Role Models

Perhaps I'm seeing only what I want to see, but it seems that the advice from upperclassmen here at law school has been rather lackluster. Is it because of a competitive atmosphere here? I hope not, they tried to sell us on how uncompetitive it was (a somewhat ridiculous thing you here when law schools recruit you... of course it's competitive damnit. I don't care if companies don't see your GPA/class standing until right before they interview you, you won't get a callback if you're ranked last)

Anyways, I haven't talked to too many upperclassmen yet, but it seems like the ones I have talked to haven't really figured this thing out themselves. All of them have their own study quirks and their own goals, their own different hopes about where their law school journey will take them.

I expected to maybe get some advice from them, because I don't really know what I'm doing yet or even what I want to do. I feel like a blank slate. I could see myself doing something with a big firm, or working for the government, or really, anything. I came into law school with no pre-conceived notions on what I wanted to be doing other than the hope that whatever I did would pay down my student loans in a timely fashion.

But advice is not to be had from the orientation lectures or our upperclassmen who are supposed to be advising us. The upperclassmen I've talked to have seemed just as unsure or just as lost as we are sometimes. It seemed like they were second-guessing their own career and school choice. It was as though they were seeking our approval just as much as we sought theirs for our plans and goals in law school.

I found it a bit disheartening that 2L's so far down the road of doing public interest work or in the middle of OCI's (on campus interviews) could be so unsure of their life choices. It reinforced both the speed at which the 1L's have to make their own decisions (start hunting for those 1L summer jobs in just a few months) and recent lectures the law school has made us attend.

It's all a bit overwhelming. Thank goodness it's the weekend, it's too bad I have all this reading I have to do and that I have no idea/don't understand what we did this week.

Cold Call Roulette

Finally cold called today by a Professor. Well, it wasn't really a cold call as he rattled off some names to let us know we'd be called on to lead the discussion on the next case.

It's fairly frustrating briefing cases right now as it takes significant amounts of time, and yet when the professors go around asking questions, it seems like they're fairly useless in answering them. We'll get better at this... I hope.

On the bright side, I really don't think I'll have to pay for lunch for at least the first two weeks or so...

General interest meetings and pizza.... yum?

Let's hope I develop more substantive things to talk about soon. It's only day 3, I've got time.

General Unease

In law school, it seems to be very easy to lose confidence in the study habits that got you into law school. When you're surrounded by people who are putting in 5, 10 hours at the library every day and color coding their notes with 5 different colors, it can be easy to question your own methods. I'm doing so even as I type this. However, I think for the most part people should try and stick with what they know works for them. I've decided to stick with  my regular habits, at least for the first semester, and see how that goes.

Of course, I could look back on this in December and rue the day I chose to do this.

On a side note, free food continues to be plentiful though of a distinctly less expensive variety. I anticipate finishing this week having paid for lunch only once. Free pizza at general interest meetings and guest speaker lectures can be a godsend for those on a tight budget, but this cannot be good for my longterm health.

I saw a trolley go by earlier with Indian food or something in it. I've got to find out where good food like that is going... perhaps faculty only?

Out of the Frying Pan...

I suppose if I had wanted to really chronicle my law school journey, I would have started this thing as I began to prepare to apply for law school, studied for the LSAT, created application material, etc. As is typical with me, I procrastinated. Now orientation week is over, I'm still procrastinating (from briefing cases) and this idea of chronicling what should become a rather important period in my life is finally "launched" to an audience of myself.

An audience of myself is not a bad thing, though. My memory is notoriously porous, so this blog is as much for the benefit of any prospective or current student as it is for myself, so that I can remember these years when I grow older and even more forgetful. Perhaps even law school administrative figures will find it useful as I talk to myself about my hopes, fears, thing that annoy me, and dreams!

So this is the first post, so there should probably be some sort of vision or mission statement along with some introductions.

Mission Statement:
The goal of this blog is to chronicle my journey through 3 years of law school, for the benefit for myself and all of man-kind (but mainly for myself and anyone who wants some insight into the mysterious world of law school).

Me:
I'm a 1L at a law school. I wish to remain anonymous both for my own protection and so that my observations might be read as to represent the experience of a 1L anywhere (pompous, I know!). 

I enjoy sports, reading, watching tv, socializing, pretty much your typical normal every day sorta things. Perhaps a long intro or flashback/reflections on the law school process will be forthcoming one day. For now, it's back to briefing cases.