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Toll-Free (661) 859-1177 Se Habla Español www.bakersfieldtraffictickets.com HARMAN CALIFORNIA TRAFFIC DEFENSE ATTORNEYS , APC BIGGER
THE DAILY DRIVER Attorneys Defending Your Right to the Road
FEBRUARY 2025
How Friendship Outlasted a Super Bowl Rivalry Partners in Law, Rivals in Football
My favorite team, the New England Patriots, have won the Super Bowl six times. Unfortunately, they won one of their most memorable championships by beating my law partner’s favorite team, the Seattle Seahawks. Back in February of 2014, I had just moved to Bakersfield three weeks earlier to start our new law firm together when our teams squared off against each other in Super Bowl XLIX. The Seahawks, renowned for their tough “Legion of Boom” defense, were defending their first-ever Super Bowl championship from the previous year. The Patriots were making their sixth Super Bowl appearance under Coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady, who already had three Super Bowl rings. Mark and I were both excited about the game but hoping for opposite outcomes. Seahawks fans had their hearts set on back-to- back Super Bowl victories, which would
rookie cornerback Malcolm Butler came out of nowhere to make a spectacular end zone interception! Butler’s pick is still regarded as one of the greatest Super Bowl plays of all time — and Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll’s decision to pass is still seen as one of the worst play calls in Super Bowl history.
“Even though things looked very bleak for my beloved Patriots, they never gave up. And we do the same for our clients. We never give up.”
I felt kind of bad. I knew Mark was crushed. He was there with his dad, after all. He and I didn’t speak about the game for at least a month afterward. We’re pretty good about not rubbing things in. When either of our favorite teams aren’t doing well, we are pretty respectful. “If Bigger and I can survive this,” I told friends and colleagues, “we can survive anything!” As we approach Super Bowl LIX this month, those wounds from a decade ago have healed (especially since my Patriots are now one of the worst teams in football). Looking back, the lesson I take from Super Bowl XLIX is this: Even though things looked very bleak for my beloved Patriots, they never gave up. And we do the same for our clients. We never give up. We fight to the
have been the first since my team’s championships in the 2003 and 2004 seasons. Raising the emotional stakes, Mark actually traveled to Phoenix to attend the Super Bowl with his dad. But Seahawks fans’ hopes were dashed when the Patriots snatched victory from the jaws of defeat. Trailing 24–14 going into the fourth quarter, the Pats scored 14 consecutive points to take the lead with just two minutes remaining. Then came the most- remembered play of the game.
bitter end because you never know when you are going to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat — and win the Super Bowl!
–Paul Harman
Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson hurled what appeared to be a touchdown pass at New England’s 1-yard line — and
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A CAT’S NOSE KNOWS
A Determined Cat Finds His Way Home
Cats are known for many things: their independence, impeccable balancing skills, and endless fascination with shoelaces. However, who would have guessed that our beloved feline friends have an innate GPS built into their brains? This furry tale all started when a California couple, Benny and Susanne Anguiano, decided to take their two cats, Rayne Beau and Starr Jasmyn, on their first trip to Yellowstone National Park. The couple says this wasn’t the cats’ first rodeo. In fact, they loved looking out the big windows of the RV at the different wildlife. However, their epic park adventure turned into a nightmare on this particular trip. Shortly after arriving at Yellowstone, something startled Rayne Beau, and he ran into the forest. The couple searched for him for four days, leaving out some of his favorite treats and toys to lure him back to them. Unfortunately, Benny and Susanne’s efforts were short-lived, and they had to return home to Salinas, California.
Susanne never lost hope and recalls a moment during their trek home when she saw a double rainbow in the sky. “That’s a sign for our Rayne Beau that he’s going to be okay,” she said. The Anguianos finally got the call they had been waiting for about two months after their Yellowstone trip. Their microchip enrollment company called and said Rayne Beau had been found and turned in to the Placer SPCA in Roseville, California (over 800 miles from Yellowstone and 200 miles from their home)! The next day, Benny and Susanne drove to Roseville to pick up Rayne Beau. Upon arrival, they discovered he had lost 6 pounds, had minor paw injuries, and was malnourished. While seeing their beloved fur baby in such a condition wasn't easy, the Anguianos made it a point to fit their cats with AirTags and Rayne Beau with a GPS tracker. Rayne Beau's ability to find his way back home remains a mystery. However, it proves that love (and feline internal GPS) can overcome any obstacle, no matter the distance.
Stay Chill Truck Drivers Offer Tips on Beating Stress
Change your expectations. “I rarely get stressed out or upset when driving,” says BBL24L. “I expect people to do stupid stuff, so I’m not surprised when they do.” Aquaholic adds that they, “Expect the worst from everyone.” Heed the basics. A poster called Geneticdeadender lists practices that would make any mother proud. Exercise in the morning. Don’t eat junk food, sodas, or energy drinks. Do eat vegetables and fruits and water. See your doctor and get your blood sugar and blood pressure checked. And listen to audiobooks to reduce boredom, which can easily lead to stress. Ignore critics. New truckers complain about other drivers who honk when they’re backing slowly into a difficult unloading area. “For every person that honks, there are 10 who appreciate your taking your time,“ says Jday112. Kuzinarium adds, “You owe no apologies for being careful. Mind over matter. I don’t mind and they don’t matter.” Have a little faith. “I used to get upset when I got detained at a shipper, or something … made me late,” writes Functional_moron. “Now I just consider it an act of God that protected me from something bad that would have happened if I had been on time!”
Distracted drivers. Bumper-to-bumper traffic. Tight deadlines. Rushing to deliver loads on time, only to sit in line for hours waiting to unload. Nearly 3 in 4 truck drivers say their jobs are physically and emotionally stressful, according to a 2023 survey of 504 drivers by DAT Freight & Analytics, a provider of data analytics and services. The biggest reasons, truck drivers say, are difficulty managing sleep, exercise, and nutrition, as well as lost time with family and friends. To beat the stress, some professional drivers share tips on social media. From a popular subreddit, r/Truckers, here are a few suggestions. Build in some fun. A poster named Aquaholic recommends using an app called TruckerPath to find cool places to stop. “Enjoy the country!” he writes. He recently cut through Yellowstone National Park for a one-hour hike, then took a 45-minute swim in Montana. “These were my 30-minute breaks. It was so refreshing,” he writes. Also, “look for independent truck stops that are cool or unique to park up for the night,” he adds.
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Your Referrals Make a Difference! Thanks to your 120 referrals in January, we were able to donate $1,900 to help fight human trafficking and lead medical missions. INTERNATIONAL JUSTICE MISSION To learn more about International Justice Mission and their mission to protect half a billion vulnerable people from exploitation, please go to IJM.org . MEDICAL MISSIONS OUTREACH To learn more about showing God’s love by providing quality medical treatment to some of the poorest people in the world, visit the Medical Missions Outreach home page at Medical-Outreach.com .
FEDS TEE UP ORAL FLUID TESTING FOR DRUGS NEW SCREENING TESTS APPROVED
Testing of oral fluids to screen truck drivers and other safety-sensitive workers for drugs has moved one step closer to becoming a reality.
The Department of Transportation (DOT) published a revised final rule last November [EDS: 2024] that would clear the way for oral fluid testing to begin. The new rule allows use of saliva tests as an alternative to urine and other tests to determine whether truck drivers, airplane pilots, railroad, public transit, and other workers in safety-sensitive occupations are drug-free. Implementation of the new rule is on hold until DOT certifies laboratories for testing of oral fluids. As of last July, three laboratories had applied for certification, a process that normally takes about 3–6 months, a federal official told Safety+Health magazine, a publication of the National Safety Council. An official at the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) said it was considering the three laboratories that had applied. The new rules are designed to make it easier for employers to prevent cheating on drug tests, because testing doesn’t require giving employees privacy in a bathroom. The testing also has some advantages for workers. It is less intrusive, for one thing. Also, oral fluid testing is better than urine testing for detecting more recent drug use — within 1–7 hours following use, compared to 6–7 days for urine tests. Nearly half the states have legalized recreational use of marijuana, and the THC in marijuana can be detectable in urine for up to 30 days, which some people say results in users unfairly failing drug tests weeks after their latest use of marijuana. “If the current system remains, eventually there will be too many empty seats,” one trucker commented on YouTube.
“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” EPHESIANS 2:8-9
Employees who test positive or try to compromise their oral fluid sample must be removed from their positions immediately, the DOT says.
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, APC HARMAN CALIFORNIA TRAFFIC DEFENSE ATTORNEYS BIGGER
Toll-Free (661) 859-1177 Se Habla Español www.bakersfieldtraffictickets.com
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1701 Westwind Drive Suite 203 Bakersfield, CA 93301
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
How 2 Law Partners Survived a Super Bowl Rivalry........................................................... PAGE 1
A Cat’s Pilgrimage From Yellowstone to California........................................................... PAGE 2
How Truck Drivers Stay Cool in a High-Stress Occupation...................................... PAGE 2
New Drug Screening Method Takes a Step Forward......................................................... PAGE 3
Creative Cold-Weather Fun............................... PAGE 4
Have a ticket in California? Give us a call, and we’ll help you out! Regardless of the location, we can point you in the right direction free of charge!
NEW WINTER WONDERS AWAIT CHILLS ’N THRILLS
BOLD ART ON THE SNOW If heavy snowfall has kept your kids from attending school for the day, why not turn their time away from class into a fun opportunity to use the mounds of flakes as a yard-length white canvas? All they’ll need to create art in the snow are squirt bottles, food coloring, and their imaginations. If you’re short of food coloring, your kitchen offers plenty of art supplies. For example, you can smash up blueberries and mix them with water to create natural purple “paint,” use tomatoes to make a red solution, and strawberries can add a touch of pink. Just be sure any ingredients your children use are safe for the environment — and watch as they create their own Picassos on your property! PLUNGE LIKE A POLAR BEAR Now, this one’s not for the faint of heart. A “polar bear plunge” is an activity where groups of people take ice-cold dips, runs, and leaps into a nearby river, lake, or ocean in the dead of winter, often to raise money for charity. If diving into freezing waters makes you shudder (or if there’s no way you’d let your children do that), you can still enjoy the event as a spectator — dressed comfortably in your warmest winter clothes.
If your kids are tired of building the same old
snowman or taking another sled trip down the hill this winter, here are three fresh ideas for kids and teens — or the young at heart — to have new adventures in the snow.
FROZEN BUBBLE FUN While adults may not care much for freezing temperatures, kids who dress warmly enough can find plenty of fun things to do in cold weather besides building another
Frosty in the front yard. If the air is frigid enough, they may be able to blow bubbles that will freeze mid-air. Watching frozen bubbles pop can be a delight, as they often resemble broken glass as they cascade to the ground. If this activity sounds like a great time, ensure your kids are well protected from the elements so they don’t get too cold while creating their makeshift shards.
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