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Someone left a list of West Key Numbers here in the lab, and I got to thinking, at this stage of the game I should know a little about a lot of things on this list. Contracts, Fixtures, Extortion, Homicide...but what the hell is Audita Querela? It's number 48. I know estoppel, hell I know lis pendens and supersedeas, but audita querela? Sounds like something you eat. It's probably something like hearing a query, but the disturbing part is that it is a federal civil procedure thing. Didn't I take that course already? Why don't I know this?
Oh, and the next time someone tells you to smile more, tell them that you are maintaining a neutral face in order to be easily identified later. It's what the State Department wants.
One last week of classes, can you believe it? I guess what they say is true, as you age time speeds up. If it's like this now at 29...I'll be going light speed by 50. I'm hoping we can get through exams without a major blizzard. It would be miraculous, but it could happen. And yet, the professors keep trying to cover new material. No one is reading anymore, they're all in crunch mode, and we just try to stuff bits in we hear in class. At least I'm not writing papers this semester. I would be bald from the hair tearing.
The weekend is screaming by quickly. I was actually bold enough to go out shopping on Black Friday, but only after the majority of the crazies had burned themselves out and gone home. We head to the mall about 4pm, and it isn't bad at all. No real purpose to our madness, but rather just an opportunity to get out of the house. Have I mentioned we are opting out of the holiday this year? Not going to buy gifts for everyone, and aren't expecting anything in return. It's an oddly freeing experience. It's so easy to get sucked back in though. You feel obligated to buy yourself into the poor house, but we're standing tough. And now, more leftovers!
Happy Turkey! Our Thanksgiving was all you can hope for, tons of tasty food, lovely desserts and a great turkey coma. While the weather was not delightful, we were indoors and reveling in the turkey aroma, so we could have cared less. A little brie and shrimp to start out, and straight into bread stuffing, glazed carrots, and turkey. And while some may think that pre-made mashed potatoes are heresy, I say those Country Crock numbers are mighty tasty. Follow with a lovely pumpkin cheesecake with your choice of whipped topping. Gobble gobble goo, gobble gobble gickle...I wish turkey only cost a nickel!
It's Thanksgiving Eve. For once, my class choices actually afford me a day off. My only class is this afternoon and classes are cancelled before then. So, I'm binging on morning TV, doing laundry, and working on outlines. Ann Curry is interviewing a doctor about how to get along with your relatives on Thanksgiving. Before I started doing Thanksgiving here at the house, we used to go to my grandparents. Average attendance at these events were at least 25 people. We sat at a large banquet table and everyone got along. It was a fabulous holiday, and I still think that way. Doesn't matter if you have only 3 people at the table or 33, it's a holiday we all celebrate regardless of religion. So grab some turkey and taters, plunk yourselves down with some other folks and have a good time. It's what's the holiday is all about.
Be careful who you represent...it could be Ghislain Breton!
I went to Bar/Bri again. This time I lasted two hours. It didn't help that it was the same guy doing the lecture, but that wasn't the only problem. This was a mini bar review. It would have been great had it been a mini bar. Actually a mini bar would have improved things immensely...early morning booze. The course as covered in my class is extremely fact intensive. This was taught only indepth enough for a bar exam. Minimum competency is not the key for a final exam. When I could point out the things that we should have covered that weren't, I knew it was time to go. I could have better spent my time working on outlines. And so I did. And watched Nascar. Oh whoops, I'm not supposed to mention that part. It's not lawyerly. I just did outlines...yup, that's the ticket.
Thanksgiving is coming. It's coming next week. Since we're cooking dinner we made the big trip to the market. Time to get a turkey, taters, and various and sundry sides that are essential to the whole Thanksgiving concept. It's going to be a small get together, so we didn't need a big honking turkey. Of course such a turkey is much more expensive than a big turkey. So, figuring that the normal family should have 1.5 pounds per guest, we're looking at 3.66 pounds per person. Yeah, we like the leftovers. But that wasn't the highlight of the trip. That came when I spotted the sale on the Cool Whip. We're not talking buy one get one, but rather 10 for $10. The mind boggles at what you could possibly do with 10 tubs of Cool Whip. If I had the room in the freezer right now, I might have just jumped on that one. I could have built a turkey out of Cool Whip. Yum.
There's a grilled cheese sandwich out there which allegedly has the face of the Virgin Mary. It's been non-hermetically sealed for 20 years, yet hasn't molded. Did I mention it's on Ebay? It's been up now twice only to be removed once because it was believed to be a joke grilled cheese, and then again when bidding reached 99 million. However, it has spawned imposters such as a Virgin Mary Grilled Cheese gmail account, A Virgin Mary Kate and Ashley grilled cheese, and my personal favorite a Virgin Mary Grilled Cheese t-shirt. Bid now, bid often because time is running out here people!
As a paralegal, I used to have nightmares that I would screw something up and make a big mess. Luckily, I was not a calendar clerk. However, as a lawyer I plan to be extremely careful in what I make a paralegal or secretary do, especially after this.
I've been holding off on installing Windows SP2. I've heard horrible things about it. I've seen warnings about impending doom from Westlaw and Lexis. I've heard it has more security holes than swiss cheese. I have a pop-up blocker, I have a good anti-virus program, and I protect myself from rogue applets. So what does the school want me to do? In order to use our vaunted wi-fi system, I need to register my laptop. To register my laptop I have to have all of the updates. By all of the updates, it includes SP2. I balked. I said, I have reservations about the utility and safety of SP2. That's seen as crazy law student talk. The answer? Make sure I backup my files first. So my options are to either forgo the Wi-Fi, which I have been begging for since day one here, or suck it up and put my laptop at risk prior to exams. Grr. Can I sue on consequential damages? Should I draft an agreement? Should I sell my soul for a WEP key?
Hope your weekend was productive and warm. I spent a lovely Sunday with a BarBri Evidence tape. I spent 5 hours with that sucker. It's an eight hour tape. Yes, at the end of hour 5, the only thing I got from the last 20 minutes was something about a guy named Larry. I realized at the point I had reached the point of diminishing returns and should cut my losses. And so I did. And it was good. But really, I did actually get alot out of those 4:40 hours that I was actually conscious and aware. Character witnesses? I'm so about them now. Relevancy, I'm there for you. Hearsay exceptions? Sort of all at the end of the tape. Boo Hiss.
Yup, it's winter alright. I saw snow this morning. Supposedly it's not the first time it has snowed this evening, but I missed the first iteration. It allowed me to get all irate and railing at the clouds above. Of course, a more immature part of me gets mildly excited about fluffy whiteness. This feeling does get obliterated by the utter neuroticism of driving in the crap. And seeing as how there is hardly enough out there to wet the roads, people will begin driving as if there's 6 feet on the highways. Ah, the joy of seasons.
I need to make some statements here for the good or the bad, just bear with me. I started this blog back in April 2003, during the stress of 1L finals. I needed an area to vent, think aloud and in some cases seek feedback and support from people struggling along a similar path. I don't pass myself off as a columnist, pundit, or legal expert. I'm just me. I don't tell people who I am, where I live, or where I go to school. I just exist in my own universe. For those of you who read me, you may have figured it out by now, or in the alternative, you may never have cared to know. And that's okay. However, what I write is what's on my mind. It's always been that way, and it'll be that way until I decide to stop. I don't prevaricate, I don't over emphasize, I don't lend myself to puffery. Libel and slander are not goals. That being said I know for a fact that people sometimes take issue with what I write here. And while I'm a great believer in self-editing, if I took into account everyone and anyone who could possibly read this blog I would probably never write again. I'm not going to do that. Some people go into therapy, some write. Who knew I'd fall into the latter category. In closing, if you plan on sticking around, so be it. If you don't, that's okay too. If you think of me less for telling the truth...well then I guess you never knew me at all.
I really need to get my butt in gear. I took a look at a calendar yesterday and it scared me. It would also help to actually understand all the subjects I'm taking. Estate Planning is scaring the living crap out of me. Why oh why did I decide to take that class. The others, I have a relative handle on, though it would be nice to see a couple sample questions in Evidence since I have no idea how he handles his exams. Yeah, Friday is going to be a study/laundry day...I can just feel it. I just need to keep telling myself...I'm a law student, I can do this...over and over again.
I'm a married 3L. I've been married for 6 years. We have no children. Yet yesterday I got some news that pretty much ruined the rest of my day. One of my best friends in school...a person who I've known since the very first day came to me at lunch yesterday and told me she's pregnant. She's due at the end of June. That in itself is a stunner, but the background story is what really made me think about things. It seems that I made a comment the other day about another student here who looks as if she's pregnant as well. However, if this story is true, she's pregnant for the second time in law school. I made a comment to that end in my friend's presence not realizing that she was also pregnant. As a result she became afraid to tell me. Not just a little bit either, but mortifyingly so. I wasn't exactly going to strike her upon hearing this news...she's pregnant for goodness sake, not a mass murderer. At the same time, it's not exactly a life choice I would have made at this point. The mind boggles at what is going to happen now. This won't change her status of friendship with me, but I'll be honest...I look at her differently now. I guess it's a back-handed compliment that she valued my opinion of her that highly, but wow, I didn't think I was scary.
It's Monday again. The Mondays are growing short for this semester. Perhaps its this reason that I can't sleep at night. For the last 2 1/2 weeks, I go to bed only to wake up multiple times during the night. 2am, 4:15am, or somewhere in between, I bolt awake and then curse the darkness. I've been trying multiple things to solve this problem, staying up real late to be real tired, getting up real early so I'll exhaust myself over the course of the day, new pillows, old pillows, my spouse's pillows... But I tried something new last night, a good stiff drink. And the first time I woke up last night was 6am. I think I may be on to something here...or on my way to lascivious living. Either way, it sounds like a winning combination.
All I got to say is, give that marketing rep a raise!
I left one of my part time jobs last week. It was a conscious decision on my part that I would rather spend my time doing worthwhile things instead of make work at my job. It may have been seen as burning my bridges given the line of work, but I found out where I don't want to work. So instead of going to work today, I spent the day visiting with my great aunt and eating chocolate chip cookies. If that ain't worthwhile, I don't know what is.
I am sad today. I was hoping it might go differently, but I figured that this would happen. When I woke up at 3am and found the TV still on, I knew what I would wake up to later this morning. In a way, I found it easier. I realized upon arriving at school that I wore all blue. This was not a conscious decision, but perhaps my subconscious was working overtime.
I hadn't planned on doing an Election Night blog entry, but I'm going to. I realize it's early, but it's not about results but rather coverage of results.
On CNN it seems Wolf Blitzer has 72 monitors set up at the NASDAQ allowing coverage of all states results simultaneously. 5 points for use of technology, -2 for overkill.
ABC has George and Peter, and some lovely electronic maps. Plus 2 for happy banter, but Peter seems sort of stiff with his stylus. I'll give him a couple hours.
CBS has a really cool interactive map that only John Roberts seems to know how to operate. He's obviously spent a lot of time with this sucker, he looks like David Copperfield. However, this doesn't overcome Dan Rather and his nutty sayings. Plus 5 for John and his map, -5 for Dan. It's a wash.
NBC is the favorite tonight, seeing that this is Tom Brokaw's last election. Bonus here is Tim Russert and his white board. They gave him a bonus this year and made it a tablet PC with a same white board feel. He'll be drawing all night with this one. However, the true laughs come with low tech ice rink. For those of you who are familiar with Rockefeller Plaza, NBC had put an outline map of the United States in the ice last week. The true fun comes now when the two guys on skates go out and color in the states with bug sprayers. Plus 5 for Tom and Tim, plus 2 for the giggle factor on the ice rink.
I had heard that some school districts were concerned about having polling places on the premises due to possible terrorist activities. My issue with having polling places at school buildings is there's no freakin parking! I went to my polling place this morning to be met by security and orange cones. Immediately jumping to conclusions, I'm thinking that I've been disenfranchised. I rolled down the window and was told I could only park in the back. Were there any parking spots there? No. Did I make a parking spot? Yep. This adds to my argument that Election Day should be a national holiday. Hell, just close schools. At least I didn't have to wait in line like some folks. (Yes Florida, I'm talking about you.) So I voted. You should too. Vote early, vote often!
You are the Spanish Inquisition sketch! Nobody expects you!
Which Monty Python's Flying Circus Sketch are You?
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Link from Soupie's BBQ and Daycare
The egg sandwiches are calling to me. Why egg sandwiches? Why not oatmeal or a bagel? Because it's all about warmth and cheese. It's filling, it's available, and it's cheap. Oatmeal, while enjoyable, is a complicated procedure involving a carton of milk and a bowl. No bowls here, and I'm not bringing one from home. Bagel? I can have a bagel anywhere, and the bagels here aren't that great anyway. Egg and cheese on a hardroll is something I can get behind. I'm going to get behind one right now.
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