Brandon Stanton's Blog, page 499

"I’m in corporate law.""How is being a lawyer different...

"I’m in corporate law."
"How is being a lawyer different than you thought it would be when you first chose to be a lawyer?"
"I guess I thought that I’d have more of an effect on the lives of individuals. There’s nobody who’s life is reallydeeply affected by the outcomes of the trials I’m working on.”
"What about the people who work for the companies you represent?"
"Not really. Even the big cases usually only represent a tiny sliver of a company’s profits. The only time I feel like I really made a difference in someone’s life is when I take a pro bono case."
"Which pro bono case do you feel made the biggest difference?"
"I helped a carpenter in Poughkeepsie get his house back after he was evicted over taxes. That felt pretty good."

"What was the happiest moment of your life?" “I...

"What was the happiest moment of your life?"

“I don’t know. But it wasn’t when I got married. That did not go well.”

"What’s the most frightened you’ve ever been?"...

"What’s the most frightened you’ve ever been?"

“I witnessed a friend get murdered.”

“What happened?”

“I work as a cook, and after work one evening, I went across the street to a bar. My friend had his dog there, and it started playing with this other woman’s dog. My friend bent down to untangle the leashes. The woman’s husband started accusing my friend of being too pushy or something, I don’t know, and just jumped on him.”

“Did he just stab him once?”

“No, he kept stabbing him. I tried to pull him off but I couldn’t.”

"What was the saddest moment of your life?""Probably when my...

"What was the saddest moment of your life?"
"Probably when my grandmother died."
"What was your favorite thing about her?"
"Honestly, she was back in Bangladesh, and I really don’t remember much about her. But it was the only time I’ve seen my dad cry."

"What was the happiest moment of your life?""Seeing my mother...

"What was the happiest moment of your life?"
"Seeing my mother and grandmother cry when I graduated from college."

The king is not pleased.

The king is not pleased.

"I had this idea that I was going to change the world: racial...

"I had this idea that I was going to change the world: racial justice, peace on earth, things like that. I went to every anti-war march there was. But I’m pretty sure that I didn’t budge society an inch. So now I just sit in the park and watch the little tots walk by. They’re so cute. Oh dear, look at that one!"

"Young children are in direct contact with reality. They...

"Young children are in direct contact with reality. They experience the world through their senses. But as people grow older, we start thinking too much, and we form an ‘idea of reality.’ We lose contact with reality itself, because reality isn’t an idea… it’s reality. Luckily there’s LSD."

"I try to spew my thoughts for ten minutes everyday."

"I try to spew my thoughts for ten minutes everyday."

"We just played miniature golf.""Who won?""Me.""Me.""Me."

"We just played miniature golf."
"Who won?"
"Me."
"Me."
"Me."