I'm going to another state for an apartment-hunting trip this afternoon, and I just packed my backpack to take on the flight. It's the same backpack I brought back from my trip to take the bar exam yesterday.
What I took OUT of the backpack:
-A book of Multistate Essay Exam problems
-A book of Missouri Essay Exam prblems
-The Missouri Bar/Bri lecture notes
-The book of practice Multistate Performance Tests
-Hundreds upon hundreds of flashcards containing phrases like "fee simple subject to condition subsequent" and "30 days after the trial court rules on the last timely filed authorized post-trial motion"
What I put INTO the backpack:
-The new Harry Potter book
-My iPod
It's a good day.
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Monday, July 23, 2007
Happy bar exam week, everyone!
I just wanted to wish all the bar applicants in my readership luck with the exam. The people of Colorado, Maryland, Missouri, Oregon, New York, and Pennsylvania will be lucky to have us licensed to represent them.
Thursday, July 19, 2007
LALALALA-I CAN'T HEAR YOU!
So, I'm not going to be able to read the new Harry Potter book until after the bar exam is over--a full 5 days after the book comes out. I am not sure how I'm going to make it through those five days without hearing how it ended. Specifically, I am concerned about hearing whether Harry dies or not.
Any thoughts on how likely it is that I'll be able to do this? Any suggestions? I'm thinking noise-cancelling headphones and a t-shirt that says, front and back, "Don't tell me how Harry Potter ends!"
Any thoughts on how likely it is that I'll be able to do this? Any suggestions? I'm thinking noise-cancelling headphones and a t-shirt that says, front and back, "Don't tell me how Harry Potter ends!"
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
"(C) is incorrect for several reasons."
This is becoming a sentence I read far too often. Contracts law, why do you still elude me?
Monday, July 16, 2007
Big Love
The new season of Big Love has begun on HBO, and I could not be more excited. As most of you probably know, Big Love is a show about a family of suburban polygamists.
I should note, as many people do when discussing this show, that the LDS Church (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, also known as the Mormon Church) does not condone the practice of polygamy, and these people are not Mormons. Some of them call themselves "Fundamentalist Mormons," a designation the LDS Church does not approve of. By the way, no one who watched the show could possibly come away from it thinking that the LDS Church approves of polygamy.
The show is great as a show, and I recommend it for the fascinating explorations of the wives' reasons for getting into polygamy and their reactions to the challenges it poses (which are many--intra-family jealousies, fear of exposure of their illegal lifestyle, disapproval from neighbors and relatives, psychotic relatives from the nearby polygamist cult, etc.).
But I also use the show as a jumping-off point for thinking about polygamy more generally. Is it a legitimate lifestyle choice? Is it inherently sexist or abusive? How many people really practice it in the suburbs rather than in some isolated compound? Would a sane woman ever choose it freely? How should it be treated by the law? How many of its problems are caused by its marginalization? Is it sustainable, what with all those extra men?
Some interesting links:
Here's an article about a real-life family of suburban polygamists. (link fixed now, I think)
Here's an interview with another former plural wife (and pro-polygamy activist) who still believes in the practice.
Here's a blog by a former plural wife who still believes in the practice.
Here's an interview with a writer who says she went undercover in a polygamist compound to research a book. (Some have questioned her credibility, so take it with a grain of salt.)
Go here to find the Television Without Pity thread for discussing polygamy in the context of the show.
The Salt Lake City Tribute has a plural marriage blog and a polygamy section.
Tapestry against Polygamy is probably the best-known anti-polygamy organization. Many of members are refugees from polygamous upringingings, and they REALLY hate polygamy. They're also critical the LDS church for not doing enough to stop polygamy in Utah.
Principle Voices is the best-known pro-polygamy organization.
I should note, as many people do when discussing this show, that the LDS Church (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, also known as the Mormon Church) does not condone the practice of polygamy, and these people are not Mormons. Some of them call themselves "Fundamentalist Mormons," a designation the LDS Church does not approve of. By the way, no one who watched the show could possibly come away from it thinking that the LDS Church approves of polygamy.
The show is great as a show, and I recommend it for the fascinating explorations of the wives' reasons for getting into polygamy and their reactions to the challenges it poses (which are many--intra-family jealousies, fear of exposure of their illegal lifestyle, disapproval from neighbors and relatives, psychotic relatives from the nearby polygamist cult, etc.).
But I also use the show as a jumping-off point for thinking about polygamy more generally. Is it a legitimate lifestyle choice? Is it inherently sexist or abusive? How many people really practice it in the suburbs rather than in some isolated compound? Would a sane woman ever choose it freely? How should it be treated by the law? How many of its problems are caused by its marginalization? Is it sustainable, what with all those extra men?
Some interesting links:
Here's an article about a real-life family of suburban polygamists. (link fixed now, I think)
Here's an interview with another former plural wife (and pro-polygamy activist) who still believes in the practice.
Here's a blog by a former plural wife who still believes in the practice.
Here's an interview with a writer who says she went undercover in a polygamist compound to research a book. (Some have questioned her credibility, so take it with a grain of salt.)
Go here to find the Television Without Pity thread for discussing polygamy in the context of the show.
The Salt Lake City Tribute has a plural marriage blog and a polygamy section.
Tapestry against Polygamy is probably the best-known anti-polygamy organization. Many of members are refugees from polygamous upringingings, and they REALLY hate polygamy. They're also critical the LDS church for not doing enough to stop polygamy in Utah.
Principle Voices is the best-known pro-polygamy organization.
I'm done
That's it. My brain is full. I can learn no more new law. No more timing requirements, elements, standards of review, modern approaches, or exceptions to the general rule. My bar review materials indicate that there is going to be material tested that I don't know about, but I no longer have the capacity to care. I will be passing or failing based on material I have already covered. Let the reviewing begin.
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Bear attack
There was a fatal bear attack in Utah a couple of days ago. A kid was sleeping in his tent when a black bear grabbed him, dragged him away, and mauled him to death. Read more here.
Think there are no bears in your area? Think again. Colorado, Maryland, Missouri, Montana, Oregon, and Pennsylvania all have bears. Here is a range map and collection of population estimates from 1994. In most places, conservation efforts have led to population increases; Missouri, for example, is now estimated to have more than twice as many bears as it did in 1994.
Think there are no bears in your area? Think again. Colorado, Maryland, Missouri, Montana, Oregon, and Pennsylvania all have bears. Here is a range map and collection of population estimates from 1994. In most places, conservation efforts have led to population increases; Missouri, for example, is now estimated to have more than twice as many bears as it did in 1994.
Thursday, June 07, 2007
Paternity testing
As some of you know, one of my great guilty pleasures is the watching of talk shows (specifically Maury Povich) on which paternity test results are revealed. These shows typically involve two distinct types of situations:
1. Woman swears she's 100% sure that a man is the father of her baby, and the man swears that he's not because the woman is sleeping with the whole town.
In this scenario, I'm usually on the woman's side. In part, it's because the men seem so idiotic (on the show I watched today, one guy said he was 100% sure he was not the father because "I've slept with three virgins, and I've didn't get any of THEM pregnant!"). In part, it's because I figure the woman is in a better position to know who the father is. What shocks me is how many women insist that there is NO WAY that anyone else could be the dad and then end up being wrong. That happened to both women today.
2. Young, happy couple has a kid (or one on the way), and the woman has brought the man on Maury to tell him a "terrible secret." The secret is that the kid might not be his (one woman on today's show was sleeping with 8 different guys around the time of conception). It goes without saying that if you're in this situation, going on Maury to tell your boyfriend/husband is a bad idea. But I'm torn about whether you should tell him at all. Who does it help? If he wants to be the father, and you want him to be the father, and he's a good father, is the DNA test a good idea?
1. Woman swears she's 100% sure that a man is the father of her baby, and the man swears that he's not because the woman is sleeping with the whole town.
In this scenario, I'm usually on the woman's side. In part, it's because the men seem so idiotic (on the show I watched today, one guy said he was 100% sure he was not the father because "I've slept with three virgins, and I've didn't get any of THEM pregnant!"). In part, it's because I figure the woman is in a better position to know who the father is. What shocks me is how many women insist that there is NO WAY that anyone else could be the dad and then end up being wrong. That happened to both women today.
2. Young, happy couple has a kid (or one on the way), and the woman has brought the man on Maury to tell him a "terrible secret." The secret is that the kid might not be his (one woman on today's show was sleeping with 8 different guys around the time of conception). It goes without saying that if you're in this situation, going on Maury to tell your boyfriend/husband is a bad idea. But I'm torn about whether you should tell him at all. Who does it help? If he wants to be the father, and you want him to be the father, and he's a good father, is the DNA test a good idea?
Friday, June 01, 2007
The bears are coming for me
For all those who laugh at me for being concerned about bears on my hiking trips (see my earlier post), I offer this terrifying article.
The elementary school where the bear's tracks were found is 36 miles west of my house, and the bear is moving east. Thank goodness I live in a high-rise apartment building.
The elementary school where the bear's tracks were found is 36 miles west of my house, and the bear is moving east. Thank goodness I live in a high-rise apartment building.
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Pizza guy
Last night, after getting home from a road trip, I ordered a pizza. When the pizza delivery guy arrived at my door, he said, "Are you a doctor?" I sort of stared at him, confused, and said, "Uh, no," and looked at him quizzically. He said, apparently by way of explanation, "Well, you keep such a clean house."
I should note that my apartment was quite messy at the time--within the pizza guy's view at that point were an open suitcase, two empty diet coke cans, a tipped-over tote bag with stuff falling out of it, and some shoes. In no way was my house clean.
What was he talking about? What does house messiness have to do with being a doctor? And why would a pizza guy, seconds before I am about to decide on his tip, insult my housekeeping?
I should note that my apartment was quite messy at the time--within the pizza guy's view at that point were an open suitcase, two empty diet coke cans, a tipped-over tote bag with stuff falling out of it, and some shoes. In no way was my house clean.
What was he talking about? What does house messiness have to do with being a doctor? And why would a pizza guy, seconds before I am about to decide on his tip, insult my housekeeping?
Friday, May 25, 2007
Promotional items, good and bad
Sometimes, when you buy a product or donate to a cause, the company or nonprofit involved gives you free stuff to promote itself. Some of these items are good, and some annoy me.
Things I do not want to get any more of:
1. Travel coffee mugs. These are those metal mugs with plastic handles that are designed to go into car cupholders. I don't drink coffee, so I have never used these. Yet I have acquired 5 of them. They seem too nice to throw away, so I just continue to take up my extremely limited cupboard space by storing them. People who drink coffee already have them. Stop giving them away.
2. Jewelry. I donated to a cause once and was given a crappy plastic-and-metal necklace. Who is going to wear that?
3. Keychains. Everyone has a keychain already. Possible exception: value-added key-chains that have a bottle opener or (maybe) a flashlight.
4. Messenger bags. The free ones I have are poorly made, with a thin, uncomfortable strap. I'm not going to use them.
5. Buttons. What the hell am I going to do with a button?
Things I like:
1. Refrigerator magnets, especially if they're strong enough to hold up pieces of paper. They don't really take up room, but I see them every day, and I can use them. Very effective.
2. Pens. It's a little lame, but Ican always use another pen.
3. Tote bags. They're small and useful, and a cheap one works fine.
4. Tape measures. Best promotional item ever.
Things I do not want to get any more of:
1. Travel coffee mugs. These are those metal mugs with plastic handles that are designed to go into car cupholders. I don't drink coffee, so I have never used these. Yet I have acquired 5 of them. They seem too nice to throw away, so I just continue to take up my extremely limited cupboard space by storing them. People who drink coffee already have them. Stop giving them away.
2. Jewelry. I donated to a cause once and was given a crappy plastic-and-metal necklace. Who is going to wear that?
3. Keychains. Everyone has a keychain already. Possible exception: value-added key-chains that have a bottle opener or (maybe) a flashlight.
4. Messenger bags. The free ones I have are poorly made, with a thin, uncomfortable strap. I'm not going to use them.
5. Buttons. What the hell am I going to do with a button?
Things I like:
1. Refrigerator magnets, especially if they're strong enough to hold up pieces of paper. They don't really take up room, but I see them every day, and I can use them. Very effective.
2. Pens. It's a little lame, but Ican always use another pen.
3. Tote bags. They're small and useful, and a cheap one works fine.
4. Tape measures. Best promotional item ever.
The lost art of doodling
In my bar review class, they give us a fill-in-the-blanks workbook, and we sit there for 3 1/2 hours every day, filling it in. There's really no legitimate need to bring a computer to class, so screwing around on the internet to combat the inevitable boredom is not an option. Instead, I have taken to doodling in the margins of the book. However, I find myself at a loss for good doodling ideas--three years of taking notes exclusively on computers have made me forget what I used to do. I am open to suggestions.
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Things fall apart
Today, within a span of two hours, the following happened:
1. My cell phone fell apart. Miscellaneous external parts of the phone began falling off, followed shortly by the snapping in half of some sort of important-looking electronic-type component.
2. The power cord for my computer fell apart. Where the cord meets the big square thing, the plastic (rubber? I don't know) came off, and broken ends of wires are now sticking out. A replacement power cord for my computer costs eighty dollars. Eighty dollars! I think I can get a non-Mac-manufactured version online for less, but still.
What is going on? Have my inanimate possessions decided to self-destruct because they sense that I am done with school and should be able to afford technological items that are less than four years old? If so, they are jumping the gun by least four months.
1. My cell phone fell apart. Miscellaneous external parts of the phone began falling off, followed shortly by the snapping in half of some sort of important-looking electronic-type component.
2. The power cord for my computer fell apart. Where the cord meets the big square thing, the plastic (rubber? I don't know) came off, and broken ends of wires are now sticking out. A replacement power cord for my computer costs eighty dollars. Eighty dollars! I think I can get a non-Mac-manufactured version online for less, but still.
What is going on? Have my inanimate possessions decided to self-destruct because they sense that I am done with school and should be able to afford technological items that are less than four years old? If so, they are jumping the gun by least four months.
A new addition to the blogosphere
Welcome, Perma-Three Seat! This moment has been a long time coming.
Sunday, February 04, 2007
Shattered Glass
Last weekend, Fuzzy and I watched the movie Shattered Glass. It tells the story of Stephen Glass, a rising star at The New Republic, known for his extremely interesting and colorful stories. It turned out, though, that many of those stories were made up. We're not talking about a doctored quote here, a made-up source there; we're talking about people and companies that never existed doing things that never happened. He made stuff up out of whole cloth.
Take for example, the Hack Heaven, the story that got him caught. Read this story. The people in it don't exist. The software company doesn't exist. The conference didn't happen. The legislation he said had been proposed in 21 states had not been proposed in any. The New Republic supposedly had an extensive fact-checking system, yet he only got caught after another reporter at Forbes online tried to write a follow-up story [warning: very spoilery if you might see the movie] and couldn't find any of the people mentioned. A Slate article addresses some of the reasons he wasn't found out sooner. Another Slate article discusses the film.
In addition to Hack Heaven, Glass fabricated dozens of other articles, indexed here. After looking at this list, I realized that I had probably been fooled by him too. One of my favorite This American Life stories is in the episode "How to Take Money From Strangers." It's the story of former phone psychic; he tells us really moving and compelling stories about his callers, his interactions with them, his guilt over lying to them about his psychic abilities, and his guilt over bilking money out of people who can least afford it. The former phone psychic? Stephen Glass. I feel so betrayed.
Glass has since been interviewed by CBS [also spoilery], and he acts all contrite, but I don't buy it.
Anyway, see the movie. It's a fantastic story.
Take for example, the Hack Heaven, the story that got him caught. Read this story. The people in it don't exist. The software company doesn't exist. The conference didn't happen. The legislation he said had been proposed in 21 states had not been proposed in any. The New Republic supposedly had an extensive fact-checking system, yet he only got caught after another reporter at Forbes online tried to write a follow-up story [warning: very spoilery if you might see the movie] and couldn't find any of the people mentioned. A Slate article addresses some of the reasons he wasn't found out sooner. Another Slate article discusses the film.
In addition to Hack Heaven, Glass fabricated dozens of other articles, indexed here. After looking at this list, I realized that I had probably been fooled by him too. One of my favorite This American Life stories is in the episode "How to Take Money From Strangers." It's the story of former phone psychic; he tells us really moving and compelling stories about his callers, his interactions with them, his guilt over lying to them about his psychic abilities, and his guilt over bilking money out of people who can least afford it. The former phone psychic? Stephen Glass. I feel so betrayed.
Glass has since been interviewed by CBS [also spoilery], and he acts all contrite, but I don't buy it.
Anyway, see the movie. It's a fantastic story.
Thursday, December 28, 2006
Scrabble report
To start my new hobby (see post below), I just (1) e-mailed the director of my local Scrabble club to ask for advice, and (2) spent a couple of hours playing a computer Scrabble game. Among the words the computer suggests are my best plays after I play much lamer words:
- fixt (past tense of "fix")
- jivey (jazzy; lively)
- pice (a former coin of India & Pakistan)
- weel (well)
- odea (theater or concert hall)
- vinier (more covered in vines)
- coelome (coelom-a type of body cavity)
- umiaqs (umiak-like a kayak)
- jo (a sweetheart)
- mazedly (the adverb form of "maze"--to daze, perplex, or stupefy)
- inarm (to encircle with the arms)
Wednesday, December 27, 2006
Hobby
I have always wanted a hobby. I envy people who cannot wait to get off work and do . . . whatever it is that people do when they're not working, watching movies, reading, chatting, or watching tv.
An incomplete list of hobbies I have tried and discarded:
Anyway, now I'm considering a hobby I half-heartedly thought about getting into a couple of years ago: competitive Scrabble. Yesterday I reread Stefan Fatsis's excellent book Word Freak, which is all about the colorful characters who populate the highest ranks of the competitive Scrabble scene. I love their weirdness and their dedication. I love the massive levels of concern over the composition of the official list of legal words. I love that it's a small enough world that I already know many of the major players and have favorites. I love that it requires no motor skills.
My city appears to have two Scrabble clubs, each meeting weekly. I'm going to go as soon as I memorize the legal 2-letter words. I don' t plan to abandon gainful employment so I can spend my time memorizing word lists, but I think I could become a decent intermediate player.
An incomplete list of hobbies I have tried and discarded:
- knitting (I got bored with my projects before I finished them)
- sailing (I have no gross motor skills, and I fear open water)
- running (I broke my foot)
- candlemaking (messy)
- photography (I never wanted to bother carrying my giant camera around, plus I kept forgetting how to load the film)
- cooking (I got tired of spending $30 and two hours to make something I could get for $6 at the Thai place on the corner)
Anyway, now I'm considering a hobby I half-heartedly thought about getting into a couple of years ago: competitive Scrabble. Yesterday I reread Stefan Fatsis's excellent book Word Freak, which is all about the colorful characters who populate the highest ranks of the competitive Scrabble scene. I love their weirdness and their dedication. I love the massive levels of concern over the composition of the official list of legal words. I love that it's a small enough world that I already know many of the major players and have favorites. I love that it requires no motor skills.
My city appears to have two Scrabble clubs, each meeting weekly. I'm going to go as soon as I memorize the legal 2-letter words. I don' t plan to abandon gainful employment so I can spend my time memorizing word lists, but I think I could become a decent intermediate player.
Tuesday, December 12, 2006
Inappropriate
I just got a mass e-mail with the subject line "sex acts." Normally, I would have assumed it was just one of the fifty spam e-mails my school's spam filter lets into my inbox every day. But the "From" line named someone who frequently sends official school e-mails, so I opened it. I learned that members of the university cleaning staff have been complaining about something: the fact that they keep coming upon people having sex in the law school. When discovered, these couples do not even stop what they are doing; they just continue and assume the cleaning staff will return later.
So, yuck. Can people not take a break from studying long enough to go home for this? And have I been studying on tables where people have been doing it?
Anyway, if anyone in my readership is one of the culprits here, STOP HAVING SEX IN THE LAW SCHOOL. It's gross.
For more stories of inappropriate public behavior (and other stuff), check out True Porn Clerk Stories, a pretty wonderful online diary of a clerk who works in a video store with a porn section. I wasted hours reading it yesterday. Not appropriate for children or work.
So, yuck. Can people not take a break from studying long enough to go home for this? And have I been studying on tables where people have been doing it?
Anyway, if anyone in my readership is one of the culprits here, STOP HAVING SEX IN THE LAW SCHOOL. It's gross.
For more stories of inappropriate public behavior (and other stuff), check out True Porn Clerk Stories, a pretty wonderful online diary of a clerk who works in a video store with a porn section. I wasted hours reading it yesterday. Not appropriate for children or work.
Saturday, December 02, 2006
Thursday, November 23, 2006
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