Overheard in Law School #1

"You can't rape someone you love."

Thought of the Day:

Two thumbs down for the Socratic Method.

Lucky.

Lots of my classmates are from out of state. Today, I was having a conversation with one of them and she was nearly in tears talking about how homesick she is with all her friends and family so far away. I couldn't help but feel bad for her. Law school can be so isolating. Day after day, you are completely consumed with reading and studying. For someone who moves away from home and lives by themself, I can see how you would get really lonely living the life of a 1L.

Sometimes, in the deep corners of my mind, I question my decision to get married and start a family before starting law school. Balancing work, life, and family is downright overwhelming and can seem impossible at times. Wouldn't it have been so much easier to have finished school first? I'm sure in a lot of ways it would have been.

But then I think about what makes me happiest in my life... and that's my family. Every morning when I wake up before the sun comes up, it's them I say good morning to. When I have a bad day at school and come home cursing about my bitchy classmates, I know my husband really cares about what happened (unless there is an important game on, but he'll at least pretend).

I'm so LUCKY to have them here with me. Law school effects them too and I'm so happy to have my support system right here in the trenches with me :) They make me the luckiest 1L ever.

I should be reading...

But I thought I would give everyone a little update on my observations of law school so far.

1. The reading is intense. But it's nothing compared to the intense anxiety I feel when a professor starts randomly cold calling on people in class.

2. Being in a room all day, everyday with 100 type A personalities is far from what I call fun. Everyone is so similar... we're all assholes and smart asses. They might as well just put us all in a cage and have us fight to the death because that would probably be easier and less painful.

3. The gunners in my class have already been identified and made fun of by everyone else. In addition, the professors have recognized them as well and have already started ignoring them when they raise their hand (every 2 minutes). This brings great satisfaction to me and the rest of my non-gunner classmates.

4. Some people just do NOT know how to dress. I mean, this is a professional school. There is a dress code. Law school is not the place for sun dresses that are so short people can almost see your Britney. And it's definitely not the place for jean shorts and flip flops. What are these people thinking?

5. Wow, I knew it was going to be competitive... but I had no idea it would be like THIS. Example. Yesterday my civpro professor announces that he will be assigning seating charts today (lame, but whatever). Class starts at 8am. I'm super short and totally ADD, so I always sit in the front row to ensure that my vision isnt blocked by a big headed person and that I am not distracted by people in class. I got to school at 7:25am thinking I would have more than enough time to grab a good seat. When I get there, the door to the room hadnt even been unlocked yet and there are about 40 people already there!! WTF. When they opened the doors, it was like a mad rush for the first four rows. I almost got trampled to death and people were throwing elbows everywhere. I was able to get a good seat, but it nearly cost me my life.

This should be an interesting three years.

Tomorrow.

School starts tomorrow. I feel so weird about it. I mean, on one hand I am really excited to start a chapter of my life that I have been dreaming about since I was five.

And on the other hand, I AM ABSOLUTELY TERRIFIED. Panic is defined as "sudden mass fear and anxiety over anticipated events". I'm pretty sure that is where I am at this point. Yesterday I was fine, today I'm crying over not being able to find my thermos. WTF? Poor Mr. is just looking on in horror and I know he wishes he could help, but he doesnt even understand.

He's worried that I dont think I'll be able to handle school academically and that is NOT it at ALL. After meeting my classmates at orientation and getting through several reading assignments, I think I'll be able to do this. Obviously it is going to be extremely difficult, especially going to school as a wife and mother of a toddler - but I think I have a couple advantages over my classmates. I havent slept or had fun since 2007, so while so many of them will be mourning those losses, I've already been there and done that. I majored in philosophy at an amazing university, have a legal background, and am extremely organized. I feel confident that I will be able to handle the work.

What terrifies me is thought of changing into someone else (especially when I married pre-law school... what if Mr. likes the old me better?) A professor at orientation said "It is an agonizing metamorphis from layman to lawyer". I've heard that before, but I never really understood what it meant. I still don't really know, but now I am scared to find out.

First Day of Orientation

This morning I woke up SO excited for my first day of orientation. I wore a button down white shirt, black pencil skirt, black/grey heels and pearls. The entire day was filled with lectures.

In the morning, we met with our faculty advisors in small groups and got our class schedules. Then we went on small group tours of the campus.This was followed by a speech from our state bar representative instructing us on how to get registered with the bar as a first year student. We had a short, buffet-style lunch break and then finished the day off with more lectures from the deans, professors, career services, and the legal reasearch and writing department.

The best part was scoping out the rest of my classmates. I'm pretty sure we are all equally clueless as to what the next three years is going to be like. Overall, it went well though. We'll see what the next four days have in store.