"Movin Out (Megan's Song)"

First Happy Hanukkah! I know I am a little late as it started on the 15th but its not over till the 23rd so I think I'm still good. Enjoy the yummy potato latkes and other delicious fried Hanukkah foods (and of course the religious aspect of Hanukkah too). How I miss the cultural melting pot of college and being able to take part in Jewish traditions and culture!

So moving day has finally come and as of tomorrow morning I will again be hauling my stuff to my new apartment. As part of my upcoming application to the SC bar, I was recently forced to name all the places I have lived in the past 10 years, and I was a little bit surprised to see that I have managed to 14 different residences! Evidently I was some sort of nomad in a former life! Hopefully soon I will finally be able to settle somewhere for more than a year. So anyways as of tomorrow I will have an abode of my very own. It's sad to leave my currently roomie, but at the same time its really exciting to have an apartment on my own as I have never done so before. Plus in the utmost in dorkiness and laziness I am hella excited to have a dishwasher! I know, I know... I am like an old person.

Finally as I have yet to set up internet or cable for the new digs, this may be my last post for awhile unless of course I can "borrow" a signal from my neighbors or manage to pry the control of the computer away from my siblings. So knowing that, I just want to say Merry Christmas in advance. I hope that everyone one, regardless of religious conviction (or lack there of) has a joyful holiday (be it Christmas, Hanukkah, Solstice, Kwanzaa, something else entirely or just having the day off) that is filled with love and happiness.

A Little Note for My Neighbor

Dear people who live next door to me,

The reason I am writing is to inform you that you are a part of this thing called a neighborhood and thus have these things called neighbors. Neighbors are the people who live near you (like me next door) and thus hear and see things coming from your home and yard. Living in a community and not on an Australian Outback sheep farm means that you are neighbors with others people and thus get certain benefits and certain responsibilities. The benefits include me calling the fire department if your house is on fire, the ability to borrow a cup of sugar, your kids being able to ride the school bus, and living in civilization. However these rewards come with some responsibilities that you are clearly unaware of so let me inform you.
1) turn your f'in music down. No one wants to hear your crappy ass musical taste all the damn time, especially not late at night. Do you hear music blaring from my house? NO, because I have consideration for others. Unless you are deaf (which would pretty much defeat the point of music) turn it down or at the very least close your window for some level of sound proofing. Some people, unlike you evidently, have jobs and commitments and thus need to get some sleep at night.
2) Take control of your children. Sure they seem to be fairly sweet kids most of the time, but evidently you feed them liquid crack for breakfast because every morning at 7ish as they are outside waiting for the bus carrying-on and screaming like possessed rabid animals . If it's my neighborly duty to buy your kids cookie dough or band cheesecake then its yours to make them shut the hell up before the sun comes up.
3) Get a damn muffler for your car! A lack of muffler is annoying all the time, but especially annoying when you insist on driving up and down your driveway multiple times in the middle of the night. If you need same cash for it then sell of one of the 8 gazillion speakers you have for your above mentioned stereo that causes my bed to literally shake at some points.
4) Don't have loud and intense fights outside. Keep those domestic disturbances inside where they belong. I don't want to be woken at 3 in the morning to you yelling at your spouse/ live-in significant other/ baby daddy (or momma)/ or crack ho' you picked up on the corner. And I especially do not want to have to engage in the ethical dilemma of if I should or should not call the police after I hear you threaten to "shoot a bitch" Please just do all of us a favor and go inside.

I could go on but I think you see the point. You are not alone in the neighborhood or for that matter the world. Show a little consideration for your fellow man. Oh and be glad I move next week or I would probably beat you down.

Sincerely,
Apathetic Law Student

Charming Betsy Strikes Again

So evidently Prof. S. is another loyal reader of my blog. I have no actual proof of this but it must be true since a) I said it and b)the Charming Betsy case that I mentioned earlier in the week was featured as a T/F question on our exam this morning. So, Prof. S you're welcome. Next time please let me know what material you will be "borrowing" from me for our exam in advance so I will make sure to include all the stuff I know and not reference all the points I am cloudy on. On the off chance that I am wrong about Prof. S's readership that would mean that I must be clairvoyant. Either way, muhahaha!

Tis the Season (to be bitter, stressed-out, and angry at the world)

Yes my friends its that time again... exam time. Basically here is the break down of my life from last Friday till next Thursday: Interview, study, pretend to study, study, procrastinate, pretend to study, study, exam, nap, take night off, study, pretend to study, clean something to avoid studying, study, give up for night, study, do laundry to avoid studying, get free pizza, study, do more laundry, study and on and on and on with the same type routine (minus the interview). During this time I tend to eat food that is unhealthy,not get enough sleep, stress extensively, and be even more catty and mean than usual. All and all I am sure that I am just a joy to be around.
So first thing, I am sure that all you faithful readers (all 8 of you) are just dying to know about my interview. So here is the scoop... I have no clue how it went. It was kinda strange cause he was pretty unreadable, and it was kinda like I walked in with him having the assumption that I sucked and me having to prove that I didn't. "So you went to ABC University, huh... that's kinda strange" "So I see you were the vice-president of the Pre-Law Society, why not president?" He wasn't mean, but it just kinda felt like he didn't particularly want to like me and I had to sell myself big time, but I have talked to some other interviewees that they had pretty much similar experiences. So who knows. Additionally he asked some weird questions I didn't really expect. The strangest probably being what my parents did for a living. What are you planning on giving me bonus points or demerits if my parents are attorneys? What about if they are construction workers or bus drivers... does that help me or hurt me? I swear if I don't get this job on the sole basis of my parent's chosen professions of paramedic and teacher I will choke a bitch! Not that I am counting on getting the job, especially since I heard today that the judge interviewed a total of 25 people for the position, but I'm just saying. Anyway, I should find out in early to mid January so I'll keep you posted.
In other news I have one exam done, and 3 more to go. Motivation to study has been hard to come by but hopefully it is going to all pan out. Hopefully I will be able to get off my ass and be the study bug I sorta-kinda-maybe want to be. Really, I just want to not suck hard and fail. I am officially in the 3L slump.

I have one exam that I am pretty stressed about on Monday cause the prof is just super brilliant and has pretty high standards. Also, I didn't do so hot the last time I took an exam of his and the class is freakin choke full of annoying 2L gunners. I swear those kids are freakin cutthroat and scary. They will turn on another student in a second and have no problem doing hours of extra work in an attempt to gain even a scrap of praise or what they see as a slight advantage over a classmate. Every freakin day in class I would hear something like the following.
Gunner: "So Prof. S, I was reading last night in a rare manuscript I found from 1631 regarding Italy's acceptance of French ships in their ports as long as they were painted purple, and I was wondering if that could be used to establish customary law on that particular issue and allow for a French merchant to win a suit in American courts under the Alien Tort Claims Act?"
Prof. S: "Well that is an interesting question but since we are discussing the jurisdictional issues of the Alien Tort Claims Act, I think the better use of time would be to focus on when and if that merchant would have standing to bring the case in the US. If you want to discuss your question, I think it would be best if you came by my office hours instead."

Most times their comments are horribly off topic but sometime these kids stay up nights studying to find out little details about the Vienna Convention or a little known fact about the Charming Betsy case and come off looking like some sort of international scholar. Honestly I just don't freakin' care that much to be that far up a prof's ass. So if they pull out those crazy little tidbits that miraculously fall in topic, I am pretty screwed. I'm just hoping that they will all get so lost in their little quirky comments that they will miss the big picture and I will have a chance.
I am also a bit worried about my exam on on Wednesday(Professional Responsibility) because my professor is evidently operating on a different plane of existence that has no actual basis in reality and he just takes day trips into the real world to teach our class and spout his nonsense. Oh, and did I mention that unlike pretty much every PR prof evah, he will not be using MPRE (multistate professional responsibility exam) style multiple choice but instead it will be all essay. Yeah, its going to be pretty damn crappy. But on the plus side after Wednesday I will never have to deal with the prof ever again. Hooray!!
My final exam for the semester is on Thursday and I can't really work myself up to be concerned. I think I have a really good grasp of the material and my only slight concern is making my answers fit the stance my professor has on juvenile issues. We are pretty much diametrically opposed on most issues raised in class. Most specifically rehabilitation. She is very pro rehabilitation for almost all juvenile offenders even a 17 year old who kills his father in cold blood, establishes an alibi, hides the evidence, and then proceeds to make up numerous fairly believable stories to the police. I, on the other hand, 1) don't really believe in rehabilitation for those who commit serious offenses, 2) don't think that the criminal system is really set up for realistic opportunities for rehabilitation, 3) think that the "kid" in that case is not really a "kid" at all and should have been tried as an adult. Sigh.. I guess I am just going to have to dig down through my layers of cynicism and real world experience and find the warm squishy place that believes that people are inherently good......................yeah or I could just fake it.
Well some good news to finish up this somewhat angry post. I passed the MPRE! Woohoo! It was an exciting point of goodness in this bleak exam season. To add to the goodness, all my friends who took it also passed. Hooray!! It's nice to know that it is finished and evidently I am fairly ethical (or at least not horribly unethical)!
So nothing else new really happening. Just exam crap and looking forward to the Christmas/New Years season. I can't wait for the holiday parties, the holiday cheer, and getting to see friends and family. And its finally getting chilly and, gasp, even cold. I love it! Its finally feeling like winter and the holiday season! Even in my exam gloominess I am enjoying the weather, yummy warm beverages, and my awesome holiday playlist. How I love you holiday season! I can't wait to fully enjoy you once exams are behind me!