Epic Karmic Bitch Slap Makes My Saturday GLORIOUS!

[Jester]

Well, shit.

Set my alarm for 7:00. My alarm went off at 7:00. And several times thereafter. And I promptly woke up at 8:05. Jumped in the shower, got dressed, grabbed my stuff, hauled ass on my bike downtown, dropped my pack at work, raced to the courthouse, got there just a few minutes late....and missed her case.

Apparently they started right on time at 8:45, and hers was one of the first cases called. If it was the one I walked in on at the end, her next court date (don't know what kind it is) will be 4 weeks from today, on October 11. If so, I may just miss it, as I may just be back home in Arizona. Which is fine by me. If I miss the latest episode in her legal melodrama because I'm home in the desert with friends and family, enjoying myself, I'm TOTALLY cool with that.

Upsides:

I got to enjoy some good comedy from various cases while I waited to see if I had, in fact, missed her case. The judge in this case is a hardass, but an amusing hardass. Probably less amusing if you're a defendant, I'd imagine.

Got to see her in shackles. This cannot be overstated or undervalued. Her shuffling out of court in shackles was priceless to my cold little black heart. Definitely an image that will make me smile every time I bring it up from my memory.

She looked utterly miserable. I mean, no one is happy when they're a defendant, or when they're a prisoner, or when they're in shackles. But of the dozen of so inmates there, she looked the most miserable, with her head bowed the entire time. She looked she was about to cry. Or throw up. Either of which it would have paid admission to see.

And, UNLIKE her, I casually walked out of that courtroom when I felt like it, enjoyed the beautiful weather, walked at my own leisurely pace, hopped on my bicycle, and rode to my job where, because I was very early, got to sit down and enjoy my breakfast, which I chose for myself, and which was delicious. Far better than the baloney sandwich she'll be having for lunch later.

So now I just have to wait for the court system to update their website for me to figure out what the latest with her case is. I'll be sure to keep y'all updated.

Edited to Add: And another bonus is that today is payday for me. Which means while I'm working, some time this afternoon a small among of money will directly deposit itself into my bank account. Payday....it's a nice concept for those of us who get one. Unlike others who are, I dunno, locked up?

[taxguykarl]

Payday....it's a nice concept for those of us who get one. Unlike others who are, I dunno, locked up?

Well they get paid; however, bartending pays a lot more than license plate stamping or picking garbage from the interstate right-of-way.

[BroSCFischer]

Lessie, he bankrupt the owner of the company he worked for, he got the chief prosecutor in his treason trial arrested and imprisoned fro treason, and as for his former friend who set him up to be the fall guy who married his love, he turned both her and their son against him. He stopped short of that fully (was going to kill him after) because his love convinced him that he wasn't worth it. When his former friend then tried to kill him, his lover shot him.

So the protagonist of the story was very big on ironic revenge.

Yeah, that was the MOVIE (drivel) plot.

The NOVEL plot is a LITTLE different:

Baron Danglars (the former ship's purser turned banker) is bankrupted by the Count's manipulations of a telegraph operator, and his portraying solid investors who suddenly become major risks. He also causes him further embarrassment by convincing him to marry his daughter, Eugenie, to a convicted murderer. On top of that, the Count uses him to help take down...

Count Fernand de Morcerf (formerly Mondego, former soldier turned politician) the Count uses the information gathered by the Baron, and testimony of his slave to use the Count de Morcerf's own past against him. When his son, Albert, (and it is FERNAND's son) discovers the disgrace, he (eventually) challenges Monte Cristo to a duel. His mom, (Monte Cristo's former fiance, Mercedes) begs for her sons life, and finds out what Fernand's original crime was. Monte Cristo resigns himself to suicide, but Mercedes tells Albert why his father was disgraced, and thus he apologizes to Monte Cristo for the challenge, and he and his mother abandon Morcerf, causing him to commit suicide.

Gaspard Caderousse, who although not a conspirator, was counted as partially responsible by the Count for his passivity, and he was allowed to be murdered by the man (Eugenie's fiance) he is blackmailing.

Gerard de Villefort's, (deputy crown prosecutor for Marseilles turned Crown prosecutor for Paris) 2nd wife was killing everyone so that their property would (eventually) go to her son (it's a little convoluted). After he confronts her with her crimes, and threatens to prosecute, his own past crimes were dredged up by his illegitimate son (Eugenie's fiance). He returns home to find his wife had killed their son, and herself, and goes insane.

This is why you should read the unabridged novel. There is so much more than ANY movie version could possibly contain.

TLDR: The Count through deft manipulations of events and people uses his enemies own crimes/vices against them, never actually committing any crime.

SC

[Tama]

It's a bitch finding that book unabridged though. I bought it for Al's mother last Christmas and had to wade through a lot of abridged copies to get to the bajillion-page long unabridged one.

[Deserted]

Yeah, that was the MOVIE (drivel) plot.

The movie from 2002 (with James Caviezel and Guy Pearce) was actually pretty good, if you go in with no expectations... and in the special features, the writer (I think) says that he considers it at most a story loosely based on the book.

(it's a little convoluted)

Major understatement.

This is why you should read the unabridged novel. There is so much more than ANY movie version could possibly contain.

Here's a relationship chart (Warning: major spoilers!) that shows some of the complexity of the novel. It's not quite complete, but should give some idea of how much more there is to the novel.

It's a bitch finding that book unabridged though. I bought it for Al's mother last Christmas and had to wade through a lot of abridged copies to get to the bajillion-page long unabridged one.

I believe the Project Gutenberg copy is unabridged (and free!).

[Tama]

I liked the movie, being a vengeful person myself.

My favorite part was Dumbledore. I mean, the priest.

[Kagato]

@Jester: Probably stating the obvious, but keep an eye on the local papers too, if you get the chance, there may very well be an article, however small it may be, pertaining to her court appearance. Might be worth clipping it as a 'momento' =p

[hinakiba777]

Not only is life at time stranger than fiction, but it's oft times more entertaining. Oh I can't wait to hear what happens to TVW.

[Jester]

Interesting side story....as I was riding the elevator up to the appropriate court room, I started chatting with the older lady in with me, and we both agreed that, while being late for court sucks, it's not as bad if you're not someone who HAS to be there. Like, say, the accused or the defendant. At this point, she mentioned that she was there for her daughter. I laughed and said I was there for someone else as well, but it was not someone I like. And we both laughed at that.

Then we got to the appropriate floor, walked into the courtroom, and took different seats...she near the front, myself near the rear.

And then I had a sudden horrifying thought. One some of you may have started to ponder as well. What if the elevator lady, there for her daughter's case, was actually That Vile Woman's mother?!?

Luckily, it wasn't. While I only met TVW's mother once, I was pretty sure she had looked much different than the lady from the elevator. A later quick check of Facebook confirmed this. But it also brought up the strong possibility that another older woman who had been sitting two rows directly in front of me was, in fact, TVM's mother. I cringed, realizing how my cavalier attitude to a stranger might have been really awkward under other circumstances. Because TVM's mother was a sweetheart, and while I felt no sympathy for TVM herself, I did feel sympathy towards her family, and the emotional roller coaster ride they had to be going through because of her inability to not lie, cheat, or steal.

[BroSCFischer]

The movie from 2002 (with James Caviezel and Guy Pearce) was actually pretty good, if you go in with no expectations... and in the special features, the writer (I think) says that he considers it at most a story loosely based on the book.

Loose adaptation INDEED! (Rant, Rant, Ranty Rant Rant)

I believe the Project Gutenberg copy is unabridged (and free!).

The PG version is the 19th century English translation that omits certain parts of the novel that were not fit for Victorian audiences (such as the more overt references to Eugenie's sexuality), and features some of that era's slang that may make it a touch more difficult to understand.

The (much) more recent translation, by (the late) Robin Buss, is very good in my opinion, if you are looking for a decent unabridged version.

SC

[Tama]

As long as the book doesn't read like mole-speak, I think I could handle it... >_>

[XCashier]

I just do not understand people like TVM. They do wrong, knowing very well that they're doing wrong, and get their asses handed to them, again and again. They are not only lacking the moral sense the rest of us have, they are completely lacking any common sense, the same sense that tells you that fire burns, so don't grab the red-hot firebrand barehanded. And they do the same bad things over and over, never learning from past mistakes or incarcerations. Absolutely insane.

From what it sounds like, dating her must've been like dating the Joker. You really dodged a bullet there, Jester. A less strong and sensible man could've been dragged down with her.

Pity you missed her trial. But at least you got a nice bike ride in the fresh air and a yummy breakfast, which she will not likely experience again for a very long time. Serves her right, for being wicked enough to commit crimes and stupid enough to not learn otherwise.

[Jester]

They do wrong, knowing very well that they're doing wrong, and get their asses handed to them, again and again. They are not only lacking the moral sense the rest of us have, they are completely lacking any common sense, the same sense that tells you that fire burns, so don't grab the red-hot firebrand barehanded. And they do the same bad things over and over, never learning from past mistakes or incarcerations.

Pretty much the textbook definition of what a sociopath is.

I just do not understand people like TVM.

Of course you don't. You're not a sociopath.

From what it sounds like, dating her must've been like dating the Joker. You really dodged a bullet there, Jester. A less strong and sensible man could've been dragged down with her.

Well, she was (and is) a con artist. So I didn't really realize who or what I was dating, and didn't realize I didn't know it at the time. The lies she told that I found out about later, the stories she told me at the time that, looking back, were clearly bullshit....but I was too smitten to use my logical, rational, analytical mind to see through that.

I have often said since that I was glad I dated her when I was 37 and not 17. Because if I had dealt with a woman like that when I was younger and less experienced, there's a pretty good chance that I could have become jaded against most or all women. Luckily, that was not the case, and I chalk my experience with her up to a learning experience. Realize the mistake, learn from it, move on, and don't repeat it.

And so far, I haven't.

Pity you missed her trial.

It wasn't a trial, merely an arraignment. And sadly, I don't know what happened, and since I now have to wait on whenever they update her case file in the website, it might be a while before I do find out. Not like I could just message her mom and ask her. Well, I COULD, but I highly doubt her mother would actually TELL me.

If what they were saying as I walked in was the tail end of her case (it was the tail end of someone's, and court had only been going a few minutes), her next appearance of any kind will be on October 11. Which, if all goes as planned, will find me back home in Arizona visiting. And, as much as I enjoy watching this wench twist in the legal wind, I wouldn't give up a trip home just to see her next time in court. Hell no. Just as I did no give up my bar shift this time....I went at the beginning, and left in plenty of time to get to work. Which is how I would work it any time. She's not worth my giving up money or a trip home.

But, if I CAN make a court date of hers without inconveniencing myself any more than waking up slightly earlier than normal, oh hell yes, I'm gonna do it.

But at least you got a nice bike ride in the fresh air and a yummy breakfast, which she will not likely experience again for a very long time.

Probably only partially true. Looking at it objectively, the judge is a hardass, sure, but she has two young children, the embezzlement was her first major offense down here (and other than the violation of probation, her only offense down here), and I could totally see him reaffirming the sentence again (five years probation), which would start the clock again from scratch, and telling her than ANY violation in the future will ABSOLUTELY land her in prison. Or something equally lenient, but still with the Hammer of God hanging over her head.

Either way, yeah, it will be at least a while before she enjoys any kind of good food or drink. Now, pardon me for a moment, for I have a lovely beer to take a sip of....

Serves her right, for being wicked enough to commit crimes and stupid enough to not learn otherwise.

Yes, yes, and yes.