Well, the good news is that Ian left us mostly unscathed -- except for some tree limbs littering the yard. I hadn't even noticed the winds getting that high, but I guess up high they exceeded tropical force, and a few large branches are scattered around. Wifey called our yard man -- he's due by later today to make short work of the small mess. Otherwise -- just the normal pre-storm hype, the sound and the fury, signifying nothing.
Meanwhile, I attended the depo of the fellow I call Fredo, on account of how he betrayed our group for small financial gain. I logged onto the Zoom, and the TV lawyer, who I'll call Robert, since that's his name, was there -- greeting me with a hearty "Hello David --S'all good, man."
The reason for that is that I had mistakenly emailed our side, copying Robert, in which I referred to him as Saul Goodman -- the iconic character of the sleazy, TV advertising lawyer. He was telling me he had seen the email.
Sometimes I can still be very quick, and I responded "Yes, Robert -- he's your spirit animal." Robert prides himself on his quick wit, but he was a bit flummoxed -- he had zero in response. Just then our lawyer Scott logged on and began the depo.
The details aren't important, but the 1.5 hours of Fredo's outright lies, told in his charming Southern accent, were remarkable in that I was sure he truly believed his revisionist history about the final days of his association with our group.
He said he had told us he was leaving long before he did. I wondered how that jibed with the text messages I still have to him, all unanswered, in which I ask after his well being. In those final weeks, I could tell his life, at least financially, was crumbling. A lawsuit was delivered from Amex, claiming he had defaulted on $80K worth of charges. His lovely South American girlfriend had given him walking papers -- tired of his broke ass ways. His only daughter tolerated him -- the Ds and Wifey saw that when I took them to dinner and she, a lovely young woman, talked to him with great anger and contempt.
I had thought my friend was hanging from the ceiling in his never renovated Palmetto Bay house, or he was lying with half a head after a gunshot from one of his many firearms.
Nah. He had stolen the clients and moved on to Saul Goodman. And now, over two years after Saul had fired him, he was recreating history -- under oath!
Stu and I debriefed the depo last night. We agreed we had a lot of the blame even bringing this charming loser into our fold. Here he was -- Board certified guy, former test pilot, and he had been fired from the prior three firms he worked -- for, essentially, laziness.
A dear friend had cautioned me. How did I explain that a 64 year old guy with his education and background was essentially broke at his stage of the career? I answered that he had to be a single dad, as his wife was dying and did die from cancer -- taking away his focus.
Turns out, per the secretary he brought from his last firm, who he ended up being unable to pay for more than a year, that the only taking he did was money from his daughter's trust account -- Fredo's inlaws had money set aside for their granddaughter, and Fredo helped himself to some of it.
Great guy. And yet, he had landed again, with a prestigious West Palm Beach firm, who hired him even though he's now 70.
I predict they'll fire him, too -- probably by early next year -- and he'll sue them for age discrimination. That will be his last con -- I would give odds on it.
And so our case will drag on. I'm due to be deposed next -- by the lawyer who works for Robert that I call the Victoria's Secret Model, on account of the fact that she's a top 10 least attractive woman I have ever encountered. She's physically that way, coupled with a sour personality and dour expression.
It'll be a challenge to keep my snark in check -- but I plan to follow the advice I have been giving to clients for decades, and answer only the question asked.
I no longer despise Fredo for his actions. He betrayed us 4 years ago. I look forward to ending this final bit of business we must deal with for the sad allowing him into our circle, and then hearing nothing more about him -- ever.
Soon he'll be conning fellow ALF residents out of their cherry pie, I would guess. And that's how he'll end.
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