Paragon2Pieces

Money and Men

2009-07-14T01:28:00.008-05:00

I've always thought of myself as relatively progressive when it comes to comparative earning potential in a relationship between a man and a woman. I have always assumed that I would always work and that my salary would equal that of any future husband. I even thought I would be okay with a stay-at-home-husband. I assumed this because I've always been the kind of girl who splits the bill. It's only fair, right?

Well, that warm-and-fuzzy, egalitarian feeling slipped away pretty quickly once I started footing the entire bill for an unemployed bf. As soon as I started paying 100%, it started bothering me when I felt like he wasn't trying hard enough (by my standards) to find a job. I was frustrated when he found the money to go out drinking with the guys, but couldn't find the money to cover other basic expenses. Now, after nine long months, the situation makes me angry all of the time.

Does my bother, frustration and anger make me an ugly person? I think/hope there is a difference between a stay-at-home-husband (who presumably does something at home to contribute to the team effort) and my unemployed bf. I think/hope I'm still open to the idea of being the breadwinner. I question how long I can help out bf before I cross that line and become a sucker (most days, I feel like this has already happened). But, often, the grey little raincloud that has been following me around gets its way and I start thinking it's a lot easier to be conventional and expect your bf/husband to be the breadwinner or at least to be able to cover his half.

I'm not sure this post has much of a point.

Reader Poll: In this crazy economy, how long would you wait for your bf/gf to get it together and find a job (or, if not get a job, just start making financially sound decisions) under the circumstances I've described?

Advice? Thoughts? Observations?

Week 7

2009-07-12T03:47:00.005-05:00

There wasn't much going on in terms of projects at work this week, but I had a lot of fun catching up with hometown friends after-hours. I snapped this picture on my way home from the office on Friday:

How awesome would it be to get to come back to this glorious place on a permanent basis after law school :)

Speaking of which, Summer Firm let us know that they won't be making offers on the last day of the program. Naturally, this has spurred some speculation among the summer associates. While I can understand that Summer Firm needs some time to make decisions, it's a bummer to have to spend the week writing cover letters and bidding for on-campus interviews just in case Summer Firm doesn't come through. (Admittedly, I am expecting to be deferred so I was bound to end up searching for a short-term job, even under the best of circumstances.)

Just one week left!

Bar Exam - Registration

2009-07-09T00:49:00.004-05:00

My 1L section-mates are up to their ears in bar prep, but I am just starting the process. I recently registered with the California Bar, which is the very first step towards the dread bar exam. This step was relatively painless.

There wasn't much brainpower involved (all they're interested in at this point is basic biographical info). There wasn't a terrible amount of money involved either (~$90). In exchange, the Bar sent me an identification number.

Step one, all done!

Week 6

2009-07-05T02:46:00.004-05:00

This was a short week due to the July 4th holiday. It was such a blur that I'm not exactly sure what I did each day (which is why it is so important to record time on a daily basis, I suppose).

In terms of projects, I'm slowing down with two weeks left and, for the most part, have chapter updates left to tackle. Chapter updates are the quintessential not-real-work summer associate assignment, but I can learn something from the exercise, so it's not a complete loss. I also have to be thankful for some more interesting work that I received earlier this summer.

Socially, I grabbed lunch with an associate who was my next door neighbor back when we were undergraduates. One of the things I like about Summer Firm is that acquaintances from other parts of my life (e.g., high school, family friend, and sorority sisters) work in various offices of the firm. I might never work with them directly, but it has been handy to be able to ask for their frank opinions and I have been reassured by highly thought of friends and acquaintances choosing the firm for themselves.

I wish I could say that I'm having a fantastic holiday weekend, but I spent most of my day completing a final edit of a journal article (the HORROR!).

More on OCI

2009-07-02T02:00:00.003-05:00

Just a couple of days ago, I commented on the not-so-newsworthy e-mail UT Law students recently received from Career Services. I failed to mention that the e-mail also included the following:

The number of scheduled interview rooms is down overall from last year, with a drop of about 45 percent for employers seeking 3Ls.

So, apparently the 3Ls are freaking out (but, let's face it, freaking out is what law students do) and tipping off Above the Law as if this is earth-shattering. While a 45 percent drop in scheduled interview rooms is significant, it seems to me that this is par for the course given market conditions, generally. I'm with ATL when they say, "This is probably happening all over the country."

Market conditions are terrible. There are fewer jobs and those jobs are paying less. These conditions will effect law students at all schools. Of course, some schools will be harder hit than others. 3L recruitment will probably be harder hit than 2L recruitment. Let's face it, a 3L's OCI prospects weren't so great in good times either.

Just my two cents.

Vision

2009-07-01T23:21:00.002-05:00

Because I have a big-time dry eye problem, I can't wear contacts. At first, it wasn't too big of a deal because my vision was still decent and I could still enjoy dance class. But, over the past few years and the last six months in particular, my vision has gotten a lot worse.

Today, an associate stopped in the doorway of my office to chat and I realized that, sitting only a few feet away in my desk chair, I couldn't clearly see the attorney's facial features. It's much, much harder to go without my glasses and it's starting to keep me from doing the things that I use to love to do. (Dance class isn't very fun when you can't see what the teacher is doing.)

My doctor says that laser eye surgery isn't an option because it tends to make patients' eyes even dryer post-op. At this rate, I'll have to wear my glasses at my wedding just to be able to see the groom. I wish there was something I could do about this.

Career Services Says

2009-06-30T23:36:00.003-05:00

The Law School's recruiting season is about to begin. Bidding on OCI scheduled to open on Monday, July 6th, which means that e-mails from Career Services are beginning to fill my inbox. On Monday, Assistant Dean Montoya distributed an e-mail to members of the Class of 2010 which included, among other things, this vague summary of market conditions:

Summer clerkship classes this year are generally smaller, potentially positioning fewer of our 3Ls for associate offers through clerkship programs. Offer rates from summer clerkships may be lower generally, and offers may be made much later after the clerkship than in the past several years. These conditions suggest that more 3Ls will participate in Fall OCI this year. With fewer employers seeking 3Ls, it is more important than ever that you not rely exclusively on the OCI program for employment opportunities. Career counselors can help you formulate and execute a broader job search strategy more tailored to your specific goals, interests and priorities.

Thank you, Captain Obvious.

Week 5: Start Speculating

2009-06-26T01:16:00.002-05:00

Summer Firm and I have only three weeks left together. Naturally, I'm starting to wonder how we'll part ways. Last summer, offers were given during final formal evaluations on the last day of the program. This year, I believe it is less likely that this will happen because I think it's less likely that all of the summer associates will get good news.

On the first day of the program, we were told that the firm would be giving out two types of offers this summer. There will be offers to start in the fall of 2010 and there will be offers to start in the spring of 2011. Because of these differences and the general state of the economy, I worry that the firm may not end up giving out offers to all of the summer associates in the offices. And that's okay, if it makes business sense.

Because all of the incoming associates in "my" practice group have been deferred until spring of 2010, I am assuming that the best possible outcome for me this summer will be a deferred offer (with a start date in spring of 2011). I spend a lot of time wondering what I would do with that time. I also spend time wondering what I'll do if I don't get an offer at all. In the meanwhile, all I can do is try to stay focused on learning as much as possible from my remaining assignments this summer.

Integrity

2009-06-24T23:21:00.004-05:00

So here's the thing. I don't care if you come from the "family values" party or any other party. If you're a politician, integrity is important.

I want my politicians to demonstrate integrity when they act in their official capacities. But because I think integrity is a character thing, I except politicians demonstrate integrity when they act in their personal capacities.

Falling out of love with your spouse, in my opinion, doesn't represent a complete moral lapse. It happens. A lot. What I object to is this business of starting a new relationship, with a new partner, before respectfully ending one's marriage.

A party to a conventional marriage promises to be faithful. So, until a marriage is properly ended, a lapse in fidelity is a lapse in integrity. And that's why I think it matters when our politicians behave like this.

Finishing Strong

2009-06-23T20:04:00.004-05:00

I received my final Spring 2009 grade today. It was an A. In a law school class.

Looking back on my grades for the semester as a whole, it turns out that I earned a higher semester-GPA than any other semester of law or business school yet (despite totally throwing in the towel at the end of my writing seminar). I guess it took a 17 credit hour semester to strike fear in my heart and force me to actually make a genuine effort. It probably helped that this was the first semester of grad school that I didn't work part-time.

Coming back to this post a few hours later, I worry that it will seem obnoxious to some. To give it some context, I should explain that, about this time last summer, I was surprised by a truly terrible law school grade and, generally, have had some rough semesters since starting grad school. I'm very happy that things have taken a turn for the better this most recent semester.

B-School Prep

2009-06-23T00:39:00.005-05:00

I know that a lot of y'all are busy preparing for your first day as a MBA by diving into the deep end of some form of boot camp or another (accounting? financing? Bueller?). But--for many of us--it's the lingo that's just as tough as the quantitative stuff when it comes to acclimating to our new b-school surroundings. If you're not yet fluent in MBA-speak, you might check out the 12 Workplace Phrases You Probably Don't Know . . . But Should. My personal favorite? Boil the ocean.

Get ready, there really are folks at school whose sentences overflow with these catchphrases. I'm not saying you have to use them, but it is incumbent upon us to understand them ;)

Week 4

2009-06-21T18:18:00.004-05:00

We spent some time rubbing elbows with a new "associate" this week during a summer program outing:

Otherwise, I finally crossed a few projects off of my list and moved on to some new work. Summer Firm continues to be a great place. No complaints here.

I spent some time this week working on my budget for my final year of graduate school, which was--of course--a sobering task. Because I recently received notice that one of my student loans was purchased from my lender by the Department of Education, I've been re-reading my loan documents. It turns out that the loan I took out during my first year presumes that I graduated this past May and will begin making payments shortly (at the time that the loan was funded, I had not yet been formally admitted to the MBA program). So, I'll need to be sure to talk to my lender to update my information. It sure would have been a surprise to get my first student loan bill while still in classes this fall!

I also did some projections and worked out a budget for the first couple years that I will be (hopefully!) working after graduation. I did this in order to help establish realistic expectations and some discipline with regards to how much money I will spend/save during the last year of school (I am still working part-time during the school year) and first few years of work. I'm looking forward to earning a paycheck and laying a solid financial foundation for the future.

Still Waiting on a Grade (& What I Should Have Written in my Week 3 Update)

2009-06-16T21:46:00.011-05:00

Let's give the professors at McCombs some credit for distributing our final grades promptly, because their cohorts at the law school are still procrastinating, which means I'm still waiting on grades. Meanwhile, Summer Firm is sending out reminders that they'll need our transcripts in a couple weeks.

Speaking of Summer Firm, Week 3 was a lot more exciting than I made it out to be here. I put on my entrepreneurial hat and managed to get myself a piece of a project that is being handled by one of the international offices, where the attorneys are all very busy (working through the night on a regular basis busy). It was exciting, if not a little scary, to see how much they're doing and how quickly it's getting done. My little piece of the project involved research at the intersection of an area of substantive law that I've never previously touched (cross-licensing) with an area that is much more familiar. It was a bit of a struggle, but I really enjoyed the project.

By contrast, I spent today working on a rather mundane assignment of the sort I use to routinely work on in my past life as a paralegal. But, I was happy to do it, as it gave me the chance to interact with one of the more junior attorneys that I hadn't worked with before. Plus, there is just something so satisfying about crossing another item off of my assignment list so quickly!

Week 3

2009-06-14T07:37:00.003-05:00

Had a technology meltdown at a critical juncture. So. Frustrating.

Message from Dean Sager

2009-06-12T01:18:00.001-05:00

For an update on the goings on at UT Law, check out this recent post from Dean Sager.

Women & the 2009 Partnership Class

2009-06-11T00:05:00.003-05:00

Joan Williams and Cynthia Calvert put out this press release on behalf of the Project for Attorney Retention. The good news? Women lawyers make up 40% or more of the new partner class at 23 major law firms. The bad? Fourteen major law firms made no female partners at all.

How does your firm rank? At the end of the press release, you'll find data indicating the number and percentage of women in each firm's partner class each year since 2005.

Summer Firm made very few female partners this year and none of the new partners in the Beach Town office of the Firm were women. But they appear to be trying to turn that around. More than seventy-five percent of the 2009 summer associates in the Beach Town office are female law students. Cynically, one might say that the office just isn't capable of retaining women attorneys. Historically, this may have been the case. But given the number of mid-level, female associates who have returned from maternity leave in the last year, I'm optimistic.

Week 2: Field Trip

2009-06-06T14:52:00.005-05:00

With orientation and training activities done and over with, I was able to start work on my assignments in earnest this week. In connection with one of my assignments (that was due to second day of all-day orientation, oddly enough), I got to tag along to a board and stockholder meeting.

One of the high points of this little field trip was the realization that taking the extra time I'm taking to get my MBA at McCombs is paying dividends already. I was able to follow the conversation (and understand it!) when the board went on and on about EBITDA and other financial metrics and business strategies that I had never heard of before starting my MBA. On top of that, my comprehension of the company's industry and competitive landscape was better than expected because we did a case this year at McCombs that focused on the company's major competitor.

It's hard to believe that I've already completed 1/4th of my time at Summer Firm this year!

Living Arrangements for the Summer

2009-06-03T20:50:00.006-05:00

I know that some of the MBA interns are lucky enough to have their summer digs set up by their employers. What a great perk for those without family or any ties in their internship city.

I am one of those people with no ties to my internship city. It's the kind of place where a lot of the rentals go for a four figure weekly rate during the summer. It's a tough place to find short-term housing.

As a result, I've had a pretty mixed experience with living arrangements during my summer internship (both this year and the last). Last summer, nearly all of the other interns were crashing with their parents rent-free. Because I was trying to spend as little as possible on rent, I ended up subleasing from a local undergrad who, as it turns out, continued to live in the apartment.

Long story short, I got tangled up in the undergrads web of deception. You see, she had her name on the lease, but lived with her boyfriend. By staying on the lease she accomplished two things. First, her parents never knew their precious, virginal daughter was shacking up with her boyfriend all semester. Second, she turned a profit by subleasing while her parents gave her a rent allowance.

Not surprisingly, this arrangement was short-lived. During my first week as her sublessee, the boyfriend broke up with her. She spent the rest of the summer, much to my consternation, sleeping on the couch. I volunteered to move out so that she could have her room back, but she insisted that I stay so she could collect rent from me. So stay I did . . . in the loud, noisy apartment with upstairs neighbors who blasted Rock Band until the wee hours of the morning.

This year, in order to accommodate my puppies and avoid living it up with the undergrads, I had to allow for a larger summer housing budget. I'm about 15 minutes away from the office. There aren't any unruly roommates to contend with and--best of all--I don't have to fight for street parking when I come home each night. Despite these perks, I'm pretty hung up on the extra money that I'm spending, especially since I know that my beautiful, hardly lived in apartment is waiting for me back in Austin.

The P2P Family Tree

2009-06-03T01:57:00.004-05:00

I spent some time this weekend with a grandparent who, like many grandparents, tends to tell the same family stories over and over again. But, this weekend, I learned for the very first time that my great-grandmother dropped out of the eighth grade and never went back to school. Because she worked as a teacher for decades later in life, I had always assumed she finished high school. Each generation has been pushed a little further than the last: my great-grandma finished school with eighth grade; my grandma finished with twelfth grade; my mom finished with a bachelor's degree; and I'll finish with two graduate degrees.

My grandfather worked two jobs while my grandma worked another so that my mom could be the first woman (let alone the first person) in her extended family to go to college. While my accomplishment seems much smaller, we realized this weekend that I will be the first woman in my extended family (maternal and paternal) to earn a doctorate of any kind.

This gives me all kinds of warm-fuzzies about how each hard-working generation of my family has given the next the opportunity to do a bit more. But, of course, all my elder relatives really care about is whether I'll hurry up and get married/produce grandkids already!

Week 1: Summer Associate Redux

2009-05-28T22:22:00.004-05:00

After all the moving and the packing, I surprised myself by making my early morning flight out of Austin on Sunday without too much trouble. I spent Sunday and most of Monday catching up on sleep and chatting with family before hitting the road for Beach Town, where Summer Firm is located.

Like last year, the first week of the program was all about orienting. This year it's largely the same. Lots of computer training. Lots of marveling at the professionalism of the support staff. Lots of getting to know the other summer associates. Lots of trying-not-to-notice the recently vacated associate offices. Less eating. Less over-the-top events on our summer schedule. It's what I expected and it's totally reasonable.

From what I can tell, I'm off to a good start. My first assignment has been completed and reviewed. Now, if only I can will the economy into rebounding, I'll be set ;)

Moving

2009-05-23T23:44:00.003-05:00

Because finals weren't taxing enough, I decided to test my mettle by moving. My new lease began the day before my final seminar paper was due. My old lease ends on Tuesday. Which is great, but I'm leaving tomorrow for Beach Town USA where I will spend eight weeks working for Summer Law Firm so I couldn't stretch the move out any further than today.

I had help from movers, who picked up my major furniture items and schlepped them the 30 minutes to my new place. All of my other belongs (and, man, I have way too much stuff) were moved by my boyfriend and I using our own cars. I didn't have to buy a single cardboard box or any tape, because I had been saving some cardboard boxes my neighbors were ready to throw out. All in all, the move was affordable.

I moved because my old apartment that I had lived in since I arrived in Austin in 2006, was a 30 minute drive from school. A good portion of that drive was along a winding, twisting highway. I witnessed a lot of nasty car accidents on that stretch of road. Three years of that commute was enough for me. I loved my old place to death (no shared walls with neighbors and beautiful hill country views), but it was time.

My new place is downtown. Because apartment inventory is so high in downtown Austin, the property managers are willing to make potential tenants a good deal (I received 3 free months of rent, which is why I can justify moving right before leaving for my eight week summer internship). I'm paying less for this brand new apartment that is on the UT shuttle line than I paid for my old place. Here's hoping that the herculean task of moving right on the tail of final exams pays off. I really want to enjoy Austin during my last year of school and I think my new location will help me do just that.

3/4ths of the way to the JD/MBA

2009-05-19T22:19:00.004-05:00

Good Lord people, that was a long semester! I turned in my seminar paper today and I am (finally!) done with the Spring 2009 semester.

The ABA isn't bluffing when they say that anything more than 17 credit hours is just too much. (For the MBA-types: the American Bar Association allows law students to enroll in no more than 17 credit hours each semester.) Between all of those classes and all of that power-walking from one side of campus to another, there hasn't been much time to breathe. Despite this, I appear to be on track to post my best semester-GPA of grad school yet. What!?! I can't decide whether this means I rose to the occasion or was just ridiculously lazy in earlier semesters.

It is a bit sad to think of my 1L section-mates graduating while I'm left here to spend another year in the library; but I try to remember how lucky I am to have one last year to explore my academic interests while the economy rains down all around us.

I am 3/4ths of the way to my JD/MBA and I feel . . . exhausted.

MySpace Countdown

Good News for UT Law . . .

2009-05-16T13:02:00.002-05:00

and students interested in Commercial Law. Professor Mann is coming back to UT!!! (But not until 2011.)

Final Thoughts: Operations Management

2009-05-15T00:02:00.005-05:00

After I finish the final assignment or exam in each of my classes this semester, I plan to write a quick post summarizing my final thoughts about the course.

I'm verging on exhaustion . . . so this will be brief.

Getting into the Class. It's a required core course in the McCombs MBA program.

Deliverables. Midterm and final exams, plus about 20 homework assignments sprinkled throughout the semester.

The Professor. He made me laugh. A lot. True to his subject, he is intensely organized. He's passionate and does a lot of yelling to make a point (or maybe he was just waking us up . . . it was a 8AM class). My only complaint is that he's not very tolerant of questions. Truth be told, he's downright dismissive.

Final Thoughts: Analytical Methods

2009-05-13T14:17:00.003-05:00

After I finish the final assignment or exam in each of my classes this semester, I plan to write a quick post summarizing my final thoughts about the course.

This class is one of a small handful of Law School classes that verge on the quantitative. It's like a Cliff's Notes version of the MBA core: a little accounting, a little finance, a little statistics (just decision trees), and even microeconomics.

Getting into the Class. I didn't have any trouble getting into this 2 unit class. I gather that there isn't much demand for seats in the class as it was undersubscribed.

Deliverables. The final grade in this course is based 100% on final exam performance (very typical at the Law School), however there were ten problem sets that had to be completed satisfactorily in order to qualify to sit for the final exam. Given my experience with the subject matter, I was surprised how long it took to complete the problem sets. This has something to do with the fact that the problem sets contain numerous errors and the questions lack clarity. There was also an intentional element, as this professor takes the view that students must really struggle if they are to learn.

The Professor. He makes the very basic subject matter seem unnecessarily complex. I think he means well and he does have an interest in the subject, but there is no reason for NPV, IRR, or annuities to cause so much confusion. I took Federal Income Tax with this professor and, ironically, found his teaching to be much more comprehensible in that class, despite the more complex subject matter.

Suggestion. The professor distributes hard copies of handwritten problem set solutions and Excel models. First of all, typed problem set solutions would be much appreciated, as the professor's handwriting is difficult to read. Second, distributing Excel files, instead of photocopies, would probably have gone a long way towards facilitating the learning experience for the folks in the class who had no Excel experience (this way, they could have reviewed the programs embedded in the cells).