The Day After Tomorrow

Is it just me, or is the first week back after Spring Break awful?  Winter break is three weeks long, and by the time it's over, you're about ready to go back.  Spring Break is one week long and when it comes time to go back, you feel as though you're being dragged back kicking and screaming.  Seriously, it's not like I even got to DO anything.*

The worst part is how you think, "Okay, I'm going to be really busy today, so I need to stay on schedule and keep moving through."  The thing is, I'm NOT that busy.  I even made a to-do list, but I don't have THAT much more to do than I did before Spring Break.  Two more activities.  Two.  That actually fit into my schedule fairly well.  It just all feels like too much.  I even woke up before 7 am solely because I was worried** that I would miss my first class because I overslept.

I also realized this morning that FINAL EXAMS start in a month.  You're welcome.

In other words, if I can stop myself from having an unnecessary stress-related heart attack until Thursday at noon, I will consider the whole week a win.

Please address all questions or complaints about the brevity of Spring Break to management in the comment box below.  Thanks!

__________________________
*I did get to go see The King's Speech.  It was super amazing.
**Also possibly because I've been on Eastern time for 10 days now, so my body was pretty sure it was almost 8 o'clock.

So....it's Spring Break now, right?

I am quite literally counting down the hours to Spring Break.  For me at least, Spring Break starts in 76 hours.  SEVENTY-SIX HOURS.  My impatience knows no bounds.  My body is buzzing with the knowledge that I will soon be free at last, free at last, thank God almighty, etc. etc.

Of course, this means it's that much harder to accomplish anything.  And daylight's savings time has me all kinds of confused.  It's my bedtime right now.*  I think I'll probably be up for at least another hour.**  This is the hardest time of year for me.

I know that I have so much to do, but it's hard to make myself do any of it.  For instance, in order to avoid doing nine pages of reading for Secured Transactions, I spent two hours cleaning my room and bathroom, watched Sister Wives, and listened to Bruce Springsteen's "If I Should Fall Behind" six times.***

I am NOT coming out.  You can't make me.

Lucky for me, I'm well aware that I'm not alone in my oxymoronically antsy ennui.  This is the hardest time of spring semester for any student.  In fall, you get all sorts of little breaks, whereas in spring it's school for weeks and weeks until FINALLY eleven days of glorious nothing stretches before you.  Of course, this is where spring semester burnout comes into play.  At this point, you're so sure you deserve a break that you stop working.  Guess what?

You don't deserve it.  Just get your work done.  And then enjoy your Spring Break.  Because we're getting back to that part of the semester where you can't remember the last time you showered.

Oh yay!

_____________________________________
*Yes, I have a bedtime.  Don't judge.
**Unless I abuse OTC medication for its sleepy time powers.  Which I refuse to do.
***Guys, this is a really good song, and yes I am listening to it again right now.

Girl Meets World

Dear Universe,

CAN YOU NOT TAKE A HINT?  I have been sabotaging myself on purpose for the last 3 months so that I would have a reason to quit this endeavor!  Why, universe, why are you making my life so difficult?  I deliberately procrastinated so that nobody would be able to read my article by the deadline, then made a list of professors who would not want to read the article anyway in order to get no for an answer.

And INSTEAD, the very first professor agrees to read it, but tells me that he really only has time in the next week.  My article is nowhere near completion, especially as I had to add another tweak to my thesis tonight which is going to take substantial revision.  THIS IS NOT A FUNNY JOKE, UNIVERSE.  NO ONE IS LAUGHING.

When I get through this next month and a half, we are going to have a talk, Universe.  And when I say "we," I mean you, me, and the Large Hadron Collider.  We'll see how funny everything is when I END YOU FOR YOUR INSOLENCE.

My apologies to everyone who is going to lose out in this battle between myself and the Universe.  You are mere fluff caught in a cosmic battle for my sanity.

Respectfully yours,

Amanda in Chicago

Back to Where We Started From....

So......It's Monday.  January 3rd.  And I'm in Rinn Law Library.  Alone.  I have not seen a single other person who is not a member of the staff here today.  In fact, when I walked in all the staff members glared at me.  Like it was MY fault they had to be here.  No, my darlings, you chose to be LIBRARIANS.  So you have to work on January 3rd.  Unlike me.  I'm here by (mostly) choice.*

It's actually rather upsetting to think that one day in the very near future, I will not be working alone on January 3rd.  In fact, we will all be working on January 3rd.  Because we'll be in the real world.  Where you don't get to just take a month off to read fiction, watch television, bake cookies, and generally rot your brain.  We'll actually have to work.  And guys, there will be consequences to our actions!

The mere thought of not living in a perpetually hypothetical world leaves me quaking in my (stylish, yet affordable) boots.**

But on the plus side, at least I won't be the only one at work on a Monday morning.  You can all suffer with me.

__________________________
*And partly, "Oh my God, I forgot to accomplish anything over the last 2.5 weeks."
**I am not actually wearing boots right now.

I Need a Hug

Can we just talk about me for a minute?  I'm having my usual semester-ly crisis of self and having had a bad day yesterday, I'm feeling a little down and out.  Plus, my iTunes keeps playing "Life sucks, then you die" music which is not helping my mood even a little bit.

I like dead bodies.  Not in a necrophiliac way, you sicko, I just like how informative bodies are.  From the time I was thirteen, I wanted to be a forensic pathologist and cut up dead bodies.  I would have been good at that too because you don't have to talk to anybody.  You examine the body, fill out the proper paperwork, and may be called to testify on your findings, etc.  You have no idea how much I hate talking to people.

I'm not bad at public speaking, mind you.  I rather ENJOY public speaking.  I'm bad at CONVERSATIONS.  There's a big difference there.  It's why I prefer to study at home than go out and socialize.  The idea of having a conversation with someone I don't know well makes me feel like vomiting.

So back to my previous point, I wanted to be a forensic pathologist.  But when I explained what that was to my mother, it wasn't received well.  "Are you kidding?  I'm supposed to tell people that my daughter cuts up DEAD PEOPLE for a living?"  (My mother denies this conversation ever happened.  But I know it did, because (1) My mother forgets a lot of conversations, and (2) It was TRAUMATIC, people.)  So cutting up dead people was out since my family seemed horrified by it.

I had a very difficult time picking out a major in college.  Regardless of the bad spelling, grammar, and idea-flow that generally characterizes this blog, I'm actually a great writer.  I'm SMART dammit!  (For any who have watched the "Very Potter Sequel" on Youtube, I feel like the song "The Coolest Girl" is my whole life.)  Point being, as many law students will tell you, getting a bachelor's degree was something of a joke.  But like a homeschooler entering public school for the first time, I totally needed the socialization so it was probably good for me.

I eventually became an anthropology major because people without a life plan get a liberal arts degree and hope things work out.  My favorite classes involved evolutionary theory and osteology.  (Our osteology final was a bunch of small bones and bone fragments in a box.  We had to figure out what all the bones were, separate the animal bones from the human ones, and determine how many people were in the box.  There were three people by the way.  Three completely unmatched patellas just GAVE it away.)

Anyway, I would have made a great anthropologist, because while you have conversations, you don't have to talk, just listen and ask the right questions.  I learned how to do ethnographic interviews and transmit my findings.  I learned how to examine the heck out of ancient documents.  (I can read a census out of the early 1800s and pull all SORTS of interesting information out of it.)  I can develop a thesis, research that thesis, and write a kickass paper on it in a matter of hours.  (It's true.  I once wrote a twenty-page term paper on the use of traditional aztec rhythms and instruments in Mexican nationalist music in three days.)  I can design an entire course for freshman students, and I can talk about why primates are AWESOME for hours.

But that only translates so well to the law.  Especially the monkey part.  Interestingly, attorneys don't want to hear about why chimpanzee language use is absolutely breathtaking or that the Azande's justice system revolves around sorcery and black magic.  And even if they did, I wouldn't be able to tell them about it.  *See above, about not being able to talk to strangers.*

Most days I feel like I ended up here because I didn't know what else to do.  What I do know is that I'm among the thousands of twenty-somethings who are asking "How did I end up in law school?"  and more importantly, "What do I do now?"

In Absentia

So I was thinking the other day, "You know, I promised myself I would keep up with the blog, but I just haven't been.  I'm feeling a little guilty."  And then I checked one of my other favorite blogs last night, and saw what basically felt like an admonition for not posting regularly.  It's like my internet hero swooped down and shook her finger at me for not complaining to all 20 of you who read this.  (And yes, I know there are at LEAST 20 of you.  I've checked the stats.)  So let me apologize.  And then let me say:

I AM STUDYING 15 HOURS A DAY FOR FINALS.

Seriously, LSBFF sent me a text yesterday that said, "Are you in the library or dead in a ditch somewhere?"  (It's so good to know someone cares.)

Point being, I have to go outline now (and forever).  Things are going to be irregular for a couple weeks.  But I'm going to throw up my handy dandy exam tips that have nothing to do with substantive material over the weekend.

Can I offer you some advice right now?  Quit trying to win on a technicality.  Professors generally don't CARE about technicalities.  They have 80 exams to grade.  Figure out the rules, a couple general policy concerns, and get ready to write an essay or two.  Seriously, there is NO POINT in trying to understand all of Wigmore's and Blackstone's advice now.  They are a million years old and all of their advice has been codified into one form or another by now anyway if it matters to a single legislature in the United States.  If it hasn't been, then their advice was probably stupid anyway.  Also, your professor doesn't care about it.  80 students, 240 essays to read.  They're just skimming for the rules and how you apply them anyway.

In other words: Study like myself and my father before me.  The KISS method:  Keep It Simple, Stupid.  My daddy taught me that when I was 11, and it hasn't failed me yet.

In the meantime, I'm going to try to hit 45 hours on Pandora by Sunday while trying desperately to understand what's going on in my courses.

For all you other law students/undergraduate students/graduate students in other disciplines:  Just hold out.  It's just a couple tests for the love of Pete.*

Go ahead, wish each other luck below.  You know that karma wants you to.

__________________
*Who is Pete anyway?

Gather Around and You Shall Hear...

Of the cite-checking journey of Amanda the Law Student!

Wait, that doesn't work.

Typing this real fast while I scarf down some mac and cheese before class.  (My dietary habits have really gone straight to hell.)

"What is that?" I hear you saying.  THAT is a cite-checking binder and it is 2 inches thick of paper, and 10 hours of work SO FAR.  Some advice for all you 1Ls planning your future:  When thinking of taking on journal responsibilities, think of all the work you'll have to do, then multiply it by two.  Because "Staff Member of ________" really means "Journal Bitch Who Does the Scut Work."

Cite-checking:
1.  Find all of the sources mentioned in the citations you're checking.  They must be PRINT versions or the scanned PDFs of print versions.  Even in the age of the internet, there can be NO internet sources.
2.  Make copies of all of those sources.  However many copies you will need.
3.  Separate those sources by citation.  Put them in a handy tabbed binder.
4.  Get out your handy dandy highlighter because now you get to find what all of the information in the article you're cite-checking refers to in the sources!  Highlight all of that source material so that your editors know exactly where it came from.  Also don't forget the publication/decision date, author's name, page number, and name of journal/reporter.  Or you will have to go back to step 2 and make more copies.
5.  Editing below and above the line.  Remember my "Journal Bitch" comment above?  Yep!  Now you get to go through and make sure EACH of the author's citation formats are correct.  For over 100 sources!  Because the author is a 60 year old man who can't be BOTHERED to format his own citations.  That's why we have staff members!  Then you edit the actual text, to make sure there are no grammar or plagiarism style mistakes.
6.  Turn in your binder to editorial board members who will inevitably tell you that you didn't do it right.
7.  Wait for next hellish assignment.

It's due tomorrow and I haven't started step 5 yet.

Yep.  Worst.  Decision.  Ever.

Anybody out there have a different/similar journal experience they'd like to share?

You Will Curse the Day You Did Not Do.....

Le sigh.  It is going to be a long week.  I need to work on my article, my appellate brief, my cite-checking assignment, and somehow get all my reading done.  And I should probably start outlining.  Eventually.  It's only Monday morning, and I think I'm ready to have a panic attack.  Why?  Because I have already been annoyed multiple times today!  Shall we count together?

1.  The undergrads.  Dear undergraduate students.  I realize that sometimes you, too, have classes in the Lewis building.  Please take the designated elevators for your building though.  They are larger and there's a skybridge to Lewis.  That way, we law students can take our designated elevators and not have to wait for all five hundred of you to go up first.  Also, if you were NOT the first person there, don't cram yourself onto the elevator.   Seriously.  If I beat you to the line of elevators, I will accidentally-on-purpose hit you in the face with my 30 pound backpack when you try to squeeze me out of said elevator.  (I did that this morning.  Violence is sometimes the answer.)  I don't CARE that you're going to be late to class.  Spend less time on your hair in the morning, and take an earlier train.

2.  Sick.  Ugh.  I HATE being sick.  And it's that lovely cold virus that we all have, so I'm constantly sniffling and sneezing and having everyone glare at me for being a plague rat.  And since everyone thinks I'm going to give them a disease, Nyquil is my only friend.  (And what a glorious friend it is too, considering the construction going on outside my window.)

3.  The Construction Outside My Window.  I don't know what you're doing to the road out there, but must you start jackhammering at 5:30 am?  And those metal plates you've been putting down to cover up the holes you're making?  Yeah, cars driving over those all night is a loud, loud thing.

4.  I'm a loser.  The Boy keeps beating me at Scrabble.  I am the Scrabble Queen!!  This is such an embarrassment to the title.

5.  Phantom of the Opera.  Seriously, if I have to hear the song "All I Ask of You" one more time on Pandora, I will END someone.  I love the website with all my heart, but it seems to think I love listening to Sarah Brightman OVER AND OVER AGAIN.  I don't.  At all.  Not even a little bit.

What Do You Mean I Have to Stay Here? The Sun Finally Came Out!

Have you ever noticed how some days everything is easy, and on other days it's like pulling teeth to get things done.  I promised myself I would get five full pages written on my article today, preferably before Evidence at 2:30.  Well, it's 1:00, I've been working for about 2.5 hours, and I've written one page.  ONE PAGE.  I write a sentence, realize it looks wrong/is on the wrong topic/doesn't flow from the previous sentence, and have to erase it.  And once I finally get it written in an appropriate way, I still have to find support for it from one of the many articles/cases in my 10 pound notebook of research.  

I don't think it's a motivation thing.  Sure, I'm not really feeling motivated, but that's usually the case, so it's nothing new.  I just think some days your brain is so fuzzy that you honestly can't accomplish anything.  And it's not my fault.  I had my phone stolen, so I don't have random texts coming in every half hour or so to make me laugh while I work, and LSBFF forgot her keys last night and I had to let her in late.

Apparently, she was banging on the door to our apartment for a solid fifteen minutes last night before I got out of bed to let her in.  Why?  Because I was asleep, and when I heard the very rhythmic, very loud knocking, I assumed (in my sleepy brain) that LSBFF was decorating the living room and hammering things into the walls.  I was so pissed at her for deciding to decorate in the middle of the night.  Eventually, the thought made its way to my brain that it was insane to decorate in the middle of the night and LSBFF is not insane.  So I got up and let her in.  Of course, in my sleepy state, I wasn't thinking very clearly, so I didn't actually pick up my glasses so that I could see who I was letting into the apartment.  Fortunately, it was my roomie and not a serial killer.  WIN.

Now back to attempting to summarize the justifications of textualism.

Everybody Limbo!

Had a quick conversation with a friend today about how hard it is sometimes to be one of the young folks in law school.  When it comes to legal education, you can go one of two routes:  (1) You can take some time off and make sure this is really what you want, or (2) you can go straight to law school from college so that you don't have time to talk yourself out of it.  Like the majority of law students, I came to the legal world straight out of undergrad, with nary a year to spare, and I'm starting to feel like I'm living in limbo.

There are only 581 days left of this harrowing experience known as law school, but it stretches out before me like an Indiana highway:  Flat, long, and with corn blocking my vision on both sides.  My current goal for coping is to wear blinders like a spooked horse and concentrate on the short term goals immediately before me and try not to notice neither the life that is (hopefully) waiting for me nor the present fun that other people are having.  I'm living in the in-between, where all that matters is this moment, and the short-sightedness is starting to make me antsy.

"In the Divine Comedy, Dante depicts Limbo as the first circle of Hell, located beyond the river Acheron but before the judgment seat of Minos. The virtuous pagans of classical history and mythology inhabit a brightly lit and beautiful—but somber—castle which is seemingly a medieval version of Elysium. They include Hector, Julius Caesar, and Virgil."*

In order for Dante to travel deeper into Hell, he has to wait in Limbo for Virgil to come along and show him around.

If I'm in limbo now, I don't know what that means for the future.

Or if I want my own personal Virgil to show up.

I'm fine without traveling to the ninth circle, but thanks so much!


__________
*Thanks Wikipedia! 

 

I Can Go The Distance. (And So Can You!)

Oh man.  This has been one of those weeks.  On Monday, my body was sure it was Thursday, and it's been confused about why the weekend hasn't started ever since.  Today my goal was just to stay awake and I nearly failed.  Twice.  And since I'm not really in the mood to wax poetic, I gift you with a List.

How To Keep Going Even Though You Want Desperately to Say "Screw It"

1.  Just do it.  Sorry for the Nike endorsement, but seriously quit whining about your sad life and just get it done.  If you're reading and falling asleep (like yours truly) start taking notes in the margins.  If you're trying to write and it's like pulling teeth because you can't figure out what to say (also like yours truly) just start throwing words on a page and make it pretty later.  Seriously.  Don't stop what you're doing just because you're tired or frustrated.  If you stop now, you'll just have to do it later.  Not.  Worth.  It.

2.  Posture.  Have you REALLY thought about your posture?  Slumping in your chair is going to make you sleepier.  If you find your lids closing against  your will, readjust yourself.  Pick your butt slightly out of your chair, stretch your arms way over your head, and take a deep breath while sitting back down.  Make sure that as you make contact with the chair, your shoulders are set back and not rounded.  Open your eyes as wide as you can, just briefly, and breathe deeply into your diaphragm.  Let the oxygen get to your brain, and have your body send your mind a message that denotes your alertness.

3.  Bribery.  Look, I'm not proud of it, but we all get to the point where we've already had a really long day and there's a lot left.  On those days, I bribe myself.  I tell myself, "Two more hours and you can stop on the way home for a library book."  Or, "if you just finish this, you can get Thai takeout on the way home."  There's nothing better for making me get things done than telling myself I can have something I really want.  And it works every time.*

4.  Take a Break.  You can only look at words on a page or a screen for so long before they start to blur together.  Arrange short breaks for yourself on intervals of an hour or so.  My favorites?  If I'm in the library or the student lounge, I like to give myself ten minutes on gchat with a friend every hour.  It gives me something to look forward to when I'm working in solitude, plus it's pretty easy to get back to work.  If I'm at home, I like to pick a favorite song on Itunes and dance in my room.  It gets the blood pumping again, and I get to be goofy for just a few minutes.  Having that extra energy from shaking my sillies out works wonders.

5.  Disney Music.  Yes, I know it's cheesy, but when half the songs are about doing the best you can and being awesome, how can it NOT be great inspiration for when you're feeling a little low?  Sometimes I feel like law school is just one big production of Mulan.**

That's about it.  What do you do when you have to keep going, no matter how much your brain/body is begging you to stop?

_______________________
*I have to admit, sometimes my bribe is as simple as "If you get this done, you can go home.  That's usually enough to get me to do my work.

**Not really.  But it probably is trying to make a man out of me and allow me to bring honor to my family.  Or something.

Take a Letter, Maria

Dear Girl-Whose-Name-I-Totally-Know-But-Feel-Like-I-Shouldn’t-Broadcast-Here:

The ninth floor bathroom is markedly tiny. Three bathroom stalls, one sink, and one place to dry your hands. It’s why people move through this bathroom so quickly. No one wants to wait in line before or after class for too long. Moreover, you know how many people are in that bathroom at any given time. It’s small. You can tell when You’re Not Alone.

Which is probably why when I finished using the bathroom and was ready to wash my hands I thought you would move. I never expected your vanity would stop me from cleanliness, which we all know is next to godliness. And, it was okay when it seemed that you were just putting your hair up and leaving, but then you took it back down. And then you slowly put it back up, piece by long blonde piece, checking your reflection in the mirror from every direction after each little bit of gathering you did. And then you put it back down.

To put it back up again. And at that point I had been waiting to wash my hands for a good three minutes. You knew I was there, and I knew you knew I was there. And trust me, it was all I could do to not make a sarcastic comment. (I’ve come a long way since I needed to comment on everything.) But I have to know: Is it painful being so self-absorbed that you can’t step away from the mirror for the time it takes me to sing “Happy Birthday” twice? (Washing your hands is a serious business.)

And it’s not like you’re short. No, you’re tall enough that taking three steps backward would mean that you could still see yourself in the mirror. And I would be hunched over washing my hands at the sink for short people anyway. Why are you still doing your hair?

Then someone else walked in and you dropped all the hair in your hands and walked out of the bathroom, knowing that someone else in the bathroom would see your vanity meant that it could easily be spread around. All that work, and you decided to wear your hair down.

You have totally made it into my future sitcom as “Vain Girl” #2.

Oh. And when I got done washing my hands, I got out of the way to make sure that the next person could wash theirs.

Thank you for nothing,

Amanda

P.S. For someone who's so worried about their appearance, today you looked super trashy.

P.P.S. So there.

Hail the Conquering 2L

Well, we've returned after an all-too-short summer break. It's been a week of classes now, and let me tell you what makes me happy:

My morning run.

And that's about it. I'm taking Evidence, Wills & Trusts, Business Organizations, Collective Bargaining, and LARC III. I also really need to get cracking on this law review stuff. But things being what they are (overwhelming and boring all at the same time) I'll probably just do LARC research today and go back to bed.

After all, I still don't have curtains, which means I don't get to sleep past 6 am. Which happens to be why I fall asleep at 10 pm. (That is said for the courtesy of my roomie, who happens to be LSBFF, who must be wondering why I'm going to bed so godawful early.) Things I plan to talk about over the next week or two:

1. The silly 1L's

2. The place I'm living (with LSBFF, which just makes the whole thing more kickass)

3. How to keep a cool head in tough situations (2 excedrin and a nap)

4. Why I hate Business Organizations

5. My current television obsessions and why every law student should have Netflix

Not necessarily in that order though, because I REALLY hate BizOrgs and will need to vent very, very soon.

This was one of the more random posts. Happy New School Year!!

Please don't make me go to school!!! I'll just hide under the bed awhile.

Shiny, Happy People

Dear Diary,

I now remember why I never come home and I hate it here so much

Oooo. Too melodramatic. Must stop channeling eighth grade.

The fact is, everything that glitters doesn't remain gold for long. The other fact is that I spend a lot of time on a lawnmower lately, and I spend more than enough time thinking.

At first, being at home was a great joy. I remembered how life used to be and it was this weird feeling of mini-nostalgia. But now trying to get the lawn mowed before it rains while the neighbors laugh at my stupid mistakes doesn't feel so good. It mostly feels like I have to bust my ass to make $50 a week so that I can buy a tiny cup of $1 coffee twice a week and still afford insurance, etc.

Work is great, I guess, except that there's not enough for me to do. Today I sat for two hours while I waited for phone calls. I did all of the petitions and orders necessary for a guardianship case, made appointments, called attorneys for advice on appropriate notice, and sent three client letters. I was still done by 12:30. I'm beginning to think that efficiency is not appreciated in the working world.

So summer has lost its glow and it's mid-June. But that doesn't mean I'm excited for school to start. Just like time at home, law school has about a two-week shiny period. Classes are new, the cases are different and exciting, you're caught up with your work and get to see friends every weekend. And then, just like that, the glitter is gone. You remember that the reason you're learning all this information is to take an exam, that you're paying far too much money in tuition to spend time going out with friends and that you're already behind in reading those exciting new cases.

No, I'm not ready for a whole new period of shiny yet. Shiny can be disappointing. It's better to wait until life is unbearably dull, because then shiny, though short-lived, is incredibly exciting.

Every Thorn Has Its Rose

It's been a whirlwind couple of days. My mom came to get me in Chicago, but got off on the wrong exit and ended up in the ghetto. West Jackson WAY past Malcom X University. In a great big shiny red truck. She finally got to me, we got everything loaded and we got it home. Of course, by the time we got home the basement was about to flood because it rained for about a week straight and the ground was super-saturated. And we have a psycho puppy. Who will kamikaze you. As in, you're sitting on the couch, he'll get a running start, jump on you, jump off, run back across the room and do it again. (He's awesome.)

Then yesterday while unpacking, I realized I was missing some clothes. Specifically undergarments. I left all of my bras except the one I was wearing and the sports bra that was in the laundry in a drawer in my apartment in Chicago. And the dorm I lived in informed me that everything that was left behind would be donated to charity. It was The Worst. At least the one I had been wearing is the newest one.

But I got to go shopping and get margaritas with my friend, the other Amanda. And when I woke up this morning, it was a gorgeous day of sunshineyness that's going to be in the 70s. So I put on shorts and a long-sleeve t-shirt and took Loki out for a walk/run. It was great. He may be mischievous, but his legs are so short that ten minutes of running has him sleeping on the floor by the time you get back. He'll be sedate and compliant the rest of the day. Which is just the way we like him. He's a good dog. He just gets excited about the weirdest things. But how can you NOT love a dog who loves chasing birds and butterflies and goes out of his way to stomp on dandelions? You would have to be dead inside.

I think I'm finally figuring out this relaxing thing. It's going to be awesome. For a week.

Begin the Beguine

I still haven't figured out what a beguine is. I guess I should just google it, but I like a little mystery in my old jazz standards, don't you?

15 days until it's over. A whole year of law school behind me. I can't wait. However, I could probably do without the 2 weeks leading up to that amazing moment.

Last semester, our reading period was about 3 days, and each of our professors was trying to hold last minute review sessions. It made finals time feel even more stressful than it was. This semester we have a whole week to study. I'm finding that this is both good and bad. All this extra time means that I can schedule my studying better for optimal learning ability. However, all this extra time leads to a strong desire to slack off and take a couple hours away from work. That is not acceptable.

Studying for finals is a lesson in marathons. By the end of it, you're bleary-eyed and can't think straight anymore. Your head is filled with law, and your brain is just dying for a break. You can't sleep, however, because all of a sudden in your dreams you've forgotten what "cover" means in a contract for goods and you have to check it on your outline right that second. Nothing else will do. It is one of the most exhausting things I've ever had to do, and I've never done anything like it before.

In undergrad, even my hardest finals were only given 3 hours of study time. And that time was spent on the couch, relaxing with roommates while we watched tv. Not exactly the worst time of my life. Studying for finals in law school involves blocking yourself away from the rest of the world, headphones in to block noise, staring at notes and your computer screen for hours at a time. Sometimes you get company in the form of a study group. Today's involved absolutely ridiculous hypotheticals for criminal law.*

The point is, this is the worst part of the semester. I did a full twelve hours today, and I felt LAZY.

If it's the worst, at least it's also the shortest. 15 days.

_______________________

*Today we killed Baby B in a variety of ways trying to figure out what the appropriate mens rea was for different degrees of murder. I don't think he appreciated the humor.

A Love Letter

I was faithful. I was kind. I tried everything that you wanted me to. I was always honest with you. About my love, about my schedule, about everything you needed from me. We were together all the time. In school, in the park, on the street, even in the bath, I was holding on to you with all my strength.

But I guess if you really love something you have to let it go, and if it comes back to you it was meant to be. But I needed you, and I still need you! I can't get through this life without you! Why are you determined to hurt me so much? Why do you want to give me such stabbing pain that sends me to my bed alone for hours.

I'm spending time and tears on you and you give me nothing in return! And I need you more than ever at this point. You can't desert me now! I need you round the clock, like I need to breathe!

Oh, coffee, I have to give you up in order to avoid the migraines.

I'm with your half brother Decaf now. It's not as good as when I was with you.

Forever love,

Me

Yo Ho Yo Ho A Pirate's Life For Me!

We’re discussing adverse possession in Property right now. It’s apparently a really important topic. So I’m glad we’re only spending two days on it and the professor is discussing it in his usual ambiguous way of having charts on the board with A,B,C,D written all over them. Each letter refers to a party, a piece of property, and a past owner of ONE parcel of property. In other words, there are three of each letter, each referring to a different object. There’s also some simple math up on the board and he’s been circling random blank spots on the board. And the words “rebellious convention.” Oh. Wait. No, it’s “reasonable connection” And he’s apparently creating a hypo with a whole NEW chart that makes no sense. Look, more numbers and letters. AND A CHART! That has no reference points.

Is it any wonder I don’t get anything out of property? I’m never going to be a half decent lawyer.

I'm getting a new career.

Land Pirate.

It Depends How You Define Productivity...

I need to have Bravo taken off my cable network. It's like visual crack. I don't know how many hours I watched of Millionaire Matchmaker last night. (Okay, it was six hours. Yes, I'm ashamed of myself.) Bravo marathons are not good for me. I did, however, manage to get my taxes done, organize some insurance stuff, and make a to do list. It's like being productive. I had to do all those things.

At any rate, today is already looking like a bad day. It's rainy and gross outside. I'm using an umbrella. After a week of 70 and 80 degree weather, the high for the next few days is barely going to reach 50. And I forgot my coat today. Moreover, Dunkin' Donuts is having one of their off days where they try to train people during the 8:30 am rush. Not only did I have to explain my order 3 times, I still got the wrong cup of coffee. And it tastes burned. I still have to call the insurance company (which I hate doing) and I have to go to the post office which is always full of people.

On the other hand, Easter candy is half off. Yay.

But the thing that bugs me the most? People walking in late to class. Every day. Every once in a while is fine. But the same people walk in 5-20 minutes late EVERY DAY. When the professor looks around the room, sees it's only half full and asks someone "Is the clock in here wrong?" you should probably start coming to class on time.

I mean, stuff happens, it's a fact. You missed your train, you fell asleep in the shower, the undergrads were overfilling the elevators and you couldn't get up to the eighth floor, it all happens. But when it happens every day, it's rude and distracting.

Also, it makes my day even worse than it was before.

BREAKING NEWS!!

Well, not really. Rather, just news, classified in easy to understand categories.

THINGS I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN, THAT I APPARENTLY DIDN'T:

Don't attempt to run with pulled muscles. Look. I knew that aerobics wasn't what I was good at. But when I accidentally ended up going through an advanced body sculpting class, and couldn't walk for three days with muscles pulled from my knees to my neck, I decided that I could be in better shape. And today, a week after the most awful 60 minutes of my life, when I moved onto the next part of my training schedule my hamstrings protested. First with mild demands for attention, and after the third mile with screaming, crampy yells. Apparently I'm not healed yet. Must stop trying to be a hero. For....no one.*

THINGS I KNOW THAT OTHER PEOPLE ARE CONFUSED ABOUT:

Only jerks print PDF's on the library printers. Look, everyone loves the free** printing available in the Law Library. Especially right before the major legal writing assignments are due. However, when you try to print PDF's to those printers, they can only print ONE PAGE AT A TIME. And those pages are sent one at a time to the printers. So your 80 page document takes 4 hours to print. It's really kind of a jerk move to tie up a printer for four hours. If you find it absolutely necessary, please do it at 8 am when nobody needs the printers. Not at 2 in the afternoon. Because let me be honest here: I am that girl who will cancel your print job in order to get mine through. I have no scruples.

THINGS WE BOTH ALREADY KNEW:

Ricky Martin is gay? This is so shocking! Except not. Because I was alive in the 90s. Seriously, did anyone think the guy who sang "She Bangs" and "Shake your Bon-Bon" was straight? I'd love to give the human race more credit than that. Seriously, I don't think even Sue Sylvester would need him to Swish It Up. Seriously, the guy is the hispanic Clay Aiken/Ryan Seacrest hybrid.

Jesse James is a stupid man. Seriously, you would trade Sandra Bullock***, she of the Oscar, friendly smile, good comedic timing, and general awesomeness for THIS? A tattoo model and possible nazi? One's man trash is another man's treasure I guess, but who would trade in Sandra for a trashy tattoo model nazi??? Clearly, James was threatened by the extreme force of awesome that is his wife. Ick.

AND IN OTHER NEWS:

Happy Passover!**** Baby B is celebrating the heritage of his people this week and all I can tell is that it's ruining Law Free Lunch. He can't eat ANYWHERE because of the processed grains thing. Look, Baby B, you eat pork ALL THE TIME. You are already terrible at being Jewish.***** Stop ruining my week with your silly religious needs.

_______________________

*"I could be your hero baby!" Seriously, taking applications.

**With outrageous amounts of tuition, of course

***I realize she's not everyone's cup of tea, but objectively I feel she can be considered awesome.

****Do you wish people a happy passover? Not sure about Jewish etiquette.

*****Don't take this too hard. I haven't been to a confession in years.