Bad Bee Stings

Well, my arm is still swollen like the elephant man from that bee sting. I don't usually have a bad allergic reaction to bee sting, so it just may be my [un] lucky month.

My husband searched WebMD to see if my arm was going to fall off. To my good fortune, they said no (as much as you can trust online medical experts). They did however said it could take a few days before the swelling goes down.

Since I see my doctor on Friday anyways for a physical (Friday the 13th for an annual girl exam sucks, but I digress) I can always let him know if the swelling hasn't gone down.

Nothing like sitting through eight hours of work and two hours of class while your arm burns and itches. And of course, scratching my arm provides instant relief but in the end only makes it worse, so there's the psychological torture of trying not to scratch.

Fortunately, it itches less today than yesterday, so I'm feeling like I'm on the road to recovery.

The sad thing was that I didn't see where the bee came from, so I couldn't drown the nest in water or anything like that to get my revenge. Instead, I'm just terrified of using the leaf blower now.

Weekend Roundup

On Saturday, I went to dinner with some friends of mine who are going to be graduating at the end of next semester. I'm obviously jealous that they are so close to being done.

However, when I asked them what they planned to do when they graduate, since neither of them have held a substantive job in over two years, they both kind of seemed worried. They both used to work full time, like me, while attending school but quit their jobs when the going got tough. Neither one has a job lined up upon graduation, legal or otherwise.

One friend seemed willing to take anything, legal or not, so she could continue to pay the rent. She's starting to look now.

The other friend kind of hoped someone would scrape something up for her through her networking. I asked her if she told her network that she's looking for work. She said no, that they all "knew" she was graduating soon and would probably help her out. That didn't sound very promising to me. She's also the one who isn't planning on taking a bar prep class because she doesn't have any money left.

On Sunday, I did my wifely duty by helping my husband take care of the leaves in the yard. Basically, my job was to trim all the perenials in the flower beds and to use the leaf blower on the lawn. All this left me with was a sore back and a nasty bee sting because apparently, bees don't like leaf blowers. I almost got stung a second time, but managed to get out of the way of one angry bee. I wonder if I blew away their nest?

Either way, my arm is red and massively inflamed today. Fortunately, I'm wearing a red shirt today so my arm matches my shirt.

I did manage to study Agency law this weekend, but only to the point where I got bored and took a nap. I'm just not into my classes this term.

There's always next term.

Inching Closer to the Finish Line

I'm definitely inching closer to the finish line. I reminded myself of that yesterday when I was planning out my next term's classes.

After next term, I will only have five classes to go. The end is coming! The end is coming! And it's a good thing! It's definitely put some wind in my otherwise deflated sails.

Next term, I am taking a class on tax, a class on equities, and an evening clinical internship (yes, that means living, breathing clients).

Now if only I could find some enthusiasm for my current classes, or at least just enough to get me through finals!

A Little Restraint

While waiting for class yesterday to start, a girl was sprawled on the floor in front of the classroom door talking to her buddy about how sh**faced she was going to get this weekend and how the bartendered better not pour her any weak drinks or she was going to get f**king pissed.

Wow, I bet the employers would be lined up around the block to hire her on based on her professionalism. I heard someone say something once about how you never know who you're standing next to, so how you behave outside of work can sometimes filter back into work.

For example, I was at a networking event this week full of attorneys, judges, and law professors. The event had a cash bar and appetizers. I decided to have wine with my appetizers. But I made sure to limit myself as to how much I drank, because the last thing I want at a networking event is to have these future colleagues see me loopy.

But it's not just law related events I have to think about. I'm also mindful that I live in this community with my future colleagues. I have the potential to run into any of them when I'm out at a restaurant or a bar (or anywhere else). I'm sure it would not inspire confidence in my professional abilities if they saw me acting like a college co-ed at a kegger.

I'm not saying that law students can't drink or have fun. But geez! Have a little restraint sometimes.

Maybe I'm just old and have been out in the working world a little longer, but I can tell you that at all the places I've worked, no one ever bragged about how sh**faced they got over the weekend. A few drinks or had a good time, yes. Sh**faced, no.

A Day Off...

Yesterday, I had the day off from work so I could catch up on school work. It never quite works out the way I planned, but I had good intentions:


Awake at 6:30 am when husband got up for work. He asked if he could take my car since it was behind his. I mumbled something, rolled over, and went back to sleep.

I slept in until 10 am when the dog couldn't hold it any longer and tried to sniff my face to see if I was alive.

Husband called at 10:30 am to see if I was actually awake and if I could run to the post office for him.

I fumbled around the house to a chorus of "Good Morning" squawks from the birds until 11 am.

I took a shower around 11:30 am. Then after Big Bird yelled, "Goodbye, see ya later!" as I walked out the door, I drove downtown to pick up something from the law school.

Then I ran into a family member and I decided to go on an unscheduled lunch at Noon. Stayed there for an hour and a half until my parking meter expired.

Once back in my car, started chatting with my husband at 1:30 pm.

Arrived at the post office around 2 pm.

Arrived back home around 2:15 pm. Ended the call with my husband.

Made myself a cup of tea around 2:20 pm.

Started reading cases around 2:30 pm.

Made another cup of tea around 2:45 pm.

At 3 pm, mother-in-law called to see if husband and I wanted to join them for dinner - their treat. Said I needed to check with my husband.

Spoke with my husband at 3:10 pm to see what he wanted to do about the dinner invitation. He said okay.

Called my mother-in-law back at 3:20 pm to tell her we'd meet them for dinner.

Went back to reading cases at 3:30 pm.

Got distracted and surfed the tv about 4 pm. Went back to reading cases.

Husband arrived home at 4:50 pm. Gave up trying to read cases, only made it through two out of five.

We chatted until 5:30 pm. Then we got ready for dinner.

Left for dinner at 5:45 pm.

Met in-laws for Mexican at 6 pm. Tried to grab the bill before they got it, but then when I was trying to reach for my purse, they swiped the bill away and paid for dinner, again.

Left dinner at 7 pm for Halloween Fest at a local bookstore. Bought too many (non-legal) books plus a remote control zombie toy with green skin that moans and staggers. Not feeling the least bit guilty about purchases.

Arrived home around 8 pm. Husband headed off to computer room and I curled up with a (non-legal) book.

Put the little squawking bird to bed around 9 pm. He kept chattering under his cage cover for another ten minutes while I repeatedly told him to go to bed and "No beaky!"

Piggy (the little dog) decided it was bedtime around 11 pm so I made Big Bird go into her cage. She called out several times, "Good Night!" Then Piggy and I went to bed.


Yeah, I didn't get all my school work done. But all in all, it was a productive day and I felt refreshed when it was done.

Counting Down the Days...Not Yet

Two of my law school friends are graduating in May. They are counting down the days until graduation. In some ways, I'm green with envy that they're almost done. In other ways, I'm okay with being where I am at.

I smile and say that I have until next December to graduate. I'm okay with that because the job market, especially the legal job market, has dried up in my state and has flown off to parts unknown. I think that in another year things might look a little brighter in my state (it can't get much worse), so having to wait until then to begin the job search is okay with me.

I still am jealous that my friends are almost done with school. Each hour in class DRAGS on my soul. I have absolutely no energy or enthusiasm for my classes. Of course, that's typical of this part of the term when I could care less about law school. In a few weeks I'll be back on the bandwagon preparing for exams. But right now, I'd love to join my friends in counting down my final days.

As for the job front, I am currently applying for internships and other legal clerking jobs, just so I can get some experience. Let's face it, I have to be able to put something on my resume other than, "Hated law journal, doesn't run with scissors, and has years of non-legal experience."

Yes, it may mean giving up my full time job in order to get legal experience, but I know in the end it will be worth the effort.

31 Flavors of Law

When I first took a torts class, my professor off-handedly said she didn't remember much about criminal law except that she didn't like it. I had another professor in Con Law say they didn't know much about contract law, just enough to pass the bar and then forget about it.

I'm beginning to understand why people veer towards their favorite flavors of the law early on.

You've got your standard flavors of law: torts, criminal, and contracts. You have your neapolitan mixture like property. You have a few specialty flavors like administrative and wills. And then you've got your exotics flavors like oil and gas or immigration.

Business law, to me, tastes like a sickly sour ice cream that's sat too long in the freezer and is growing ice on it's rubbery crust. I get a headache from eating it and it burns in my throat.

Business law is now my albatross and if I never have to read another stockholder derivative case, I will be a happy woman. I wanted to shove a pencil in my eye instead of reading the rest of the cases. And when I tell my office mate about limited partnerships and liability, her eyes roll into the back of her head as if I'm a demon speaking tongues.

Not Quite There Yet...

When they tell you it's only three years, it sounds simple. What no one tells you is that three years can feel like a long time while you're in the midst of it.

I was telling my husband the other day how much I absolutely despise my current job. I quit my previous job before I started law school and began to work as a secretary at my current job because I needed money; they allow me to have a more flexible schedule; and they allow me to study.

It made sense at the time, even though it was a HUGE step down from my previous job. I figured I could handle it and it would be a relief from my previous job considering I had to balance law school.

What I didn't realize was how long three years can be when you're stuck in a job that you really dislike and the economy is so bad you can't go out and find a different one.

In fact, most days I feel like crying before I even make it to work.

What makes it worse is that my current supervisor is really crappy. She's highly in need of supervisory training. She's likes to gossip with one person (her favorite employee) and is an ice princess with everyone else. And the lack of communication on her part causes so much stress on everyone else's part. Need to know something to get your job done? Good luck finding out what you need to know.

It affects the whole office, so it's not just me. But that doesn't always help me feel better.

I've been spoiled before by having good supervisors so I can spot a bad one in a heartbeat. Plus in the past I've been a supervisor who's had extensive management training. So I was pleased when I took this job that it was under an excellent supervisor. It was a complete shock when she left six months later and we were stuck with the new, untrained, inexperienced supervisor.

My current supervisor was off most of the summer on leave and we had an awesome interim supervisor while she was gone. And then she came back, making work all the more painful because for a little while we had a reprieve.

Maybe working full time and going to school just makes me tired, so I have less tolerance than normal.

Yes, I understand the economy's bad and I'm grateful to have a job. I just wish the next year would fly by quickly so I can at least start looking for legal jobs, or any other type of substantial job, instead of being stuck here.

You Want Volunteers?

Last night, my professor asked a question, and then clarified, "Everyone but Student X and Student Y, please?" Student X and Student Y, you see, always answer questions.

No one raised their hand to volunteer.

There's nothing wrong with Student X and Student Y... they are very smart guys and usually do a pretty good job answering questions. And they're not gunners per se. It's just that no one else in class WANTS to answer, because the professor always manages to make us feel like idiots, no matter what we say. Nothing we say is right, even if what we answer is what he asked for.

And none of us like asking questions either because the professor has a knack for making us feel even stupider than before we cluelessly asked for help.

I think that Student X and Student Y just have thicker skins than the rest of us.

It's apparent that the professor, an attorney who practices in the field we are studying, believes we will never achieve his level of expertise. I just think that we, as a class, may never achieve his level of self-importance.

We're only half way through the course... it's going to be a long term for this one...

Back from the Frozen Tundra

Okay, maybe it wasn't exactly frozen tundra, but my husband and I are back from a trip to Toronto, Canada. It was pretty chilly there weather-wise.

We were celebrating our five year wedding anniversary in Toronto. We decided to go there because my husband had never been there and the last time I was there was twenty years ago.

We also wanted to ride the Via Rail train from Windsor, Ontario to Toronto as my husband is a train buff. We rode business class (first class) which included three course meals, wine, liquors, and chocolates. It was a very nice train trip, one that I'd do again in a heartbeat. Definitely less hassle than driving or flying.

I think I'm getting spoiled by all the upgrades and first class service!

When we checked into the hotel, we let the hotel know it was our anniversary. The clerk asked us what you get for five years. I said hopefully,"Diamonds!" Both the hotel clerk and my husband disagreed. We agreed that it wasn't gold, silver, or paper, but we were stumped as to what to do for five years. The next day, the hotel clerk had a tray of red wine and chocolate covered strawberries sent up to our room for our anniversary, compliments of the hotel. The clerk wrote on a note to us, "Five year anniversary = wood". I asked my husband if that meant he had to buy me new wooden furniture? So far, no answer...

We upgraded the hotel room once we arrived and ended up having free breakfast and evening appetizers included with the price of the room. The hotel also had an adult-only swimming pool , sauna, and whirlpool, which was very nice. I hadn't been swimming in years so it was very cool to go swimming with an amazing view of the CN Tower.

Toronto is vibrant and very large. We enjoyed seeing the sights, including Casa Loma; riding the street cars (my husband especially loved that); and shopping at the Eaton Centre. We also went to the Distillery District and to a comedy club called Yuk Yuk's, which was fun.

However, we found that Toronto can be expensive, especially since the Canadian Dollar and the US Dollar are now equal. Good thing we used Priceline for the hotel and got a 60% discount for the train ride to save some money.

We had a good time and it's the first time in a long time that we spent that much time together. It was awkward at first because we're so used to only seeing each other in passing or for short periods of time since I'm in law school. So it was great for us to reconnect again.

Next week it's back to full time work and law school classes. But for the rest of this week, I'm free as a bird and it feels good.

Migraines and Wills

I am suffering from a massive migraine this morning. The kind that makes me squint because the fluorescent tube lights are searing my eyeballs. The dull throbbing isn't much better.

Unfortunately, I can't leave work because there's only one other person here today, and if I left her alone for the rest of the day, she would hunt me down and do worse to me than eyeball searing. She's the quiet, unassuming type, but that just makes her all the scarier.

I'm behind in my reading for Wills class, so while my pain medication is dissolving in my stomach, I'm trying to read Gilmer v. Brown, 186 Va. 630 (1947) on Westlaw.

The first line of the case reads, "Mary Thomas, whose age was estimated to be anywhere from 60 to 80 years, was one of seven or eight children of Albert Brown and wife, respectable Negroes, who owned and lived on a small tract of land near Shadwell about six miles east of Charlottesville, Virginia."

I like the fact that she's somewhere between 60 and 80 years old. And her parents either had seven or eight children. Apparently, they didn't teach math in 1947. And of course the rest of the sentence is just interesting (who writes like this anymore?)

Yep, it's going to be a long case...

Classroom Etiquette

Okay, I've given up on thinking that all law students are mature. Some are, and some obviously are far from it.

But when one of my professors had to remind the students not to chew tobacco and spit it out in a cup during class, well that just takes the cake. I can even imagine sitting next to someone who has a wad of tobacco in their mouth in the first place, let alone watch them spit it out in class.

Flame me for saying so if you will, but come on! I mean, EW!!!

Now, of course, I'm compelled to look around the class for the person who's doing this!

I have never seen that happen in the workplace. Why on earth would anyone think that it's acceptable to do in class? And I'm pretty sure that for attorneys, chewing tobacco and spitting in out in court is a No-No, but then again, maybe there's some rural part of America that thinks this is acceptable?

I've seen people eat in class, even though that's frowned upon as well. And I've seen people drink coffee, soda, or water in class. I've even had to sit next to someone in a seminar for three hours who cracked their knuckles the whole time (and I about gave him a beat down because the crunching sound was so unnerving.) But I've never seen a person sucking down tobacco in class. The mere fact that the professor had to remind someone not to do it means there's obviously someone who is doing it.

That's not immature. That's just nasty.

My Mom's New "Baby"

My parents lost their former dog due to old age. So for the past month my dad has been pestering my mom to get a new one. At first she was adamant that there would not be a new dog. Then she relented and said, "In the spring, maybe..." Then she started "just looking...." And now they are the new owners of a one year old female cocker spaniel mix from the local humane society.

Thanks to petfinder.com! (That's where we found Piggy five years ago, so it's a great resource!)

Boy, did their new dog find the perfect suckers... I mean perfect family to spoil her rotten for the rest of her life.

When I die, I want to be reincarnated as a dog with senior citizen humans who are home all day. Especially ones, like my dad, who are not stingy with the treats.

Things I Did This Weekend

This weekend, I -

• Went to see Zombieland with my husband for his birthday. We're zombie-movie fanatics - don't judge this middle-aged, frumpy blogwriter by her cover on this one! I give it an "A+" for fun!

• Had dinner at a great restaurant and had a yummy dessert called a "Snowball Fight". Warm, freshly made donut holes with chocolate dipping sauce. Mmmmm....

• Read Margaret Atwood's new novel, "The Year of the Flood." I'd call it an eco-disaster apocalyptic novel with a feminist spin. I'm 3/4 done, but it's pretty interesting so far.

• Tried to teach Big Bird to play ball with me. She threw the ball back, but only because having it near her scared her. Then she backed away and puffed up her feathers in the "I'm warning you, if you push that thing near me again I'm going to bite" stance.

• Tried to murder Little Bird due to his excessive screaming because he wanted to be near daddy in the other room. His daddy saved his little feathered butt... this time. Maybe Big Bird would like to "play catch" with Little Bird instead.... (Yes, I love my bird, and no, I wouldn't actually murder him.)

• Went to Major-Grocery-Store for a refund of my melted ice cream. They said I couldn't have a refund, despite what the supervisor told my husband the other day, but I could have replacements of all my melted ice cream. Fair enough. So I now have my freezer stocked with new ice cream. The commentary from the unwitting clerk at customer service about how all ice cream melts in hot weather was not welcome. Little does she know how close she was to having me go postal on her.

This weekend, I did not -

• Study. And it felt good.

It's a Freak Show!

I’m beginning to love my Wills, Estates, and Trusts class. No, it’s not the boring legalese or the statutory interpretations, as glamorous as those are.

Instead, it’s the dysfunctional families that turn into money-grubbing leeches when someone dies that really makes Wills fun!

I mean come on, you can't really make this stuff up!

Take a man with one ex-wife, four children from previous marriage, who had a “will” he hand wrote on a napkin and maybe signed it (or was that a ketchup stain), add a current spouse - married 6 months before death - plus their illegitimate child, neither of which are mentioned in the will, and a half-sister who was promised a house in exchange for her silence on her brother’s extra-marital affairs where there may or may not have been off-spring.

Who gets the money? Who gets left out? And who will be revealed as the next pretermitted child? On the next Jerry Springer Show, live from Probate Court!