Emery Law Office - October 2020

Emery Law Office - October 2020

OCTOBER 2020

DO YOU NAME YOUR CARS?

A PEEK INSIDE THE EMERY FAMILY GARAGE

Have you seen the movie “Cars”? If you have, you probably remember just how much personality each of the four-wheeled characters had. From Lightning McQueen (the hotheaded race car) to Mater, the laid-back country pickup truck, their names fit their looks and actions to a T. That said, I’d never given much thought to the fact that people could and do name their cars in the real world, until I found out that Oct. 2 is National Name Your Car Day. Sure, it’s a niche holiday that doesn’t get much attention, but it’s still a sign that a lot of people name their vehicles! To be honest, I’ve never named a single one of my cars. Is that strange? I’d never even heard of the concept until my younger daughter, Jessica, got her first car, a used Hyundai Sonata that was a gift from a friend’s grandfather. I still remember how excited she was when she named the car Christopher, and I’ll probably never forget the name. Jessica drove Christopher until this very summer. She’s been saving up the money she made working as a lifeguard and helping her dad so she could afford a new vehicle. After all of those summers and school breaks piled up, she finally had the funds to buy her own car. This August, before she started law school, I helped her find one, and she paid it off all by herself, in cash. She chose another Hyundai Sonata and named it Charlie. On top of all that, she even took care of listing and selling Christopher, too. I’m incredibly proud of Jessica’s hard work — it’s no small thing to pay off a car completely when you’re as young as she is. It actually made me think back to my very first car, a 1980 Honda Civic Hatchback that my family owned back in 1993. The car was never really mine, but I got to use it (if I asked permission) to go to and from school and to my job a mile away at the Dairy Queen. During that first year, if I drove anywhere else, house rules stated that I needed to be accompanied by a parent. That little car could have lasted forever. I was sure it would rust in half before the engine died. I didn’t have any expectation that my parents would buy me a car when I left home, but when I made it clear that I intended to pay my own way through college and live at home to save money, they actually used my college fund to buy me a car that was really mine. They got me a brand-new, 1994 Honda Civic Hatchback in the color of my choice: teal!

I’ll never forget that car. One of my favorite features was the tape deck. I loved that when you put a tape in, you could fast-forward through a song or skip to the one you really wanted to listen to. It was amazing to me that I didn’t have to listen to the whole tape to get to my favorite track, which always seemed to be the second-to-last one. I listened to a lot of Michael Bolton, Harry Connick Jr., and Joshua Kadison while I was motoring along! That tape deck was special because the old family car didn’t even have a radio when my parents first bought it. The only reason I got music in it was because my dad and uncle installed an old AM/FM system. Once I got the upgrade, I definitely didn’t want to go back. I drove my little teal car until 1998 when Jessica was born, and then I traded it in for a minivan (a decision I still regret). Today, I drive a 2020 Lincoln Aviator. I just got it this spring, and because of National Name Your Car Day, I’m actually considering giving it a name! Since this would be my first time naming a car, though, I’d love some help. Turn to Page 2 to find out how you can help me find the perfect name!

-Melissa Emery

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DON’T THROW YOUR OLD PHONE AWAY!

PROTECT YOUR HOME (AND OTHER COOL THINGS) FOR CHEAP

Home automation and security are more important than ever before, but between high startup fees, monthly costs, and the constant speed at which technology outpaces itself, these systems can be costly. Instead of throwing money into something you’ll have to upgrade in a year or two, look to your old phone that’s been collecting dust in the junk drawer. Recent developments enable that old device to do so much more! Here’s how you can automate and protect your home with just your old cell phone, an app, and some ingenuity.

baby monitor. Set it up in your baby’s nursery and use your new phone to Skype into their room. You can find apps that can make this much easier, too. Add more storage. Cloud platforms are not your only photo storage option. You can delete all the apps on your old phone and use it for photo storage, freeing up space on your new phone! This is a great option for those looking to limit their online presence. Set up a universal remote. Your old phone can serve as the “universal” remote for all your home’s smart devices, like a central hub that controls everything. Specialty apps like iRule can link all your platforms together. All you need is the app, Wi-Fi, and an old phone that can connect to the Wi-Fi.

setup on your new phone, then log into the app on your old one. Just be sure to select “camera” rather than “viewer,” if that’s an option. Step 2: Mount your phone. Position your old phone’s camera toward whatever you want to watch and protect. It will have to be connected to a power source since the phone will always be on, and you may want to purchase a cheap wide-angle lens to see a broader view. Then, you’ll simply check the app on your new phone to periodically check in on your home!

Home Security Setup Step 1: Choose an app.

Home security isn’t the only thing your old phone can do. Here are three home automation ideas.

Choose which features are most important to your home’s safety and find an app that’s going to best suit your needs. Then, download the app onto your current phone and your old one. Walk through the

Create a baby monitor. Much like a security system, you can turn your old phone into an affordable

(AND HELP MELISSA NAME HER AVIATOR!) MEET OUR TEAM’S FRIENDS ON WHEELS

Lucinda Jr. Charlotte just looked like a Charlotte. Both Lucindas were named after my favorite artist to listen to on a road trip, Lucinda Williams. But my favorite vehicle to cruise in is my husband’s 1986 Chevy Scottsdale, which is named Ol’ Blue.

On Page 1 of this month’s newsletter, you read all about Melissa’s daughter Jessica and her new car, Charlie. To keep the National Name Your Car Day fun going, we decided to ask everyone on the Emery Law Office’s team whether they’d ever given their rides nicknames. Here’s what they said: Audra Seng Senior Paralegal I can’t say that I have ever named any of my vehicles. The closest I’ve gotten to doing anything special to a car was when I personalized my license plate. It said “XNTRUNK”!

Kristen Hawthorne Paralegal

I have named my cars. My old, black detective-looking car was The Batmobile, and the 1982 Ford Fairmont I had in high school was called The Turd. It was a poop-stain brown color, with the ugliest vomit-green interior!

Chris Cobb Legal Assistant I only ever call my car a nickname in my head. It’s a Mazda CX-7, and I call it “Max the Silver Mazda.”

Now, it’s your turn to answer our questions: “Have you ever named your car?” and “What would you name Melissa’s 2020 Lincoln Aviator if you could pick anything?” We’d love to know. This month,

share your car photos, stories, and name suggestions on our

Libby Thorngate Administrative Assistant I always name my cars! My last three vehicles were Charlotte, Lucinda, and

Facebook page at Facebook.com/ EmeryLawOffice. Melissa will pick her favorite name for her Lincoln and share it in a future newsletter!

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BARKS FROM BELLA Keep Your Paws (and Paw-rents) Safe in the Car

CLASSIC PUMPKIN SOUP

Pumpkins aren’t just for pie — they make delicious soup, too! This fall, try your hand at this healthy soup recipe and

• 1 tbsp olive oil • 2 shallots, diced warm up with a bowl. INGREDIENTS

• 3 cloves garlic, minced • 2 1/4 cups pumpkin purée (homemade or canned) • 2 cups vegetable broth • 1 cup canned light coconut milk • 2 tbsp honey

Hey there, friends, it’s me again! Two months in a row, can you believe it? I really missed you guys. I’ve been waiting for weeks to tell you about one of my favorite things: car rides! I love, love, love trips in the car. When I first started taking them with Melissa and Dave, I went all over the place and looked out all of the windows. I wanted to see everything that was happening, and I tried to get in Dave’s lap and look over the steering wheel, too, but Melissa wouldn’t let me! She said it was too dangerous. I really wanted to see over that wheel, but then I talked to my friend, Sadie (who travels with her parents in the car a lot, too); she said Melissa was right, and I shouldn’t bounce around so much. What if the car hit something and I broke a paw? Or Melissa got hurt? I couldn’t stand that. When Sadie said that stuff, I started thinking about it, and I realized that it actually was a little scary in the car. The way the floor moved around made me fall on my butt! So, maybe that wasn’t such a good thing. Melissa must have noticed me getting worried because I heard her talking to Sadie’s parents, and then she got me some brand-new toys for car rides! One of them is this thing that looks like a big hammock I get to crawl into in the back seat. I can’t sit on Melissa’s lap anymore because the hammock gets in the way, but I feel really safe and cozy. Plus, Melissa says the car is happier now because it’s not getting all dirty and hairy or scratched up from my feet. Sorry, car! I also got a harness, and it has my very own seatbelt! I am SO happy. I’m really one of the people now. The harness also makes me feel extra safe, and now, when Dave has to stop the car, I don’t slide around an inch. Whew! If your human hasn’t bought you any cool things for the car yet, now’s the time to bark about it. See if you can get a hammock and harness just like me. You’ll feel safer, and they will, too. Maybe you’ll even get to visit the park more often! You never know until you try.

• 1/4 tsp sea salt • 1/4 tsp pepper • 1/4 tsp cinnamon • 1/4 tsp nutmeg

DIRECTIONS

1. In a large saucepan over medium heat, sauté olive oil, shallots, and garlic for 2–3 minutes. 2. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a simmer. 3. Transfer the soup to a blender and purée. Pour the blended soup back into the pan. 4. Cook over medium-low heat for 5–10 minutes. Taste and add additional seasoning as desired, then serve!

Inspired by MinimalistBaker.com

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INSIDE

CHRISTOPHER, CHARLIE, AND THE UNNAMED AVIATOR 1

YOUR OLD PHONE COULD PROTECT YOUR HOME IN 2 STEPS

MEET THE EMERY LAW TEAM’S FRIENDS ON WHEELS! 2

BELLA’S TIPS FOR A SAFE CAR RIDE

CLASSIC PUMPKIN SOUP 3

WHEN ‘STAR WARS’ INVADED HALLOWEEN 4

THE SPOOKY ‘STAR WARS’ SHORTAGE OF 1977

A long time ago … in October of 1977 to be exact, Halloween was fast approaching and many parents faced a major dilemma. That year, kids didn’t want to go trick-or- treating dressed as vampires, witches, or ghosts. The classic costumes simply wouldn’t do. That Halloween, almost every child in the United States wanted to dress as their favorite character from the new hit movie, “Star Wars.” Today, you can walk into a Halloween City on Oct. 30 and easily pick up a costume for Rey, Darth Vader, or Princess Leia. But in 1977, less than five months after the release of the first movie in the popular franchise, getting your hands on “Star Wars” merchandise was a bit more difficult. Ben Cooper, a costume company in Brooklyn, had the foresight to license “Star Wars” for costumes right after the movie came out. Unfortunately, they didn’t foresee how great the demand for these costumes would be. Retailers across the country were selling out of “Star Wars” costumes as fast as they came in. Some stores reported selling more “Star Wars” costumes than pumpkins. Kids who got their hands on an authentic Han Solo or C-3PO costume were considered lucky. But kids who arrived at the store to find the costume shelves empty didn’t throw in the towel. Instead, they went and found some brown towels to make their own Chewbacca costumes.

In the current age of cosplay, homemade costumes based on movie characters are commonplace, but in 1977, this was uncharted territory. Kids searched for white dresses to be Princess Leia and bathrobes they could cut short to mimic Luke Skywalker. Moms everywhere broke out their sewing machines and created costumes using only action figures for reference. It was grueling work, but it showed how much kids wanted to spend Halloween in a galaxy far, far away.

The “Star Wars” costume shortage marked a new era for Halloween — one where making your own costume was just as cool, if not better, than buying it.

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