Success

Is:

• abusing the borrowed V6 engine to make it to work in 30 minutes (instead of 45)
• having a hotel adjust to a sudden 100 extra seats in an already overcrowded luncheon...2 hours before go-time
• said luncheon going off without a hitch
• 100 senior judicial officers falling in line and liking it
• a US Marshal daring me to touch his gun
• having a 9-member team making you look like a fucking rock star to a group of 350 of the top litigators in all of California
• receiving repeated thanks for pulling off the "best program in 10 years"
• spending the rest of the afternoon doing not a fucking thing
• leaving the office at 6 pm
• turning the tables and treating my older brother to the perks of the job
• having said brother view you not as his younger sister, but as an adult and a damn good negotiator in a room full of hoteliers
• getting another hotel to agree to a budget way below their typical minimums
• enjoying a basketball game from a 50-person skybox at Staples Center, replete with free drinks and dinner
• running into a childhood friend in said luxury suite
• the Clippers winning 96 to 91 over Seattle
• being able to stand upright, without your back protesting like a bratty child

An entire month of sleepless nights, 60-hour weeks, weekends completely subjugated to professional deadlines, and stress so bad it wrecked my body finally coalesced into a very, very, VERY good day.

You'll excuse my immodesty. Because I worked too damn hard to make today happen. Today, when it was a pleasure, a privilege, and an outstanding feeling to be me.

I kick ass. And now everyone knows it.