It's been a truly excellent summer. I've been living up in Wrigleyville, barely making it from paycheck to paycheck, and for the most part loving every minute of it. (There were some moments there, let me tell you.) I've been taking long weekend trips, attending my part-time job as a law clerk, enjoying the rooftop deck that is so much better than the cool thing you have at your apartment and all in all having one of the best semester breaks possible.
And then I had an epiphany.
I have to go back to school in one week. No more just deciding to take Fridays off. No more watching 30 Rock late at night, and deciding, "What the hell? I can just be tired tomorrow." I'm going to go to school 15 hours a week and work the other 25. And then I have to somehow find a job, pass the bar, and start paying off these loans.
I am one misstep from the very first panic attack of the school year.
Just. Hell.
Monday, August 22, 2011
Monday, May 30, 2011
If It's Too Hot, Then Get Out of the Kitchen
Sorry for the irregular updates. I'm settling into my new life here in Wrigleyville, which comes with its own set of quirks to get used to, such as the fact that Cubs fans are rude and bad at riding the train and that I am living in a house of boys. So between everything else, I haven't had much time for writing.
Which is weird in and of itself because I'm not even in school. Nor do I have a 9-5 job. (I do, however, have an 8:30-1 job, that, including commuting, is more like a 7:45-1:30 job.) So since I don't have much legally related stuff to tell you about, I thought since our time here will be coming to an end (BECAUSE I'M A 3L NOW!!!!) you should get to hear more about my life. Today's fact:
Cooking is one of my favorite things to do. It's methodical, creative, and delicious. Plus, I have the most awesome apron in the world to wear when I do cook. And it comes with truly delicious results. (Most of the time. I have had some real kitchen failures.)
And before you think I learned it from my mom, stop yourself right there. I didn't. My mom is the first to admit that she can't cook. I mean, it's not like she can't boil water, but she's pretty limited to casseroles and pasta.* The Harling women have a saying: "God made you for better things than cooking and cleaning."**
So when it came right down to it, I had to teach myself to cook. And kids, it was NOT EASY. Growing up in the midwest means that everything is made with cheese (either of the shredded or cream variety***) and leaves you feeling full and bloated. Plus, there's not a whole lot of creativity going on. It's pretty much "Add everything to bowl. Stir. Pour into pan. Bake at 350 for 1 hour. Top with potato chips." There's a time and a place for that kind of food, but it's not every night.
So I started frequenting food blogs. This taught me not only how to cook, but what to cook, and how to make substitutions. It's also taught me about seasonal cooking, and how to walk into a farmers' market with the best of them**** and form recipes in my head. Reading about food has taught me that I like light, easily prepared food that leaves me feeling full but not groggy. I've tried to cut out a lot of carbohydrates in my own food. I can honestly say that for many of my meals, at least half of my plate comes directly from the earth, not any sort of processing plant.
Cooking for yourself is not only empowering, it's cheaper. True, I just spent way too much money on groceries. But the food I bought will last me at least 3 weeks (with a couple smaller runs throughout that period), and I won't need to buy food elsewhere. To eat out twice a day (if I did it REALLY cheap, nearly impossible here in Chicago) would run me about $250, and the food would often be greasy and badly prepared. Even doing it once a day would cost $126 and then I'd just be hungry. Sure, it's costly upfront, but there are definite long term savings.
My go-to food resources are as follows:
In fall and winter, I love Elise Bauer's Simply Recipes. These are mostly family recipes and seem to just pack and extra punch of warmth and coziness. Even my mom can cook these! Plus, there's an apple cake that is my birthday cake every year and I've never met anyone who doesn't like it.***** So easy and yummy. Plus, it's great for school because the recipes are time-tested by a woman with six kids on a shoestring budget. So, someone with no time and a little money. Win!
In spring and summer, I live on Heidi Swanson's 101 Cookbooks. It's entirely veggie and sticks strictly to seasonal cooking. Because I'm often too lazy to cook meat, this website has taught me a lot about preparing veggies and how to use herbs and spices to make your food spectacular. The salads and soups are delicious and simple. Check out this brussels sprouts recipe, which got even my veggie-fearing boyfriend to like (properly prepared) brussels sprouts.
I also like The Smart Kitchen Blog, as it's written by a twenty-something who loves easy simple food and always comes up with interesting ways to cook, and Smitten Kitchen, where the recipes look sinfully delicious. (I'm about to make the strawberry cake that's on the homepage. Yummy.)
_____________________________________
*Which, don't get me wrong, are both delicious. I learned one of the best pasta recipes of all time from my mother, and if you ask nicely, I'll make it for you.
**We never bought into that whole biblical "Women, submit to your husband," thing. More like that one part of My Big Fat Greek Wedding. "The man might be the head of the household, but the woman is the neck. And she can turn the head any way she wants."
***And in my household, ricotta.
****City living, my friends.
*****Until I tell them how much butter is in it at least.
Which is weird in and of itself because I'm not even in school. Nor do I have a 9-5 job. (I do, however, have an 8:30-1 job, that, including commuting, is more like a 7:45-1:30 job.) So since I don't have much legally related stuff to tell you about, I thought since our time here will be coming to an end (BECAUSE I'M A 3L NOW!!!!) you should get to hear more about my life. Today's fact:
I love to cook.
Cooking is one of my favorite things to do. It's methodical, creative, and delicious. Plus, I have the most awesome apron in the world to wear when I do cook. And it comes with truly delicious results. (Most of the time. I have had some real kitchen failures.)
And before you think I learned it from my mom, stop yourself right there. I didn't. My mom is the first to admit that she can't cook. I mean, it's not like she can't boil water, but she's pretty limited to casseroles and pasta.* The Harling women have a saying: "God made you for better things than cooking and cleaning."**
So when it came right down to it, I had to teach myself to cook. And kids, it was NOT EASY. Growing up in the midwest means that everything is made with cheese (either of the shredded or cream variety***) and leaves you feeling full and bloated. Plus, there's not a whole lot of creativity going on. It's pretty much "Add everything to bowl. Stir. Pour into pan. Bake at 350 for 1 hour. Top with potato chips." There's a time and a place for that kind of food, but it's not every night.
So I started frequenting food blogs. This taught me not only how to cook, but what to cook, and how to make substitutions. It's also taught me about seasonal cooking, and how to walk into a farmers' market with the best of them**** and form recipes in my head. Reading about food has taught me that I like light, easily prepared food that leaves me feeling full but not groggy. I've tried to cut out a lot of carbohydrates in my own food. I can honestly say that for many of my meals, at least half of my plate comes directly from the earth, not any sort of processing plant.
Cooking for yourself is not only empowering, it's cheaper. True, I just spent way too much money on groceries. But the food I bought will last me at least 3 weeks (with a couple smaller runs throughout that period), and I won't need to buy food elsewhere. To eat out twice a day (if I did it REALLY cheap, nearly impossible here in Chicago) would run me about $250, and the food would often be greasy and badly prepared. Even doing it once a day would cost $126 and then I'd just be hungry. Sure, it's costly upfront, but there are definite long term savings.
My go-to food resources are as follows:
In fall and winter, I love Elise Bauer's Simply Recipes. These are mostly family recipes and seem to just pack and extra punch of warmth and coziness. Even my mom can cook these! Plus, there's an apple cake that is my birthday cake every year and I've never met anyone who doesn't like it.***** So easy and yummy. Plus, it's great for school because the recipes are time-tested by a woman with six kids on a shoestring budget. So, someone with no time and a little money. Win!
In spring and summer, I live on Heidi Swanson's 101 Cookbooks. It's entirely veggie and sticks strictly to seasonal cooking. Because I'm often too lazy to cook meat, this website has taught me a lot about preparing veggies and how to use herbs and spices to make your food spectacular. The salads and soups are delicious and simple. Check out this brussels sprouts recipe, which got even my veggie-fearing boyfriend to like (properly prepared) brussels sprouts.
I also like The Smart Kitchen Blog, as it's written by a twenty-something who loves easy simple food and always comes up with interesting ways to cook, and Smitten Kitchen, where the recipes look sinfully delicious. (I'm about to make the strawberry cake that's on the homepage. Yummy.)
What about you? Do you like to cook? How did you learn?
_____________________________________
*Which, don't get me wrong, are both delicious. I learned one of the best pasta recipes of all time from my mother, and if you ask nicely, I'll make it for you.
**We never bought into that whole biblical "Women, submit to your husband," thing. More like that one part of My Big Fat Greek Wedding. "The man might be the head of the household, but the woman is the neck. And she can turn the head any way she wants."
***And in my household, ricotta.
****City living, my friends.
*****Until I tell them how much butter is in it at least.
Monday, May 23, 2011
What is on my face?????
Congratulations on finishing up your law school finals and taking a well-deserved break! Now back to your regularly scheduled RWF programming.
_____________________________________________________________________________
Not to brag, but I have always had great skin. Ask some of my closest friends. At fifteen, when everyone’s skin resembled a particularly greasy pizza, mine was perfect almost all the time. I didn’t even start wearing makeup until halfway through college, and that was because I thought it might be fun, not because I needed it.
So imagine my shock when I looked in the mirror a week ago and realized I had wrinkles. I didn’t have them when law school started, but there they are. Fine lines around my mouth and the corners of my eyes. A faint crease across my forehead from wrinkling my brow when I’m skeptical, frustrated, pensive, or pretty much any other emotion. On top of that, I’m starting to inherit my grandmother’s dark circles under the eyes. Law school has aged me ten years in two years. My skin has even lost that glow that I thought always made me look awake and enthusiastic. Now I just look kind of gray and flaky. I had to fake the glow this morning with the cream blush that I bought 3 years ago for the hell of it.
I know what you’re thinking: You’re 24 years old. It’s part of being a grown up. But I’m only 24 years old. And if law school is aging me 5 years for every one year of school, by next year I’ll be 37. Thirty. Seven.
Boy insists that he doesn’t see any wrinkles, but I KNOW they’re there. Waiting to pop up at the least convenient moment. I also know that I just need to get over it and accept the fact that two years of squinting to read teeny, tiny legal print has permanently affected my face. And I need to embrace the fact that a few fine lines are worth the knowledge I’ve gained and the experiences I’ve had. Don’t sweat the small stuff and all that. Wrinkles are the sign of a life well-lived. Accept the reality of the circle of life.
And barring acceptance, there’s always plastic surgery once I get the loans paid off.
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Drugs
Me: "I think the answer to my problem starts with "A" and ends in "Derall"
Other: "I could get it for you, but is that what you really want?"
Me: ".........."
I've mentioned on here how important I believe a well-stocked medicine cabinet is. It's essential, in case you didn't know. Seriously, I have so many different kinds of painkillers for different pains/times of day, I could probably run a pharmacy. If you need some Ibuprofen, I'm probably the girl to see. I even have back up bottles under my sink because I hit a sale on extra-strength tylenol once. But in the example above, I turned down the adderall. Why?
Because in the words of my friend Orale*, who admittedly was quoting Cool Runnings at the time, "If you're not enough without it, you'll never be enough with it. Or, in my own words (which are SO much better):
If You Can't Do It On Your Own,
You Can't Do It.
I'm not trying to preach at anybody here. You do what you've got to do to get the job done. But it's probably a bad idea to put something that you don't NEED into your body. It's probably a really bad idea to put a prescription drug without your name on it into your body.** Your doctor hasn't told you it's safe. And nothing, not even law school finals, are worth harming your body.
In my humble opinion, drugs (yes, even painkillers) should always be the last resort. You don't need caffeine to keep yourself awake if you get some sleep. You don't need drugs for concentration if you're willing to forgive yourself for needing a break once in a while.*** The human brain wasn't made to focus non-stop.
So, you know, do what you've gotta do. But be careful. And maybe take up yoga before you resort to anything extreme.
_____________________________________________
*Oh yeah, once you get a code name, you're somebody I spend too much time around.
**I'm not a doctor, so I can't actually make these statements, but I think it's a generally held axiom that someone should actually prescribe a prescription drug to you.
***Or maybe you do. Once again: Not A Doctor. But if you think you need drugs, you should definitely see one of those.
Monday, May 2, 2011
Where Do We Go From Here?
I’m sure you’ve heard by now about the big news for America. Osama bin Laden is dead. And I keep seeing and hearing tweets and Facebook posts like “Fuck yeah, America,” and “Glad that bastard is dead.” And while I’m excited, I guess I’m mostly conflicted.
I remember when I first heard the name Osama bin Laden. I was fourteen years old. I’d had a particularly terrifying day at school, since the administration refused to tell us what was going on, but we’d been hearing rumors that were wrong but still scary. I can still remember Brittany M. running down the hall while I was sitting in Mr. Divelbiss's honors biology class and telling us all that the Pentagon had been bombed. And that was in second period. We didn’t find out what had actually happened until we got home that day. And all I could think the whole day was “Now that the Pentagon is gone, any of us could go. At any moment.”
And I remember weeks of news coverage that just consisted of watching the twin towers fall. It was the news EVERY DAY. We wallowed in the psychological blow and bin Laden’s name was all over the news reports and on everyone’s lips. Journalists told us that he would be captured within a year.
I remember when (exactly 8 years ago) George Bush announced “Mission Accomplished” and I remember the political cartoon that went with it: President Bush walking in an Escher-like maze, repeating those words futilely over and over. And I remember wondering why our troops couldn’t come home if the mission was accomplished. And why my friends were beginning to join the military and going over to a wild, dry place that I couldn’t imagine.
And I’ll always remember that bin Laden wasn’t caught until the end of my second year of law school. This one man defined the last 10 years of American policy and the way we as Americans lived and traveled. My own father was often stopped at the gates of the military base he worked on and his car was searched for incendiary devices solely because he is a swarthy man* with a mustache, something that had never happened before in his whole career. Due to new technology, we’re all seen naked by TSA agents every time we want to get onto a plane.
And I’m not sure how I feel. The memories of “where I was when” are incredibly powerful. It’s shocking to me that these events are going to be in the history books of my own child one day. It’s amazing to me that one day that child is going to ask me about it. And I think that what will color that story is what happens next. Does this mean that the mission is finally accomplished? Will troop withdrawals actually start in 60 days? Or will this just start an era of new faith in a disorganized war that should never have started?
What happens next? And where will we be?
_____________________________________________
*Due to spending years on the deck of a naval ship
Friday, April 29, 2011
Indiana, You've Disappointed Me Again...
I am far too busy cross-checking news stories today to be even remotely interested in studying or in writing the paper that's due in approximately 100 hours. Why, you ask? Because the Indiana legislature is at it again.
Indiana is the first state to defund Planned Parenthood. Which, okay, conservative family values, yada yada yada. It's really almost expected. The real problem is that this bill will probably cause Indiana to lose all $4 million that it got for family planning services last year. And this is where it gets funny.*
Let's be real: this bill really passed because Planned Parenthood gives abortions ALL THE TIME.** And abortions are bad. But how can we prevent abortions? Well, we COULD cut all the money that goes to them. OR we could do something much more radical. We could provide proper family planning services that teach people how to not get pregnant in the first place. Well, look at that. That's what Planned Parenthood DOES! Why, with more education at a proper family planning center, we could have fewer abortions! Especially since there can be NO learning about anything other than abstinence at school.
Are you paying attention, Indiana? There's more than one way to skin a cat.***
Moreover, beyond the whole "Do you really not get how to prevent abortions being necessary" thing, this law is INCREDIBLY paternalistic. I know lots of people who went to Planned Parenthood. I went to Planned Parenthood, too. Not for any sort of medical procedure, but to ask the questions we couldn't ask at home, at church,**** or even at school. (Again, not that they would have been answered. See link above.) By taking away services like this, you're forcing people to either ask questions where they are too scared to do so or just not to have proper information in the first place. This bill will help take away people's right to make choices for themselves, based on their own lives. And not just poor people, but young people and scared people, too.
Plus, in the words of my mother, "What are all the people who pray outside of the Planned Parenthood going to do now? They're going to have way too much free time."*****
Mitch Daniels is expected to sign this bill into law, even though he called for a truce on social issues.****** This is saddening because for me it means that the state I grew up in has become a place that I'm no longer proud of between this and the anti-gay amendment. This is why young people don't want to go back. Nobody wants to say "I live in Indiana," when the legislature proves time and time again that bigotry, hate, and misinformation reign supreme in that little Red land.
If you're an Indiana citizen, I urge you to really think about this issue and write to Governor Daniels. We young people will never change anything if we don't get loud first. Tell Governor Daniels that his real problem with brain drain is not anything to do with jobs, but rather has everything to do with not wanting to associate with a state that's 50 years behind. Prove that at least some of the citizenry can actually use their brains to make a decision about an issue, not just have a knee-jerk reaction to a scary word.
_____________________
*I use this term loosely. I think I mean "ironic," but so many people use that word incorrectly, (I'm looking at you, Alanis Morissette) that I'm not even entirely sure what it means anymore.
**This is not true. Only about 3% of Planned Parenthood's funds go towards abortions. But then, you should look at this chart, because it's funny, and probably where people THINK PP's spending goes.
***I'm trying to put things in folksy terms so that people who don't get "actions = consequences" will be able to understand.
****No, seriously, once my youth group had "ask a priest" night, where we were encouraged to ask Fr. Herman all of our questions about sex. Never mind that we didn't really want to ask anything. ANYWAY, all of the answers came down to "God doesn't like that," which was not extraordinarily helpful.
*****My mother is much cooler than I used to think she was. Also, I know people who actually did this in their free time. They'll probably have to go to jail now and pray for an end to capital punishment. Oh, wait. Pro-lifers don't do that. Also, in the words of my mother "A life is a life. If you're going to say you're going to support capital punishment, then you're still CHOOSING to end a life, which pretty much makes you pro-choice." Go Mom.
******He's also expected to run for President. Signing this bill would probably ruin his political career. As it should.
Indiana is the first state to defund Planned Parenthood. Which, okay, conservative family values, yada yada yada. It's really almost expected. The real problem is that this bill will probably cause Indiana to lose all $4 million that it got for family planning services last year. And this is where it gets funny.*
Let's be real: this bill really passed because Planned Parenthood gives abortions ALL THE TIME.** And abortions are bad. But how can we prevent abortions? Well, we COULD cut all the money that goes to them. OR we could do something much more radical. We could provide proper family planning services that teach people how to not get pregnant in the first place. Well, look at that. That's what Planned Parenthood DOES! Why, with more education at a proper family planning center, we could have fewer abortions! Especially since there can be NO learning about anything other than abstinence at school.
Are you paying attention, Indiana? There's more than one way to skin a cat.***
Moreover, beyond the whole "Do you really not get how to prevent abortions being necessary" thing, this law is INCREDIBLY paternalistic. I know lots of people who went to Planned Parenthood. I went to Planned Parenthood, too. Not for any sort of medical procedure, but to ask the questions we couldn't ask at home, at church,**** or even at school. (Again, not that they would have been answered. See link above.) By taking away services like this, you're forcing people to either ask questions where they are too scared to do so or just not to have proper information in the first place. This bill will help take away people's right to make choices for themselves, based on their own lives. And not just poor people, but young people and scared people, too.
Plus, in the words of my mother, "What are all the people who pray outside of the Planned Parenthood going to do now? They're going to have way too much free time."*****
Mitch Daniels is expected to sign this bill into law, even though he called for a truce on social issues.****** This is saddening because for me it means that the state I grew up in has become a place that I'm no longer proud of between this and the anti-gay amendment. This is why young people don't want to go back. Nobody wants to say "I live in Indiana," when the legislature proves time and time again that bigotry, hate, and misinformation reign supreme in that little Red land.
If you're an Indiana citizen, I urge you to really think about this issue and write to Governor Daniels. We young people will never change anything if we don't get loud first. Tell Governor Daniels that his real problem with brain drain is not anything to do with jobs, but rather has everything to do with not wanting to associate with a state that's 50 years behind. Prove that at least some of the citizenry can actually use their brains to make a decision about an issue, not just have a knee-jerk reaction to a scary word.
_____________________
*I use this term loosely. I think I mean "ironic," but so many people use that word incorrectly, (I'm looking at you, Alanis Morissette) that I'm not even entirely sure what it means anymore.
**This is not true. Only about 3% of Planned Parenthood's funds go towards abortions. But then, you should look at this chart, because it's funny, and probably where people THINK PP's spending goes.
***I'm trying to put things in folksy terms so that people who don't get "actions = consequences" will be able to understand.
****No, seriously, once my youth group had "ask a priest" night, where we were encouraged to ask Fr. Herman all of our questions about sex. Never mind that we didn't really want to ask anything. ANYWAY, all of the answers came down to "God doesn't like that," which was not extraordinarily helpful.
*****My mother is much cooler than I used to think she was. Also, I know people who actually did this in their free time. They'll probably have to go to jail now and pray for an end to capital punishment. Oh, wait. Pro-lifers don't do that. Also, in the words of my mother "A life is a life. If you're going to say you're going to support capital punishment, then you're still CHOOSING to end a life, which pretty much makes you pro-choice." Go Mom.
******He's also expected to run for President. Signing this bill would probably ruin his political career. As it should.
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Truth or Consequences
Consequences.
The world is full of them. And usually they're a hell of a lot more immediate than "if a butterfly flaps his wings in Tokyo..." (Which, let me say, is not really a theory that I buy.) The consequences I'm currently dealing with? I have PLENTY of time to study! Instead I'll spend time with the Boy one weekend and then go take a four day weekend at home with my family the next weekend!
Consequences?
Didn't do that great on my final trial for trial ad and just started studying for finals TODAY. (And I mean JUST STARTED. Like, at noon today.) So I'm both disappointed and feeling a little sick at the prospect of finishing everything on time.
But there are such things as POSITIVE consequences too! Like the fact that I feel incredibly relaxed and my brain is full of oxytocin from the amount of chocolate I ate this weekend. And I'm not that worried about my trial ad grade. Why? Because I worked my butt off for that class during the semester and rocked it weekly. So, you know, I didn't put in the work at the end. No big deal.
The trick is to think about the consequences ahead of time.
1. KNOW THYSELF. I don't accomplish things if I leave Chicago. And I don't really accomplish anything other than reading in my apartment. So I know that if I want to accomplish something, I have to go to the library. If I don't go because I don't want to put pants on,* I know that I'm not going to get the work done. Because I know how I operate.
2. DON'T LIE. Yeah, just because you know yourself doesn't mean you're getting anywhere. This is where I usually get tripped up. Sure, I know that if I stay in my apartment I won't get anything done, but I usually end up telling myself "You can totally work from home today! You feel super motivated!" My other favorite self-delusion is "Five more minutes of wasting time and I'll get back to work." If you know the facts, go with them.
3. FIND YOUR MOTIVATION. I know I've talked about proper motivation before, but really, you can't be too motivated. Sometimes that motivation is positive, like a margarita at the end of the day, or some tv watching before bed, but I like to think in terms of negative reinforcement when it comes to consequences. That's why whenever I'm making a decision, big or small, I like to pretend all the consequences are in the voice of my mother. That way I get that feeling of guilt-ridden guidance!
4. THINK POSITIVE! I know I just said to be negative, but make sure you consider the positive consequences that will flow from a decision as well as the negative ones. Sure, sleeping in is a waste of time, but you know what's great about it? That feeling of sneaky well-being. Maybe you shouldn't go out on Friday night. After all, you're broke and too busy studying. But hey! Life needs balance and you need to stop sitting and staring at a computer screen! Just remember: When considering your pros/cons list, really consider the pros of the situation.
_____________________________________________
*Which is what happened yesterday.
The world is full of them. And usually they're a hell of a lot more immediate than "if a butterfly flaps his wings in Tokyo..." (Which, let me say, is not really a theory that I buy.) The consequences I'm currently dealing with? I have PLENTY of time to study! Instead I'll spend time with the Boy one weekend and then go take a four day weekend at home with my family the next weekend!
Consequences?
Didn't do that great on my final trial for trial ad and just started studying for finals TODAY. (And I mean JUST STARTED. Like, at noon today.) So I'm both disappointed and feeling a little sick at the prospect of finishing everything on time.
But there are such things as POSITIVE consequences too! Like the fact that I feel incredibly relaxed and my brain is full of oxytocin from the amount of chocolate I ate this weekend. And I'm not that worried about my trial ad grade. Why? Because I worked my butt off for that class during the semester and rocked it weekly. So, you know, I didn't put in the work at the end. No big deal.
The trick is to think about the consequences ahead of time.
1. KNOW THYSELF. I don't accomplish things if I leave Chicago. And I don't really accomplish anything other than reading in my apartment. So I know that if I want to accomplish something, I have to go to the library. If I don't go because I don't want to put pants on,* I know that I'm not going to get the work done. Because I know how I operate.
2. DON'T LIE. Yeah, just because you know yourself doesn't mean you're getting anywhere. This is where I usually get tripped up. Sure, I know that if I stay in my apartment I won't get anything done, but I usually end up telling myself "You can totally work from home today! You feel super motivated!" My other favorite self-delusion is "Five more minutes of wasting time and I'll get back to work." If you know the facts, go with them.
3. FIND YOUR MOTIVATION. I know I've talked about proper motivation before, but really, you can't be too motivated. Sometimes that motivation is positive, like a margarita at the end of the day, or some tv watching before bed, but I like to think in terms of negative reinforcement when it comes to consequences. That's why whenever I'm making a decision, big or small, I like to pretend all the consequences are in the voice of my mother. That way I get that feeling of guilt-ridden guidance!
4. THINK POSITIVE! I know I just said to be negative, but make sure you consider the positive consequences that will flow from a decision as well as the negative ones. Sure, sleeping in is a waste of time, but you know what's great about it? That feeling of sneaky well-being. Maybe you shouldn't go out on Friday night. After all, you're broke and too busy studying. But hey! Life needs balance and you need to stop sitting and staring at a computer screen! Just remember: When considering your pros/cons list, really consider the pros of the situation.
_____________________________________________
*Which is what happened yesterday.
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