Good Intentions

Oh, holy of holies. Spring Break. A full week without thinking about law school. OR IS IT?

I know some people (who shall remain nameless) will probably spend the whole week outlining or something insane. And that IS insane.

I mean, my basic plan is to (perhaps) catch up on reading and (perhaps) start studying for finals. But I am fully aware that there is a strong chance those things will not happen.

In other news, the only thing I must do this week is mock trial practice. Not so bad.

Anyway, fellow law students, it’s time to relax. Just a little.

Why indeed.

This question runs through my head almost every week, almost every day. I have to constantly justify all of the work I am doing, all of the reading, all of the everything.

This and last evening I helped a few 2Ls with their mock trial competition. I was the plaintiff in their case, and I got the chance to testify and be cross-examined and see how a mock trial goes. It was extremely elucidating, and it reinforced that I want to be a litigator above all else. I love the interplay between the lawyers, and the lawyers and the witnesses, and the lawyers and the judge. Citing procedural rules and teasing out the answers you want from the witness, it all so very appeals to me.

And it helped to answer my question above. THIS is why I am doing this.

So I think being involved in this really helped to mitigate how I feel about the readings and class. Because really, none of that is helping me with the exam. Sure, the professors eventually distill the cases down to a general rule or concept, but that isn’t anything I can’t get on my own or elsewhere. And hey, sometimes I do even get it on my own before I go to class, which is a nice feeling. But oftentimes, I don’t feel as if anything is helping.

This weekend I hope to start outlining and distilling my own thoughts into something usable. Hopefully that helps the pieces to come together.

But I can’t wait to try out for mock trial.

I don’t even know if I consider this blog a “blawg,” or a law blog. I mean, I’m new at this law thing and anything I could talk about would be either a) pretty boring to non-law students, or b) pretty rudimentary to the already-established law students who may be reading this blog (although I’m not particularly convinced they are).

So, because of that, I tend to not talk about THE LAW. I talk about whatever’s on my mind. Which is really to your detriment, Dear Reader.

The situation on campus hasn’t improved really, even though the president of UH sent a glowing email about how wonderful it is that Cougars are helping Houstonians and other Cougars. That point is a good one, actually; I’ve been surprised that the normally assholeish and insular Houstonian has been reaching out to his or her fellow Houstonian. It’s somewhat heartwarming, even for one with an icy and black heart like myself.

Finally, it’s the weekend. And I have a few things to do. Like study, of course, and my roommate’s recital is on Sunday. Oh, and I’m helping witness for some law students who are doing a mock trial competition. I get to be the plaintiff. Sweet. I love suing people!