Of Birthdays and Finals, Hopefully Not Final Birthday

Let's recap. My birthday and finals have both happened, generally in an intertwining narrative.
Friday night was probably the highlight of the weekend. Kerry took me to a cocktail bar called the Columbia Room. It is a ten seat bar, framed as a speakeasy - unmarked in the back of another bar. They have real bartenders. Not "I can make a rum and coke" bar tenders. They use high quality ingredients and top notch techniques. Usually they do a flight of three cocktails. Two are chosen by the house, the third is based on your preferences. The house choices were Prohibition-era style cocktails. We got the history of them and everything. It was interesting and the drinks were good. For my third cocktail I asked for "something with whiskey...or gin." and the bartender made me her favorite martini. It's was a dry martini with Plymouth Gin and a fancy dry vermouth in equal parts, with a twist of lemon. It was good - though not my favorite thing ever. Kerry had a neat ginger cocktail. And someone else at the bar got a vesper martini - the original James Bond drink. Pretty cool. We also got an extra drink (cause how often do you get the opportunity to sit at that type of bar). For that I asked for something spicy. I got a drink called a Sun Burn. It involved whiskey, bitters, ginger liqueur, tobasco, and an egg white. It was pretty incredible.
Apparently this bar is on GQ's list of top 25 cocktail bars. Well it's right up my alley. Huge fan.

Sunday was my actual birthday. As is tradition, I listened to "December 4th" by Jay-Z. We have the same birthday. No big deal. I'm practically him, right? I got the nice deluge of facebook posts, which was an appreciated distraction. But I spent most of the day studying Evidence. 'Tis the life of a December-born student. But this is the last time my birthday will ever interfere with finals! Alena and Kerry made dinner and baked a cake, respectively. It was delicious, and clearly the highlight of a study day. And I still lost at Settler of Catan. Great.

After another full study day yesterday, my first final came today. Evidence. It began in curious manner. I got to the exam room an hour in advance. Jon and I plugged in our computers and after a couple of minutes a socket down the row began smoking and making popping sounds. Umm that's cool. Someone called facilities about that, and it turns out that the school flooded last night (it's basically built on a swamp...like this city). So our basement classroom had been flooded, causing electrical problems. And making the carpet throughout the lecture hall damp and mildew scented. The first two rows of seats were roped off, and despite the smell and general sense of dampness that hung over the room, we all took the exam. Not what you'd call optimal test conditions.
I hope it went well. I'm nervous. I left the exam 20 minutes early. I had already read over my answers twice. Now that I am out of the test, I know that I got one answer wrong. But I just didn't know it, so those 20 minutes wouldn't have helped. Some crap about the Confrontation Clause changing in 2003. But aside from that question I feel pretty good about it. I think? I hope! At least it's over. Face towards the future. Towards tomorrow. Towards an Antitrust exam at 9:30 in the morning.

I'm not sure how this is going to go over with the professor but I made a little joke on the exam. The problem had to do with a prosecution for possession of marijuana with intent to distribute. I wrote: "The potential for prejudice is high (no pun intended)." I hope my professor likes puns. Specifically bad ones!

Oh, I passed the MPRE. I am more than minimally ethical in all U.S. jurisdictions. I should hope so from a philosophy major!
I wonder if like...Jack Abramoff took that test? It's clearly a really good screening tool. Better we should have ethics shock treatment.

I remember that two years ago during finals it was freezing. It was so cold I was wearing two pairs of socks to school. Today it was mid-60s and raining. What is going on here? Why is DC now a tropical rainforest? It's December! Get with it. I want some snow. I want another snowpocalypse. I want classes cancelled, snowball fights, and hot toddies.

Shaked got me the next two seasons of How I Met Your Mother. All I want to do is watch them! But I promised I won't until the end of finals. An exercise in self-control.

Tupac says "It's hard to be legit and still pay the rent." That depends in large part on what your rent is. If you live in a mansion, yeah. If you live at your momma's house, like Snoop Dogg (Gin and Juice), it's not hard at all. If you "raise the roof" of your house, that would cost a lot. And there's always the threat of that roof being on fire and someone "let[ting] the motherf***** burn."

Actual Last Day Of Classes/Time Warp

Today was the "official" last day of classes. Goodbye and good riddance this semester. Can we get Green Day in here to play a song? No? Alright.
Well it is officially finals period. I felt like a huge waste of time today although I did lots of studying. The problem is that I could take Evidence or Antitrust tomorrow and feel adequately prepared. I can definitely get better with the material, but it's a much slower learning curve now and as such it is more frustrating to continue slogging through the material. I'm basically fighting for every inch of ground in terms of preparation. It's World War I up in here.

It's getting to be that time of year where I grow a year older one day. Yeah, my birthday. Eh, I'm not thrilled about it. I've never been a huge fan. My mom already got me my birthday present. It was a Mark Bittman cookbook. Thanks mom, that will be helpful for recipes since cooking is a pursuit that I enjoy! But at the same time I'm not thrilled about it. You see, I mentioned at least two times that I don't like Mark Bittman very much. I think he's a food nazi. And this is sort of what I hate about my birthday. I got a "thanks, but" present. I feel like that happens a lot. And it sounds crappy of me to say, but I hate it. I hate the disingenuous gratitude. I hate feeling like someone close to me basically ignored my express preferences. There is nothing (or very few things, at least) that I really want. As cliche as it may be to say it, I don't care that much about what material possession I have. But I appreciate the thought. I do not appreciate the thought behind giving me a book that I said I don't want.
But, all in all, I like having the book. So after thinking/typing it out, I am in the odd position of more or less liking the gift, but disliking its thoughtfulness. Now I sound like a jerk. Nothing too new.

Today I was studying at the tables outside the library. Talking is permitted at the tables. But there are two dozen people studying around you, so the proper social etiquette is to keep conversations short and quiet. It definitely violates the social rules to have a twenty minute conversation (right next to me) about why you chose to be a chemistry major and professional hockey. Guess what? No one cares! I care more about improper propensity inferences in Evidence law than I do about you. And I don't care about propensity inferences basically at all. So stop talking about the Pittsburgh Penguins or I'm going to poison your Diet Coke.
Can there be some sort of social etiquette where it's totally alright to scream at people who are blatantly violating other social norms?

When the going gets tough, the tough are happy they aren't 1Ls about to take their first finals ever.

Second to Last Second to Last Day of Classes

I'd like to call it the last day of classes, but I guess I do have Public Interest Lawyering tomorrow night. That's barely a class. So today was the last day of "real" classes. And we just give applause to any professor on the last day of class these days. Even my Evidence professor, who was useless all semester. Today's class period was dominated by reviewing a practice test, only we didn't get through the test because my classmates were busy asking redundant questions or coming up with crazy hypothetical facts that were never implicated in the question. I thought the practice test was fairly straightforward. I'm not saying I would have aced it, but I would have done pretty well for the minimal amount of studying I have put in to date. Don't worry, I'll study more before the actual test. But I am relieved to see my classmates blundering so badly. Remember, grades are on a curve. Oh the joys of pointless law school competition.

This evening my Evidence professor emailed the class saying that he would be out of the country for the next two weeks and good luck on the test. The "suckers" was implied.

I had the pleasure of finishing my second Antitrust outline today. One is historical, one is by issue. I think I'll need both. And I have about 75 cases to remember. No big deal. This is what I get from the one class I liked this semester. It's a busy study period.

I don't really get what was going on with Crosby, Stills and Nash. And Young? What's the deal?

I went with Giri and Dan to get lunch at a group of food trucks today. The first one we approached had a lot of options - like ten different things. I was about to order some sort of chicken wrap when the guy in the truck informed me that all they had left was Chicken Bahn Mi and Lamb on Rice. Giri ordered the lamb, and that was the last lamb on rice they had. Dude, why is your truck still here? Go home and restock. You can't give me ten options to ogle and then only have one. Especially while there are at least two other trucks right there. Competition fail. I clearly went to another truck. Even if I wanted chicken bahn mi, my sense of propriety was so offended. You should have at least a third of your menu.

Welcome To Finals

Thanksgiving came and went. It was nice to get away from school and DC for a bit, but the brief vacation left me wanting more. For the third straight year, my mom and I went to a weird family thing in upstate New York. It's at a "mountain house," which is fun if you like group hiking trips and fresh mountain air. But I don't. I mean, the air is fine. But I'd prefer other activities. Like sleeping and shooting apples off of people's heads. Someone did that once to his son. Don't act like you don't know what I'm talking about.
My room was on the hallway outside the dining room, so every morning I got to hear stupid little kids screaming before and after breakfast. And their parents: "Billy knows all of the presidents. Billy, whose picture is that? No, that's Herbert Hoover. He was president." Apparently Billy does not know all the presidents. Now get to breakfast and stop hanging out in the hall outside my room. It's before 9 AM, have some respect.
Actual Thanksgiving was served at noon. A tradition I am not the biggest fan of. But the food was good. And Alan Alda was there. Not a joke. He actually goes there for Thanksgiving each year (and I bet he loves it when people yell "Hey Hawkeye!!!"). I also got to play Settlers of Catan with some cousins, so that was good.

Then I got about a day and a half at home. Not enough time. I didn't get to see nearly enough people. I was split between working and relaxing and got to do neither properly. So here I am back in DC. And now it's time to suit up. Or...outline up. Due to a lapse of judgment, or an attitude of ambivalence, I didn't realize when my finals were. Turns out they are scheduled for next Tuesday and Wednesday. That's pretty close, so it's business time.

The bad news is: I don't know Evidence and I have a long way to go in Antitrust. The good news is: most 3Ls are even lazier than me and even more behind in finals preparations. The best news is: these are my last fall semester finals and the last time that finals will interfere with my birthday. In a theme that will probably be repeated on this blog: I cannot wait to be done with law school.

The drive down to DC from Boston took a good long time. Thanks for driving, Nakul! Aside from spending half the drive in Jersey, the most exciting thing that happened was being right behind a police bust. As we were driving through Connecticut, four police cars stopped traffic, pulled over a truck, and approached it with weapons drawn. Hey now, that's something you don't see every day. We were front row for a potential firefight. Think I'm exaggerating? Check out this huge gun one dude had.



Yeah, that's what I thought. What was going on?? My guess was a drug bust, but you really never know. Luckily, the men in the truck went peacefully. Front row is good for cirque du soleil, but not a gun battle.
Photo courtesy of my iPhone. Yeah, it's nice to have a phone that takes pictures, not to mention one that I can actually hear.

Russia House

Last night I got accidental drunk. I blame lack of lunch and full dinner. Plus strong ginger cocktails made it a potent mix. Alena, Kerry, and I met up with people at a bar called Russia House. It was...very Russian. When we got there we were looking for our friends. They weren't on the first floor. On the second floor, we were stopped by a big Russian man who asked us in a thick Russian accent what we were doing there. Oh hey, KGB, we're just looking for our friends. (In a thick accent:) "Not this level. This is private party." He was scary, but correct - the people we were looking for were upstairs. Russian beer really wasn't bad at all. And I may or may not have had a martini that was just sitting on a table for like fifteen minutes with no owner. Whatever, I wasn't roofied. Just drunk enough to get jumbo slice pizza. Best choice. It almost made up for my lack of dinner. But then today I was the type of hung-over where you just want to eat all day. There is a hole in my stomach.

Ugh, I need sleep. One day of class to get through before vacation. Only two more classes. Just gotta keep thinking that.
At least I got my Evidence outline pretty much finished today. It shows me how little I learned in Evidence. Great choices.

Why is hummus so good? It's just fantastic.

Viking Funerals

So work today was actually really cool. I randomly tagged along to a meeting which was two hours long, but fascinating. A couple of companies came in to complain about another company whose entire business model (if they are telling the truth) was basically quasi-legal extortion. It was like listening to them tell a cowboy story of antitrust law. Or a mobster antitrust firm. Pretty cool stuff. Unfortunately there did not seem to be a cognizable antitrust claim, although the SEC, the IRS, and the US Attorney's Office all probably have some things to say.
I'm going to write the next Sin City, antitrust law style. Sounds thrilling, right?

My handle of whiskey is dead. Viking funeral. Were I still in college, the funeral would be in Masel. And would look a lot like littering.

Can't it just be Thanksgiving???

Yesterday, I let Kerry talk me into frozen yogurt for dinner. It was like the childhood dream. Only I realized how bad of an idea that was. Then I got mad at myself for ruining my own childhood dream. Plus, I'm sure Michelle Obama is not happy about my choice. Sasha and Malia are never allowed to have froyo dinner.
What if it was spinach flavored froyo?
Then it would be gross. Oh, right.

On the topic of food, today's lunch was at a place that just opened in Chinatown called Meatballs. It's big attraction is that it talks about balls a lot. I'm serious, I'm not being immature. On the wall is a sign that says Meatballs, only meat is in tiny font and the letters in balls are about a foot tall. That sign was probably the best part about the place too. I tried their chicken balls (aka meatballs made from ground chicken), and thought I was going to get sick they were so undercooked.

Color me surprised.

The Part

Sugary cereal is the best! Especially as dessert. I'm doing the Trader Joe's equivalent of Frosted Flakes. Mmmm poverty cereal (as my roommate calls it).

I started outlining for my Evidence final. I'm using a hornbook. It is approximately 7.5 times as good as my professor at explaining the material. So teaching evidence to myself is working out well so far, but it makes me wonder why I spend money on tuition when I could use a $30 book just as well for this class. The sole relevant thing my professor said during our 55 minute class today was "Physical objects are not protected by attorney client privilege." The other 54 minutes were taken up by him tangentially discussing ways that lawyers can become an accessory after the fact to a crime and end up spending some quality time in prison with their client.

Basically, I really want Thanksgiving break to come. Motivation is slipping away.
Though I am realizing that this is my last year of school. Ever. 19th grade is coming to an end, and there is no 20th. (Thank goodness!) So next semester I plan on enjoying myself. Easy schedule, time to hang out and to travel a bit. I'll probably pass/fail a class and not care very much about any of the others either. What's the name for this? Senioritis? 3L-itis just isn't as catchy.

iPhone! The future is now!
Except it took me almost a week to learn how to set up my voicemail. Would it absolutely kill Apple to send me a user manual? It's hard enough for me, I can only imagine how much less intuitive it is for someone of an older generation! I have sympathy! Or maybe I just feel old. Not "hip" and "with it." I don't know what the kids are listening to these days or how to use their new fancy phones.

I got a hair cut today and the lady cutting my hair just gave me a part without my asking. Bam, there it was. She said it looked nice - but I'm not sure how keen I am on it. But I didn't want to offend her, so I kept the part. Until I went to the gym and showered. But now my hair seems to want to part itself. It was easily suggestible, apparently. On one hand my hair does not cooperate. On the other hand, at least I'm not Medusa. Her hair would have been a real pain. And I bet she had to go to Animal Control to even get a trim.

J. Edgar Hoover was a real bastard. The movie was a'ight. Not my favorite, but not bad. I'm not sure it showed just how much of a bad guy he was. Though it was certainly not a positive portrayal.

How do I get better at Settlers of Catan? Suggestions?