i try not to burden myself

a day after i wrote an MJ post, MJ starts haunting me. sort of. most of the places i passed by today were playing MJ songs.

anyway, i realized one of the perks of being a lawyer is that people treat you nicely when they find out you're a lawyer. i try not to look like one. i always wear a collared shirt, jeans and sneakers (plus five o'clock shadow). thats why a while ago, someone from the government office i went to told me that she will introduce me to their office lawyer but i had to act like one when i start to introduce myself. i guess i do appear to be someone who is not a lawyer (a law school batchmate who saw me when i dropped by a QC court told me that i still look like a student with my get-up). i guess i dont project the confidence lawyers have. its burdensome on my part to do that. im really reluctant to play such a role when i can do my lawyering without it. although i admit it makes a lawyer more effective, but as long as i can get by with using the least amount of effort, i will stick to what im comfortable with.

i dont introduce myself as a lawyer right away. i only tell people when they ask what i do. even when im filling out forms, if i can leave the occupation part blank, i will leave it blank. im really hesitant to inform people im a lawyer. whenever people find out my job, some of them starts to treat me differently. some start to have some sort of expectation. again, its burdensome. i would prefer to be treated by people the way they treat most people. that way i really get to know the person. i dont want to receive a special treatment from a person who only treats me in such a manner because of my profession. but like i mentioned earlier, it is one of the perks. so i only try to make use of it when necessary or when it cant be avoided. there's something about the word "lawyer" that its some kind of magic word for most people. once they hear it, they start to act differently in my favor...most of the time. sometimes when people find out that im a lawyer, they give me a puzzled look and wonder why the hell would i want to be one of the vilest creatures on earth (and i found it refreshing to receive such a reaction).