Part 18

So while I was waiting for the grade to be changed for Real Estate Transactions I moved into the next course which was Income Tax.  It was no small feat to learn tax from Monday to Thursday and write the exam on Friday.  Again, I had some perverse liking of income tax.  I did fine on the exam and then had to endure Estates and Trusts;  Corporate and Commercial and then Family Law  -- the order is kind of blinding in terms of what came after real estate and tax.

I ended up passing the course and was "called" to the Bar with about 900 individuals on April 8th, 1974.  I was allowed four guests so my wife, father, mother and grandfather.  (as an aside - I didn't mention anything about the graduation ceremonies at Western - they were pretty uneventful and I don't recall crossing a stage since there were thousands of graduates from law, medicine, business and engineering - or something like that).

Anyway, after the bar ceremonies were over, I mentioned to my family I was now a lawyer.  My grandfather being a very astute individual mentioned the fact that to my wife I was a lawyer, to my parents I was a lawyer but to another lawyer, chances are I wasn't a lawyer  -- at least not for a while until I could actually and really practice law.  Again, very astute.

I now went back to my daily routine.  It was in a two storey house which had been partially used by a psychiatrist.  I had his office which had white and blue wallpaper - very soothing.  Soon renovations were started (actually while I was at the bar).  By the time I was full time renovations were completed.  I recall that fact because the day after the call to the bar, a bottle of champagne was opened in the office library.  A momentous occasion because the cork just about took my ear off.

I ended up with an office on the second floor with a very large picture window and a very nice decor.