It is interesting how when one reads some thing, some other story comes to mind and one can identify with the story one has just read,
I had one of those moments when I read this news item in the NYT about Jacob J. Lew.
My signature is a peculiar one too and is mostly of vertical loops going across horizontally ending with a reverse loop in a flourish. It has been called ‘squiggles’ by a lot people. I reproduce my signature and what I use to initial where necessary here to show how peculiar.
And the story about the signature is even more peculiar but I use it still whenever someone comments on the odd signature that they see on documents signed by me.
Way back in 1982, I was the complainant in a civil case on behalf of my then employer against a Jalandhar based businessman on a trademark matter. I was present in the court on the last hearing and the Judge had reserved judgement for a later date. Our lawyer had assured me that I need not be present at the time of his delivering the judgement and had returned to Delhi to handle my other responsibilities.
On the date that the judgement was pronounced, our lawyer rang me up from Jalandhar and informed me that my presence was required by the Judge and asked me to come to Jalandhar the next day. At some inconvenience, I caught the overnight train and reached the court the next day and the story unfolded. The Judge asked if I was present in the court, and on being told that I was, he asked me to approach the bench. When I went up to him, he handed over a blank sheet of paper and asked me to affix my signature on it explaining that he would destroy the paper in my presence. When I did, he destroyed the sheet of paper but smiled and said that he wanted to see how the signature was put down on paper as he found it difficult to imagine someone ‘doing’ that very peculiar signature. He then shook hands with me and asked me to return to my seat and then delivered the judgement.
The nice part of the story was of course that we got a permanent stay order against the defendant with costs.
I wonder if our own blogger-hand-writing analyst Delirious will analyse my signature like Sheila Lowe has done for Mr. Lew’s signature!