"There's no need to argue, parents just don't understand."

"The world is a shitty place full of shitheads. You need good friends to talk shit about all of life's...shit."

This is not only a fact of life, but a real statement from a real person. That's what we call investigative journalism. Or repeating words out of other people's mouths. But it describes rule #1 of law school:

Make friends.

Because in all honesty, no one else is going to get it. The pain, strife, and heavy work load. The stress, and the fact that you're going a little crazy. The revelation that you want to drop out after every day. The panic of being cold-called on a case that you didn't really understand. The embarrassment when the professor gives you the "How did a dumbass like you get into law school?" look, and the excitement when the professor gives you a nod and moves on to torture someone else.

The other thing that no one is going to get is the ironic, sly, morbid sense of humor you're about to develop. Your parents, siblings, significant other, best friends, they're not going to find jokes about shotgun traps very funny. But your law friends will. And who else is going to loudly argue with you about medical malpractice and liability for AIDS battery in public while people push their food away from them in disgust? Not your cousins.

Everyone needs a support system. And while your mom may be the best person to call when you're having a terrible day and want to quit, or your SO may be the best person to talk to the night before your sure-to-be-horrific final exam, the most reliable part of your support system lies in the people you can call when you have huge holes in your outline. The people who give you their notes when you realize you just spent an entire civpro class playing solitaire. The people who tell you that you're being an ass when stress makes you act like, well, an ass.

The good friends to talk shit about all of law school's...well...shit.