Butterflyfish

Better

2009-07-05T20:06:00.003-04:00

I am filled with a renewed sense of purpose.

I have a very long story explaining how someone's inability to add together three two-digit numbers ruined my weekend. But I am not going to tell it.

Yes, I am now a full week behind on bar review. But somehow that actually feels completely surmountable. (LALALA I CAN'T HEAR YOU PACED PROGRAM!!!)

Tomorrow, I will kick ass on the practice MBE and thereafter I will begin bar prepping like its 1L finals time.

Wall

2009-07-01T14:56:00.005-04:00

I don't know if its JUST the unrelenting bar prep.
I don't know if its JUST the fact I stopped going to the gym.
I don't know if its JUST that 'time of the month.'
I don't know if its JUST a lack of sleep and dearth of vegetables.
It could be any or all of the above, or something not listed.

But I've kind of come up against a wall. I'm depressed, lethargic, and quasi-insomniac.

I'm not having fun anymore.

So Clownfish and I are getting out of town for the weekend. I wish I were leaving the bar prep behind, but I am not. I have to make up a lecture and watch Second State lecture at least. If I really shake the cobwebs loose, I'll catch up on the last week or so worth of work that I have failed to do because of the Wall.

But I will also see some family and friends. I will eat barbecue. I will find fireworks to watch. And weather permitting, I'll swim and laugh and play.

______________________________
Hubby Bullshark is away with the Reserves, if you were wondering.

MILP #104: The Contract Law Editon

2009-06-28T20:00:00.013-04:00

The Weekly MILP (Moms In the Legal Profession) Roundup is hosted on a rotating basis between PT-LawMom and A Little Fish in Law School blogs. We originally rounded up just the moms in law school, but then discovered that those women eventually graduate. Who knew? So now all the moms in the legal field (heh) are represented. We aim for Sunday posts. Next week, head to PtLawmom.

The best part of studying for the bar exam is getting to geek out on the law again. It is kind of enjoyable, when it isn't mind numbing and stressful. So, in honor of all the MILPs in barzam prep land, I hearby present*:

The Contract Law Edition.

Accord and satisfaction. Cee gets a little hot and bothered.
Contract of adhesion. Slideshow of doom at TrannyHead.
Frustration of purpose. Bar review at: Dakota's, here, and elsewhere.
Third party beneficiaries. NewLawmom's kids get to have some fun because Mom is having fun.
Unclean Hands. JDWannabe on practicing what you preach.
Mirror image rule. Lag Liv got a haircut.
Impossibility. Unborn babies with billable requirements? Magic Cookie.
Impracticability. Looking for a place to live while bar prepping, ProtoAtty.
Misrepresentation. Of poets and saints at GoogieBaba's.
Consideration (of an anniversary). PtLawmom.
Liquidated damages. Uncertain at the time she put the room together, roughly approximate to a few tears, Leo looks at leaving Timmy's first room.

. . . and that about does it for the Round Up. I considered doing the MJ song edition, like my Madonna song edition or the classic Billy Joel song edition but it seemed a bit ... unseemly. Maybe in a few months.

** If you're interested in guest hosting the Round Up once during the month of July, email me at ilovebutterflyfish at yahoo dot com.

__________________________________

If you’d like to have your blog added to the MILP blogroll for weekly review or would like us to consider a specific post, drop the hostess(es) an email or leave a comment at our sites.Expecting Moms in law school are welcome! Hat tip as always to the “original” Roundup — Evan Schaeffer’s Legal Underground and his co-rounder-upper, Nobody! *If you're feeling de ja vu, I totally copied that from the last one I did. Also: 87,000 visitors, woot!

I'm just tired and bored with myself

2009-06-25T19:04:00.001-04:00

Posts I don't inflict on you

2009-06-23T23:03:00.003-04:00

I was looking at my draft folder and realized I have 167 accumulated posts that I began and abandoned for one reason or another. That's more posts not published than many blogs ever publish.

Lowlights:

Bitching about the multistate performance test
A post about how conflicted I feel about my Note having been published.
A complete freak out about the first day of work conflicting with a half day at Clownfish's school
Another post excoriating Adam Lambert, mid-season AI
A completely different and totally honest story instead of this post
An adorable story about Clownfish rooting for John McCain in the election because he felt bad that everyone else seemed to like A-Rock Obama better
Random posts whining about my inability to land a job
Posts written when I was suffering from insomnia (can't sleep clowns will eat me)
A list of words I managed to work into a reflection paper or something for my internship class because I was so relieved to have a chance to NOT write like a lawyer (inveigh, bulwark, and halcyon were on the list).
Some early stories about me and/or Bullshark overseas that didn't make it past the great blog migration of 2006.

I do have a filter, really. The evidence is in the Draft folder.

Lover's quarrel

2009-06-22T16:22:00.003-04:00

So I am arguing with my significant other.

He's all "the gun is not admissible because it is the fruit of an illegal car search."

And I'm all "Yes, true, I got all that, BUT you completely ignored the separate line of investigation done by the Detective that would have resulted in a proper warrant and lead to the discovery of the gun, so it is possibly admissible, right?"

And he's all silent on the issue. Like not even willing to talk about it *at all.*

And I'm all defiant because if I can't trust him on these little things, how am I supposed to know if he's right about the big stuff? You know, for all I know, maybe an indictment doesn't wipe out the need for a preliminary hearing. I mean *he's* my only authority for that notion.

S**t. Now he's gonna be all pouty and mopey for the rest of the day. Probably will only give me minimal credit for spotting the dying declaration issue.

BarBri is SUCH an asshole sometimes.

But I love him.

MILP #103

2009-06-22T15:26:00.000-04:00

PtLawmom had the Roundup. New Duck next week.

Barzam WTF IV

2009-06-19T16:51:00.005-04:00

Ok, fellow bar preppers (and any other law students and lawyers who want to chime in):

It's time to play NAME THOSE TORTS!!

18-year-old Kimberley, a Belgian teenager is suing Romanian tattoo artist Rouslan, claiming he put 53 extra star tattoos on her face after she fell asleep. Kimberley claims she went into Rouslan's shop for three tattoos and ended up with 56. She says, "I closed my eyes and didn’t feel any pain. I fell asleep and was woken up from the pain on my nose when he was busy applying a big star. I am so upset by this I cannot look in the mirror any more." Rouslan claims Vlaeminck was all for the stars, but trouble came when Kimberley’s angry father showed up. Rouslan says, “From that moment it was bad for her. Before she was just doing what she wanted to do.”

Discuss fully all claims and defenses arising from these facts. Assume this happened in a jurisdiction that has adopted the common law definitions of all torts and that pure comparative negligence applies.

Image credit and full story.

GO!

Bar essays

2009-06-17T20:07:00.004-04:00

I received back my essay from Bar/Bri. I missed the beginning of the lecture during which they discussed the essays, the average scores, etc. So I arrived at my seat and found my graded essay left there. I flipped it over and saw all of this red writing, and a nice "Good Job" and "Good IRAC" on the top. And I saw my score was a 4 (well 4 1/3 but they round down.) Hmmm.

Four. Out of what? Five? Wow. That would be pretty good on Crim Pro since I only know as much about Crim Pro as I learned in Bar/Bri.

You can see how well I paid attention on the day they told us about essay scoring. Because it was out of 10. *ouch*

Then I remembered: minimum competency.

_________________________________________
Average score, I found out later, was 3 and 1/3. So I'm fine.

Calming the f*ck down

2009-06-16T15:45:00.003-04:00

I just worked on two bar practice essays and was freaking out because apparently my issue spotting radar is broken. I was writing about the admissibility of character evidence when the examiners wanted relevance. I was writing about business records exemptions when the examiners wanted statements against penal interest. And who the f*ck remembers to write about the damn dead man statutes anyway! And can defendants stop pleading the 5th on the witness stand please!

So yeah, freaking out a little and I was going to sign on here and rant.

And then I saw Grace's post pop up on my sidebar.

And I am calming the f*ck down. Because she is pretty badass, and I think she'll come over here and smack me if I don't.

Stolen Lines #5

2009-06-15T20:45:00.003-04:00

Tell me... have you ever thought...of changing your life?

I am sitting on the floor. It is cold... it is one of those concrete floors on the ground level with some industrial tile laid over it. Probably asbestos. Fleeting thoughts like that cross my mind, my back uncomfortably leaning against a green tile wall. Green tile. Soothing but also cold, like the kind you find in institutions. Had I tried enough to make it warmer? The floor? The room? Me? Had I done enough, been enough? No. Invariably the answer was no.

Tell me... have you ever thought...of changing your life?

No. I like what I am doing with my life.

No you don't.

It is all I ever wanted to do.

No, it's not.

No, it's not.

It was not.

And I cry a lot less now.

_______________________________________
Per Grace: "I stole the first line of this post from the play, Betrayal, by Harold Pinter."

MILP #102: Insert adverse possession double entendre here

2009-06-14T20:43:00.009-04:00

The Property Law Edition.

Rule against perpetuties. Trannyhead tells the student loan people to suck it.
Action to quiet title. NewLawmom keeps her scholarship.
Future interest. Law School Mom is taking the February bar instead.
Zoning. JDWannabe takes on the system.
Bona fide purchaser. Lag Liv brings home the bread.
Fee tail. Magic Cookie cuts short K's hair.
Equitable conversion. Googiebaba is beginning to feel like a lawyer.
Escheat. Sounds naughty enough to make Cee's list.
Life estate. Legally Certifiable on kids, summer, and job hunting.
Assignment. Leo on finding a summer substitute for mommy.
Fixtures. ProtoAttorney discusses the search terms that continually bring people to MILP blogs.
Vested interest subject to open. Butterflyfish is taking two bar exams.
Treasure trove. Mmmm. Pie. New Duck.
Tenancy by Entirety. Congrats to Andrea on her and Dan's fourth wedding anniversary.

. . . and that about does it for the Roundup. I cannot believe I got through this theme without one joke about someone being open, notorious, or hostile.

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If you’d like to have your blog added to the MILP blogroll for weekly review or would like us to consider a specific post, drop the hostess(es) an email or leave a comment at our sites.Expecting Moms in law school are welcome! Hat tip as always to the “original” Roundup — Evan Schaeffer’s Legal Underground and his co-rounder-upper, Nobody! Hey, PTLawmom -- I had difficulty accessing your blog. Might just be a problem on my end though...

If I say this post is about Obama, do you think I'll get more or fewer readers?

2009-06-11T13:23:00.005-04:00

I worked on a small project with someone who now has a high profile position in the Obama administration. IM conversation with a friend of mine who worked on the same project:

Friend: That's interesting. He is now officially the most influential/powerful person I have ever met.
Me: Same here. He just displaced Beau Bridges.
Friend: . . .
Me: I have a really short list, obviously.

Barzam WTF III

2009-06-10T15:16:00.004-04:00

A suit commences in state X by service of process but in state Y by filing a process with the court clerk and under FRCP by filing a complaint with the court. FRCP doesn't allow for interlocutory appeals, nor does state X, but state Y does a matter of right. FRCP is notice pleading, state X is fact pleading, and I've already forgotten what it is in state Y.

I have no idea how I am going to keep all this straight.

Edited to add: Oh? Didn't I mention I am taking *two* bar exams?

Final final grades

2009-06-08T20:45:00.002-04:00

My GPA is locked in now.
Law school is officially over.
Kind of sad about it actually.

MILP #101

2009-06-07T19:18:00.002-04:00

Originally posted at OND and re-posted here for posterity.

The weekly MILP (Moms in Legal Practice) Roundup is hosted on a rotating basis between me, PT-LawMom and Butterflyfish. Next week's roundup will be hosted by Butterflyfish.

In a stunning example of how Wikipedia sometimes isn't helpful, here's what it has to say about the number 101:

101 is the 26th prime number and a palindromic number (and so a palindromic prime). The next prime is 103, with which it comprises a twin prime, making 101 a Chen prime. Because the period length of its reciprocal is unique among primes, 101 is a unique prime. 101 is an Eisenstein prime with no imaginary part and real part of the form 3n − 1.

Eh?

Anyway, I did not get the lucky privilege of composing MILP Roundup #100 (which PT-LawMom did an amazing job on), so I'm making up for it by attempting to get ultra-creative with the MILP Roundup #101. As we all know, my attempts at creativity sometimes fall flat, particularly when I try real hard. Here goes nothing.

Search and Seizure 101: Butterflyfish learns the finer points of Fourth Amendment law. Conclusion? Oh snap.

Phys Ed 101: JDWannabe, with her snappy new title, is learning the ins and outs of walking.

Farm Equipment 101: And You Know What Else finds more than one use for a John Deere harvester.

Real Estate 101: LEO calculates mortgages. And will be moving in the year 2040.

Indigestion 101: A list of things that make ProtoAttorney throw up.

Genealogy 101: LagLiv contemplates the best way to deal with in-laws.

Marine Biology 101: Trannyhead discusses the difference between the orca and the beluga.

Printshop 101: Lawmummy decides whether it's cheaper to order new party invitations or just change an overseas plane ticket.

Fiction 101: Legally Certifiable thinks these ladies are full of shit. I would have to agree.

Unethical crooks who suck all your money from you and then act like THEY'RE doing YOU a favor, 101: Magic Cookie. The title pretty much says it all.

Aquatics 101: It's sink or swim over at Googiebaba. I'm betting she'll swim.

Zoology 101: Monkeys and tigers over at Peanut Butter Burrito. [Note to all readers, especially if one of those readers happens to be PBB: I can't link to PBB because she locked her site. I can see on Google reader that she kindly offers to give me the password to her new site if I just e-mail her by clicking the little button located on her site. Um... If anyone has this information and wants to share it with me, my e-mail is ka4037 at yahoo]

Psychology 101: Can someone say "passive aggressive"? Unfortunately, Pt-LawMom is learning all about it.

Uniform Commercial Code 101: Cee thinks someone should run face first into a giant pile of elephant shit.

Barzam WTF II

2009-06-06T13:04:00.005-04:00

Criminal Procedure.

Have I been seized?

I don't know. Look around. Is a police officer brandishing his weapon? Does the tone and demeanor of the officer make a reasonable person not feel free to leave? Have you been told you can refuse to consent to this little chat?

I am running, actually.

Oh, well you haven't been seized until you submit to the authority of the police by stopping or until an officer physically restrains you. Has that happened?

Nope, still running.

Oh, so you're good. Run, fat boy, run! Wait, are you in [Other State]?

Yep.

Are the cops chasing you?

Yep.

Oh snap. Police pursuit is seizure there. Dude, you've been seized.

Don't most four year old boys say they want to be astronauts or firefighters when they grow up?

2009-06-04T20:02:00.001-04:00

Mommy, where does God come from? Who made God?

Well I don't know. I do know that when you grow up you can read a lot of books that will have different ideas about the answer to that. I don't know the right answer, but when you're bigger you'll have to read the books and decide which one you think is the right answer.

Or maybe I can write a book myself with a NEW idea and MINE will be the right answer.

Yes, you can definitely do that if you want to.

______________________________
This was the tail end of a longer conversation.

What You're Missing

2009-06-01T04:12:00.000-04:00

Pushing Daisies is on!!! OMG WTF Happy!!about 18 hours ago from web

I am married to the type of man who watches infomercials for "magic" bait that fish apparently can't resist. And then he orders it. #wtfabout 19 hours ago from web

@lawschoolninja Always check the Snopes first. Think of it as a condom and forwarded emails/tweets are the STD.7:01 AM May 30th from web

YES! Environmental Law grade! Happy!12:37 PM May 29th from web

Is anyone surprised about the Sonia Sotomayor pick? (As reported by AP/Reuters)8:02 AM May 26th from web

I didn't know it was Towel Day. I don't know where my towel is. I have ceased to be a hoopy frood. Pangalactic gargleblasters all around.10:02 AM May 25th from web

Classmate to me at our law school award ceremony: "Wow, I guess you're not a total fuck up, huh?" Thank you: that about covers me4:08 PM May 23rd from web

Finally saw Slumdog Millionaire. It absolutely lived up to its hype. That is a rare feat.11:13 AM May 23rd from web

MILP #100

2009-05-31T15:29:00.002-04:00

Pt-Lawmom has the 100th round-up and she has come up with a fitting tribute indeed.

Part of the reason we started the round up, I think, was to collect a bit of shared wisdom about surviving law school pregnant or with kid(s) in tow. I think we accomplished that, and my archives are often searched by women looking for answers to the heart-felt and occasionally bizarre questions. Over the course of the 100 weeks, the Round-up grew to include mothers working in the legal profession... which is great because it means I get to keep doing it!

I would just like to take this occasion to note how honored I am to be even mentioned in the same sentence as some of these fantastic women bloggers. Thank you all for being part of this journey.

If you want to be included in future round-ups, please comment with your blog address.

And he should know... you should see his Ns

2009-05-29T07:50:00.004-04:00

Clownfish and I went out for dinner last night. We got two mints from the waiter when we were done. Clownfish was concerned we wouldn't have one to share with Bullshark, so I let him keep mine to give to his father.

Bullshark didn't get home til late and is always out early in the morning, so Clownfish wrote him a note (with a little spelling help from me):

Papa
For you
Clownfish

This morning, Clownfish awoke to discover Papa had taken the mint and had left him a note in return (my idea). The note said thank you and that he would see Clownfish soon. I read the note to the little guy, and he was happy. He took the note and attempted to read it himself.

Clownfish's response:

Hey. He writes his name pretty good!

_________________________________________________
Seems as good a time as any to update the "baby book" -- Clownfish can write all of his letters pretty clearly, though he has some continued difficulty with Y and K. He can spell mommy, papa, his own name, every three letter word that rhymes with CAT. We don't work on spelling a lot. He draws recognizable pictures of a number of animals and creates cute family pictures (the current one is a hockey game... he's about to score a goal against me and Papa is the referee.) He plays first base on his tee-ball team (story this weekend).

Bar Prep Begins in Earnest

2009-05-27T14:14:00.003-04:00

After four hours of video lecture, I am thinking that booze is in order.
It is going to be a long summer.

MILP #99: There is no theme

2009-05-23T16:30:00.001-04:00

The Weekly MILP (Moms In the Legal Profession) Roundup is hosted on a rotating basis between PT-LawMom, A New Duck, and A Little Fish in Law School blogs. We originally rounded up just the moms in law school, but then discovered that those women eventually graduate. Who knew? So now all the moms in the legal field (heh) are represented. We aim for Sunday posts.

Theme: There is no theme. I am listening to bar prep videos and am trying to have a nice family weekend and am frankly incapable of creativity while thinking about property law and why I don't really remember it and whether I think reciprocal negative servitude sounds more like a sexual position than a property concept. Hope everyone enjoys her weekend off.

I was gonna do a post about partying like its 1999. Here's my nod to that: Two thousand zero zero party over its out of time. Lawschoolmom does the math on law school.
CM does some calculations regarding money and happiness. Magic Cookie.
Pluses and Minuses of working motherhood. Cee
Vacation, all she ever wanted. So Proto Attorney wrote a will.
Laundry woes continue for One New Duck.
Waiting for 1L grades sucks. Newlawmom
Legally Certifiable is holding up.
How to Honey Do at Lag Liv.
Sumo versus Goat. TrannyHead
Dakota graduates!
Drah-mah! PtLawmom
The best feeling: baby love. Peanutbutter Burrito

__________________________________
If you’d like to have your blog added to the MILP blogroll for weekly review or would like us to consider a specific post, drop the hostess(es) an email or leave a comment at our sites.Expecting Moms in law school are welcome! Hat tip as always to the “original” Roundup — Evan Schaeffer’s Legal Underground and his co-rounder-upper, Nobody!

Makes me want to cut a bitch

2009-05-22T17:51:00.003-04:00

BarBri Lady: Hopefully you narrowed it down to A or B. I mean, its obviously admissible. B is the better answer because blah blah blah blah. So it is B.

I picked D.

Ok... I think some time off in in order.

Barzam WTF

2009-05-21T15:07:00.004-04:00

The first in what I imagine will be a series of WTF moments while studying for the barzam.

Today's episode: evidence: hearsay exceptions.

Bride collapses at wedding after drinking champagne. Declares to onlookers while gasping for breath: "I knew my new husband wanted my money. Make sure he is brought to justice for murdering me." Poisoned, lapses into coma, persistent vegetative state, unavailable. Husband arrested.

Rule: Dying declaration
1) declarant believed death was imminent -- need not actually die and
2) statement concerned cause or circumstances of what she believed to be impending death

Answer chosen: Her statement is admissible against him in his attempted murder trial as a dying declaration.

BZZZZT! Wrong! Why? Anyone care to hazard a guess before I put the answer in the comments later?