Well, not it's not *really* the economy...more like "geez, this is more work in a week than I've ever had to do before [except maybe when I wrote a 40-page graduate qualitative research paper in four days - but let's just say that was a BAD experience, in which I actually locked myself in my office, and one which I hope never to repeat again], so I probably won't have time to blog again before the weekend."
Things I gotta do:
* Twelve page memo (this only after reading 10 cases, about 400-500 pages total, maybe?) due Thursday
* Pleading written assignment due Thursday
* Compile a list of biographies for a journal-sponsored conference I signed up to help with
* Contracts reading for "tomorrow" which is really today since it's now 4:15 am; torts, procedure, and con law reading for Wednesday
* Secure at least one for-sure partner for my non-law-school-job, and work a bunch of other contacts
So....I hope you'll cut me some slack. I promise, my thoughts about Cat's school's new grading scheme are coming; plus, updates and other random stuff.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Saturday, September 27, 2008
To Grade or Not to Grade?
The dean has just announced that she's considering replacing A,B,C etc. grades with Honors, Pass, Low Pass, and Fail. This has prompted what I've nickednamed (not so fondly) the Great Grade Debate. I have no strong opinions on the subject, but everyone else seems to. Unfortunately, I think the heated arguments will continue until the dean announces her decision (and likely well after.)
In other law school news, we too have started writing briefs. Unlike SB, we have a special class just devoted to learning to write like a lawyer. Beore I started the class, I thought that just meant adding in a lot of "heretofores" and weird latin phrases. Unfortunately, it is not so simple - we get a fact pattern and then have to find, analyze, and apply the relevant law. Of course, we have no idea what the revelant law might be, since we've only had four weeks of law school. I had to have more than one beer before I could even take a stab at our brief. Luckily, we too get to meet with a 2L before handing in the memo. I'm not sure who this helps more - us, or the professor, who instead of reading astoundingly tragically awful briefs just reads somewhat tragically awful briefs. Either way, I'm grateful.
My apartment has reached that special level of chaos that only comes at the end of a week in law school. I'm not sure how to resolve this, other than constantly nagging my boyfriend. Also, I have the nagging feeling that learning how to think like a lawyer is just making solving my actual problems more difficult. Thank god I'm not getting a grade on life - under either system, I think I'd be in trouble.
In other law school news, we too have started writing briefs. Unlike SB, we have a special class just devoted to learning to write like a lawyer. Beore I started the class, I thought that just meant adding in a lot of "heretofores" and weird latin phrases. Unfortunately, it is not so simple - we get a fact pattern and then have to find, analyze, and apply the relevant law. Of course, we have no idea what the revelant law might be, since we've only had four weeks of law school. I had to have more than one beer before I could even take a stab at our brief. Luckily, we too get to meet with a 2L before handing in the memo. I'm not sure who this helps more - us, or the professor, who instead of reading astoundingly tragically awful briefs just reads somewhat tragically awful briefs. Either way, I'm grateful.
My apartment has reached that special level of chaos that only comes at the end of a week in law school. I'm not sure how to resolve this, other than constantly nagging my boyfriend. Also, I have the nagging feeling that learning how to think like a lawyer is just making solving my actual problems more difficult. Thank god I'm not getting a grade on life - under either system, I think I'd be in trouble.
Procrastination Leads to Political Action
I didn't make it to the group viewing of the debate at school tonight, but I caught the second half of the debate at home and followed it closely on Twitter. Then a college acquaintance of mine got angry about one of my (misinterpreted, on her part) tweets, and sent me an angry message on my Facebook wall. A few quick back-and-forths later, she realized I was NOT: a) insulting Michelle Obama or b) insulting Barack Obama. Well then.
On a rainy Friday night, what better to do post-debate than exercise some quasi-political views? A few days ago in the midst of my con law procrastination, I was paging through an issue of Marie Claire, which I generally find to be the most intelligent of the trashy women's magazines. That is, until I stumbled upon this gem of an article: How to Talk About Politics You Don't Really Understand - A shamelessly oversimplified cocktail-party guide to where the candidates stand on the big questions.
Some highlights:
Now, I'm not the MOST politically-aware person out there; I'll admit, there are a LOT of issues that I should learn more about - taxes, the economy, and energy policy being just a few examples. But, c'mon...that last one isn't even coherent.
So, I wrote an angry e-mail to the editor:
Dear Marie Claire,
I am *extremely* disappointed with your article, How to Talk About Issues You Don't Really Understand (by Yael Kohen and Lauren Iannotti, pg. 122 - October 2008). Rather than giving your readers "smarty-pants sound [bites]," why not encourage them to learn more about the complicated and important issues up for debate in the election? If you really want to empower women to act intelligently within the political system, give them the tools to exercise their well-informed voice in the voting booth - NOT at a cocktail party.
To be perfectly frank, I am insulted that you would encourage women - even tongue-in-cheek - to use any of the lines in your article. A woman who hasn't thought critically about the differences between the candidates most likely has no idea who de Tocqueville or Keynes were, or the effects they have had on society. Please stop promoting the idea that women don't (or don't need to) care about the future of our country; we're the majority of the electorate, but we have no hope of being elected to the highest office in the land if we limit our political involvement to "[kicking] back, [mixing] up some cocktails, and [watching] the returns roll in." Maybe you could have given instructions for how to register to vote? No partying without pulling the lever first.
I'm never reading your magazine again.
And that, dear readers, is the extent of my productiveness for this Friday. Zero class reading done. Zero laundry done. Meh. That's what the real weekend is for, right?
On a rainy Friday night, what better to do post-debate than exercise some quasi-political views? A few days ago in the midst of my con law procrastination, I was paging through an issue of Marie Claire, which I generally find to be the most intelligent of the trashy women's magazines. That is, until I stumbled upon this gem of an article: How to Talk About Politics You Don't Really Understand - A shamelessly oversimplified cocktail-party guide to where the candidates stand on the big questions.
Some highlights:
YOUR SMARTY-PANTS SOUND BITE [about the War]
"Well, Iraq isn't the first time we've overestimated an enemy. Hello, NSC-68? The intelligence report that grossly misrepresented Russia's capabilities, jump-started the Cold War, and pushed us into a decades-long arms race? Duh."
YOUR SMARTY-PANTS SOUND BITE [about Energy]
"You know, in New Zealand, where sheep outnumber people 10 to 1, over half of greenhouse gases come from the country's 50 million livestock. If only they could harness all that methane . . . could you pass the bean dip?"
Now, I'm not the MOST politically-aware person out there; I'll admit, there are a LOT of issues that I should learn more about - taxes, the economy, and energy policy being just a few examples. But, c'mon...that last one isn't even coherent.
So, I wrote an angry e-mail to the editor:
Dear Marie Claire,
I am *extremely* disappointed with your article, How to Talk About Issues You Don't Really Understand (by Yael Kohen and Lauren Iannotti, pg. 122 - October 2008). Rather than giving your readers "smarty-pants sound [bites]," why not encourage them to learn more about the complicated and important issues up for debate in the election? If you really want to empower women to act intelligently within the political system, give them the tools to exercise their well-informed voice in the voting booth - NOT at a cocktail party.
To be perfectly frank, I am insulted that you would encourage women - even tongue-in-cheek - to use any of the lines in your article. A woman who hasn't thought critically about the differences between the candidates most likely has no idea who de Tocqueville or Keynes were, or the effects they have had on society. Please stop promoting the idea that women don't (or don't need to) care about the future of our country; we're the majority of the electorate, but we have no hope of being elected to the highest office in the land if we limit our political involvement to "[kicking] back, [mixing] up some cocktails, and [watching] the returns roll in." Maybe you could have given instructions for how to register to vote? No partying without pulling the lever first.
I'm never reading your magazine again.
And that, dear readers, is the extent of my productiveness for this Friday. Zero class reading done. Zero laundry done. Meh. That's what the real weekend is for, right?
Thursday, September 25, 2008
We Get Free Cable...Turns Out That's Not Always Good
My roommates are both gone till Sunday (so like, 5 or 6 days away from school - in the first month! I'd freak out...but then, we don't have grades, so....), so I have the apartment all to myself. It's been awesome. Even though I love them dearly, and I lived all of last year with anywhere between 5-8 roommates at a time, it's going to be super-helpful* if I can take advantage of the distraction-free* environment to work on my writing assignments this weekend.
*Note: It's very unlikely that any real work will be done if I'm in the apartment. It's too tempting to watch tv. I've watched approximately 6 hours of Law & Order in the past two days [that's part of my education, right?!?]. Plus 3 hours of the Golf Channel. And a couple hours of football. And Project Runway. And Top Design. Perhaps the only deterrent is that our couch isn't particularly comfortable after the first hour. Obviously, though, that hasn't stopped me yet.
Boo. Writing assignments. We have a 12-page memo to write by next Thursday for our small group class (con law), wherein we're supposed to make arguments based on a "closed-world" set of 9 cases that have been given to us by our professor. We have to submit a draft to be edited by our TAs before it's seen by the professor, so not particularly a be-all-end-all situation, but I think the consensus is that we don't want to look utterly stupid. We also have to write a complaint (in partners) for our procedure class. Also due Thursday. C'mon, professors...coordinate?
On the good side, this week has been nice (and will continue to be so) because a couple of my professors have canceled class. I can sleep in till basically whenever I want tomorrow and Monday. I should use that time to work on my writing assignments. I will likely just do laundry, and work on my non-law-school-job work. Oh well. One to 3 am is the most productive window of the day, right?
A few random things:
* Lexis/WestLaw free printing (only of law cases, but since that's all I read these days...) is amazing. It saved me from spending $130 on a contracts book. I actually like the red Lexis logo printed on all the pages. And the rewards programs for using their services seem sweet, since I'd be using them anyway. My law student self looks back on my high school debater self [which unabashedly flirted with debate guys that had Lexis passwords, in hopes of getting to use them] and says, "Whoa! My own Lexis password! I'm on top of the world!"
* Note from my apartment's management (seemingly directed at the undergrads that live in many of the other apartments), paraphrased:
* You know you're back in school when you start planning for your school vacations. We have a week off in October (it's fly-back week for 2Ls doing firm interviews, and everyone else just gets a vacation), so I've been planning my escape this week. One small group is organizing a trip to Costa Rica. I have two trips planned for the bookend weekends - one to the Midwest, and the other to a city/state I haven't been out west.
* Things my schoolmates have written/done this week (I'm feeling more and more inadequate by the day...):
*Note: It's very unlikely that any real work will be done if I'm in the apartment. It's too tempting to watch tv. I've watched approximately 6 hours of Law & Order in the past two days [that's part of my education, right?!?]. Plus 3 hours of the Golf Channel. And a couple hours of football. And Project Runway. And Top Design. Perhaps the only deterrent is that our couch isn't particularly comfortable after the first hour. Obviously, though, that hasn't stopped me yet.
Boo. Writing assignments. We have a 12-page memo to write by next Thursday for our small group class (con law), wherein we're supposed to make arguments based on a "closed-world" set of 9 cases that have been given to us by our professor. We have to submit a draft to be edited by our TAs before it's seen by the professor, so not particularly a be-all-end-all situation, but I think the consensus is that we don't want to look utterly stupid. We also have to write a complaint (in partners) for our procedure class. Also due Thursday. C'mon, professors...coordinate?
On the good side, this week has been nice (and will continue to be so) because a couple of my professors have canceled class. I can sleep in till basically whenever I want tomorrow and Monday. I should use that time to work on my writing assignments. I will likely just do laundry, and work on my non-law-school-job work. Oh well. One to 3 am is the most productive window of the day, right?
A few random things:
* Lexis/WestLaw free printing (only of law cases, but since that's all I read these days...) is amazing. It saved me from spending $130 on a contracts book. I actually like the red Lexis logo printed on all the pages. And the rewards programs for using their services seem sweet, since I'd be using them anyway. My law student self looks back on my high school debater self [which unabashedly flirted with debate guys that had Lexis passwords, in hopes of getting to use them] and says, "Whoa! My own Lexis password! I'm on top of the world!"
* Note from my apartment's management (seemingly directed at the undergrads that live in many of the other apartments), paraphrased:
"It has come to our attention that there has been drinking in the hallways. Parties are not allowed in the hallways, or on the steps, or in the parking lot. We'll evict you if you keep being loud. Thanks for being great tenants."We love our management. Yeah, not long ago we were those obnoxious undergrads (and we try to avoid seeing ourselves as the grumpy grad students), but it's a little ridiculous to have thumping base radiating through our door at 4am. On a Monday night.
* You know you're back in school when you start planning for your school vacations. We have a week off in October (it's fly-back week for 2Ls doing firm interviews, and everyone else just gets a vacation), so I've been planning my escape this week. One small group is organizing a trip to Costa Rica. I have two trips planned for the bookend weekends - one to the Midwest, and the other to a city/state I haven't been out west.
* Things my schoolmates have written/done this week (I'm feeling more and more inadequate by the day...):
- WashPost op-ed on the financial crisis/bailout plan
- Reflection on David Foster Wallace [one of my favorite writers ever] in NY Mag
- Showing of a documentary about post-9/11 life in America
Monday, September 22, 2008
Training Day
Today was a bit of a breakthrough for me. Not one of those beautifully poetic "everything in law finally makes sense to me - I *will* be a great lawyer!" sort of breakthroughs, though...more like a "finally, I can make it through a day of classes without being haplessly lost at some point" breakthrough. For the past week or so, I've been pretty solid for two of my three full-day-of-classes classes, but today my high school debate experience proved unexpectedly useful in a discussion about federalism (summarily abbreviated as 'fism' in my notes, as has been the case since 9th grade) and centralization/decentralization (aka the states CP in high school policy debate).
When I got unexpectedly called on in my small group (I read most of my con law cases on the computer rather than printing them out - I think this makes me somewhat vulnerable to the target of 'let's try to find someone who's surfing the internet' cold calls in small group, but I prefer to save some trees...and some money...so I guess a few targeted questions is the price I pay instead), I took a broad sweeping guess at something as vague as possible (I really had no idea what he was asking, and I had only just read (read: skimmed) the opinion about an hour beforehand) - and it turns out that me saying the word "...goal...?" was just what he was looking for. Score.
Then, in an in-class brainstorming session, I managed not to sound like an idiot when comparing centralized and decentralized models of power. That's some states counter-planning for you.
This was in the afternoon, following a morning in which my procedure class was presented with our 'client,' for whom we're supposed to write a complaint this week with a partner. We got to pepper him with questions for about an hour, and it was really quite interesting to think about how the process of client intake happens, especially in cases like this hypothetical one, in which an individual is alleging some sort of (religious? gender?) discrimination. I felt like I managed to ask a few interesting, probing questions - and I was doubly impressed by everyone else's line of questioning. Clearly, we really have no idea what we're doing, and there were a few light moments, such as: "Other than not using condoms, how do you practice your [Catholic] religious beliefs?" ...but come next Wednesday when our assignment is due, we'll have taken our first step toward being competently practicing lawyers from a school that our professor insists doesn't really teach us how to practice.
**
Also, since some people have asked - Appendix A: General Weekly Schedule [and yes, this is cross-posted from TLS: why write it twice?]
My daily schedule really depends on the day; on Monday & Wednesday I have six hours of class between 830 and 4, so I don't really get much time off during the day - I usually spend the hour or two break prepping/finishing reading for my last class of the day. Sometimes I (gasp!) take a nap after class ends, and then there are group/journal/activity meetings at 6 till maybe 8 or 9. Reading and studying happens after that, sometimes till 1 or 2 - but I'm trying to get on a more rational schedule (sleep by midnight or so), or else I worry I'll have to result to Cat's level of tea (in my case, coffee) intake. [As a completely random side-note, my 2am bedtime/830am class has created a weird situation in which I now gchat occasionally with one of my former employees in India...he's at work across that period, and finds it hilarious that I'm awake then.] Mondays usually involve a big group viewing of Gossip Girl.
On Tuesdays and Thursdays, I have class from 830-10 and then have a break till 4pm (class 4-6). I use that break in the day to catch up on e-mail, do reading, and take care of personal errands and my outside-of-law-school job. Again, evenings are meetings and reading. Thursdays are also Bar Review at a local bar...
Fridays are pretty chill, with class in the morning and sometimes lectures or various legal writing instruction; there is always a school-wide happy hour Friday afternoon. People go out on the weekends (weekends being loosely defined as Wednesday-Saturday nights) for sure.
And, also per request - Appendix B: How Classes are Going
Class difficulty is hard to describe, and I imagine it varies WIDELY across professor and individual student, based on what your interests are and where your background is, too. I would say so far my classes would be something like this [1 = easy, 5 = very hard]:
Contracts: 1 or 2...very little reading, just two cases maybe for each class. Things are pretty easy to follow and the professor doesn't move too quickly. She also told us it's the "easiest class ever."
Torts: 3? Everything in this class is covered extensively in past outlines, and the grand concepts aren't that hard to grasp, but so far, for me, understanding how everything interacts at a granular level has been pretty challenging. The professor's been teaching the class for 50 years, so he knows his stuff - and expects us to, too!
Procedure: 2. Not too much reading, and we've so far had a pretty big emphasis on policy analysis, which is more my thing. The readings are more "plain English" than in torts, and things have been building on each other pretty well so far.
Con Law: 4 to 5. This is my "small group" seminar class, so our professor expects a great deal of interaction. He assigns a lot of reading and speaks quickly when he gets excited about an important point...I'm just learning how to really soak up his class, and today, I think, was my real "breakthrough" (though it might just be because we were talking about a topic that I have comparatively extensive knowledge in - that's not saying much, though...).
When I got unexpectedly called on in my small group (I read most of my con law cases on the computer rather than printing them out - I think this makes me somewhat vulnerable to the target of 'let's try to find someone who's surfing the internet' cold calls in small group, but I prefer to save some trees...and some money...so I guess a few targeted questions is the price I pay instead), I took a broad sweeping guess at something as vague as possible (I really had no idea what he was asking, and I had only just read (read: skimmed) the opinion about an hour beforehand) - and it turns out that me saying the word "...goal...?" was just what he was looking for. Score.
Then, in an in-class brainstorming session, I managed not to sound like an idiot when comparing centralized and decentralized models of power. That's some states counter-planning for you.
This was in the afternoon, following a morning in which my procedure class was presented with our 'client,' for whom we're supposed to write a complaint this week with a partner. We got to pepper him with questions for about an hour, and it was really quite interesting to think about how the process of client intake happens, especially in cases like this hypothetical one, in which an individual is alleging some sort of (religious? gender?) discrimination. I felt like I managed to ask a few interesting, probing questions - and I was doubly impressed by everyone else's line of questioning. Clearly, we really have no idea what we're doing, and there were a few light moments, such as: "Other than not using condoms, how do you practice your [Catholic] religious beliefs?" ...but come next Wednesday when our assignment is due, we'll have taken our first step toward being competently practicing lawyers from a school that our professor insists doesn't really teach us how to practice.
**
Also, since some people have asked - Appendix A: General Weekly Schedule [and yes, this is cross-posted from TLS: why write it twice?]
My daily schedule really depends on the day; on Monday & Wednesday I have six hours of class between 830 and 4, so I don't really get much time off during the day - I usually spend the hour or two break prepping/finishing reading for my last class of the day. Sometimes I (gasp!) take a nap after class ends, and then there are group/journal/activity meetings at 6 till maybe 8 or 9. Reading and studying happens after that, sometimes till 1 or 2 - but I'm trying to get on a more rational schedule (sleep by midnight or so), or else I worry I'll have to result to Cat's level of tea (in my case, coffee) intake. [As a completely random side-note, my 2am bedtime/830am class has created a weird situation in which I now gchat occasionally with one of my former employees in India...he's at work across that period, and finds it hilarious that I'm awake then.] Mondays usually involve a big group viewing of Gossip Girl.
On Tuesdays and Thursdays, I have class from 830-10 and then have a break till 4pm (class 4-6). I use that break in the day to catch up on e-mail, do reading, and take care of personal errands and my outside-of-law-school job. Again, evenings are meetings and reading. Thursdays are also Bar Review at a local bar...
Fridays are pretty chill, with class in the morning and sometimes lectures or various legal writing instruction; there is always a school-wide happy hour Friday afternoon. People go out on the weekends (weekends being loosely defined as Wednesday-Saturday nights) for sure.
And, also per request - Appendix B: How Classes are Going
Class difficulty is hard to describe, and I imagine it varies WIDELY across professor and individual student, based on what your interests are and where your background is, too. I would say so far my classes would be something like this [1 = easy, 5 = very hard]:
Contracts: 1 or 2...very little reading, just two cases maybe for each class. Things are pretty easy to follow and the professor doesn't move too quickly. She also told us it's the "easiest class ever."
Torts: 3? Everything in this class is covered extensively in past outlines, and the grand concepts aren't that hard to grasp, but so far, for me, understanding how everything interacts at a granular level has been pretty challenging. The professor's been teaching the class for 50 years, so he knows his stuff - and expects us to, too!
Procedure: 2. Not too much reading, and we've so far had a pretty big emphasis on policy analysis, which is more my thing. The readings are more "plain English" than in torts, and things have been building on each other pretty well so far.
Con Law: 4 to 5. This is my "small group" seminar class, so our professor expects a great deal of interaction. He assigns a lot of reading and speaks quickly when he gets excited about an important point...I'm just learning how to really soak up his class, and today, I think, was my real "breakthrough" (though it might just be because we were talking about a topic that I have comparatively extensive knowledge in - that's not saying much, though...).
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Activity Avalanche
I had thought law school was a bit overwhelming from week 1, but we've shifted into hyperdrive and exams aren't even on the horizon yet. Like SB, we're picking which activities to join. My section-mates seem to all be members of three journals, two student practice organizations, and are doing another six things on the side. After recovering from a miserable headache I got at the student activities fair, I have concluded that there is no way I am capable of that. In fact, I'm not sure I'm capable of doing anything besides school and some coaching, but I'll take a stab at it.
Although....things are not looking too good. Already my tea intake has jumped from one cup a day to four. Plus, I keep having these horrible dreams about ordinary activities that weirdly become competitive. Like last night, when I dreamt that in order to eat lunch I had to get into a pizza eating contest. I lost, obviously (although I guess I got lunch regardless). Is this some Greek-style omen darkly portending my future? I don't know, and I think I need another cup of tea.
Although....things are not looking too good. Already my tea intake has jumped from one cup a day to four. Plus, I keep having these horrible dreams about ordinary activities that weirdly become competitive. Like last night, when I dreamt that in order to eat lunch I had to get into a pizza eating contest. I lost, obviously (although I guess I got lunch regardless). Is this some Greek-style omen darkly portending my future? I don't know, and I think I need another cup of tea.
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Can Men Be a Part of Law Women?
Over the past week or so, we've been bombarded with invitations to participate in various activities: secondary journals, pro-bono legal assistance projects, volunteer projects, mentorship programs, ethnic/religious affiliation groups, music & drama clubs...the list goes on and on, and at a big university, there are also myriad things to get involved with in the other graduate & professional schools. Next Saturday, I'm participating in a Day of Service event, where I'll be helping with a community art project at the city's public library. Helping people = good. Getting up at 8am on a Saturday to do it = hardest part of the day, I predict.
In any case, quick update: WE FINALLY HAVE INTERNET SERVICE. After a bazillion hours on the phone with a very nice woman named Denise, we finally have uninterrupted, legally-gotten DSL in our apartment. Thank goodness. We were about to go crazy. We quite seriously contemplated telecommunication terrorism in the form of pulling all the other apartments' cable/Internet wires from the central hook-up, just to incentivize their servicemen to actually come to our building to set up our service. Luckily, before that happened, the red light magically turned green - and here we are, 100% more connected to the world, 85% less productive than before, at least as far as law school reading goes.
In the process of getting situated and choosing from among the various groups open to us, I've found myself in a very troubling place. Suddenly, the academic workload, at least as far as time out of class goes (for reading or whatever) is head and shoulders above what I've ever experienced before, at least if I want to actually understand anything that's being written. Why can't law scholars write like scientists?!?!? I never thought I'd actively miss reading science journals, but here. I. am.
The problem arises then: What to sign up for? What to commit to? What to pass on this time [unfortunately, in the midst of the Internet debacle, I wasn't able to apply in time for one thing I had kind of wanted to do...maybe it was just a sign that I'd be over-extending myself??]?
If there's one thing we've learned so far, it's this general rule: Don't rule out anything that offers free food. Luckily, almost every single symposium, lecture, and student group meeting offers lunch or dinner - if you're lucky, it's of the non-pizza variety. I've made or bought food maybe once during the past academic week, and I probably won't need to for the rest of this week or next, based on my current plan. Best of all, at this point, since most of the student group meetings are just informational, there's no commitment, and still - lots of free food.
One group for which there was literally no commitment: Law Women's annual welcome dinner. All you had to do was be a woman. That was easy! We all got on buses and drove to a professor's house out in the suburbs...there was great food, good drinks, and fabulous dessert - just for having been born into (or, you know, currently claiming membership in) the near-half of the population that is female.
Great quote from the dinner:
"When you're sitting in class, not saying anything out loud, and some *guy* raises his hand and says something stupid, you're probably thinking, 'That's wrong!' Well, let me tell you, we professors are thinking he's saying something idiotic, too! We just can't say it. So, please, raise your hand and point out his stupidity!" - Host Professor
*
In any case, quick update: WE FINALLY HAVE INTERNET SERVICE. After a bazillion hours on the phone with a very nice woman named Denise, we finally have uninterrupted, legally-gotten DSL in our apartment. Thank goodness. We were about to go crazy. We quite seriously contemplated telecommunication terrorism in the form of pulling all the other apartments' cable/Internet wires from the central hook-up, just to incentivize their servicemen to actually come to our building to set up our service. Luckily, before that happened, the red light magically turned green - and here we are, 100% more connected to the world, 85% less productive than before, at least as far as law school reading goes.
In the process of getting situated and choosing from among the various groups open to us, I've found myself in a very troubling place. Suddenly, the academic workload, at least as far as time out of class goes (for reading or whatever) is head and shoulders above what I've ever experienced before, at least if I want to actually understand anything that's being written. Why can't law scholars write like scientists?!?!? I never thought I'd actively miss reading science journals, but here. I. am.
The problem arises then: What to sign up for? What to commit to? What to pass on this time [unfortunately, in the midst of the Internet debacle, I wasn't able to apply in time for one thing I had kind of wanted to do...maybe it was just a sign that I'd be over-extending myself??]?
If there's one thing we've learned so far, it's this general rule: Don't rule out anything that offers free food. Luckily, almost every single symposium, lecture, and student group meeting offers lunch or dinner - if you're lucky, it's of the non-pizza variety. I've made or bought food maybe once during the past academic week, and I probably won't need to for the rest of this week or next, based on my current plan. Best of all, at this point, since most of the student group meetings are just informational, there's no commitment, and still - lots of free food.
One group for which there was literally no commitment: Law Women's annual welcome dinner. All you had to do was be a woman. That was easy! We all got on buses and drove to a professor's house out in the suburbs...there was great food, good drinks, and fabulous dessert - just for having been born into (or, you know, currently claiming membership in) the near-half of the population that is female.
Great quote from the dinner:
"When you're sitting in class, not saying anything out loud, and some *guy* raises his hand and says something stupid, you're probably thinking, 'That's wrong!' Well, let me tell you, we professors are thinking he's saying something idiotic, too! We just can't say it. So, please, raise your hand and point out his stupidity!" - Host Professor
*
Saturday, September 13, 2008
134 miles northwest of SB (give or take a few), we asked exactly the same questions at orientation, promptly forgot everyones' names, and then had to spend the next two weeks relearning what we had learned the first day. And awkward could be defined as having to ask "what's your name again" after spending fourteen days with a person. Thank god for mandatory in class name-tags.
I had hoped that law school would start with a let's-ease-you-in-gradually approach, but with several hundred more students, our school (or at least my section) must figure it can afford to drive out a couple of people in the first weeks. Still, I've been surprised and pleased at how friendly everyone is. I was expecting swaggering master-of-the universe types, but instead, most everyone is lovely. There is, of course, that guy who insists on enlightening us as to his (admittedly not as stupid as you would hope) opinion twice every class. Luckily, reading vast swaths of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, while mind numbingly boring, is actually a great bonding mechanism. Because nothing says "will you be my friend" like "did anyone understand section B of rule 15?"*
*Just in case you're dying to know, that's the one that reads:
A party may join two claims even though one of them is contingent on the disposition of the other; but the court may grant relief only in accordance with the parties' relative substantive rights. In particular, a plaintiff may state a claim for money and a claim to set aside a conveyance that is fraudulent as to that plaintiff, without first obtaining a judgment for the money.
I had hoped that law school would start with a let's-ease-you-in-gradually approach, but with several hundred more students, our school (or at least my section) must figure it can afford to drive out a couple of people in the first weeks. Still, I've been surprised and pleased at how friendly everyone is. I was expecting swaggering master-of-the universe types, but instead, most everyone is lovely. There is, of course, that guy who insists on enlightening us as to his (admittedly not as stupid as you would hope) opinion twice every class. Luckily, reading vast swaths of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, while mind numbingly boring, is actually a great bonding mechanism. Because nothing says "will you be my friend" like "did anyone understand section B of rule 15?"*
*Just in case you're dying to know, that's the one that reads:
A party may join two claims even though one of them is contingent on the disposition of the other; but the court may grant relief only in accordance with the parties' relative substantive rights. In particular, a plaintiff may state a claim for money and a claim to set aside a conveyance that is fraudulent as to that plaintiff, without first obtaining a judgment for the money.
Friday, September 12, 2008
What Contract(s) Have You Made Today?
We didn't have Contracts the first week of school, because our professor is recovering from joint replacement, but when we finally had class on Tuesday, the most interesting part of the session (other than her assertion: "This will be the easiest. class. ever.") was when she asked a student, "When was the last time you made a contract?"
"Maybe last week," he said, "I just moved into my apartment, and I [had to deal with the devil incarnate that is] Comcast, to get internet and cable hooked up."
Pause.
"And, I guess...I bought a cup of coffee this morning."
Eventually, this conversation became so long and drawn out that I turned to browsing the internet and catching up on the news in class for the first time [in part, for reasons explained below], but it was generally interesting. Another student claimed she hadn't made a contract in the past 24 hours - the professor seemed unconvinced. Turns out said student walks to school, brings her own food for lunch, and doesn't buy anything. Ever.
***
One of the most trite things that you hear from current and former law students, I think, who are trying to explain what law school is like is that "you start to find the law in everything." I call shenanigans. At least, I hope that I can continue to try to refrain from finding the law in everything - I'll go crazy!
However, it's at times like these that I'm willing to assert my (abysmally minimal) legal training, and when I wish I knew what law I was looking for so that I could take advantage of it: AT&T hates us. At least their internet-"providing" division. We moved in August 27th, and here we are on September 12th without any internet signal [save for the smidge of a single bar I'm currently getting by sitting in the corner of the hallway floor...stealing a signal from our benevolent neighbors]. Suffice it to say, we're not pleased as punch.
Total time on the phone with AT&T: 4.5 hours
Total calls made to AT&T: 6, at least
Friends we've made at AT&T: 0 - Though Angel and Rodrigo were particularly nice, they didn't actually help resolve our problem. In fact, they had no idea what the problem was.
Times we've threatened to call Comcast instead, even though due to a fluke not of our doing, we can't actually get internet from Comcast without giving up our free cable: 2
Hopefully, a cable installer worth his/her salt will show up tomorrow morning at an ungodly hour (we've been told 8am - I'm holding out just an inkling of hope), and we'll no longer be sitting on the floor to connect with the rest of the world. Speaking of which, my butt is getting sore...
"Maybe last week," he said, "I just moved into my apartment, and I [had to deal with the devil incarnate that is] Comcast, to get internet and cable hooked up."
Pause.
"And, I guess...I bought a cup of coffee this morning."
Eventually, this conversation became so long and drawn out that I turned to browsing the internet and catching up on the news in class for the first time [in part, for reasons explained below], but it was generally interesting. Another student claimed she hadn't made a contract in the past 24 hours - the professor seemed unconvinced. Turns out said student walks to school, brings her own food for lunch, and doesn't buy anything. Ever.
***
One of the most trite things that you hear from current and former law students, I think, who are trying to explain what law school is like is that "you start to find the law in everything." I call shenanigans. At least, I hope that I can continue to try to refrain from finding the law in everything - I'll go crazy!
However, it's at times like these that I'm willing to assert my (abysmally minimal) legal training, and when I wish I knew what law I was looking for so that I could take advantage of it: AT&T hates us. At least their internet-"providing" division. We moved in August 27th, and here we are on September 12th without any internet signal [save for the smidge of a single bar I'm currently getting by sitting in the corner of the hallway floor...stealing a signal from our benevolent neighbors]. Suffice it to say, we're not pleased as punch.
Total time on the phone with AT&T: 4.5 hours
Total calls made to AT&T: 6, at least
Friends we've made at AT&T: 0 - Though Angel and Rodrigo were particularly nice, they didn't actually help resolve our problem. In fact, they had no idea what the problem was.
Times we've threatened to call Comcast instead, even though due to a fluke not of our doing, we can't actually get internet from Comcast without giving up our free cable: 2
Hopefully, a cable installer worth his/her salt will show up tomorrow morning at an ungodly hour (we've been told 8am - I'm holding out just an inkling of hope), and we'll no longer be sitting on the floor to connect with the rest of the world. Speaking of which, my butt is getting sore...
Monday, September 8, 2008
Comebacks and Back-Ups
Today ended as any good fall Monday should: Gossip Girl (Tivo-ed, and viewed in a room of ten women and three - yes, three - men...oddly, approximately the same gender breakdown was evident at last night's viewing of the season premier of Entourage) sandwiched between snippets of the season's first edition of Monday Night Football. [Blissfully, three of my professors have deigned it appropriate to regularly assign what seems to be comparatively minimal reading assignments, and I don't have the other class on Tuesdays...plus, after six hours in class today topped off with two hellish hours on the phone with the internet so-called "provider" that refuses to provide till SATURDAY -- even though we called to set up service two WEEKS ago -- I felt some relaxing was appropriate...]
Biggest news of the day comes from the NFL, as two of the off-season's top stories - one of which is quite close to my heart - played out. Tom Brady, the Pats' fearless leader in the face of a crushing Super Bowl defeat, is missing the rest of the season due to a knee injury suffered in yesterday's season opener. I can't say I'm *too* sorry for him, as he's got nurse Gisele to tend to his health...likely after extensive ACL surgery. His back-up did well enough on the radio show, so who knows how the rest of the season will play out? As a transplanted New Englander, I don't really care; as an already-allied fan of another storied team, I hope they lose every game.
Then, after Brett Favre led his new Jet pack [lowercase p] to victory yesterday, Aaron Rodgers turned in an impressive completion rate in his first win of his professional career, four years after becoming Brett's back-up. I couldn't be more proud of the guy - but he could use a good shave along with some training in talking to the press. Still, if you keep beating the Vikings (and Lions, and Bears, and...Cowboys?), you won't hear any complaints from Titletown, Aaron.
Brett's got a comeback that seems so far, so good. I can't say my own return to school has been so easygoing. I think I sort of forgot how to be a student. Planning my day [productively...naps may or may not count as productive, as the semester progresses] around huge breaks in class? Reading and underlining? These are skills that I haven't really needed much during the past year, and suddenly we're thrown to the wolves. (Wolves that mercifully don't dole out grades first semester, but still...) Other than a few days in chemistry freshman year, I can't remember the last time when I really had to try hard to keep up with the flow of arguments and information in class; here, though, I can't seem to let my attention drift to Gmail for even a few seconds without losing the professors' momentum. It's an exhilarating feeling, really, to be surrounded with people that know so much more about this stuff than I do, and to be able to listen to their ideas - at some point, though, I'll probably be asked to say something rather than to just sit and absorb.
Technologically, too, I need to get back on the cutting-edge wagon. My Google Calendar has suddenly been called onto the field, and its color-coded appointments and blocks of time are rapidly proliferating across the coming weeks. My adeptness with its integrative functions is growing...if only my internet signal wasn't (gasp!) stolen and (grr!) spotty...so I guess for now I'll also keep a paper copy back-up; there's something so satisfying about physically crossing off a task in a day planner that I don't think I'll ever be able to give up.
One additional accomplishment/recommendation: Got/get an external hard drive. I picked up this super-cute, super-simple one from SimpleTech, and Time Machine has it running flawlessly.
...don't lose all of the work that will seemingly get done once I get back into the swing of things: check.
Biggest news of the day comes from the NFL, as two of the off-season's top stories - one of which is quite close to my heart - played out. Tom Brady, the Pats' fearless leader in the face of a crushing Super Bowl defeat, is missing the rest of the season due to a knee injury suffered in yesterday's season opener. I can't say I'm *too* sorry for him, as he's got nurse Gisele to tend to his health...likely after extensive ACL surgery. His back-up did well enough on the radio show, so who knows how the rest of the season will play out? As a transplanted New Englander, I don't really care; as an already-allied fan of another storied team, I hope they lose every game.
Then, after Brett Favre led his new Jet pack [lowercase p] to victory yesterday, Aaron Rodgers turned in an impressive completion rate in his first win of his professional career, four years after becoming Brett's back-up. I couldn't be more proud of the guy - but he could use a good shave along with some training in talking to the press. Still, if you keep beating the Vikings (and Lions, and Bears, and...Cowboys?), you won't hear any complaints from Titletown, Aaron.
***
Brett's got a comeback that seems so far, so good. I can't say my own return to school has been so easygoing. I think I sort of forgot how to be a student. Planning my day [productively...naps may or may not count as productive, as the semester progresses] around huge breaks in class? Reading and underlining? These are skills that I haven't really needed much during the past year, and suddenly we're thrown to the wolves. (Wolves that mercifully don't dole out grades first semester, but still...) Other than a few days in chemistry freshman year, I can't remember the last time when I really had to try hard to keep up with the flow of arguments and information in class; here, though, I can't seem to let my attention drift to Gmail for even a few seconds without losing the professors' momentum. It's an exhilarating feeling, really, to be surrounded with people that know so much more about this stuff than I do, and to be able to listen to their ideas - at some point, though, I'll probably be asked to say something rather than to just sit and absorb.
Technologically, too, I need to get back on the cutting-edge wagon. My Google Calendar has suddenly been called onto the field, and its color-coded appointments and blocks of time are rapidly proliferating across the coming weeks. My adeptness with its integrative functions is growing...if only my internet signal wasn't (gasp!) stolen and (grr!) spotty...so I guess for now I'll also keep a paper copy back-up; there's something so satisfying about physically crossing off a task in a day planner that I don't think I'll ever be able to give up.
One additional accomplishment/recommendation: Got/get an external hard drive. I picked up this super-cute, super-simple one from SimpleTech, and Time Machine has it running flawlessly.
...don't lose all of the work that will seemingly get done once I get back into the swing of things: check.
Sunday, September 7, 2008
What's your name...where'd you go to school? and other questions I never want to answer again.
Being "oriented" to new surroundings is always uncomfortable. People come in with very different expectations of what the orienting experience will be like, and some have clearly done more homework than others - in this case, learning all about the various offerings of the University and the city around us. Some just stepped off a plane from Zambia or South Africa or the Amazon...literally. In our case, a Budget rental truck carried our meager (and not-so-meager, weight-wise) possessions to our new home, and we were summarily exhausted. Still, a nametag draped around one's neck is always an open invitation (a command, really!) to introduce oneself, dozens of times over again in a period seemingly too short to catch your breath. As soon as the words wash over you, they're gone in a flurry: there are five Katies and four Michaels.
And so it was on the first day of law school orientation. The 189 of us (plus or minus a dozen or so transfer students, their group actually singled out and identified for us when they were given scarlet-colored folders in contrast with various other groups' array of colors) sat in the Harry Potter-esque dining hall and exchanged pleasantries with those we had met during the admitted students weekend, gave a nod of acknowledgment to those who we recognized from the Class of 2011 Facebook group, and strained our neck to get a glimpse at those who we hadn't yet met - in real life or virtually. Then we were herded into the auditorium, where we were welcomed by the administrators and told how special we are: "Twenty other people were standing behind each of you...wanting your seat here." It's almost as if they wanted us to think, Maybe we *are* special, if even in some small way...after all, most of us weren't the Emmy-winning, radio show-hosting, yo-yo champion hip hop dancers that had been acknowledged and lauded as making our incoming class particularly noteworthy. Some sat up a little straighter in their chairs; others looked around to try to identify the NCAA football Hall of Fame inductee.
Then, "You haven't earned your spot here. Nobody does. But by the time you leave here, you will have earned your place inside these walls." There definitely was a lot of pomp in this place; enough that the granite or limestone or marble or whatever stone it is that the Ivy loves was bursting at the seams. Nobody got up and left in the middle of the Dean's welcome, of course, but the chatter was undeniable at lunch - somehow, we had gotten ourselves admitted into a secret club [a friend of mine, at my pre-law school job, had said to me one day: We never knew anyone who actually went there...we heard those people existed, but I never met one.], and our clothes hadn't even been unpacked yet. Now, how do we avoid screwing up?
And so it was on the first day of law school orientation. The 189 of us (plus or minus a dozen or so transfer students, their group actually singled out and identified for us when they were given scarlet-colored folders in contrast with various other groups' array of colors) sat in the Harry Potter-esque dining hall and exchanged pleasantries with those we had met during the admitted students weekend, gave a nod of acknowledgment to those who we recognized from the Class of 2011 Facebook group, and strained our neck to get a glimpse at those who we hadn't yet met - in real life or virtually. Then we were herded into the auditorium, where we were welcomed by the administrators and told how special we are: "Twenty other people were standing behind each of you...wanting your seat here." It's almost as if they wanted us to think, Maybe we *are* special, if even in some small way...after all, most of us weren't the Emmy-winning, radio show-hosting, yo-yo champion hip hop dancers that had been acknowledged and lauded as making our incoming class particularly noteworthy. Some sat up a little straighter in their chairs; others looked around to try to identify the NCAA football Hall of Fame inductee.
Then, "You haven't earned your spot here. Nobody does. But by the time you leave here, you will have earned your place inside these walls." There definitely was a lot of pomp in this place; enough that the granite or limestone or marble or whatever stone it is that the Ivy loves was bursting at the seams. Nobody got up and left in the middle of the Dean's welcome, of course, but the chatter was undeniable at lunch - somehow, we had gotten ourselves admitted into a secret club [a friend of mine, at my pre-law school job, had said to me one day: We never knew anyone who actually went there...we heard those people existed, but I never met one.], and our clothes hadn't even been unpacked yet. Now, how do we avoid screwing up?
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