What I Learned in Law School

"Do you swear to tell the truth, the WHOLE truth, and nothing but the truth?"

Do these words sound familiar to anyone out there? Well, anyone who has grown up in my generation has to have been bogged down with some sort of court drama. You know these words. You know when you say them. Right before you get on the stand.

Yesterday I got a lesson from my contracts professor. Tell your clients should hold back unless they are asked a question by opposing counsel. We all stared back at her with our mouths open, in shock of what she was telling us we should do. As she looked back she was shocked herself at our... morality.

Then she told us that if we have a problem with that, then we need to "get over it." I couldn't help but laugh at this point. She proceeded to tell us there was nothing wrong with telling your clients to keep their mouth shut unless asked a direct question. See? Lawyers aren't bad people. They're just conditioned. I guess I just always assumed that the whole truth meant holding nothing back. Maybe I was wrong.

I'm quickly acquiring new skills as well. I've never had to play the dating game before. I can honestly say this because I've dated so few people before(remember the future of 100 cats?). The games usually come after I start dating the guy.

I was really bugged Crushee didn't call this weekend. Apparently he thinks I "scowled" at him Friday morning. I guess he didn't realize that I was trying to hold back tears of frustration and pain, so I didn't greet him with enthusiasm. He made a comment to RM, who relayed it back to me. I equated this to why he didn't call.

Sunday night, I devised a plan. I was lucky enough to see him Monday to enact it. I walked up to him and jokingly said, "So I hear you've been spreading rumors about me." He quickly replied that he didn't know what I'm talking about. I then informed him I know he told RM I scowled at him and thought I was sick and that we couldn't have wrong information spreading around school. He then laughed and explained himself. Then I went on to the lack of calling. I commented, "So, you must have had some crazy weekend." Crushee: "Why?" Me: "Because you didn't call to see what we were doing this weekend like you have for the past few weeks." He went on to explain what he did (like I really cared) and I smiled and nodded. (That's the secret to getting along with people.) I then excused myself and when to the library. He told me that he was going there as well. He did, and managed to sit in the within six feet of me.

I think I'm back in the game. As he was leaving, I saw him pass. He looked back at me. Yeah, I got myself back in. Not that I want to date him or anything. I just like having someone like me. Am I that selfish to keep myself in like that? Yes I am. Who doesn't like knowing someone likes them?

He Didn't Call

Oh my gosh, I'm sitting here at the end of the weekend, obsessing about the fact that I guy I don't like didn't call at all this weekend. What does this mean? Does this mean I am this self-centered little bitch who likes guy attention, but pretends that she doesn't when he give it? Or does this mean I'm starting to like him again? Or does this mean I'm just too desperate for my own good? I don't know, but all I can think about is that he didn't call. Well, it's not all I can think about, but it sure is something!

I actually didn't do anything this weekend. It's the first weekend that happened. I'm not sure it really bothers me, but I wish that I had done a little something.

Even though I didn't go anywhere, I still managed to slack on my homework yesterday. I have a memo due this week, and writing it is like trying to make my forehead bleed just by concentrating on writing. I got about 4 paragraphs of that done before I quit to watch my alma mater play. (We're ranked #6 six now.) I wasted my time watching the never-ending, boring game that we won 41-6. Toward the end, all I could think about was listening to the game upstairs while I did homework, but I felt the need to complete the watching.

After that was over, RM and I worked on homework until about 1 in the morning. At least I have contracts done. Then we talked until about 2. By the time I got to sleep, it was 2:30. Needless to say, I woke up a little late this morning. I have to try and finish my memo because I have a meeting with the professor tomorrow. In addition to that I have to finish Tuesday and Wednesday homework.


Gosh, my nature before law school was to procrastinate and feel no guilt. I now work two days in advance for all my classes. I even feel a twinge of guilt when I procrastinate. Nothing to bad because I'm still sitting here on my computer instead of actually doing homework.

Left Alone

Ah, my future 100 cats have proven themselves again. This weekend, I am the only one of the trio without a date. Even if RM isn't really interested in hers, she still has one. Now I'm scared because I'm thinking I would accept Crushee's offer (if he were ever to give me one).

I didn't think that I would before, but now I'm afraid I will just for fear of being left out. Oh, what am I talking about? He's never going to ask me out, so I don't even need to think about this. This is ridiculous. And I wonder why I'll be left with 100 cats. Who else would listen to this ramble?

So, SC and RM have guys taking them out. I have my future cats. Life has a way of evening out. Or not so much because I'm stuck with cats I don't even have yet. This sucks.

Oh, and what's even crazier is the fact that RM and I have found a way to attach two different classes to our everyday lives. We are able to take situations and talk about them in terms of the lessons in class. As helpful as that might be on the final, it still makes us really nerdy, and probably annoying to people not in law school (or sometimes to people who are as well).

That's ok, I know that SC adversely possessed her locker and RM and I are waiting for offers (to which we might be able to make counter-offers) not invitations to negotiate.

Who Is It Really About?

I'm not sure who hasn't heard the Carly Simon song, but I'm sure you know the chorus. "You're so vain. You probably think this song is about you." Am I the only one who sees the problem with this song?

She's singing... That lends itself to be a song, right? She's singing about a guy. She goes on to describe him very well. Then she tells him he's vain. THEN she goes on to say he probably thinks the song is about him. Well, if it's not him, then who is it?


If Carly were standing on the stage with two guys, I highly doubt she's singing to vain-y then when she goes onto the chorus, she turn to other guy. If this song isn't about Mr. Vain, then who is it about anyway?

Carly, I think you're the one who has it all mixed up. He has reason to think the song is about him... because IT IS. Gosh, no wonder he broke up with you. You're so cryptic (my favorite word of the day).

This is what I think about instead of finishing my homework. It's an easy outline. Twelve parts, I'm on number eight. Time to finish this up and stop wondering about Carly's mixed up thoughts. I doubt she could have made it through law school with logic like that.

What 100 Cats Will Bring

I have been thinking lately about the people who came to school with boyfriends or girlfriends and now live with them. I'm not thinking about the married ones because it doesn't fit what I'm thinking about.

I realized today that those people who live together have a great deal. They get to live with someone, most of the time in a one-bedroom, and split the rent. I know married couples live together, but often they purchase said living domain, or they don't have to think about halves of rent because they are essentially one.

Live-ins, as I shall now refer to them, are two separate people who bring in two separate incomes. One is in law school, the other is working. If they were married, I'm sure they would count both incomes together, and the spouse not in school spends a good deal of time and money supporting the one who is. The live-ins each pay their half of the rent, groceries, and utilities. I live with a roommate. Even though we don't share a room, it cuts down on the price significantly. Now I'm not sure if I'll be able to actually live on my own because I'm liking the cable, phone, and really fast internet. All this is more feasible with two checkbooks. All I'll have are cats who don't split the rent or utilities, but expect me to pick up the tab on their food. They'll descend upon my place like locus.

As RM and I were driving home today, we got on the subject of live-ins. She expressed how she thinks she'll eventually live with her boyfriend. I wanted to jump in and say, "Me, too!" But then I remembered there were no humans in my future. I was quite sad.

I always expected to have a live-in at some point. Well, I expected to get married at some point, too. Since most marriages end in divorce anyway, I could get over that easily. I'll be stuck with my cats for life. Have you ever heard of a woman divorcing her cats? I rest my case.

The idea of a live-in is quite nice. Less committal, more lovin'. Not the physical, getting-it-on-all-night kind. I'm talking about getting home, knowing someone's there that you can't wait to spend time with, and he's waiting to spend his time with you as well.

I won't have that though. I will have felines who will give me no affection. With that many cats, you often end up with many of them being wild. In the end I'll be stuck with mooching, undomesticated, unaffectionate, inappreciative animals. Well, I guess that could be like living with a guy.

Except, I'll have to invest in a lot of flea medicine.

Another Week in Law School

Ah, nothing is better than quick weeks. It makes the idea of first year a little easier to bear. I've done most of my homework up to Wednesday. I'm about to finish that up after this.

This weekend was interesting. A friend and I watched college football together Saturday afternoon. Since she played soccer in college, she's into sports all together. Since I graduated from a football school, I can't get enough of it.

Later that night, Soccer Friend and I went to a party after her recreational indoor soccer game. As we walked up the dark hill to the party, we must have walked through some portal of bizarreness.


The party was a pirate party, and most of the people were dressed up. The guys were all wasted and acted wierder than they ever had before. They were dancing around to pirate songs, jumping up and down (almost hitting their head on the low ceiling, playing intense games of beer pong, and listening to early 90s music. (Wow, that's a category now... Makes me feel old, but who wants to listen to Warren G. or old Matchbox 20 at a pirate party?) Even one of the other drunk guys said how bizarre the situation was. I was the DD that night, and I am just glad that I wasn't drinking. That scene was too odd to watch while drunk. At least I could try to understand it from my part. I hope I never go to a party like that again.

Soccer Friend and Roommate are convinced that Former Crushee likes me. SF has been to a number of parties/social gatherings with me and is sure that he spends most of his time trying to talk to me. (I'm not aware of this.) RM is convinced that every time he calls the house, he's just trying to get a hold of me. She's unconvinced by my story that he is just trying to get a hold of the trio in general. In any event, I just can't see myself with Crushee anymore. He's done more to make me think that all of his whooping and hollering about prejudgment was just that, but I can't help but think that I got a glimpse of what's really going on inside.

Ok, that's what's going on now. I'm going work on Legal Writing and Contracts. Maybe I'll get that done tonight.

I Miss Football

I haven't done jack today (with regards to law school). I got my hair cut (still not used it) and watched my alma mater kick some butt. It's a good weekend for rankings. I predict for us to jump a few spots.

Actually watching the game today made me realize how much I miss it. The other game I watched on TV was an away game. I listened to the other game on the computer. I decided that I will have to put money aside next year and go to a game. That's the only reason that I will be going into town. I will fly into town and head straight back. It will be all for one day, but I have to! I can't do it again. I'm dying this season. Maybe I'll try to go to one this year!

I Got My Money!

I got my money. I got my money. I got my money.

My friends and family got to hear this sung to them on their voice mail. I can't tell you how happy I am. I walked up to the cashier's window, got my check, went to the bank, and opened accounts!

I wasn't going to let them take away my money by any means. I just can't tell you how happy I am. I beat my friend who had his loans cancelled. I have to buy drinks for him tonight because I got my money first.

Sad Realizations

Last night, after typing all my contracts notes, I had a vision. I finally saw what my life had in store for me. Was it lots of money and fame? Was it a hot husband and beautiful children? Was it even fulfilling relationships with close friends? No. It was me with 100 cats. That's it. No friends, no family. Just cats. I'm pretty sure that this is how my life will turn out.

For some odd reason, everyone always thinks that they will find the person of their dreams and get married to them. Well, I realized that night that it can't happen for everyone, and I'm one of those people it won't happen to. I'm not being cynical or self-pitying. I'm just stating that I understand where my life is going. This is how it was in high school and college. Why should law school be any different?

Maybe if I work really hard, I can provide a good home for all my feline friends who don't have nice homes of their own. They will be the only ones who will notice when I die. Not because they will miss me, but because they won't get fed for a few days and be pissed off. If you know anything about cats, you know this is true. Cats have no feelings about your well-being. They only want to care for you when it is convenient for them. Wow, sort of sounds like a guy, doesn't it?

On the lighter side, I finished my memo, worked out, and cooked supper tonight. Well, supper was a combined effort between me and my roommate, but it was good to eat a real meal. I'm really glad that I found someone worth living with. The way I ended up finding a place to live could have easily left me with a psycho that I couldn't stand. We have a good time and understand when we have to stop because it is time to do homework.

Oh, and I should get my check tomorrow. I'm quite excited about this. It will be a great day.

Oh, sadness. One of my favorite professors is having open heart surgery tomorrow. He will be out for 4 weeks. That sucks. Now we will have a professor who gives us twice the amount of reading. That really sucks. At least we get to get out of class for this week. Too bad I already did the homework for tomorrow. Sucks to work ahead!

Ok, off to finish Thursday's homework!

Money... It's What I Want

Finally, it's happened. After all my time of whining and bitching and moaning, I must now say that my loans have finally arrived. I didn't say that I have the money, but they have arrived. I won't actually see the money until Wednesday. It's pretty fitting that it won't be ready until then. It's my busiest day. Since the cashier's office isn't anywhere near the law school camps, I must take my time to visit the undergrad campus to get my money. While there, I might just put some money on my ID card. It will make it easier when I don't want to bring my lunch.

I only had one class today. I don't think I stepped on any minority toes today. When I say minority toes, I'm talking about the toes of minority students, not the lesser toes. I would just like to clarify that.

I have finished all my homework through Wednesday classes. I must type my notes now. I think it's time to stop stalling and do my work.

Another Week Down

Ah, another weekend over already. It's actually quite sad how quickly it flies by. This weekend was no different than the others. We went to a party Friday night. It was my turn to DD, and I didn't really mind it. It was a triple kegger, but the drinks were gone about 11. By the time the guys returned with more beer, a large number of the guest had left. They need a lesson in party planning. We went to the sports bar next to campus. There I found out some bad stuff that was being said about me. After the week I had, I lost it. It turns out I've made some pretty good friends so far who were willing to go kick some ass for me. It's nice to have a support network.

What's really strange is I've never had to have one before. I have fundamental issues with programs at school, so people are attacking my character. Isn't that strange? Well, it might not be strange for most people, but this was the first time this happened to me. I learned a good lesson Friday night - thick skin.

Saturday I visited my family for lunch and returned home to do some homework. I went to a cool bar, The Kennedy School. It used to be a school that they converted into a bar. There are lots of small bars in the school, and it's all themed. They have the detention room, the courtyard, the gym, etc. We went to the courtyard where we ate and drank. I shared a bottle of wine, and this time I didn't get shit-faced. I learned my lesson last time.

This morning I woke up and did homework. I had a pretty light day. I got a lot done without a lot of stress. I think I can finish up everything tomorrow morning. I need to finish typing out my notes. I'll do that tomorrow, too. I only have three classes left to type up.

Change of Heart

My how quickly things change. Remember when I said I could stop liking that guy the next day? Well, I did. I didn't really think it could or would happen, but I guess I was wrong.

It actually all stems from the extremely bizarre affirmative action program here. I don't quite understand why they feel the need to have one, but it's not an issue that I feel like going over AGAIN. It's been way too stressful these past two days.

To make a long story short, he and I have VERY conflicting ideas on some deep core issues. His ideas were so strong and determined, I realized that I couldn't ever look at him the same again. In short, I really just lost all respect for him.

To drastically change the subject, I had my first panic attack today. I never had one before. I was convinced that I was about to have a heart attack. If you've never had one before, let me explain it to you. All of a sudden it feels like your heart and lungs have just stopped. It feels like you're never going to breath again. Even though it only last for about 30-40 seconds, it feels like an enternity to you. I called my mom who convinced me that I wasn't going to die tomorrow. Apparently panic attacks just run in my family. I just never knew. I calmed down when I realized I wasn't going to die. I'm just glad I know now.

Sidetracked

I still don't have my money, but that's not what I'm talking about today. I'm actually sick of talking about it. I would just love to have my money, but none of this whining is going to fix it.

Instead, I feel like talking about something else that whining can't fix. I am now smitten with another 1L. This is just kind of sad since I've only been going to school for two and a half weeks. The other really sad part about this is that I could honestly be over him tomorrow. Things turn around really quickly for me in that way.

Besides that, I still really like him right now. Last week I was in the middle of liking him and not knowing if I liked him. In fact, I was convinced that he didn't even want to talk to me because he seemed to run away everytime I saw him on campus, but this weekend we met up at a party again (we didn't make plans to meet up, if that's what you're thinking happened), and we talked a bit. This week we're actually talking to each other for maybe a minute instead of ten seconds. I would call that improvement.

You might be asking yourself, "Why is this relevant to law school?" There are two simple reasons. 1) Our law school is REALLY small, so if something happens (good or bad) then everyone and their dog (because half of the people bring their dogs to school) would know about it. 2) He's in one of my classes.

I just have to remain thankful that he's only in one. He's actually in my line of vision, so I tend to see him ALL through class. It's actually quite funny when he turns around when I start talking. I tend to look at him because he's looking at me. Then throughout the rest of the class he's looking through the corner of his eye, probably to see if I'm looking at him. I really only start to look when I think he's starting to look.

There are two possibilities here: 1) He thinks I'm hot and wants to keep looking at me, or 2) He's trying to figure out why this freak in the back of the class keeps looking at him instead of the teacher. (I'm definitely leaning more towards 2 on this one.)

Other than that, the only other really interesting thing that happened today was told that I will have to get permission to start attending some of my supplemental TA sessions. Do you know why? It's because I'm WHITE! Ahhh! We don't have this reverse discrimination where I'm from. In the south, we still give everything to everyone. Needless to say I was a little peeved. What's really odd about this whole situation is that she is the only TA who made a stink about it, and she has been the worst TA we have seen so far.

(Oh, and my guy went to this TA session, too. He sat next to me and my friends. I also was convinced today that he liked one of my two friends I always hang out with. I had valid (or not so valid) reasons for why it could have been either of them. The whole point was that he liked one of them, but not me. I'm glad to know that I still think I'm in third grade. Maybe I can get one of my friends to write a note to him for me...Lame.)

Never Enough Time

It's Saturday afternoon, and all I can think about is the homework that I have to do. My real goal is to have all my homework until Wednesday done by tomorrow evening. I really don't think it's unreasonable, but I have to work to get it done.

I just visited my family this morning. I had a good time and a good lunch. Hopefully we'll make it a normal event. I just feel bad that I can't spend more time because I have so much home work to do.

I have taken care of two of the four things that really need to be done since I moved to Portland. I have a new insurance agent, and I have paid for the speeding ticket I received before moving. What I have yet to do is get the money to fix my car and for my education.

My car was damaged by the transportation company that moved it here. It was a fully insured ride, so now I have to get them to pay for the 520 dollars worth of damage. It's not easy dealing with a company located two time zones away.

My other big problem is my loans. My private loan came in on time, but my government loans have decided to vaction in the middle of nowhere. From the first day I went to class, I found out that my Stafford loans did not come in. After talking with the financial aid advisor, it turns out they didn't have my promissory note. Then a week later, after I send a second promissory note, I find out that they had the first one but needed my new phone number, my driver's license number, and my mom's email address. This is why they couldn't guarantee my loan. I gave them this information. They called back the next day (to the number I had just given them the day before) asking for my driver's license number. I had already given them this number, in case you were wondering. I now and waiting for them to call me later for some other stupid reason. Maybe I'll get my money before final exams.

Opening Statement

I'm almost done with my second week of law school. I really would have like to have started this sooner, but I see now that free time is really a luxury.

That luxury was fully taken advantage of tonight. For the past two weeks, I have done nothing but homework (or drinking). I actually had my first homework assignment due the second day of orientation. I don't know about you, but when I start school, and they talk about orientation, I get the image of a group of people sitting in a circle saying their name, hometown, and three interesting facts. It never fails, though, that your interesting facts are actually quite boring. Even if you plan for it, you are always stuck giving the stupidest three things about yourself that anyone could think of.

I didn't have that problem in law school. It was pretty much here's the school; here's a class. Have fun. That should have been a pretty good indication of how the rest of my year was going to be.

I have managed to stay about a day ahead in my homework. That left some free time tonight. I actually sat down and watched TV. I didn't understand the beauty of mindless entertainment until tonight. It was great because my mind didn't have to do anything. I feel more relaxed than ever. Just don't ask me about my feelings after a day of class. I'll show you one day about what I'm going to call "law school delireum." It takes over about 3 pm every day. Funny, that's when the temperature hits about 90 as well. I wonder if there's a connection.

Well, I certainly don't have the power to think about it tonight. I'm just goning to go to bed now. I have a few classes in the morning, and I will have completed week two of my law school experience. It's amazing how fast things fly by.