Briefly Popping In

I wanted to congratulate my aunt for giving birth to Robert Hughes and Stephen Russell on Tuesday, November 29. Tangentially, congratulations to Emily for winning the informal twin-naming pool, and to Robert and Stephen for... being born. The new twins seem to be doing well, and I look forward to seeing them grow.

Also, congratulations to Chrissie for booking several commercials in the past months, including ads for Ford, Ebay, and Starburst (even if Ford's demented casting directors did cast her as the mother of an 11-year-old).

A Quick Birthday Post

As some of you may have realized, my 25th birthday was yesterday. I had a low-key celebration with my sister yesterday, and I will be having a slightly larger party tonight.

I have been keeping myself busy with Bar review and other activities. Among other things, I went to a performance of Wicked, spent the weekend in San Francisco with my sister, and celebrated the Fourth of July with my family. I am, naturally, stressed about studying for the Bar, but I haven't allowed myself to become entirely closed off from the world.

In other news, I will have two new cousins by next year, as my aunt is going to have a second set of identical twins. Because, as far as I can tell, there aren't any risk factors associated with identical twin births, this is particularly unusual.

Miscellaneous

I have finished moving into my summer apartment. Because I won't be staying long, I've kept things relatively simple, with a minimum of furnishings.

For the first week after graduation, I was able to relax a little, which was nice. I was also able to see Chrissie's new apartment, which is very cute (and right beneath the Hollywood sign).

However, my Bar review program has started this past week, and the schedule is pretty rigorous. Naturally, it is taking some time to get used to the program, but I will have to be conscientious about the study schedule; the exam is less than two months away. The week has been full of non-academic events as well, as I was able to see a few friends and watch my sister perform in a staged reading of "Hotel Chicago," a new play.

My laptop's screen has been acting up since the fall. Because I have constantly needed my computer since then, I have been making do with an external screen for months; however, I am finally in a position where I can send my computer away for a few weeks while it is repaired. As a consequence, I won't be online very often for a while. However, since I really do need to study, this is probably a good thing.

I've Graduated (Hooray)

The law school graduation was held on Friday afternoon, at Alumni Park. The ceremony included speeches by one of my former roommates, an alumnus of the law school who has developed apartments in downtown L.A., and the current White House Counsel. However, the most notable thing about the ceremony itself, at least from graduates' perspectives, was the intense heat, particularly since everyone was wearing heavy graduation regalia. If nothing else, the robes did minimize the impact of sunburns, since most of my skin was not exposed. After the ceremony, I mingled with fellow graduates and professors before going to a graduation dinner with friends and family members.

Today was more laid-back. I was able to move some of my belongings into my summer apartment; this should make things a little easier tomorrow, when I am required to check out.

Graduation Eve

Unsurprisingly, I've been pretty busy lately.

I finished paper #3 at around 4:00 on Friday morning, which gave me just enough time to get ready and head home before Chrissie's USC graduation. The family ended up attending three ceremonies. The first was held for the entire school, and the other two were 'satellite' ceremonies for the departments my sister majored in (Film and Theater); we weren't able to attend a fourth ceremony (College of Letters, for her Political Science major) because it conflicted with the Theater graduation, but that would probably have been one ceremony too many anyway. I was glad to see Chrissie (and Matt) graduate, although I was naturally pretty tired.

This week, I've been trying to catch up with various chores and tasks that I have been meaning to do for a while. I got a desperately-needed haircut, did some shopping, and finally replaced my cell phone.

Work and an Interview

I wasn't able to get any sleep on Tuesday (April 26th), but I did manage to turn in papers #1 and #2. I had to take a few more days to finish my Legal Summaries, but at least the journal is a bit more flexible than my professors. Now, all I have to do before graduation is take Wednesday's Wills and Trusts exam and write paper #3.

The journal had its end-of-year dinner on Wednesday. Everyone seemed to have a fun time, and the food was good. Our Editor-in-Chief also passed out NAALJ tote bags as gifts.

Work Update

Paper #1 is done. It is for a First Amendment seminar, and the topic is school officials' regulation of student expression on the Internet. Although I have done my research, I still need to work on paper #2 for my Jurisprudence class; it will be about Ronald Dworkin's interpretive method as applied to Jackson v. Birmingham Board of Education. Paper #1, paper #2 and my NAALJ legal summaries will be due on Wednesday, the final day of classes.

I only have one final exam, for Wills and Trusts, on Wednesday, May 4th. Also, paper #3, dealing with federalism in the context of state laws allowing euthanasia, will be due on May 13th, at the end of the exam period. However, things will be comparatively simple after this Wednesday.

Since I've tried to stay close to home and work on papers, I haven't been doing much of interest. However, I did meet with my grandparents and sister in order to see a CSUN production of Carousel. I have a few other family-related events to attend in the next few days; I will be present at my twin cousins' 5th birthday tomorrow, and I will also watch Chrissie perform on Monday.

In other news, a fire broke out in one of the few local shopping areas. I was nearby while the fire was raging, so I did see some of the action firsthand; it was pretty shocking to approach the area and see a huge plume of smoke. I patronized some of the businesses that were damaged (the movie theater, Ben & Jerry's, and the Casa Escobar restaurant), so I found the damage. Fortunately, there weren't any injuries; the damage was limited to property.

Waxing Nostalgic

Google's map feature has made me a bit nostalgic about the places I used to frequent. This has motivated me to create a mini-tour of the Bryn Mawr area using the satellite images.

Be warned: the images are quite large.

Too Busy

Spring break was fun, although, as always, it was over too soon.

On Sunday, March 10th, a friend and I drove out to Hearst Castle and went on the tours there. Since I had never gone there, we went on the general tour first. Later, we went on a second tour, which covered the upper floors of the main building; this tour included the library and Hearst's study. Next, we drove down to Buellton, checked in at the hotel, and had dinner at the Hitching Post.

The next day, we went around to several different wineries. One winery offered a tour of the premises, and we bumped into a law school classmate (who my friend had classes with) and her family. Later, we took advantage of the picnic space at another winery, munching on some of the cheeses and meats which my friend had brought. We went back to the hotel in the afternoon. After taking a nap, we went out to dinner, had coffee, and played Trivial Pursuit.

Finally

Things have been a bit crazy around here. Last week, our law school had its Dalsimer moot court competition, and, as a member of the Moot Court Board, I was obligated to set up the rooms for a few of the rounds and watch the finalists compete. After Dalsimer, the school held its annual law school dinner, which was decent enough. Unfortunately, I wasn't near anyone I knew well (aside from my dad) during the dinner itself. I stuck around and met with a few other students after the dinner was over.

This Tuesday, I went to a lecture by constitutional scholar Akhil Amar which was held on campus; he discussed the role of the Western frontiers in the evolution of the Constitution. Later that day, I went to a dinner for members of my administrative law journal. Finally, I took the MPRE this morning. The MPRE is sort of a pointless exam, but I'm glad it's out of the way. Thankfully, spring break starts today. Tomorrow morning, a friend and I will spend a few days visiting Hearst Castle and Santa Barbara wine country (a la Sideways). It should be fun, and I will be glad to get away from campus for a while.

Craziness

My great aunt's funeral was touching; several people came and were able to tell their memories. The burial itself was held in the rain, which was a little awkward, but artful in a way. Ultimately, it was good that many family and community members were able to come together.

Miscellaneous

I have been doing reasonably well over the past weeks. I am still in denial of the fact that my last semester is going by rapidly, and I still have plenty of preparations to make before I finish.

My great aunt (mother's mother's sister) died a couple of weeks ago. She was undergoing treatment for cancer, so it wasn't a complete shock, but her death came sooner than anybody had expected. I am just glad that I had gotten to see her at the wedding last month. The funeral is tomorrow, so I will be there.

I am currently taking a break from work, so I ought to do some more work before heading to bed!

I have been doing well, although things haven't been all that exciting.

I was able to do some artwork, which was nice, as I haven't done any real artwork for some time. Other highlights include visiting the controversial BodyWorlds exhibit with a friend and taking an evening trip to Disneyland (I have an annual pass, so it's not pointless to go for only a few hours).

I have been enjoying my classes, although I have to start thinking more seriously about paper topics and research. I also want to start pursuing job opportunities. On the plus side, I was able to sign up for a bar review course and the MPRE exam, so I'm not in terrible shape.

The Beginning of the End... Of Law School

Here is my schedule for this (final) semester:

Monday:
1:30-2:30 - Wills and Trusts
Tuesday:
Nothing!
Wednesday:
9:10-10:10 - Jurisprudence
10:20-11:20 - Constitutional Law Seminar (First Amendment)
1:30-2:30 - Wills and Trusts
Thursday:
10:20-12:20 - Jurisprudence
3:50-5:50 - Current Constitutional Issues
Friday:
10:20-11:20 - Constitutional Law Seminar (First Amendment)
1:30-2:30 - Wills and Trusts

Three of my four classes are 'paper' classes, so I will only be taking one exam (Wills and Trusts) in the spring. In addition, the 'Current Constitutional Issues' class is taught by our beloved Dean Starr (I wanted to take another Con. Law class and figured that I might as well). The classes have been fine so far. I did get called on during Wednesday's Wills and Trusts class, but at least I was prepared and will be 'safe' in that class for a while.

On Saturday, my family and I went up to Atascadero for a second-cousin's wedding. Since I thought that I might need to leave early, I took a separate car for the long drive. However, I ended up staying longer than I thought I would be able to. The wedding was outdoors; fortunately, the weather was nice and clear. Also, the reception was pretty fun, and I enjoyed myself.

I didn't do that much today, although I did end up going out with my roommate and some of her friends later in the evening.

And the Rain, Rain, Rain, Came Down, Down, Down...

The last week of vacation was a bit weird for me. I was pretty stressed, although I calmed down by the end of the week. However, I did get to do a few fun things over the course of the week. I saw my sister and a few of her friends from the summer's BADA program, I met one of my school friends for coffee, and I stayed over at another friend's house. I also had dinner with my family and an old friend of Chrissie's.

I'm sure that many of you have heard about (and experienced) the California storms. Since I'm near the coast, I've been more affected than many. The canyons which provide access to the San Fernando Valley have been closed, and even the open roads have been troublesome.

Unsurprisingly, school was cancelled on Monday due to the weather and road closures. A friend and I decided to take advantage of the day off by going to the movies and having dinner, which was a lot of fun.

I don't have any classes on Tuesday, so I haven't really started school yet. Hopefully I'll be able to get in the swing of things by tomorrow.

Is it 2005 Yet?

I find it hard to believe that this decade is nearly halfway over, but I suppose there's no avoiding the fact.

Christmas was fun. Chrissie and I both received our share of presents, and even got iPods as one of our two 'Santa gifts.' After the family finished opening presents, we hosted Christmas dinner for my mom's side of the family. I spent most of my time looking after my young cousins, so I was a bit tired at the end, but I had a good time. After everyone had left, my parents, Chrissie, and I stayed up to watch the broadcast of The Sound of Music.

I spent New Year's Eve at a party hosted by Reena and her parents. It was low-key, but fun; we basically hung out, ate, and chatted until midnight.

Aside from that, I haven't been doing all that much recently. I was able to tidy up my room and the rest of the apartment, which is boring but necessary. I've also uploaded some of my CD collection to my new iPod, so I can actually get some use out of it.

This afternoon, I went to a nearby state park in an attempt to get out a little, but that backfired when my car got stuck in the mud. I spent the entire time talking to a Triple A representative on a callbox with bad reception (my cell phone isn't working right now) and waiting for a tow truck to come. By the time that the problem was solved, it had started to rain, so I ended up going home immediately.