DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES — It'll be a slow day today, as I'm just about to head on up the street and report for jury duty at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse.

In the meantime I leave you with a shot of this jacket I found lying on 3rd street a bit over a week ago. No owner was in sight. Click for a larger view, but basically it's saying that Bill Richardson isn't the only one announcing his candidacy here in LA.

Update (4pm): I got back from the court house just a bit ago. Originally this morning I got put in the pool for an asbestos trial that would have lasted anywhere from 30 to 70 days. My plea that such a lengthy trial would be a hardship didn't seem to work the first time.

After lunch, though, the Judge excused me back to the jury waiting room to see about getting put on a shorter trial. He said that because of getting excused back to the room late in the afternoon I would have to come back again tomorrow to see about getting placed on a different case. Instead I sat in the waiting room for a half hour before they called my name and sent me home.

In the end, I have to leave an experience like this a little amazed at how the system is broken. I actually like the idea of jury service, and would have found sitting on a shorter case interesting. Instead I'm done for the year and they'll call another unhappy batch in tomorrow.