Party all night, Study all day Forum

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mac.empress

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Party all night, Study all day

Post by mac.empress » Tue Dec 29, 2009 1:13 pm

I'm really, really happy to be in law school.

I mean really happy.

I've wanted to go to law school since I was around 15. Partly because some well meaning individuals mentioned it and partly becsuse I can't stand the sight of blood. For my grandfather at least, those were the options.

I went to UG in a country where a law degree is a UG degree. Did Linguistics and Philosophy and enjoyed the experience. Mostly due to good friends who seem to make even the suckiest days fun. Almost lost my mind when my mother had a massive accident in my final year and almost quit school in the last 4 weeks of it. My father is really helpful like that.

I volunteered at Legal Aid, annoyed lawyers and generally mentioned the fact that I wanted to go to law school. After graduation however found a teaching job that probably, looking back, was an excellent decision. I was tired of school. I was tired of not getting where I wanted to go. Indeed, my whole life was stressing me out. So I worked.

Teaching high school and especially sixth form was an eye-opening experience. I was no longer the student, I was the teacher. I was no longer the child, I was the adult. I think making that transition would have been longer for me in any other job. I see it with my friends. I taught children barely younger than me and befriended staff much older than me. All in all, it was good for me.

But it was boring.

My mind needs constant stimulation. Teaching for the first year was fun. Everything was new so I had to learn it all. By the second year, I had to teach the same subjects since I had done so well the first year. But I knew that stuff already. So I applied to more than one law school this time. Whoever accepted me, I was going there. I had a clear first choice. I have had their law handbook since I was 17. It didn't matter though. I had to start law school this year.

I got in to all the law schools I applied to including my first choice. There was a huge mix-up though and up until almost mid-September, I didn't know I got into both campuses of my first choice. Home campus is a excessive debt burden. I received an 80% scholarship for away campus (which is the more prestigious). So I'm an away campus student.

Then the payment drama. My father had promised to pay for law school. I bought and paid for everything else but I had tuition covered, right? Wrong. When I called and told him I got into law school, he said congratulations but he couldn't pay for me. This is after the 80% scholarship to go to away school. After hearing that, I know what it is like to be truly depressed.

I sucked it up though. Mum was valuable here. She encouraged me to ask everybody and so I did. I scraped together the money to go to school from my family. Thank God for family.

My motivation in law school is different. I hate debt and now I have some. I love law and now I'm there.

Honestly, it's less about getting what you want and more about wanting what you get.

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mac.empress

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Do first year, second semester differently?

Post by mac.empress » Tue Dec 29, 2009 1:21 pm

I'm mostly waiting on my grades to figure that out. So far however I'm gonna:

Outline from week 1 - LEEWS is responsible for this new approach as well as realising that at the end of the semester, I should be doing PTs instead of outlining

Review the upcoming subjects during my holiday. No one gets extra points for figuring it all out during school.

Figure out how the hell Lexis and West work. And practice.

Re-read Getting to Maybe.

Re-do LEEWS.

Get supplements for upcoming classes.

I'm going to a Toga party tonight and a huge New Years Eve Party. Gotta go shopping!
Have fun drinking while waiting on grades!

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Re: Party all night, Study all day

Post by mac.empress » Mon Jan 04, 2010 9:16 pm

The wait for grades is excruciating! I'm just putting that out there.

I have been to so many parties that I'm sick of partying. So I'm back in work mode.

To Do List
  1. Research for Constitutional Committee (this is actually a fun job)
  2. Legal Research and Writing Assignments 1 and 2
  3. Research assignment for a friend who is paying me
  4. Applying for summer jobs
  5. I move for school in August so I need to find a place to live
  6. Hustling these expensive books from somebody
  7. Run a seminar company
  8. Apply for scholarships/student loans
  9. Figure out how year 2 gets paid for
  10. Update blog regularly
Fun times *grimaces*

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Re: Party all night, Study all day

Post by mac.empress » Tue Jan 26, 2010 12:36 am

My head hurts.

This may have something to do with the fact that on the morning of the first day of school, I came home from a pool party at 2 a.m. and then couldn't sleep 'till 4 a.m. Since I've been getting to bed at around 5 or 6 a.m. the whole holiday, I feel I got to bed early. Waking up at 6:30 a.m. to get ready for a 9 a.m. tutorial was not however as fun as it could have been.

Aided with caffeinated green tea I made it through the day. But I have readings for Torts tomorrow. At 9 a.m. And my head hurts.

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The Gunner problem

Post by mac.empress » Wed Jan 27, 2010 1:32 am

Day 2 of class:

Mrs. Torts mentions something about libel. Merely as an aside to illustrate a point. We are not going to cover it this semester, she points out. Class Gunner raises his hand to ask "Can it still me libel if it is true?". "I'm not discussing that", Mrs. T says. "But I just wanted to know if what you say...", "We will not be discussing that here, do not lead the class astray."

Mrs. T in her dominatrix gear has made a new fan. I have to read like a fiend for her class but I'm sure to be entertained!

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Re: Party all night, Study all day

Post by mac.empress » Sun Aug 29, 2010 8:27 pm

Things I learned from Year 1:
  • Everybody in your class, no matter how weird they seem, no matter how oddly they dress, no matter how annoying they are, is really freaking brilliant. You, as a member of that class, are ALSO scarily brilliant.
  • They gave you a library for a reason. Really, much of the time, buying books is for punks. Unless your lecturer uses that book like the Bible, THEN you should probably get that book.
  • It is possible to start school late and catch up.
  • It's possible to understand very little for the first couple months then just "get" it.
  • Carrying lunch everyday = a little treat to yourself. You make the food you want to eat and save the KFC money for when you need it - during study season.
  • You will make awesome friends because no matter how cool everybody looks, we are all fighting for the title of sexiest nerd.
  • You need to go to the first couple of classes to get a sense of how the teacher handles themself and how they may test. But you are not obligated to attend 2 hour lectures on unnecessary material. If you spend that time in the library, you'll get an A anyway (Thanks Con Law!)
  • Even though you are going to be severely cash strapped for a while, do little things that distract you from school. No matter how you feel in the beginning, you cannot do law school 24/7.
  • Telling people you are in law school can have them treat you in weird ways. The two most consistent I've found are to think that I'm rich already so that's why I'm going and to feel the need to ask me all kinds of difficult questions to prove that they are smarter than me.
  • Never having to worry about your laptop failing = priceless. Invest in your tools.
  • Cheese curls and a soda are not equal to brain food.
  • And finally, you need to remember that the annoying guy in your class, no matter how satisfying it would be to shove him down stairs, is still your colleague. You are in a professional school and you need to remember that you'll have to work with these people after you are done.

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Re: Party all night, Study all day

Post by mac.empress » Sun Sep 05, 2010 6:11 pm

It's amazing how all summer I deliberately avoided reading anything with big words and made it absolutely clear that I was on vacay. Now I'm slowly moving back into school mode. I suppose Jurisprudence homework has something to do with it. I'm re-reading Getting to Maybe now. I'll re-do LEEWS and read How To Read a Book later. And I figure I should learn Negligence for Tort since I'm gonna need it for Tort II.

I'm also realising that packing to fly away for a year of school is HARD!!!!!!!!! How could I possibly be expected to be comfortable if I leave bunches of stuff behind?!

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Re: Party all night, Study all day

Post by mac.empress » Fri Sep 17, 2010 8:51 am

After flying into school late, I've finally got into the swing of this learning thing. Here is an overview of my classes.

Real Property I - One of the highest fail rates in the whole programme. I now clearly see why. It's complex, detailed and a little dry. And I already have a essay due for tutorial on Monday. *Sigh*

Tort II - After Tort I you kinda get a feel for what you need to do here. At least I think so. I...still...haven't...read...negligence...

Contract II - Requires you to remember all of Contract I. I didn't even know all of Contract I when I was doing it! I already see problems ahead.

Jurisprudence - Philosophy!!!!! I was a Philosophy minor. Awesomeness!

Public International Law - I'll be buried under books for this one. OMG, it's so easy for them to assign a page or five of necessary readings. And I haven't really started reading yet... Naughty mac.empress. Naughty.


Law school is really a system. Like all other systems though, you have to learn how it works. It's freaking hard work. Don't be lied to. But it can be done. And I miss people back home already. But it'll all work out....or at least I pray it does.

Off to read some RP. Maybe 2 pages? 3 even! Exciting *end sarcasm*

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Re: Party all night, Study all day

Post by mac.empress » Mon Oct 11, 2010 12:50 am

*Sigh*

2nd year is supposed to be hard right? The year they work you to death?

*Bleeds out on the law books*

Who told me to sign up for International Mooting? And do I look like I have time to write a million page memorial? And how about that reading for Contract or Tort or Public International Law or .... that you haven't done yet? And that fashion show that you were "volunteered" to do? Time consuming!

The first couple of weeks didn't feel so bad. I get the feeling it had something to do with me barely being able to concentrate because I wanted to go home. I did little work and didn't care so much.

OMG! That was a really bad decision.

Because now I am behind. In every single subject. Some less behind than others. My friend said that I need to get accustomed to being behind as that will be my life story in law school. But this is kinda ridiculous! And how come these chapters are so long. Can't they condense it? Summarize people, summarize!

Because I just finished reading tons of cases on Mistake in Contract I will share an observation with you: Denning LJ is trying to get me to kill him again. If everybody is going one way, he likes it the opposite way. *Sigh* He makes learning so difficult. I swear he makes this sh*t up! /rant

I cooked today so I have lunch and dinner for the next week. And I will try very very very hard to go to all my classes. It's just that they happen so often and my bed is so comfy!

I'm awake because I had coffee tonight. It's too early in the semester, I know! But I'm trying to catch up.

*rousing applause*

Considering how sensitive I am to caffeine though, I'll be awake for at least 2 more hours. My alarm will go off 4 hours later.

I...am...not...amused.

Right now, I'm too tired to read law but not tired enough to sleep. So I'll read a novel. One with small words so I can follow along.

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