duty calls

recently, i had the pleasure of experiencing our justice system at its finest. i was called upon to perform my "civic obligation" - jury duty. here is a breakdown of the day.

7:30 - arrived at courthouse, passed through metal detectors (should i be worried or feel safe?)
7:40 - check in (no line...where is everyone?)
7:45 - eat my muffin in the break room
8:00 - sat in jury impanelling room (well it's a good thing i got here early...let's just say about 180 seats for 200 people)
8:35 - watched 17-min introduction to the justice system video (yes, it really was 17 mins. i timed it)
9:00 - description of duty by an official (um, didn't we learn all this in the video?)
9:15 - description of duty by a judge
9:20 - filled out short race/ethnicity survey
9:35 - break (ok, i didn't really get this. why do we need a break from just sitting there? i was not about to give up my seat, so i stayed in the room. but i must say it was quite amusing watching people think about stealing someone else's seat and some people returning to find their seats taken.)
10:05 - sat in jury impanelling room
11:00 - break (seriously?)
11:30 - sat in jury impanelling room
12:00 - heard the following announcement:

"Ladies and gentlemen, this has been a very unusual day. All the cases have been filled. You will be excused in a minute. Thank you for serving. We will see you in 3 years!"

well i'd say i got off pretty easy from what i've heard! can't really complain. i was more amused by the situation than anything else. and hey, i got out of work and read an entire book. not to mention - i did my country proud.