950
dollars spent on Christmas presents, even though I am living off loans and thought I had "cut back" this year. Geesh!
364
days gone by in 2007; one more to go.
18
more months of law school.
13
relatives who said, "you look tired" during the Christmas visit.
12
more days until final grades are posted for fall semester.
11
hours of sleep per day/night is what I am averaging during the break. Heavenly!!
54
summer intern prospects
0
summer internship offers
412
times I have reminded myself to "have faith."
3
days it took me to finish the law review article.
3
days it took me to write an article for the SBA Magazine.
2.5
pajama days after returning home from visiting the family.
3
feet of mail is resting on the dining room table.
1
bottle of champagne ready for new year's eve.
1
more chance to wish you a happy new year
0
chance of me driving tonight.
Monday, December 31, 2007
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
One more before we are half way there
For several weeks now my poor, abused body has existed off of fast food, espresso, xanax, rolaids, pepto bismol and other imbibings. "Sleep and food are only for the weak," my friend Capt. Cave says, which is a famous quote from her alma mater (West Point). And, when I do try to sleep, it is restless, often interrupted by nausea, aching and cramping in my legs, back, and feet. So, I am wide awake at three a.m., chomping on an apple, sipping on some water, and hoping that my body doesn't go into shock from the ingestion of real nutrients.
In the darkness, the gracious silence of this time when most of the world sleeps, I have listened to some of my favorite tunes softly playing on my computer while I catch up on some e-mails (and blogging, of course) while waiting for the sleepiness to return; but, even though my body is still tired, my brain is awake, alert, and seems ready to "get it done." So, I guess I'll start the studying again....for one more exam. It's gonna be a killer, but then it's gonna be over, and this journey will be half way over. So, that's how it's going.
In the darkness, the gracious silence of this time when most of the world sleeps, I have listened to some of my favorite tunes softly playing on my computer while I catch up on some e-mails (and blogging, of course) while waiting for the sleepiness to return; but, even though my body is still tired, my brain is awake, alert, and seems ready to "get it done." So, I guess I'll start the studying again....for one more exam. It's gonna be a killer, but then it's gonna be over, and this journey will be half way over. So, that's how it's going.
Saturday, December 01, 2007
Tis the season!
It’s exam season, so this note will be brief.
God, in his gracious mercy, does not let us see the future, for if we could, many of us would run from it. I know that would be true of me. For, if in August of this year, I could have foreseen all of the work that awaited me, all the reading, and sleepless nights (not to mention a myriad of personal challenges), I would have surely decided to just stay in bed and “skip it.”
But August became September, and September rolled us into October. October brought a change to the scenery as it ushered in November. And there is no stopping November from introducing us to December. Hours turn to days, days to weeks, weeks to months, and months to years. Somewhere along the way, I blinked, and the semester is over.
I know, though, that I lived every painful day of it—and every painful page. This morning, out of curiosity, I reviewed the reading assignments for each class this semester. Let’s see, in criminal law we read 896 pages. Constitutional law required of us to read 796 pages; Evidence included 848 pages of reading; and the Tax professor went easy on us, only requiring 787 pages of reading. We also had to read about 300 pages in Law Skills class, but mostly we prepared projects for that class.
If you’re doing the math, this equals (approximately) 3627 pages of reading over 14 weeks or 259 pages per week, which equals out to 51 pages of reading per night.
Of course, the “reading” is only part of the nightly assignment. After the reading is done, then the writing begins. There are notes to draft and outlines to prepare. You may also need to read a commercial supplement for a class (or two) to help you understand the 51 pages of textbook reading that you just completed.
All of this reading typically boils down to about a 100-page outline (which is far too much to manage) and a lot of memorization and practice tests before the big exam. And, that will be all that consumes me for the next two weeks of exams. Tis the season.
God, in his gracious mercy, does not let us see the future, for if we could, many of us would run from it. I know that would be true of me. For, if in August of this year, I could have foreseen all of the work that awaited me, all the reading, and sleepless nights (not to mention a myriad of personal challenges), I would have surely decided to just stay in bed and “skip it.”
But August became September, and September rolled us into October. October brought a change to the scenery as it ushered in November. And there is no stopping November from introducing us to December. Hours turn to days, days to weeks, weeks to months, and months to years. Somewhere along the way, I blinked, and the semester is over.
I know, though, that I lived every painful day of it—and every painful page. This morning, out of curiosity, I reviewed the reading assignments for each class this semester. Let’s see, in criminal law we read 896 pages. Constitutional law required of us to read 796 pages; Evidence included 848 pages of reading; and the Tax professor went easy on us, only requiring 787 pages of reading. We also had to read about 300 pages in Law Skills class, but mostly we prepared projects for that class.
If you’re doing the math, this equals (approximately) 3627 pages of reading over 14 weeks or 259 pages per week, which equals out to 51 pages of reading per night.
Of course, the “reading” is only part of the nightly assignment. After the reading is done, then the writing begins. There are notes to draft and outlines to prepare. You may also need to read a commercial supplement for a class (or two) to help you understand the 51 pages of textbook reading that you just completed.
All of this reading typically boils down to about a 100-page outline (which is far too much to manage) and a lot of memorization and practice tests before the big exam. And, that will be all that consumes me for the next two weeks of exams. Tis the season.
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