I am happy to report that week 2 of Law School has ended and it is getting easier every day. Despite some crazy stuff that happened this week, classes are making more sense and my reading is getting faster which combines to a much lower stress level overall.
It was a weird week: Monday I could not find a parking spot, Tuesday I got out of class super early, Wednesday a water line broke on campus and left the law school with no bathrooms or water for the afternoon and Thursday there was tons of free food. Never a dull moment in law school...
Classes
Classes are starting to make more sense on the whole. I am starting to understand the teaching styles of the individual professors and what they are looking for. I really understand my Torts professor and that subject is making the most sense so far. Property is going better and I am starting to follow the professor more; he doesn't cold call so that makes me more comfortable with that class. Contracts is a struggle because my professor is trying too hard to be funny and isn't giving us as much material and explanation as the others. He is hilarious; today he called Google AdWords during class to prove a point about click-wrap agreements but I just don't feel like I am learning as much from him. We will see how it goes. Civil Procedure is my most challenging subject matter yet my favorite professor; I am sure it will all start to come together soon.
I have raised my hand several times with questions and thus far none of them were taken by the professor as stupid. In my Civ Pro class, I was the only person (even including the prof) who knew how to pronounce and translate a Latin phrase so that made me feel good; those 3 years of Latin in high school paid off.
Reading/Studying/Note-Taking
Reading is getting so much simpler. I am able to find and identify the parts of the case much faster. I have taken to book briefing with a color-coded highlighter system and only taking a brief down on paper for the really important or really complicated cases. In class, I write down the parts of the case along with professors comments in my notes. This way I don't write everything twice or end up with incorrect information/inferences in my notes. I read the assignment ahead of time and review right before my class so it is fresh in case of a cold call. On big breaks between classes, I read future assignments or type my handwritten class notes into OneNote. When typing the notes, I not only review the information but I also synthesize and make sense of my notes. In another few weeks I will start outlining but I just don't feel up to that task yet.
I have been taking notes on a mix of notebooks and computer. For Torts, Contracts and Legal Research and Writing, I use my computer (OneNote) and I keep up with no issues. In Civ Pro and Property, handwriting keeps me much more organized and on track.
Involvement
I still have not decided which student organizations I want to join but I have started my work as a Themis Bar Prep representative. It is pretty simple; I table for an hour each week and tell people about it. I have met a bunch of the 2L's and 3L's through this which has been great.
My goal in Sept. is to get more involved and meet more people. Now that Law School itself doesn't have me so stressed I feel more comfortable to make time for those things.
Social
Law School is very cliquey. There is a few distinct groups: the loud girls who like to drink, the socially awkward girls, the boys who barely study, the obnoxious, think they are "all that" girls and the engaged/married people. I am in the final group and it is great; we are all mature, in committed relationships and in the same level of life. I am loving my new law school friends. We talk about class, cases, weddings and favorite recipes; we are all happily boring old married people who do not want to attend every weeks Bar Review or make our life revolve around law school 24/7. Finding people who think similarly to you about life in law school makes it easier; they get you and you get them. No matter which of the clique styles you fit into, find some friends who are the same and you will be good to go.
In classes, it is becoming evident who is here to prove they are the smartest or are gunning for something. There is one guy who literally asks a hypothetical question in class that is unrelated and will argue with the professor if they do not answer the way he wants or they try to put the class back on task. It gets pretty annoying. There is another guy who sits behind me in class and mutters the whole time about how stupid the questions and/or answers are and how poor the professor is. Funny story: he is a 2L retaking the class so obviously he should stop muttering and start paying attention so he passes this time.
Balance
I am finding a better balance. I can go to Law School, study and still make dinner for my husband, do things around the house and find some time to relax. Monday night I was up until 2am finishing assignments and Tuesday night I had only 10 pages of reading and a brief to turn in which allowed me to hang out with my hubby and binge some HIMYM on Netflix. Last weekend, I had a slight meltdown about my research assignment and the stress of Law School. My amazing husband listened to me vent, reassured me that I would kick law schools ass and then surprised me with tickets to go see Wicked (my absolute favorite musical) in a local theater. Since it is Labor Day weekend and I don't have Monday classes, there is plenty of time for a fun evening of theater and a nice dinner in the city with my prince charming. I don't know what I would do without him to keep me sane through all of this.
Overall, I am surviving. I am not going to push my luck and say I am thriving but I think I am doing okay. My week could have been worse; I had plenty of time to redesign my blog (btw what do you think of the new design??) and still got all my work done and ate dinner with my hubby every night. Law School is no walk in the park but a little hard work and a whole lot of coffee make it doable. Here are some snapchats from my week:
How is Law School going for you thus far?
No comments