I Need to be a Clean Person

I've been trying really hard to keep my apartment clean these days. I am not a necessarily a neat person, but I really want to be, so GF and I decided that we should just do it as opposed to always complaining that our house is messy. So while watching the most adorable niece ever today, I did some of our laundry and planned a delicious dinner of meat loaf, squash and fresh green beans to have tonight. I figure it will be pretty awesome, if only for the fact that it has little to compare itself to.

I don't know why keeping my house neat is so difficult for me, considering my level of neuroses about other things. It's like, when it comes to the way I organize school stuff or outline or whatever, it has to be just so but when it comes to my apartment, it's totally fine to just have laundry all over the floor. Like I said, it's something that I'm changing because I'm annoying myself.

Law school finals studying is starting for real now, which is one-half awesome, one-half panic inducing. Whatever, though, I know I just have to get it done. Plus, then I will be halfway done with my J.D., which is sort of totally awesome.

Ben Harper Softens the Blow of Law School Papers (but they still sure blow)

The Get Out the Vote concert with Tenacious D, Ben Harper, and the Beastie Boys did not disappoint. We arrived about 3 songs into the D, which was disappointing, but I caught "Fuck Her Gently" so all was right with the world. Bharps played a lot of new stuff that I enjoyed, but I doubt a novice listener would really dig the foray into the deeper tracks of his yet-unreleased album.

However, The Beastie Boys were fucking ridiculous. I hadn't ever seen them before, which is somewhat surprising considering the volume of shows I attended in high school, but I guess when you just go see the same three bands over and over again, you're gonna miss something. Still, it was well worth the wait because I can't imagine them being any better than they were last night.

One of the best parts was how awesome they still look:




MCA was my favorite because he's totally rocking the salt and pepper 44 year old dude hair. They all sound exactly like they did on Paul's Boutique and the venue didn't suck at all so I could totally see even though we had like the last seats in the place.

I had to write a paper for international law today, which didn't actually suck as much as I thought it would. I picked a sort of interesting topic about an international treaty about women's rights, so you know that was exciting in a land where feminism doesn't exactly come up very often. Good times.

Okay, I'm gonna go watch The Wire now. Kari and I have started watching it and I don't think we'll be able to stop until the whole series is finished. That's quite a lot of drug dealer and cop lingo to pick up between now and the end.

Since voting is only 2 days away, I'll probably write something about the election tomorrow. It's my last chance to convince that random guy in his basement scanning through weird blogs, you know?

American Apparel Sucks, Apparently

Apparently I'm not allowed to wear American Apparel anymore. Or eat butter. I didn't know this was the case, but after reading this, I've been convinced. Apparently, the owner of American Apparel sucks goat ass, and is somebody that I would never purchase items from if I knew better.

In other news, the Minneapolis Police Department continues to suck hard monkey balls. As if you needed further proof of this, Polkey and KK were downright harassed after their house was broken into, and it has only become apparent that the police has all but given up on North Minneapolis as a whole.

I've been wildly unproductive as of late, but I'm sure this will remedy itself once school starts next week. I've got a nice little lineup of classes, plus the judicial practicum and LR, so I should be pretty busy.

That does not mean, however, that I do not want to hang out with my pals. Because otherwise, I'll go crazy.

Do I look like I drive a jeep cherokee and shop at abercrombie?

I've decided to pause my Pandora obsession for at least a little while. Instead, I'm going to stream the Current, mostly because I've now been listening to the same 10 or so albums for the last 3 years and am in desperate need of something new. That and Pandora is seemingly obsessed with the idea that I love jam bands and Jack Johnson, two things I quasi-enjoy but certainly not at the level Pandora expects. Reminds me of the kids I went to high school with, who referred to Dave Matthews Band as simply "Dave" and talked pretentiously about music with "soul." Barf.

In other news, I'm researching for two professors which is actually pretty fun. It's also an excercize in concentration and time management, which are two areas that could use a little refining. I just realized that it's less than a month until school starts, which is embarassingly exciting. I remember a couple years ago when Snoobs would talk about how much she wanted to go get her textbooks as soon as she could, and I'm in that exact spot. I don't know what I'll do with them once they arrive, but I'll be ordering them soon so that they can rest peacefully in the garbage dump we like to call "the office."

Also, I'm sure you all know this, but cable and internet is effing RIDICULOUSLY expensive. I'm trying desperately to save money, so cable was the first to go, and it has been all good, but the lack of internet is something that I cannot deal with. When I looked up Comcast's "deals," I was met with 6 month "promotional" pricing, followed by at least double the price after that. What really pisses me off is that my stupid apartment building wont allow satellite dishes (because it apparently ruins the aesthetic, a hilarious notion for anyone that knows the place) so its either Comcast or nothing. Fascists.

Okay, I'm going to go research unfair trade practice now. Gooooood times.

Sex and the City

Okay, so thinking up correlative song lyrics every time I want to write a blog is perhaps one of the major things that prevents me from writing more often (pathetic, yes, but true) so I've decided to switch to more descriptive titles. If you didn't notice that they were song lyrics before, then you wont be missing much.

So, as the title indicates, I went to Sex and the City (SATC) this weekend with Kari, her sister Sarah, law school compatriot Tracy and her BFF Rachel. A great group, I must say.

The movie was perfection. I know that they New York Times wrote this article, and although I usually agree with most things the NYT has to say, this time they're WAY off the mark. Anyone that loved the movie will certainly love the film, and the comedic timing is just as good in the film as the show. There's a chance that we'll actually go back and see it again in the theater before all's said and done, and we'll definitely be buying it when it comes to DVD, so, you know, keep that in mind.

I still have so much to do, but little drive to actually do anything. Kari and I went to look at open houses today. One of my favorite hobbies, especially because I usually get to get ice cream or some other delicious treat while we're out. Awesome.

I think I may add sesame chicken to my food review list, but we'll see. Also, the Uptown Diner (not to be confused with the Uptown Bar and Grill) has proclaimed on its sign that they have the best biscuits and gravy in the city, so I'll definitely be going there ASAP.

Other than that, I must get something done today because I've been wildly unproductive thus far. Hopefully I'll be getting a job SOMETIME but for now I'll just sit at the greatest coffee shop ever and try to complete this task.

You save big money, you save big money

I got P.J. Murphy's this morning for breakfast. I was watching Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives on the Food Network the other day and the Nook was featured, which was totally awesome. In addition to them gaining national noteriety, I got to learn how to make the juicy lucy. Regardless, they buy their buns from P.J.'s and I've been wanting to go there ever since I watched. I feel like its my own little person bakery considering how much I used to go there. And considering someone I know has touched their front door naked. So, you know, keep that in mind.

I'm trying to keep motivated in school but it's seriously waning lately. Or since I came back this semester, you know, either way. Its not like I'm not doing my work or anything, its just like, honestly? 40 pages for Constitutional Law on Thursday? Really? Okay. I have plenty o' time for that.

When I was writing that I 40 pages to read, I almost wrote that it was for "Conlaw" but thought better of it. While my fellow law students wouldn't even think twice, my friends (and girlfriend) get PISSED at the constant over-abbreviating that occurrs with everything in law school. It's actually pretty hilarious when I get called out on it, considering I don't even really think about it, and it is pretty ridiculous how self-important and pretentious it comes across to other people. Like, I couldn't possibly be bothered to say such long words on a daily basis. I'm shortening Criminal Law to Crim, Civil Procedure to CivPro etc. etc. etc. Oh, this place.

In other news, I had a suberb meal last night. Its restaurant week in Minneapolis, so all the cool restaurants have a special menu (and special prices). We went to Cosmos, which is in the Graves 501 Hotel (which effing rules, ps) and it was delicious.

Okay, I can't procrastinate anymore.

There's always someone younger, someone with more hunger

Having subsisted in the land of Itakemyselftooseriously for about 6 months now, I'm about at my wits end with how to handle all the boneheads. This isn't a commentary on anyone in particular but on the overall culture of law school that apparently attracts all the people I wanted to beat up while in high school.

Don't get me wrong, I'm certain that there are other reasons for today's overwhelming annoyance with the situation in which I have engulfed myself, but if I have to hear one more self-important blowhard ramble on and on about how much they (don't) know about everything under the sun, I will shoot myself with the shotgun the 2nd Amendment so thoughtfully allows me to have.

Honestly, try to imagine a room full of people, each one thinking they're smarter than the next. Not only that, but each one is on a never ending quest to prove that they are, in fact, the most intelligent person to ever walk the earth. This, combined with the knowledge that the people who are actually the smartest just sort of answer questions when they come up and otherwise act like a normal, nice person, makes me despise the culture of intelligent idocy that law school creates.

I wish I was still in college. What concerns me is that I actually fucking like law school. Now, of course I can't tell anyone this because hating law school is one of the first things you learn when entering law school.

Its a good thing that there's the tiny amount of people that make my days bearable. See, not everyone is a jackass and not everyone thinks that law school is the most important thing on Earth.

Some days I just get sucked in to only hearing the things I hate. Apparently today is one of those days.

Thank you for your message but I don't understand

I had this initial thought that I would write blogs a couple of times a weeks about all the trials and tribulations of law school but as I've actually gotten caught up with the trials and tribulations of law school, I haven't had much time to write about it.

All the things they warned me about are turning out to me true. Even as I write this, I am acutely aware of the fact that the possibility of each of the 59 other people in my section will read it and know of my growing anxiety about all that is law school. I didn't used to care so much what other people thought of me. I think I'll stick with that theory as long as I can keep it in my grasp.

What's interesting is that I actually really like it. Like, a lot. I like reading the cases. It's like getting to read little stories all day long about how some policy or law came to be. For a political science nerd, it's like a little tiny slice of heaven. But the pressure that surrounds every single little thing, the awareness that fucking up at any moment could be the end of your academic life, is a little more than I had bargained for.

Also, people take themselves WAY too seriously in law school. Like, I'm all about being respectful and being a tactful and classy person (what am I if not classy?) but I am not a serious person. You know this. I'm not a jerk off, but I just don't think that the way to win friends and influence people is to act like you're smarter than them all the time and that you have nothing at all to learn. I feel like I have so much to learn that its obscene. Every day I go to class, I go away learning only that I have so much more to learn. It's a really weird cycle.

Mostly it's the scholarship pressure that's getting to me. Grades = scholarship. Scholarship = continuing law school. I don't know if other people in class are in quite the same situation as I am. It's not like I can just whip up $20,000 from nowhere if I lose my scholarship because I can't get good enough grades. And it's not like getting these grades is just a walk in the park. I've done the math. It's about the top 30%. The amount that I think about this fact is ridiculous.

I have to say, though, that having men in class is way less weird than I thought it would be. One of the closest friends I've met is a guy, which is actually really refreshing. It's weird to have gone from tons of guy friends in high school to a virtually man-free existence in college. I thought it was going to be a much stranger transition but in the end they're just regular old people.

Who knew?

The lack of time is pretty strange. When I'm not doing stuff for school, I'd rather just be doing nothing at all because I'm tired of thinking and interacting and answering and questioning. This is hard to explain to friends, especially when I really want to hang out I just have no energy to do so.

In the end, I know I'll figure it out. What's the alternative, right? That's what I always say to everyone else. Either do it or don't. It's a means to an end. For tonight, I'll just read some more Contracts and sleep past 7 for the first time in too long.

I'm like a lawyer with the way I'm always trying to get you off

And so it begins.

Today is my first day not working at Financial Aid; it is my first day attempting to do law school activities. I'm convinced that those around me are more nervous about it than me, but that may just be my 24 year old naiveté. Or denial.

I'm beginning to think its the latter.

So, I'm sitting in Kopplin's Coffee Shop which, by the way, everyone should visit because its the best coffee in the city by far. Seroiusly. I'd go as far as to offer you reimbursement for your mocha if you get it here and don't like it. I can't tell you why its so much better, exactly, but holy shit. Its worth the trip even if you live in Maple Grove.

Anyways, I'm about to start my orientation homework, which is sort of funny to think about but logical if you understand that during my 4 days of orientation, there is a Legal Methods class.

That's right, class during orientation.

I'm actually really excited about it all. I haven't been without a job since I was 18 years old, which is scary as fuck, but its an amazing opportunity to be able to focus solely on school. I don't feel like I've ever really given anything 100% (personal relationships excluded, I suppose) so I'm pumped to see what I'll be like at full throttle.

Everyone I've talked to that's been in law school has said that the thing they hate about it (or one of the things, depending on who you ask) is how competitive everyone is.

This makes me chuckle.

I am one competitive MFer. I don't care if its hopscotch we're playing, I want to beat you and I want it to be a decided victory. I honestly don't know if this will be a help or hinderance, but I know that its something that isn't gonna change so I might as well go with it.

So, yeah. Today is the first day of the rest of my life.

Wish me luck.