That’s because the subject – the Bar’s annual Bench & Bar directory issue – was itself a warm, familiar Minnesota reference. As in, a hefty reference book offering quick access to colleagues, courtrooms, and state offices. For a generation or four, Minnesota lawyers turned to it for a phone number, just as they might look up the phone number for the Jolly Troll ^[2] on Highway 12 ^[3], just across the street from the Cooper Theatre ^[4].

They might agree to meet a colleague at Southdale ^[5], perhaps under the birdcage or near the fish pond ^[6]. Or swap tickets for a Twins, Twins, or Twins game ^[7].

But it wouldn’t take a Weatherball ^[8] – with those snappy Weatherball lyrics in song or verse ^[9] – to forecast trends for print directories. Over the course of several years, Bench & Bar staff invoked several strategies to contain rising costs of the annual directory issue: Cheaper paper. Postal discounts. The costs always won.

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