French Fries and the Big Boss

The head of our section ("HP" for head partner) stopped by my office yesterday and announced that we should go to lunch. We just had our annual office performance meeting and had all been reassured that the firm's financials were strong, the Austin office was a top performer, and there were no plans of salary freezes or layoffs in the foreseeable future, so despite the unusual nature of the offer, I was fairly certain I wasn't about to be fired. He's famous for never leaving the office for lunch and eats at our little 1st floor cafe everyday, so I was surprised when he threw "leaving the office" out as an option for lunch. He looked a surprised too, and then became flustered when I immediately took him up on it- I'm not sure he even knew what restaurants were nearby. Our conversation went something like this:

HP: Well... what kind of place would you like to go to?
Me: anywhere that serves french fries
[pause]
HP: I have to admit, I wasn't expecting that.
Me: Oh? Well I am a french fry connoisseur.
HP, amused: So where are the best fries around here?

We ended up at a steak place I suggested (great fries) where I happily ordered a cheeseburger, medium rare and he ordered, with decidedly less zeal, plain grilled salmon and a side of spinach. As soon as the waiter left I exclaimed, "HP! What about the fries?! That's far too healthy." He muttered something about New Year's Resolutions and admitted that my meal sounded far better, and when it came I was quite sure he was right, but I did commend him for his commitment to healthy eating.

It was a good lunch. He's almost the exact same age as my dad (not that I saw a need to tell him that) and full of great stories and a fondness for fishing and his lake house- we get along very well. We talked about Chicago, my aborted plans to attend medical school, and the exorbitant cost of daycare (he was shocked). I remain surprised that so many people find him scary, though when I was little most of the boys on my street thought my dad was scary, all my sister and I had to do was threaten to "go tell our dad" and we'd immediately get our way. They had no idea of course that my dad is a teddy bear with "leaky eyes" who may or may not have cried during an episode of The Wonder Years where they sold the family car. I'm not sure if HP is a secret softie, I think not, but he reminds me too much of my dad to find him at all intimidating.

Lately I've been contemplating a switch in legal specialty, but if HP is willing to make me his protege, as he told me in December, I think I'll stay in corporate a while longer. It's not that I don't like corporate law, I actually like it quite a lot, it's that I don't think I like or care about deals. I understand they will always be a part of corporate practice and I enjoy some of the process, but what I really like is being corporate counsel- finding answers for a company's questions and guiding them through legal matters. I'd love to go in-house one day and I think it's easier to do from corporate. I don't know. It's a strange adjustment to think of a job as a career. I've had jobs, various summer and part-time positions I always knew would end. But this is my first career- I have no end date, no set path, no precise idea of where I'll be in ten years. I only know that I will be working somewhere doing something and that my actions now could have influence on whatever that is. It's no longer based on something black and white like grades and a set application process, it's relationships, a good reputation, and experience. Good grades are easier.

I do wonder what I'll be doing in ten or twenty years, but for now I know that the big boss likes me, I'm enjoying this litigation doc review far more than I expected, and my burger was delicious. That should keep me floating along for a while.