ruth Carter

    2022 was a crazy busy year for me. The best moments were the ones I got to share with people I love. Here are some of the highlights:

    I’m an Ironman!

    I will never forget how it felt to run across that black and red carpet and raise my arms as I crossed the finish line while Mike Reilly said, “You are an Ironman!”

    The first 7 months of 2022 were centered around training for Ironman on top of training throughout 2020 and 2021 when my race was cancelled due to COVID. It was a bit surreal to see this dream come to fruition, well until I felt the pain throughout my body.

    In just over 15 hours, I swam 2.4 miles, biked 112 miles, and ran 26.2 miles. Even though I was in top shape for my race, it hurt to do anything once I finished that race.

    I regularly reflect fondly on my Ironman experience. My race day bracelet is still on my wrist, and I’m planning to get my M-dot tattoo in the spring of 2023.

    Crossing the finish line at Ironman Lake Placid: 15:21:42

    Volunteering at Aimee’s Farm Animal Sanctuary

    Starting over a year ago, I spend at least one morning each week volunteering at Aimee’s Farm Animal Sanctuary. For those few hours, I’m nobody’s lawyer. I just get to be a person, and that’s more than enough.

    I love being part of the Farm Family – comprised of its humans and its animals. It’s so sweet when the animals trot up to us for pets, and it’s rewarding to help give them a loving home. And I love working with my fellow volunteers.

    Periodically, I get to invite a friend to volunteer for a day, especially when they seem to need a break from reality, and let them experience the joy that comes with working in this healing place.

    Kissed by Zobe the zebu cow – she is soft as velvet!

    Connecting with Friends at CMWorld

    Content Marketing World (CMWorld) is the best conference I’ve ever attended, and since I’ve been attending and speaking at it since 2015, I’ve become part of the CMWorld family. One of my happy memories from this event says, “Hanging out w/ CMW friends, feeling like I belong.”

    I’m sure I was always seen and loved by my CMWorld family, but I think this year, I didn’t feel that insecurity that usually makes me feel like I don’t measure up to my peers.

    I also let myself have more fun this year. I went on the 6am Running Club runs, accepted dinner invites, and of course, had Boy Band day with JK where we both rocked our orange pants. I was so sleepy silly by the end of the conference, I had to send myself to bed because I was starting to sound drunk even though I was stone cold sober.

    Going to CMWorld also inspired me to get back into writing again – no expectation, just write and see what I’m compelled to create.

    CMWorld Speakers Party!
    Orange Pants!

    Rebranding to Geek Law Firm

    Throughout most of 2022, and I’ll be finishing in 2023, I’m doing a massive rebrand. I rebranded Carter Law Firm to Geek Law Firm, got a new site for The Undeniable Ruth, and I have one more site that’s still being built. This rebrand was something I’d contemplated for a while, and it feels good to get back into writing and with sites that better fit with who I am right now.

    Hat Tip to Dina Miller at Mood for creating my new logo!

    Loving Life with Lucy Jane

    Lucy Jane and I are each other’s emotional support animal. I would not be surprised if I have an Emotional Support Human t-shirt by the end of 2023.

    Lucy Jane is such a sweetheart, giving loves to all her hooman and dog friends. I bring her breakfast and bed each morning, and then she snuggles next to me under the covers as I read my book and drink my coffee. When I get home from a workout, she licks the salt from my sweat off my face and shoulders.

    I took Lucy to the Content Economy Expo (CEX), and the staff made her a special name badge. Networking is super easy with a basset at my feet – all the dog lovers come to me!

    See more of Lucy Jane every Friday on my Instagram.

    Lessons Learned (or Re-learned)

    Do not stand at your desk for 90 minutes when you can’t remember the last time you raised your sit-stand desk.

    My short-term memory sucks.

    Lucy prefers 1:1 puppy playdates over going to the dog park.

    The term “kid gloves” refers to baby goats, not young people.

    Shave your arms before working at the farm, otherwise your stubble will be Velcro for dust.

    The pharmacist at Target will not let you administer a flu shot to yourself.

    When someone enters a religious order, part of the vow of poverty includes signing a legal document where they give up ownership to any intellectual property they might create.

    Even with Trazodone, Lucy is still vocal and wiggly when getting her nails trimmed.

    Don’t walk into a muddy pen at the farm in flip flops.

    Fun day – we assembled my friends’ 12-foot skeleton named Cal Sium.

    Firsts in 2022

    Scanned a QR code

    Baked a yeasted bread from scratch

    Took Lucy to a dog park

    Mounted by a zebu cow

    Struck from a pink-letter arbitration

    Purchased an autograph at Phoenix Fan Fusion

    Bought the photos from a race – IM Lake Placid

    Bitten by a pig

    Volunteered at an Ironman event (70.3 and 140.6)

    Walked 3 dogs at one time

    Got COVID (hopefully the only time I’ll get it)

    Completed the non-binary trifecta – birth certificate, driver’s license, and passport!

    Needle in a Haystack Moment – Meeting a friend of a friend at IMAZ

    Celebrity Sightings

    Dan Pink

    Kate Mulgrew

    Hasan Minhaj

    I was so giddy when Aunt Kate smiled at me.
    Love this guy!

    In Memoriam

    Humans: Gilbert Gottfried, Slique Callahan, Mike Poulton, Nichelle Nichols, Cy Rovie, Olivia Newton-John, Gray Ray, Edgar Marcoux, Louise Fletcher, Angela Lansbury, David Mario, Gordon Stedman, Robbie Coltrane, Isaiah Shepard, Jeannette Black, Leslie Jordan, everyone who died in the 647+ mass shootings in the U.S. in 2022

    Critter Friends: Norman Takaha, Althea Takaha, Chaquita Takaha, Miley Pflughaupt, Sophie Neighbor, Ivy Takaha, Fabio Takaha, Minnie Sellers, Christopher Takaha

    Matching Hooman and Hound Hoodies!

  • Undeniable Recap of 2021

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    Ruth Carter

    We didn’t do it gracefully, but we survived 2021. Holy f^¢king sh*t it’s been a roller coaster of a year. Here are some of the highlights.

    Lucy is such a happy dog!

    Lucy Jane Carter

    On April 28, 2021, I got a call from the president of the Arizona Basset Hound Rescue asking if I’d take in a foster. A 3-year-old basset was found wandering by herself in Tempe – no tag or microchip. As I loaded this hound into my car a few hours later I thought, “Here’s to another 10-year commitment.” I named her Lucy Jane.

    Lucy Jane came into my life exactly when I needed her. I’d survived a car accident and sustained a concussion only a few weeks earlier. When I noticed her mellow loving temperament, I registered her as my emotional support dog. We’ve barely been apart since then. She goes to work with me every day, and we even turn my trip to Cleveland for Content Marketing World into a road trip so she could come with me. She’s brought so much love into my life.

    Faith wearing Rosie’s sweater. She was so little!

    Faith Helen Carter

    The reason why I could take in a foster in April, was because Faith, the basset hound I adopted at the end of December 2020, only lived 36 days. For those 36 days, my life was focused on giving this little girl the best life I could. Rescued from a breeder in Tijuana, Faith came with a host of medical issues, including renal failure. On February 1st, after rushing her to the ER for what would be the last time, I accepted that my job was to give this little basset a soft place to land and surround her with love for her final days.

    We did it!

    5K Ocean Swim with the Jews

    Thanks to the pandemic, I’ve been training for my first full Ironman race since the fall of 2019. My race was cancelled in 2020 and 2021. (Hopefully third time’s a charm in 2022.) I still flew to New York to do the 5K ocean swim. My original plan was to do this 3.1-mile swim so that a 2.4-mile swim on race day would be easy in comparison.

    For context, my coach, David Roher, and his friend and my teammate, Shlomo, swim in the ocean at least once a week all summer, and several friends periodically join them, all of whom happen to be Jewish. It was important to me that I could hold my own with this group, not just as part of my training, but also because I didn’t want to be the weakling who couldn’t keep up.

    It turned out, I had nothing to worry about. My training paid off, and I held my own just fine with the “Jewish Swim Team” as I lovingly called them. Coach David swam behind me, just to my left, and I when I periodically drifted out to sea, he grabbed my foot and pulled me back on course. (Swimming in a straight line isn’t my strength.)

    Cow hugging with Moothias – he’s such a sweetheart.

    Volunteering at Aimee’s Farm Animal Sanctuary

    I changed my work schedule at the end of 2021. Now on Monday mornings, when everyone else is heading back to work after the weekend, I head out to Aimee’s Farm Animal Sanctuary. This sanctuary is home to over 100 cows, goats, sheep, chickens, and other animals, many of which have special needs. A lot of the time, my job there involves scooping poop and laying out fresh straw, but it also includes spreading love, petting the animals, and singing to them.

    JK and I decided that we’re in a boy band called Boy Band.

    Hugging my Friends

    As I went through my jar of happy memories while I worked on this Undeniable Recap for this year, I noted that a lot of them were notes about hugging various friends. Between the pandemic and busy lives, I don’t get to see my friends as much as I’d like, so when we do get to meet in person, it’s so wonderful to have that moment where we get to hug.

    We drove out of our way to stand on the corner in Winslow, AZ.

    Firsts in 2021

    Rushing a pet to the ER; Having a pet hospitalized over night

    Cooking with a BBQ

    Using a composting service

    Staying at a Getaway Cabin (I hope they create an outpost in Arizona.)

    Hosting a law graduate for a bar exam

    Getting Experience Points on Sigler in Place

    Getting a concussion as an adult

    Washing my car using a drive through car wash

    Biking at South Mountain on Silent Sunday

    Sights: Standing on the Corner in Winslow, AZ; Singing at Knight Rise in Scottsdale, AZ; Fearless Girl in New York, NY; Captain Janeway Statue in Bloomington, IN; Cadillac Ranch in Amarillo, TX

    We really drove out of our way to visit the Future Birthplace of Captain Janeway.

    Lessons Learned (or Re-learned) in 2021

    I’m a better person when I have a dog.

    Do not perform home surgery on yourself.

    Time is our most precious resource.

    Make time for self-care before you’re forced into it.

    If you answer the phone with, “It’s done. There’s blood everywhere,” the cops may show up at your front door.

    Dairy Queen has pup cups.

    Hooman and Hound – I love this dog.

    In Memoriam

    Hoomans: Ron Flavin, Joanne Rogers, Ethan Pleshe, Jane Murdock, Beverly Cleary, Carolyn Lange, Jason Wright, Michael Berch, Stephen Sondheim, Paul Saviano, James W. Trumpy, and Betty White

    Critter Friends: Jager Martin, NASA Shankman, Athena Takaha, Jasmine Guerrero, Wooliam Takaha, Violet Takaha, Rambo Inman, Pearl Takaha, Bart Isaacson-Ortmeyer, and Bunny Reilly

  • Undeniable Recap of 2020

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    Ruth Carter

    Oh my goodness – I’ve been living in a pandemic-based society for over eight months. All of my in-person conferences were converted to virtual ones this year, and my Ironman race was deferred until 2021. For the bulk of the year, I worked and trained. I only left the Phoenix metro area once since we all started needing masks to leave the house.

    Even with the monotony, there were still some important events that happened this year:

    Helping Rosie Over the Rainbow Bridge

    I’d had a suspicion for months that Rosie wasn’t going to make it to end of 2020, and as her arthritis and doggy dementia added more and more challenges to her life, I helped her over the Rainbow Bridge on August 7, 2020. My eyes still well with tears when I think about losing her, but I know I made the right decision and gave her a good death.

    Photo by Lauren Ellis Photography

    Officiating Sarah and Thomas’ Wedding

    My friends and neighbors, Sarah and Thomas, got engaged last year. I thought they were going to ask me to watch their dog while they were getting married, but to my surprise, they asked me to be their officiant. I had a blast spending time with each of them individually, asking about how they met, their relationship, and their hopes for the future. From their stories, I found themes, looked up quotes about marriage, and wove them into a short ceremony that was customized to them.

    I also felt like a bit of a MacGyver that day because at the beginning of the ceremony, I had the bride and groom’s rings on my fingers (because they didn’t have a wedding party), and the bride’s handkerchief tucked into the back of my belt to hand over when she started crying since neither of us had pockets.

    Singing at Aimee’s Farm Animal Sanctuary

    I love spending time at Aimee’s Farm Animal Sanctuary. In the winter, I was out there to help with Gracie the baby lamb with the crooked neck. At one point, I was snuggling her on my lap, and I started to sing. Aimee was awestruck and said I have the voice of an angel. Since then, she invites me out to sing whenever an animal needs extra love and attention – like Peanut the pony when he was new to the farm and scared, Duke the cow who was born without elbows, and Wooliam the sheep after he had surgery (neutered). I love when I start to sing to one animal and other animals wander over to listen too. Aimee even had me out on the Fourth of July to help keep the animals calm while the fireworks were going off.

    Photo by Aimee Takaha

    Releasing the Lights Camera Lawsuit Online Course

    It’s been about three years in the making, but I finally finished and released my first online course, Lights Camera Lawsuit: The Legal Side of Professional Photography. I wanted to create a course that gave the photographers the information about copyright and contracts at an affordable price, so could avoid making the painful and avoidable mistakes that I see photographers making all the time.

    This course has been a journey, and probably the start of more courses to come. I had to form a separate business, create the website, hire people to create the logos and slide templates, create the lesson outlines, record and upload each lesson, and promote the course. It felt so good to bring this to market. 

    Every Time Miss K Says “Oggy Ruth”

    I have a nibling who lives across the country. She’s two and has brilliant blue Disney eyes. She’s so expressive. Now, I’m not a fan of children as a species, but I adore this little creature. If her parents don’t post pictures of her often enough, I’ll send them a text that says, “Send proof of child.” Since there isn’t a gender-neutral term for aunt/uncle, I picked “oggy” as my title (rhymes with “doggy”), and everyone in this kid’s life is completely on board with it. My heart melts every time I hear her say, “Oggy Ruth.”  

    There were a few things that didn’t make my top five for 2020 – including going to my friend Cora’s wedding and participating in multiple Love and Compliments rallies. The thing that made these and the other top events from the year so important was that I got to spend time with my friends, even when we had to stay at least six feet apart at all times. Being away from loved ones has been one of, if not the biggest challenge of the COVID pandemic.

    Photo by Liesl Pimentel

    I didn’t have many firsts or any celebrity sightings in 2020, so they’re not in this Undeniable Recap. Hopefully, they’ll be back next year.

    In Memoriam

    Humans: Mary Griffith, Maggie Griffin, Katherine Johnson, Grant Imahara, Justin Lutch, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Sean Connery, Alex Trebek

    Other Creatures: Ziggy Moriarty the Boston Terrier, Moonflower Takaha the Cow, George the Corgi