Yep, I've decided that I'm going to be getting out of the chimney sweep business in the next couple of years or so. Just as soon as my nephew is old enough and ready to take the business over.

In the mean time, I plan on going back to school and finish my under graduate studies and get into law school. Yep, Sweep plans on becoming a lawyer. So I'll probally need to change my screen name from Sweep to A$$hole![:D]

Why have I decided to do this? At 37 I'm already high mileage, as Tippie likes to say. I'm pushing 250 stitches for my life time, almost half from being in this business. My knees are going out, I've taken one to many bricks to the head, and I'm getting fed up with some of the few difficult customers I have to deal with.

Plus, I figure it will be the best way to piss off some of the type of people I don't like, i.e., government officals.

Example: Tax commisioner here in my county is being sued for seizing a couple's property and not telling them he did so, selling the $90,000 piece of property for $28,000 and never telling the owners he did so. Then allowed them to pay property taxes on it the following year when they didn't even own it anymore. Apparently when they called the year before to ask how much they owed when they didn't get their tax bill, they were told they didn't owe anything.

That's kinda of stuff gives me a woody! Yeah, I know things like that will only be about 1% of the law practice, but still!

Any of you other lawyers out there know what the general process is after you pass the bar. Please don't tell me I'm going to have to be a public defender right out of law school! Is it possible to get work with a decent law firm right off the bat?

Oh boy-

Well work after school depends on a lot of things. Big firms want grades and law review articles (usually) but they are often pretty sucky to work for. But yes, you can find work with a firm right out of school. The big firms tend to hire new guys who they can [s]brainwash into slavery[/s] train the way they want. A small firm might be more likely to want someone with some experience.

You always have the option of painting your name on a sign and nailing it to the wall of  an office building, that's what I finally ended up doing (no firm I worked for still exists, and they were well known reputable firms when I got there, I think I am bad luck [:p])

The deal with the big firms used to be that they would have you work there over the summer before 2nd and 3rd years with an eye towards hiring you after you graduated. I don't know if that is still going on. I think it depends on the economy.

 Go for it, Sweep.  We need more gunowners-lawyers.

Only reason I'm going to be able to do it is because Georgia State University offers a part time night school. Hopefully the first couple of years I'll be able to go full time during the summer months when business is slow. Then after my nephew buys the business from I'll use that money to go full time until I a) finsh b) run out of money and find a job that will allow me to continue.

Both my dad and step-mom, and mom and step-dad, have offered to help.