Tuesday, January 31, 2006
All My Friends are Watching Football (with apologies to Skyhooks)
It's Super Bowl Sunday in the U.S. this weekend. Time to put down the law books for a couple of hours, crack open some chips and a couple of beers, and enjoy the hype, milion dollar ads, and hopefully some good footy.... right?
Not if you're this Law School Dad. This Law School Dad has to go to a wedding Sunday afternoon. A family wedding, no less, so I can't even bring the pocket TV without risking serious spousal wrath. So while the rest of the country gets to watch the Steelers throttle the Seahawks (c'mon Seattle, wake up to yourselves, you have NO CHANCE), I'll be watching Mr. and Mrs. (actually, Dr. & Dr.) Inconsiderate walking down the aisle.
I mean really, you guys waited 30-odd years for your wedding day, would one more weekend have been too much to ask???
-LSD
Not if you're this Law School Dad. This Law School Dad has to go to a wedding Sunday afternoon. A family wedding, no less, so I can't even bring the pocket TV without risking serious spousal wrath. So while the rest of the country gets to watch the Steelers throttle the Seahawks (c'mon Seattle, wake up to yourselves, you have NO CHANCE), I'll be watching Mr. and Mrs. (actually, Dr. & Dr.) Inconsiderate walking down the aisle.
I mean really, you guys waited 30-odd years for your wedding day, would one more weekend have been too much to ask???
-LSD
Tuesday, January 24, 2006
The Good, the (Not Too) Bad, and The Ugly
First semester grades are in, not much to complain about. I did best in the course that counted the most - Torts. Property, too, was fine. As for Contracts... well, all I can say is that luckily it doesn't count towards my final grade (like Property, it's a year long-course.) And I take solace in the absence of the dreaded "You don't know what you're doing!" comment that the professor reportedly plastered across the top of a couple of mid-terms.
-LSD
-LSD
Friday, January 20, 2006
You Can't Please All Law Students All the Time
Start of term means new classes and new professors. To gain an inkling of what to expect from the figure on the podium, many of us turn to RateMyProfessors.com, where posters get to annonymously praise or pour scorn on their instructors (and who says looks don't count in academia?)
Here's a sampling of what folk had to say about my Criminal Law professor:
i) "He really is terrific. He will take the time if you make the effort. Thoughtful, insightful and encouraging."
ii) "He's the funniest, cutest professor in the most understated way."
iii) "Whoever said he was hot needs their eyes examined. He was super disorganized, all over the map, and the only time he could be found in his office was NOT during his office hours."
iv) "Meandering, disorganized, theoretical, head in the clouds. Class was torture (as were the readings) and he taught me nothing."
v) "He was a nightmare. he didn't teach us worth a damn and his final sucked. Avoid if possible..."
Tellingly, those commenting don't need to state how they did in his class, so it's not clear how much of their bliss or bitterness is being filtered through grade-coloured glasses.
-LSD
readings)
Here's a sampling of what folk had to say about my Criminal Law professor:
i) "He really is terrific. He will take the time if you make the effort. Thoughtful, insightful and encouraging."
ii) "He's the funniest, cutest professor in the most understated way."
iii) "Whoever said he was hot needs their eyes examined. He was super disorganized, all over the map, and the only time he could be found in his office was NOT during his office hours."
iv) "Meandering, disorganized, theoretical, head in the clouds. Class was torture (as were the readings) and he taught me nothing."
v) "He was a nightmare. he didn't teach us worth a damn and his final sucked. Avoid if possible..."
Tellingly, those commenting don't need to state how they did in his class, so it's not clear how much of their bliss or bitterness is being filtered through grade-coloured glasses.
-LSD
readings)
Thursday, January 12, 2006
Couch Potato Days
To compensate for my hermit-like status during school, I've been using the mid-year interlude to cram in as much pop culture as I can. I've watched multiple episodes of Degrassi (evoking painful memories of my adolescence), Friends (evoking painful memories of my single days) and The West Wing (evoking painful memories of the Bush administration).
In contrast, the histrionics on Everybody Loves Raymond serve only to reinforce my sense of gratitude for G-d's gift of unsullied marital bliss.*
-LSD
* Yes, my wife reads this space occasionally. Hi honey.
Wednesday, January 04, 2006
From Cardozo to Hogwarts
From Law School Dad, I'm gradually adjusting to being just plain old Dad again for the time being. I'm still avoiding all those household repairs I didn't have time for during term, though now there's some guilt thrown in. My wife is happy I'm watching the kids so they don't have to go to daycare. I'm not sure she'd be so sanguine if she realized how much confectionery and TV they're consuming on my watch, but frankly, it's a daily war of attrition in which I wield whatever weapons I have at my disposal to keep the offspring distracted while I tend to my critical objectives of finishing the latest Harry Potter and the last seven New York Times magazines before next semester kicks off.
It's going to be close.
-LSD
