Jim’s Year-End Reflections
Normally, we feature one of our wonderful clients in this space, sharing our journey together following their injury. This time, I thought I’d share tales of this year’s adventures undertaken by those of us you’ve come to know and love at Monast Law Office! In January, Chris Hjelle (who handles settlements) went on a family vacation in Mexico. He’s an active guy (his wife Jennifer is much more sensible, enjoying time on the beach and by the pool) and got attacked by a mountain goat the locals have named “Demon” while off-roading on an e-bike. Demon horned Chris in the leg, so Chris retaliated by grabbing him by the horns and twisting. He says he taught that goat a lesson: Don’t mess with a Hjelle! To memorialize the occasion, I got Chris a plush goat and a goat-scream button for his office. As I mentioned on the cover, over Independence Day weekend, Amy and I got a new bulldog puppy. Ellie is a typical bulldog, loving the world and everyone in it and not shy about bumping into anyone — literally. While walking her and Molly (our 2-year-old rescue mix, all of 8 pounds and still the dominant
canine in our home) in October, a neighbor hollered, “Hello” as we passed. Ellie ran in front of Amy, she tripped and fell, splintering bones in her left hand. This required a plate, eight screws, and lots of therapy. Not to be outdone, on the morning of the OSU-Rutgers game, your fearless leader proved that distracted walking can result in stupid accidents and injury. We have a small step down at our front door. While walking into the house, I glanced at the birds in the tree near the door, wondering how in the world they could be so small yet make such a racket. I’ve never missed the step in 33 years, but I did that morning. The Ring camera video captured me falling forward and the stuff I was carrying flying out of both hands. I learned stucco wins when colliding with my face, and that facial/head wounds bleed a LOT!
bandage), and after a couple of hours, the blood wasn’t even trickling out anymore (until the evening, when I had to use more). Since I was not terribly injured, my family, friends, and neighbors have enjoyed mocking my clumsiness. One son suggested I could use photos for that tired old lawyer advertising “I fight for you!” as the black eye would add some realism. A neighbor bought an app to make a sparkly background for a photo of my bloody face. I’m glad I can bring some laughter to others. Be safe this holiday season, and hold your loved ones close. While mountain goat attacks in Ohio are probably rare, slips and falls on ice can happen far too easily, as can car wrecks. Our accidents weren’t life-threatening, thank heaven, but they sure happened just as quickly as serious ones do.
I refused to go to the emergency room for stitches because the game was on at noon, and I didn’t want to spend all afternoon waiting for them to get to me and tell me to go for an MRI to see if I had an orbital fracture, etc. Instead, I used a lot of New-Skin (liquid
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