World's Longest Post

I'm sitting in Civil Procedure with no wireless card, so I can't do anything on the internet. Yep, I'm actually drafting a blog entry in word processing in class. Truly, truly bored. Which is why this will be the longest blog entry I've ever done.

I thought some of you might want to get an impression of what law school life has been like so far. So here's a little slice of my life:

A few general observations: Socializing is *the* major activity. But reading lots and lots of cases comes a close second. I spend around 4 hours a day on reading, at least when I’m being good. The 2 and 3Ls tell me that reading starts going faster soon. I can't wait.

I have only one class Monday and Tuesday, but I have class all day Wednesday and Thursday. Fridays are only 2 classes, except that I have some extra make-up classes scheduled for the next few Fridays. Oh, and Mondays sometimes get extra meetings as well.

Here's my schedule today:

8:50 AM- Torts class. In Torts we study cases where people sue eachother over stuff. My professor is fun, but he does have a tendency to call on people, keep asking them questions, and be a little mean if they don't get the right answer. He says we're allowed to pass, but no one wants to try it.

10:17-- Torts is over. Walk to nearby building, complaining to section members (I take all my classes with the same group of people this year) about schedule and reading.

10:30 --Criminal law. My favorite class right now. I like the professor a lot; he's offered to talk with me about what I need to do to become a professor. Criminal law is just the most fun--it's like Law & Order every day. I haven't been cold called in any of my classes yet, but I do raise my hand occasionally, which perhaps keeps them at bay.

11:58--Woohoo! Lunch time! I didn't eat breakfast today, so I'm starved. I drop off my Torts and Crim book at my dorm, put in my Civ Pro book. The backpack is still heavy. The campus cafeteria is always packed, so I go to the neighborhood pizza shop to get some pasta. Unfortunately it's jammed too.

12:40 -- I get my food--spaghetti and meatballs--and cram it down, while watching CNN analysis of the John Roberts confirmation hearing. Funny that I'm so busy with law school, I hardly have time to pay attention to major legal issues.

It was the same way with Katrina. I knew it was happening, but I was so busy it hardly seemed real. Now we have some Katrina survivors living in our dorm building. Much more real.

1:15-- Civil Procedure (aka Civ Pro). We're talking about cases we read last week. It's harder to be interested once you've read ahead. In Civ Pro, we get called on in panels. That means we know ahead of time whether we'll be called on, although we can always raise our hands. It's hard to do the reading, really pay attention, when you know you have nothing to fear. Tomorrow's my day on panel; I'd better do the work tonight.

The rest of this hasn't happened yet, so I'll make an educated guess:

2:42-- Freedom. Civ Pro is over and I head back to my room. Probably I talk to some folks in my dorm for awhile. Check email. Make a list of things to do (ie. Call Mom, Do reading, Brush teeth, Eat.....) since I can't remember anything without writing it down now.

3:00-- Start reading. Eek! There's so much to do. I finish my 10 pages of Torts reading in 45 minutes, and then take a bathroom break.

3:55-- Having forgotten my ID card (necessary to swipe my way into the bathroom), I have to come all the way back to my room. Since the closest bathroom is in an adjoining building, it takes awhile. Even worse is when I go downstairs to the bathroom. When I do that, I can be gone forever talking to my friends who live on the 1st floor.

Now I'm back in my room and ready to work. An hour of Civ Pro reading, and I've made my way through 30 pages. Of course, I still have to type up the notes. And I still have 100 pages to go.

I've also ignored my First Year Lawyering homework. I haven't printed out the syllabus b/c it's in Microsoft Word, which I don't have on my computer. I've been meaning to buy it, or at least go to the computer center, but I have no time.

4:55-- Time to get dressed to go out. Tonight, I'm going to an cocktail party and book signing for a Harvard Law professor. We're meeting at 5:30, and I still don't know what to wear. Networking (some might say drinking) is very important.

That's something key to understanding life here. Most decisions are motivated by where the free food (or drinks) happen to be.

8:57--Home from the reception. I spent the whole time thinking about the work that I should have been doing. On the way in, I bump into some of my 1L pals on the way out to celebrate a birthday. I allow myself to be pulled into their tide, and I'm out the door again.

11:30-- After a few hours of yelling to talk to eachother at a bar, we determine that we must be responsible and come home. When we get back, we plop down in the lounge. We then proceed to talk about things we won't remember tomorrow.

1 am-- Fall into bed. Set alarm. I figure I'll get all my reading done during my breaks tomorrow.

Repeat.