Summer sun, something's begun

Today's quote: That won't work. I'm already a woman.

Summer is here! I don't really care what my grades are as long as I pass. I'm just glad to get these core classes over with so that I can really learn something interesting. I'm determined to have my fun this summer before I have to start my summer classes. I honestly wish that I didn't have to take the summer classes, but I'd heard from several people that it would be good to get PR out of the way to try to lighten my next semester, and also other classes to boost my gpa.

Otherwise, this will be the perfect opportunity to catch up on movies, play some WoW, maybe try out Guild Wars and Ragnarok, and just kick back and relax. Next week I'm visiting my parents and I know my dad is going to take me fishing. Ha.

Oh yeah, I guess I should look for another place to live too.

Is it really finals?

Today's quote: It's always the more gifted of the three.

I don't know, but it just doesn't feel like finals to me. It feels more like I'm walking through a haze where I happen to take tests sometimes. Of course, the property final was not fun, and helped reality come back a little more. I still can't believe how long the essay on the test was. Thankfully I took the test on my laptop, but even then I felt like I could type fast enough. I tried to spend the suggested allotted time on the two portions, but now I wish I had spent less time on the MC and a little more time on the essay. I can't imagine what the score distribution is going to be like for the class, because I heard a lot of people who chose to hand-write the essay didn't finish.

Eh, I'd heard that Hovey's finals would be somewhat hard, but goodness. And the MC were evil, with the typical d) Both A & C, or e) At least two of the above are true, or f) None of the above. YUCK.

Maid for You

Today's quote: The difference is if you screw up, then my ass is grass and she's the lawnmower!

Well, it's back to the feeling of trying to bandage too many wounds at once again. Too many outlines to try to finish, and memorize all those flashcards at the same time..agh.

At least I've discovered this website for Iowa City, MaidPerfect. Sounds like I'll be calling them when I move out of my crappy apartment at the end of July. I'll be so glad to get the hell away from my stupid neighbors, they're constantly fighting, doing drugs, and making everyone around them miserable. I just had them evicted for the third time this past Friday. That's what they get for being bigots.

This just in: apparently I got a few visits by people who did Yahoo! searches for little girl porn & sm. That is freaking disturbing.

Crybaby

Today's quote: Welcome the rich man, he's hard for you to miss. His butt keeps getting bigger, so there's plenty there to kiss!

Omg, just spend the last 20 minutes crying. I had an early dinner, which started with an appetizer of a small cup of chili with a hot pepper on the side. I picked up the pepper with my fingers and ate some of it, and after dinner I went home and took a nap. I'd forgotten to take my contacts out, so when I woke up they were all gummy. This is what led me to the fatal step: I took out the contacts and rinsed them with solution and put one of them back in. It hurt like a MOFO. Then I tried to take it back out which only aggravated it more. I guess I didn't wash my fingertips thoroughly enough, because my eye has never felt such extreme burning pain before. So after shedding a copious amount of tears, and much rinsing of the offending contact and hands, I finally put the contact back in and gritted my teeth. It was impossible to completely get all of it off because it still hurt, but eventually subsided. Maybe my bitchy roommate was right, I need to live in a bubble b/c I hurt myself in the most ridiculous ways.

But on the plus side, I had the cheapeast dinner ever, at Lone Star on 2nd Ave. Is it ave or st? You know, the street Peking Buffet and Applebee's is on, the hwy. Anyway, they have the most fantastic hot links, 2 for $3.49. I asked them to make hot dogs out of them, which they did at no extra charge. I am such a sucker for a good hot dog, and I loooove hot links. So far, this is the only place I've found in the entire city with a decent wiener on the menu. Just remind me not to handle their peppers with my bare fingers again.

Moooooo..

Today's quote: "How many people are having an orgasm right now?" Fifteen.


Props to MN 3L guy, who said,
>>Half the problem with finals is the wankers who run around babbling about it (i.e. "OMG my outline is like so like not done like OMG." OR "I spend my life studying 24-7")

Here's what you do: take it easy. Don't care what others do. I think it's best to not talk to others during finals. (This may be easier for me since I hardly ever talk to them anyway--I can have a better conversation with the retarded guy at Fuddrucker's.)

If you want to really fuck with people, carry around a stack of paper the last week of classes and call it your "outline."<<
Puhahaha. You're awesome.

Yeah, seriously. As soon as I walk into school it's like getting rammed in the gut with stress. I see people running around talking about their outlines, and how much they have done, or what's even worse is seeing some people who have their finished outlines in class flipping through them as the professors are giving their closing speeches. It's all well and good for them, but it makes me feel sick to my stomach. Of course, then you have to deal with your friends. Some of them don't seem to care, and you wonder what planet they're on, and some of them are running like chickens with their heads cut off babbling about some inconsequential crap, and you wonder what planet they're on. As someone's desktop background says, "Shut the fuck up." One of my friends has gone back to smoking like a chimney, and every time I see him I wonder if he's going to have a nervous breakdown. One day I'm just gonna have to slap him silly to get him to shut up about goddamn outlines. I can only expend so much of my own energy trying to calm people down, but after a while it's too much and I just want to run away and hide myself from this mess.

Well I was actually sad that civ pro is over, and I thought that his personally made evals were hilarious. He's such a nice guy that I'm sure I'll take some other class with him in the future. Last year when he taught civ pro he only gave out 9 C's, which is doing quite well in a class of our size. Hopefully I won't be one of those 9 this year.

So many distractions!

Today's quote: In Sicily, women are more dangerous than shotguns.

Aghhh...finals, yuck. What's weird is that I'm not even overly concerned about them, or about outlining. I suppose I'll eventually outline or something, but I don't think that's my most effective way of reviewing, more talking is better for me I think. What kills me is that everyone has always said, "Don't worry, you'll find what works for you..." blah blah yadda yadda. What I demand to know is, how'm I supposed to find out what works after only one semester under my belt? As we all know, one instance does not establish a pattern. I am still trying on different hats, seeking the one that fits best. Of course what sucks the most is that these 1L grades are gonna be the only things recruiters see when we do our crazy OCI stuff next fall, so I am feeling the pressure. Not to mention that I absolutely HATE these subjects this semester. Greeeeat.

The other thing is, everyone I know is also obsessed with applying to journals too (does anyone else hate how uber-competitive everything is?), so some of the people I know aren't even concentrating on finals right now, since they want to turn in their Transnational Law Journal App. I have to say that journal is the one I'm not going to apply for. I have no interest in the area, period. My top picks are Journal of Gender, Race and Justice, and Journal of Corporation Law, and then Iowa Law Review coming in a distant third. I don't even want to apply to ILR, except that I feel that I have to maximize my chances of getting onto a journal, especially if I'm not applying to Trans. Chances are, I won't make in onto any of them because I absolutely stink as a legal writer.

Sidebar: Here are some cute links to watch if you were ever a fan of Nintendo, especially Super Mario Bros., and Zelda. Make sure you have your sound turned on!
Acappella Nintendo
Crazy Video Game Pianist

Zzzzz....

Today's quote: You were banished because you were clumsy?

That sounds like it could have been me.

Anyway, I didn't look at my blog for a few days, and when I came back I found a deluge of comments to read. I think it's very entertaining to read what people have had to say, although the subject is assuredly not funny. I was talking about it with one of my friends, who unfortunately was a victim of a sex offender and she thinks that such people never fully recover. I look at her, and then I look at my dad, who lost two fingers in a boating accident, and I tend to agree. She described the main problem as being that you never fully shake off the feeling of being forever tainted, or dirty. My father on the other hand, just expresses wistfully that sometimes he wishes he had his fingers back, but their absence doesn't impair his living too badly. Since I always grew up with him like that, it just seemed normal to me, and since they're from his left hand, his writing abilities haven't even been diminished.
Maybe it's like trying to compare apples with oranges, but to me it seems that my father has coped as well as possible, whereas the same could not be said of my friend.

I think part of the whole red-hot controversy is that sex is so taboo as a subject in the US, and this makes it seem all the more shocking when children are the ones who have been violated in such a manner. We all seem to buy into the idea that children should be innocent for as long as possible, and we really go after those who dare to take away such a precious privilege of childhood. And then again, it's always going to be those who have experienced such a terrible thing, and those of us who have not. The view that such unfortunates have will always be different because their lives have been altered forever.

Um, it's going to be finals soon...I really hate school.

Shady's Back

Today's quote: Once you go black; you'll need a wheelchair.

Yes, yes, I know it's been a while. First, I was just taking a break and doing other things. Then, I fell off a swing and sprained two fingers, so it's been a bit of a bitch trying to type. With two swollen fingers, it's interesting trying to keep up with lectures. Half the time I'm not able to, so my notes seem like a bunch of incoherent ramblings. (Ha, not so different from this blog?)

Looking through the comments, I found one notable: http://www.criminalcheck.com/.

It seems a bit shocking to me that this exists, isn't this some sort of invasion of privacy? I have very conflicted feelings about the whole notifying the authorities every time a sex offender moves and all that. The fair side of me feels that even criminals have rights which should not be violated. But my more honest reaction is that criminals should burn in hell for what they did. Basically, if you don't act like a decent human being, why should you expect to be treated like one? Sure, it all depends on the level of their transgression, and some people do deserve a second chance. But you know the saying, "Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice shame on me." To me it seems that the more serious the offense, the less probable it should be to get a second chance for fear of a repeat. If there was a repeat murder it would be with very grave consequences, whereas letting someone convicted of larceny have a second chance isn't quite so bad. Not quite so life-threateningly serious if they have a chance at a repeat. Of course, things are so rarely black and white, and it's a very murky area to work with.

Um...yeah...

Today's quote: Moisture is the essence of wetness, and wetness is the essence of beauty.




This is what I came across, so then of course I had to look up its matching accessory, below..



If anyone is interested in actually buying it, you can find them here, at I Want One of Those.

What I want to know is, won't those pieces of candy just come rolling off if you break a string somewhere? Very interesting.

I'm happy to say that we have the last piece of our puzzle. A = Saturn.

Who's going to get the last one?

Ok, we now have three more answers:

E = Zales
K = Burger King
W = Mountain Dew

So what is the A??

Go figure, no wonder I didn't get Burger King or Mountain Dew. I don't eat fast food, and I don't drink Mountain Dew, especially b/c of LD-40 (is it LD? Not sure. Anyway, it's something supposed to marginally affect impotency in men or some such bs. I just always thought it was weird drinking something that looked like highlighter fluid.)

So far, so good...

Today's quote: Revenge may be wicked, but it's perfectly natural.

Alright, here's the comprehensive list of the logos and brands matched up so far. There are only a few left that have not been solved. I have so many people asking me what letters are which brands that I've decided to post the results gathered till now.

A=?
B= ABC
C=Canon
D=Glad
E=?
F=Ruffles
G=Lego's
H=Yahoo!
I=Bic
J=Jif
K=?
L=Google
M= Samuel Adams Brewing
N= NASA
O=Kinko's
P=UPS
Q=Dairy Queen
R=Walgreen's
S=Sony
T=Citibank
U=Blockbuster
V=Volvo
W=?
X=Twixx
Y=Lay's
Z=Zenith

We still don't have A, E, K, and W. Wow, overall this group effort thing is working out pretty well. The only hard one I got was the "R", don't ask me how I guessed that. I'm ashamed to say that I didn't get Blockbuster, and I used to work for that devil. Ugh. Mostly all of the ones I'd gotten on my own are food brands. You can tell what I'm staring at most of the time.

Remaining stumpers

Ok, so far the letters still to be matched with their brands are

A
E
I
K
M
N
U
W

Any more guesses?

So long winter, hello spring

Today's quote: Well, some teachers are trying to low-ball me, Daddy. And I know how you say, "Never accept a first offer", so I figure these grades are just a jumping off point to start negotiations.

It's hoooot. Although the break from the bitter cold is quite welcome, it's a bit of a double-edged sword for me. I've always been sensitive to smells, and when it gets hot is when BO runs the most rampant. Also, it's freaking hot, but I'm a little self-conscious of wearing shorts or skirts. That's because I was cursed with the roommate from hell about 3 years ago. She was constantly making fun of how I looked. She called me Big Bird (saying that I have skinny extremities and a bigger body), said I had a flat butt, told me I needed to work out, and said I should live in a padded room (because I'm a bit clumsy and tend to bump into things and frequently suffer minor bruises and scrapes). So, I'm afraid of showing my Big Bird legs. I hate that bitch.

It's my mom's birthday this Friday. What should I get her? Shopping for Mom's birthday is always heinously difficult. If I don't spend enough, she'll say something like "What, you don't love your mother? I only carried you for nine months, and almost died in C-section giving birth to you. I didn't have to listen to that Catholic nun who persuaded me not to have an abortion." But then if I try to get her something nice, it's "Honey, you're a student. Why are you trying to act like you're rich when you're not? Are you dealing drugs? Is there something you want to tell me? You could have just gotten me a card and that would have been enough." BULLSHIT! BULLSHIT!! The only thing that came to mind was going home to surprise her. Or send flowers. No, scratch the flowers, because she always asks why I get them, when they're going to die.

On another note, I've been playing the Alphabet Game again. See below.

Right now I'm stuck on about half of these. These are snippets of famous logos, and you have to guess the right brand with the letter shown. I need help with these. Let's start with A. Any ideas on it? So far, I've got C, G, H, J, L, Q, R, S, T, V, X, Y, and Z. All the rest I am stumped on right now.

Crap...it's DST

I really think that I should move to Arizona, Hawaii, or the part of Indiana that's in the eastern time zone. These are some of the places that don't observe DST. Well, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands also don't, but I'd rather put my money on Hawaii or Indiana.

I must really not be a morning person. It is incredibly difficult getting up before 10am for me, and I can bet that I'm going to be a super grumpy person come Monday morning. Yuck. I have no idea how I ever got up in time to go to high school. Our school started at 7:15 every day, and when DST kicked in I had always had a really hard time adjusting.

Oh, one of the questions in FHM asked who was the president during WWI, and I only got it right because I'd read the Anne of Green Gables series. The very last book was set during WWI, and the characters mentioned the politicians of the day quite frequently. Isn't it weird how we glean knowledge in the most unexpected places?

How Dumb Are YOU?

Today's quote: You know, I have this awful paranoid thought that feminism was mostly invented by men so that they could like, fool around a little more.

The Pope has passed away. Strange, I had held on to the belief that it wouldn't actually happen. Somehow, I always think that bad stuff can never happen to famous people. Maybe that's why I was so shocked when Princess Di, Aaliyah, and all the others died. I always feel a bit gobsmacked, like no way, that can't really be happening.

On a flippant note, I was taking the "How Dumb Are You" quiz in FHM magazine, and the answer is, apparently I'm quite dumb. I missed half of the questions. Here are some of the questions I missed:

2) Name either of the official languages of Afghanistan.
6) What were the Wright brothers' first names? (I only got one of these.)
8) Match the planets with the pictures (they're all in order, and I mixed up the last three).
11) Name just one of Charlie Chaplin's movies.
12) Name two of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. (I only got one)
14) Mt. Everest straddles two countries. Name one.
18) Who's the dude on the dime?
19) Mexico is directly south of the U.S. Two countries touch the southern border of Mexico. Can you name one?
20) Who wrote War and Peace?

How many of you know the answers to these (without looking them up on the internet, obviously)? Right now, I feel as bright as Bridget Jones in the Edge of Reason when she was caught not knowing where Germany was.

Are You Kidding Me?

Today's quote: Wait a minute... nice boys don't kiss like that.

Johnnie Cochran? Hm...the only thing that comes to mind is that a certain town in a Southern state is probably assembling to dance on his grave. You know how in our civ pro text it says that in class action lawsuits the fees are more about the attorney's fees? Yeaaah. This town was a typical one, except one of those industrial factories came in and dumped straight into the water supply. The result? More than 25% of the children were born with missing limbs, and even older people who were just exposed to the water developed cancer. I read one particularly horrifying account of a small family that walked to school every morning, and one of the little boys had a fascination with lingering in the polluted stream right outside of the factory. The boy died before he was 30, with massive complications from several illnesses. Anyway, good ole Johnny somehow got wind of this, and swooped down upon them. Everyone thought he was their savior. After the lawsuit was settled, the shocking truth came out. After attorney's fees, the average plaintiff received approximately $300. I'm surprised they didn't try to tar and feather Johnnie. Needless to say, his name is mud in that town.

Quickest way to a Man's Heart

Today's quote: SixWingAngel (1:28:10 AM): "the quickest way to a man's heart is between the third and fourth rib. Pierce there with your rapier."

Parents suck

Today's quote: I have to tell the maid to buy diapers and get the pool boy to walk the dog? Can't I just make out with Kevin all the time? Being married sucks.

How am I supposed to deal with the most freaking insane parents in the world? They think that when they call me I'll just automatically drop everything to talk to them. Today, for instance, they called right when I was in the middle of cooking dinner. Three pots going on the stove, and the bloody phone rings. I go to pick it up, like an idiot, and it's my parents! I'm the idiot, because the phone I answered with is corded, so I'm a prisoner to the wall, while my stove is on, cooking merrily away without yours truly. My dad always calls me to ask how to do things, like what does this red blinking light on the fax machine mean, or how do you change the print options in the menu, etc. I don't mind helping anyone, but he always asks me how to do things that obviously require someone being there to know 1) what the hell he's talking about, and 2) what the hell he's talking about. Ugh. So I finally came to my senses and switched phones. By the time I got back to the stove, stuff was burning, or splattering away. I started swearing like a banshee because I got burned by two splatters, and my dad kept asking me why something looked like it didn't fit into the cd changer. Finally I lost my temper, and repeated for the third time that I wasn't there, I don't know why it didn't fit. Dad got really mad and said my attitude was shitty, and hung up on me. I really don't think my parents know the meaning of "reasonable."

Cyberbullying?

I came across this article, which made my jaw drop.

**********
You've got hate mail
Cyberbullying, in which school kids anonymously spread gossip online, is an epidemic authorities find hard to stop
Tuesday, March 22, 2005
KATE TAYLOR
(excerpted)

The rise of cyberbullying -- the use of new communication technology to hurt others -- is affecting more and more middle and high school students, experts say. It's an insidious new form of bullying because those who do it can harass their victims anonymously, and away from adults' notice.

Parry Aftab, director of the national WiredSafety.org, an online safety group, said 55 to 60 percent of the 1,000 students ages 9-14 she polls each month have been involved in a cyberbullying incident.

"The problem is bad and it's getting worse. It's getting worse because it's so easy, and kids are bored or angry," Aftab said from her New Jersey office. "It's growing because parents are putting powerful technology into their kids' hands and they are clueless about what that technology is. Parents don't know half the time what text messages are or that kids take pictures of other kids in locker rooms with their cell phones."

"It's like an electronic Dodge City," said Tim Drilling, principal of Lake Oswego's Lakeridge High School, referring to the brawling town in the long-running "Gunsmoke" television series. "Nobody seems to respect the behavioral norms -- it's wide open, people seem to be able to say whatever they want. You can be anonymous, and that seems to make people feel very free."

Attacks are vicious because the senders can be anonymous, said Nancy Willard, director of the Center for Safe and Responsible Internet Use in Eugene. "The social norms online seem to encourage disinhibition. Also, students often don't have any tangible feedback about how they're affecting someone."

Devin -- the school newspaper's page design editor -- taps a few keys, and up pops a Web log that depicts him as jealous, small-minded and incompetent. The same Web log also aims insults at other classmates and teachers.

Stevie Viaene, a web design teacher at Tigard High School, says "Kids have been driven to tears by some very nasty e-mails. Lots of kids spend a lot of time blogging, and putting scathing things about other students on them."

While parents have struggled to understand how cyberbullying happens, schools are only beginning to look for ways to fight it. Cyberbullying often happens off school premises and after hours, and experts say much of it is protected by free speech. If schools can identify the students who are doing it, they take measures to stop the cyberbullying, but tracking messages and Web log entries requires serious detective work.

At least one lawmaker has taken steps to help schools. Sen. Jeanne Kohl-Welles, D-Seattle, has proposed legislation that would require school harassment policies to prohibit cyberbullying.

In the meantime, Aftab said, schools can do a few things to help stop the abuse. They can establish an anonymous tip phone line for those who witness cyberbullying, and organize student-run awareness campaigns about cyberbullying. She also advocates awareness workshops for educators, parents and community leaders.

"They have to do something about this now. I couldn't stand it if this happened to one other child," said the mother of the Lake Oswego girl who moved to another school after cyberbullying demolished her social life, as well as her ability to focus in class. "That's the only reason we came forward. Others have to know how much it hurts."

Kate Taylor: 503-294-5116; katetaylor@news.oregonian.com
**********

Well, well. How interesting. Dear Iowa Law community, this "cyberbullying" thing seems to hit a little too close to home. One thing I disagreed with was how the article seemed to imply that kids are the most hurt by blogs. Although she did not state such a thing, the article seems slanted that way. Maybe she could have included how widespread these kinds of things are in the real world, like how people have lost their jobs because of blogs.

I'm just a 1L...

Today's quote: You know, there's like a butt-load of gangs at this school. This one gang kept wanting me to join because I'm pretty good with a bo staff.

Does anyone else get bombarded with friends calling you demanding advice on what to do in their problems? My family and friends keep calling me every now and then giving me some problem and asking me if it's in their best interests to sue, or how else to deal with it. Everyone knows that the best thing to do is resolve the situation without resorting to going to court, but what do I know? I'm just a 1L.

Note: I DO NOT give anyone legal advice. I always tell them I don't know anything, and to go seek professional counsel. I only think about these situations in the context as if a hypo given in class, and how I would address these hypos if given on an exam.

For instance, my friend, an administrative assistant, called me a few months back, absolutely hysterical. She'd made a mistake of some kind on obtaining information that resulted in costing her boss a whole day in fruitless activity. Anyway, while he was spending the day finding out that what she'd told him was a huge mistake, my friend had taken the afternoon off for her dental appointment. Therefore, she was not in the position to answer her phone. When she left the office, she saw that she had a voice mail from him. She checked it, and listened to the most crazily obscene and profane message, calling her "a stupid bitch who was going to be in big trouble, and why wasn't she picking up the fucking phone" etc. Apparently, every other word was profanity. In her panic, she deleted the voicemail because she didn't want to hear anymore of it. I told her that was a big mistake to begin with, you never delete evidence, just common sense.

Then, the next day she went to work, he demanded to see her. The co-president had forewarned her to be as subdued as possible, because the man had been ranting about wanting to fire my friend. So she goes in, and sits down. He begins with, "How much do you make here?" Basically, everyone there knew that my friend had just purchased a new home. She was struggling to meet the mortgage payments on her measly salary, and everyone at the company knew this. So it was especially heinous that he played that card. He went on to disparage her past work, saying she just wasn't up to par, and made her feel like life wasn't even worth living. This was the first mistake she'd ever made.

A few days later she called me, and asked me if there was anything that she could do. I told her she'd have to go see an attorney for this kind of thing, since I didn't know much about it. The only thing that I could think of was that it sounded a lot like IIED, so I went through the prima facie case for it, and I'd thought she might be able to have a decent case, except for the fact that she'd deleted that voicemail. If she'd been able to obtain testimony from other workers at the company about his frequent rages and how he just fired people at a whim (this was a frequent pattern), maybe it would have made up for it. But everyone was so terrified of the man that she was sure that no one would help her for fear of retaliatory consequences at work. I told her that she should go find counsel (maybe at a clinic since it might be cheaper), who might tell her to go see a shrink and obtain medical documentation to establish expert evidence. Plus, I'm sure the fact that the company is a private corporation will have some impact on this. I called my old workplace to ask an attorney what she thought, and she said that employees have a very difficult time winning lawsuits against private employers for this kind of thing.

It really sucks knowing that my friends and family are out there having these problems, and there's nothing that I can do about it. This was exactly the kind of thing that I'd hoped to remedy by entering the legal profession. At times like this, I feel like I'm not learning fast enough.