Anonymous Law Student: The No Relationship Zone

I found this post to be a very interesting comment on the effect law school can have on realtionships.

I'm not sure why this has not happened to my relationship with B. Maybe its because he lives an hour away. Maybe its because he is extremely laid back. Maybe its because he loves me.

or....maybe its because I was always a pain in the ass so this isn't too much of a change. :)

Summer Love

Finally we have BEAUTIFUL weather here! I washed my car, soaked up some sun, and sat outside until it got dark (while getting numerous bug bites).

I love summer!!

In other thoughts, B told his grandma today that I am one of those people who are book smart but common sense stupid. I tried to argue...but then I had to tell him that I accidentally used rubbing compound instead of car wax on the ENTIRE car today :)

What A Week!

First, I would like to say thanks to the guys who offered advice after my first day of work...although I think I knew not to sleep with anyone ;) (hopefully anyway)

This turned out to be SUCH a crazy and interesting week. In my first week of work I have now flown round trip on the firm plane, stayed 2 nights in a hotel, made it through orientation, and turned in my first memo!!

So far it seems good....everyone really is SUPER nice so far. Even the partner in our office is really nice and accessible. In fact, I made the trip on the plane with him :)

I hope everyone is having a good summer so far....and have a great long weekend! :)

Day 1

So today was the first day of the summer law firm job. I was SUPER nervous last night and this morning...I barely slept at all.

Everyone...and I really mean everyone...in the office was extremely nice. We are allowed to dress business casual unless going to court...and this includes open toed shoes and really pretty casual clothes.

The only scary part: I was assigend a memo that is due tomorrow or the next day...and is the same kind of thing we spent 6 weeks on in LRRW!

Welcome to the real world :)

Not Two of a Kind

This conversation occured a couple of months ago while we were waiting for LRRW to start.

I was talking to my fried E about my boyfriend B. Even though I consider her a very good friend, E has never met B because E has a child and a husband and rarely hangs out with us outside of school.

Anyway, she asked me what B is like and I told her he is EXTREMELY laid back. She looked at me and said she knew he had to be that way.

When I asked what she meant she looked me in the eye and said "Two people like you could never date each other."

When I looked at her with a confused look on my face, she went on to explain that "Two people as uptight as you in a relationship would kill each other."

Good to know that my friends know the real me :)

Summer Break Report

So far I have been on summer break for 14 days. It has rained for 8 of those days. I have thoroughly cleaned the kitchen, the garage, and completed numerous loads of laundry.

On the other hand, I have accomplished a few of the items on the "Things to do this Summer" list.

I made it to the zoo...and got to see a baby kangaroo!! It was very exciting:) (easily amused...I know).

But by far today was the best day of break so far. B finally had a day off...so he took me out for a "Me" day. One of my favorite activites is shopping...so he took me to a mall 45 minute away and hung out while I thorougly enjoyed myself for 4 hours. Then he took me to dinner at my FAVORITE restaurant...and then surprised me with a gift when we got home. (I bought him a pair of sandals at the mall:)

Now its time to finish my law review application and start (continue) worrying about starting the new job on Monday.

Some Practical 1L Advice:

Since the advice "Don't Do It!!" will not work for those seriously intent on going to law school...I thought of a few practical pieces of advice:

1. Buy you books online at a site such as Amazon.com. You can usually get a list of the books you will need from the university bookstore site online. It is MUCH MUCH cheaper to get your books this way (unless you have some thing about havin new books that no one has used before). I happen to find used books helpful because much of the outlining is already done and I sometimes find the notes in the margins to be helpful.

Also, whem you are finished with the books....sell them on Amazon. You will get much more than you will from the bookstore.

2. Get as many commercial outlines as you can.
The Profs will tell you not to--but this really is a big fat lie. I found commercial outlines to be EXTREMELY helpful.
You can also get these used on Amazon.

3. Find what works for you.
People will tell you how to make your outlines, that you must study in study groups, and a myriad of other pieces of advice.
You just have to figure out wha works best for you.
I personally did not find study groups helpful.

4. Outlines
Law school will stress outlines...and they truly are helpful. However...you must figure out what kind of outline works best for you. Legally Blonde seems to like to use tabbing in her outlines. Some people make HUGE outlines. I needed short to the point outlines that told me just what I needed to know.

Procrastination

Its interesting the things one is willing to do to avoid doing work.

I was supposed to be working on my law review application yesterday. Instead I cleaned out the cabinets in the kitchen and cleaned the garage. I started at 10am and finished at 4pm. And...I actually enjoyed it!!

Hopefully I get all of this procrastination out of my system very very soon. :)

One Week

I have one week remaining before I start my summer job. I would like to go to a major league baseball game, a minor league game, go to the zoo, take a boat out on the river, go on a major shopping trip, and get a manicure and pedicure.

I also have to write my law review submission.

I love summer :)

Reflection

I recently added the new link The Law Student's Tale to my links. This guy is a thirty-something male who is going to law school in Texas after time out in the real world.

Now this guy obviously has different experiences than me coming into law school because he has experience in the real world, while I had very very limited experience before coming to law school.

However, I still find it interesting to follow the experiences of a new 1L. This is the first blawg by a new law student that I have come across...and I feel compelled to follow his expereinces because they remind me of my own experiences.

I cannot believe how fast this year went...and I'm interested to see how his year goes.

Wash Your Car

Maybe this is because I grew up in the suburbs...but when I say I am going to "wash my car" I mean that I am going to break out the hose and a bucket and wash the car by hand in my driveway. I will use dish soap and warm water and ajax on my tires. I will use Windex and paper towels on the windows and the vaccum cleaner on the floors.

When I say I am going to wash my car...that does not mean I am going to pay 9 bucks for a half assed rinse at some overpriced drivethrough "car wash".

Stick It

I saw the movie Stick It last night...and I have to say I LOVED it.

I think all law students should have to see this movie at some point...it drives home the message about not taking yourself too seriously...which I think we all need a healthy dose of in law school.

Also, B says this movie is great for guys who like to see girls in leotards :)

Perspective

I only have a minute to post....but I wanted to put this thought out there.

A kid in my class said today that there is only on day left until the end of the worst year of his life.

Now i agree that life as a 1L was tough...and I wouldn't want to have to do it over again. And if he feels that this was the worst year of his life then I am not one to disagree.

However, for me, this does not even come close to the worst year of my life. Sure, there were plenty of times I called my Dad or B sobbing and begging to quit. There were the times when I thought for sure this was some level of hell. But this was FAR from being the worst year of my life.

I guess its all about perspective....

A Crow in the Snow: More on Parents

This post made me think of my relationship (or lack thereof) with my future in laws. They are very nice people...but very different from my family. Consequently, B rarely takes me to see them. In fact, in 6 years I have probably been there less than 10 times (and DEFINATELY less than 20). On the other hand, B has been to my house more times than I could possibly ever count.

Some differences:
1. My family has almost no divorce in it. My Dad is a widower...but I think this is definately different than divorce. On the other hand B's family has tons of divorce in it.

2. Different socioeconomic strata.

3. My family does not see fighting as the answer to anything.

4. Lots of other little differences.

None of these bother me...but I do wonder if they will lead to some problems in the future. I know B and I see eye to eye on the major issues...but I'm aware that his family and I could butt heads in the future.

Best TV Cops

If I had to choose my favorite tv cop of all time I would have to go with the late great Lenny Briscoe from the original Law and Order.

Lenny was a stright shooter who always told it how it was...and he was FUNNY too. His constant sarcasm drove the cops portion of the show and allowed him to work well with any partner.

A close tie for second would be Benson and Stabler from Law and Order SVU. Their constant sexuality and dedication to the job makes them fun to watch.

As a side not...my favorite tv lawyer would have to be Jack McCoy from Law and Order.

Any thoughts? :)

Birth Horror

Melissa from Opinionistas wrote a post about the horrors of pregnancy. This post spurred a few thoughts in my head.

First, I had heard that they will give you an enema a the hospital if there is time...and if there is not time you may lose your bowels as you give birth.

One question I find amusing is considering this fact in light of the show "A Baby Story" on TLC. Never on those episodes do they even allude to the fact that the woman just lost her lunch...and the husband never looks horrified.

This naturally makes me think of what B will be like if we ever have children.

First, he swears he will not be able to be in the room. I kinda believe this becuase he has quite a weak stomach and will probably end up puking or passed out on the floor.

However, he says he might be able to do it if he stays near my head. So I warned him...he CANNOT say things like "Good job honey. Push sweetie. I know it hurts sweetie." I would freak out if I had to listen to that crap. :) and he knows it.

Choices

Because of the large number of transfers and second year students in my Con Law class, we have the option to take the take home exam either Wednesday or Thursday.

Most of my class is thinking we should take it on Thursday in order to have the extra time on Wednesday to "study".

I however am thinking that I disagree with this idea. Basically, I highly doubt that anything I do on Wednesday to prepare is going to outweigh the benefit of being finished with exams an entire day early.