Cheap Like Your Mom

Not Guilty

2008-06-29T10:34:00.002-04:00

So I won a trial this past week, which is always a great feeling. It was a Criminal Mischief charge, which for those not in any law based profession means vandalism. The Prosecutor was accusing my guy of breaking out someone's passenger side window. Essentially, my guy and his friend were invited over by a third friend to his new apartment. The problem was it was 1 a.m., and the third friend's girlfriend wasn't having it, because the baby needed to sleep. So she met them outside and started yelling at my guy's friend. My guys friend started yelling back, the third friend didn't appreciate him yelling at his girlfriend, and a fist-fight ensued. My guy actually broke up the fight, and took his friend, who was now bleeding from the head, to the hospital. They were saying that my guy had taken his friend with the head wound to the car, but stopped before taking him to the hospital to handle some more important things, namely smashing in their truck window with a jack-handle.

Their relevant evidence consisted of two witnesses and some pictures of the damage. To impeach someone is essentially to call BS on them, and it is incredibly satisfying to be able to pull it off when someone is on the stand and absolutely full of it. For example... Their first witness, the girlfriend, gets on the stand and starts testifying about how she didn't start the argument, my guy's friend started grabbing her by the arms and shaking her when she had politely asked him to leave because it was too late for visitors, and then went on about how crazy the fight was that my guys friend had gotten into with her boyfriend, friend three. So I went ahead and showed her the part in the police report where she had told the officer that there hadn't been any physical altercation, only verbal. She said that the officer must have written her report wrong. We'll see. She then proceeded to talk about how she had seen my guy do it with her own eyes. So again I showed her the police report, where she had told the officer that she had returned to the apartment after the fight, but before the damage occured. She responded that what she meant when she said that she returned to the apartment was that she walked over to the apartment, but didn't actually go inside, she stayed in the doorway and watched my guy do it. She tried to tell me that the officer had neglected to put in her report that she was an eyewitness to the damage occuring. I call BS. There is no way the officer forgot to put down in her report that she saw him do it. The impeachment of the other witness was not nearly as exciting, as she only changed her story a little bit from "I saw him do it," to "I saw him standing next to the truck with the jack-handle in his hand, and I heard shattering glass, but there was a tree in my way, so I didn't actually see it happen." As it turns out though, the officer was my best witness, because there was no one else who could have definitively testified to their previous statements and showed that they were changing things.

Oddly enough, none of that was relevant. I thought it would come down to whether they believed the state's witnesses or mine. It apparently did not. The jurors actually talked to the bailiff after court, which they are allowed to do if they want, it's just that they also have the absolute right not to talk to anybody about it ever again, which is why we are always ecstatic whenever we get even the tiniest glimpse into how a juror's mind operates. This information is about fourth or fifth hand, so I can't really vouch for it's veracity, but I was told the conversation went a little something like this. They asked the bailiff whether he felt they had made the right decision in finding Not Guilty. He bluntly responded "No." So they explained their decision to him. It had nothing to do with the burden of proof, or witness credibility, or clever legal arguments, of course. They felt that my guy would not have had time to do it, and the evidence picture looked staged. As far as the time, I am not sure how that would have even crossed into their heads. There was no definitive time for when my guy and his friend arrived, just sometime between 12 and 1 a.m., and the officer arrived at 1:30. Either they were saying that this wasn't enough time to get there, look around for the new apartment, get in an argument, get in a fight, break up the fight, drag injured friend to the car, and leave, or they were saying that there's no way he would have taken the time to stop and break a window on his way to take his buddy, who's bleeding from the head, to the hospital. I suppose I'll never be sure which. The argument about the picture being staged I was excited about though, because jurors are known for making their decisions are unpredictable, and based on things that, to us as attorneys, are completely off the wall, and yet this was actually an argument that I had made in my closing. The jack-handle was sitting in the car-seat in a manner that didn't make sense. It's handle was down on the seat cushion and the metal end with the prongs was up and leaning against the arm of the car seat. I only argued it for 30 to 45 seconds, because it is incredibly difficult to get a jury to believe the "I was framed" defense, but if the jack-handle lande that way, it meant that whoever was holding it had to have been holding the metal end with the prongs in it, and hit the window with the plastic handle end. Whichever end went in first, it only makes sense, would fall to the ground first. Anyway, a win is a win, so I was very excited all week, I hope everyone else had a great week too. Peace.

Restarting

2008-06-19T20:52:00.002-04:00

So my brother is starting a blog about moving to NYC. Thus I am restarting my blog, inspired by my brother. Since my last post, I have become a Public Defender. To be honest, I was worried about whether I could defend criminals every day. But as it turns out, I love it. It's not really about defending criminals. It's about helping people. The system is not intuitive or simple, it's incredibly complicated, and alot of it doesn't make any sense on it's face. People need help understanding what the Hell's going on, what the rules are, and what it really means to choose between a plea agreement and a trial. It's really not like it is on TV. And it's also about defending the Constitution. It sounds cliche, but everyone has a right to a trial, has the right to have the state prove their guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, has the right to have an attorney fight for them to the best of their ability, etc. I really believe in what I do now, and hopefully after a while, you'll see why. Peace out, and word to your mothers.

"Public Defenders stand alone, armed only with their wits, training and dedication. Inspired by their clients' hope, faith and trust, they are the warriors and valkyries of those desperately in need of a champion. Public Defenders, by protecting the downtrodden and the poor, shield against the infringement of our protections and, in reality, protect us all." -Hightower v. State, 592 So.2d 689 (Fla. 3d DCA, 1991)

Updizzle (Update)

2006-12-08T12:28:00.000-05:00

Wow. It has been a while. This semester has been insane. I have been doing paperwork for the bar, registering for the bar exam preparation course, paperwork for graduating from law school, doing pro-bono work with the Tallahassee public defender, finding a job for after I graduate, and finding a place to live with Erin after I graduate. Additionally, I had the ethics exam to study for and take, and I am ec-freaking-static to report that I found out last night that I passed it. Technically, the ethics exam constitutes one of three sections for the Bar exam: Florida, Multi-state, and Ethics. So I have passed a third of the Bar! Huzzah! Also, within the last few weeks, Erin and I have rented an apartment which is uber exciting. Hooray for not living with each other, and without parents. It is near I-4 so that I can get to Kissimmee, which is where I got a job working as a public defender! I am currently studying for my last few finals ever, and preparing for graduation on the 16th, as well as packing for the move the very next day. Anyway, I am sorry about being MIA the entire semester, both in blog and in reality, but I really have been running around like a chicken with my head cut off. I hope that everyone is doing well, and that I will be able to see you at graduation, or at least over the holidays. I really should get back to studying State Constitutional Law now, even though I am SO done with school. Peace out, and word to your mothers.

Wedding and Honeymoon

2006-08-04T11:31:00.000-04:00

Hey out there everybody! I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who was able to make it to the wedding, and that if you were unable to attend, you were there in spirit regardless. The wedding went off beautifully, and it was amazing to see everyone there and enjoying themselves. I was too busy to actually do anything besides follow orders from the photographer and the MC, but I tried to get around to say hi to everybody, and let them know that it truly meant a lot that they were there. It was incredible. Then we went on the honeymoon which was just fantastic. We flew to NY, and from there we took a cruise to Canada, which was gorgeous. Everybody was incredibly nice, and while St. John was a little quaint, I really enjoyed it. Erin preferred Halifax, which was a little bit larger city, and had some incredible public gardens. The cruise itself was also great. The food was, of course, scrumptious, and we met some really cool people. Believe it or not, we were the oldest couple at our dinner table. There was another couple who were engaged, and one had just finished undergrad, and the other was still working on it. Another couple were newlyweds like us, though they were 19. The other couple wasn't actually a couple, they were a brother and sister. I didn't actually ask them about their age, because they were a little weirded out by everyone else being couples and were a little quiet. They definitely looked significantly younger than us though. We also got to get on stage and play the newlywed game, since we were the newliest of newlyweds. Everyone else had gotten married on Saturday, but we were married one day more recently. It was a little embarrasing, but we got a free bottle of champagne out of it. Anyway, when we got back, we decided that since we were already in NY, we should just stay a couple of days. We saw a lot of cool things, Rockefeller Center, Strawberry Fields in Central Park, Ground Zero, and The Lion King. The Lion King was incredible. The costuming was not only beautiful, it was ingenious. They probably had to have a mechanical engineer on staff to design these costumes. We also shopped a little bit, and picked up the songbook for Wicked - since apparently Erin used to play piano, and her love of Wicked is strong enough to inspire her to pick it up again - and a couple of things Erin found on Canal Street. It was a great time, overall, and I really enjoyed both the wedding and the honeymoon. The last few days since we got back have been cool. We got Erin's name changed on her driver's license and a few other places, and ran some other "just married" type of errands. Oh, and the other night, I had this crazy dream where I won the lottery, and Rob updated his blog.* Dude, it was crazy. Anyway, I will talk to you all later, so peace out, and word to your mothers!!

*You know I'm just messing with you Rob, but seriously, the beginning of March??

A Very Special Construction Site.

2006-08-02T08:13:00.000-04:00

From the moment you get out of the cab, you know that there is something special here. Humans do have a sixth sense, and I think that it's sympathy. The ability to feel the joy or sorrow of others. There is too much sorrow here, and it strikes you like a wall of pungent odor, like entering a Bath and Body Works of mourning. Everyone was staring intensely, though there wasn't much to see beyond the large, chain link fence; just some cones, Caterpillars, that orange plastic netting made up as fencing. As I momentarily broke my gaze, I noticed a sign above me that instructed people not to donate money to beggars, so that they won't have incentive to come and sully this sacred place. And in fact, whether out of reverence, or pragmatism, there were no beggars here. However the same sign declared that street performing here was strictly forbidden as well, since it was important to maintain this place's atmosphere. I felt, quite to the contrary, that the old homeless man sitting a few feet away playing a shaky rendition of "Amazing Grace" on an old, beat up flute is what pushed the trip past everyday tourism into what felt like a pilgrimage. His slow notes were soulful, if not all correct, and they formed a song that sounded like it had been lifted directly from a scene in a movie where they pan across the aftermath of a fresh battle, attempting to drive home the fact that you are looking at dead people, people who had friends and families that will never see them again. Let's just say that as I listened to his song, and read a few names off of the Vietnam War style "Wall" posted in foam core on the chain link fence, I was glad to have my sunglasses on. Poker face, indeed. And as soon as this thought bubbled to the surface of my mind, it struck me. Everyone had sunglasses on. Or at least all the guys did. Even indoors, in the adjacent subway, where you can see the same construction site from a different angle, all the guys had their shades on, pretending that they were too manly to be affected emotionally by the only place in New York where you might actually feel comfortable hugging a stranger: Ground Zero.

MMA (Mixed Martial Arts)

2006-06-11T19:10:00.000-04:00

Hello again. I have started attending FSU's Kickboxing/Grappling club, and I really enjoy it. It is very individualized, there is no actual sensei, we all just kind of learn from each other. A lot of guys show up exclusively to use the bags for Tae Kwon Do practice or boxing conditioning, and it is cool to learn from them, and incorporate different styles into the training. I really enjoy rolling around on the mats though. It reminds me a lot of wrestling, which I really miss, both as a sport and as a means of conditioning. The major difference is that this involves striking, which is pretty much kickboxing, but with the added component of setting up shots. I am really enjoying learning it all, and I always wondered about stand-up fighting. Anyway, I also just wanted to post just to say that though busy, I am still around. Peace out, and word to your mothers!

Undefeated!

2006-05-22T15:47:00.000-04:00

I went to trial for the first time today, and I am ecstatic to report that I was successful. Granted, he pled no contest, which is kind of like a forfeit, but the end result is that my client now has a permanent injunction (restraining order, essentially) against her abusive boyfriend. Since he didn't contest it, my experience arguing in front of the judge was very limited, but it was more than nothing, and it is more important that my client got the injunction. And besides, there was so much work and research before the trial, that it doesn't feel like I wasted my time at all. In fact, quite the opposite. While I was interviewing my client last week, I think I realized that yes, this is where I belong, this is what I want to do. It was a great experience. I used my skills in logic and my education in law, and put them together to help someone in need. And I was successful. Hell yeah. Peace out, and word to your mothers!

Summer

2006-05-09T20:13:00.000-04:00

Sorry I was totally MIA for a few weeks. Exams went better than I expected, actually, or at least they feel like they did. No grades yet to judge by. Erin graduated last week, and so did my brother, both of which are very exciting. I started classes Monday, and was assigned two cases today for the Children's Advocacy Center, although I am not sure how much detail I can give out. Suffice it to say that it's not what I expected, but I can tell that I am going to learn incredible amounts, and it will also be very rewarding. I am also in a class with the crazy professor from last Fall. It promises to be an interesting, though busy Summer, since the CAC requires 20 hrs. per week. Additionally, I saw some pictures of myself over the weekend from the wedding shower, and I will be going to the gym after class with Dems. Seriously, why doesn't the mirror ever look as bad as pictures? The wedding planning is coming along, slowly but surely (Thank you SO MUCH to Adam and Janelle for helping with the invitations). I am looking forward to it. Anyway, It promises to be a busy Summer, but also a very educational, rewarding, and exciting one. PEACE!

Nerdcore

2006-05-08T13:48:00.000-04:00

Hear ye, hear ye! All those who would consider themselves nerds should report to the home of this nerd on the weekend of May 20th, for an exercise in nerdtacularity. MC Front-a-lot, the creator of nerdcore hip-hop will be performing at The Beta Bar, in Tallahassee, and everyone should come up for the weekend. This will be his only Florida appearance. If you have never heard his music, check out http://www.frontalot.com/music.html and specifically, if you read Penny Arcade, the Penny Arcade Theme Song may pique your interests. At least check it out. No plans are set other than the concert itself, but I anticipate a great many nerd-related activities. Peace out, word to your mothers!!

Ladies Night

2006-03-02T12:19:00.000-05:00

Today in my gender and law class, we discussed some possible sexual harrasment situtations, based on my professor's life experiences, including whether it created a hostile environment when a bar instituted a "Ladies Chained to the Bar Drink Free Thursdays" promotion. The bartender was female, and she immediately asked to rearrange her schedule so as not to have to work on Thursdays, and was refused. I kind of went off on my own tangent about "Ladies Nights" in general, because I think that they are a horrible, horrible idea. Bar owners do not institute a "ladies drink free" policy in order to attract women, because by definition, they are not making any money off of them if they are drinking for free. The women are used as a means toward attracting men. Without going deeply into the kantian moral imperative to use others as an ends rather than a means, we can assume that using people for our own ends is generally disrespectful to them. But this is not the thrust of the argument; that lies in the reason the women are such attractive lures. My professor seemed to think that it was because the assumption is that women who need their drinks to be free are more likely to be single, without a man to take care of them and buy their drinks, and considers this sexist, as it is an assumption predicated on the idea that a woman needs a man to take care of her, and hearkens to the days of coverture. However, I do not think that men are attracted so strongly to bars where women drink free because they believe that the women will be single, as much as they are attracted because they believe that the women will be drunk. It stands to reason that if drinks are free, then it is more likely that one will drink large quantities. It is the fact that the girls are more likely to be drunk, and thus easier to manipulate and coerce, that draws men to bars holding a ladies night. Coercion, of course, being one of the grounds of rape in the state of Florida, I would argue that ladies nights not only encourage, but contribute to coercion, and therefore, to rape. Anyway, I really just wanted to organize my thoughts on that argument, so if you actually read the whole thing, I appreciate it. Peace out, and word to your mothers!

Exam

2006-03-01T21:52:00.000-05:00

So there's good news and bad news about my exam. The good news is that I made a new friend. The bad news is that he is the other guy whose computer malfunctioned just as the exam was starting. At least it wasn't halfway through the exam, which would really have screwed me over. I got to write by hand for the whole time, and I think I did all right. My computer just shut off before it started, for no discernible reason, and wouldn't restart. I guess the AC adapter I have really does need replaced, which is good since I ordered a new one a couple weeks ago. Hopefully it will come in while I am on spring break. But the test is over, I think it went ok, and obviously my computer is somehow working again. Hopefully it won't just shut down again. Anyway, talk to you all later. Also, I promised a while ago that I would put up a link to a site that recommends new books for you to read based on books you tell it you liked. It's neat, and once I finish reading all the books that are already on my bookshelf, I will be sure to consult it. Peace!

Music as an Art (Ramble-licious)

2006-02-21T11:40:00.000-05:00

I am realizing things. Firstly Post Secret is an incredible site. Secondly, the other day, I was talking to a friend and they helped me realize that while my musical tastes had been expanding in one direction, across genres, it was contracting in another, subject matter. Most of the music I listen to currently is music that explicitly calls for social or political change, from Rage Against the Machine to Wyclef Jean to Johnny Cash. This tends to discount other positive attributes of music. Firstly, she recomended a song about the artist's boyfriend committing suicide. It sounded like a very interesting, affective song, even though it doesn't fall into what I would usually listen to. Also, sheer skill. Originally I liked Guns n' Roses in large part because Slash is an absolutely incredible guitarist, but I haven't really listened to my Gn'R albums lately. Essentially, I realized that there are several different characteristics of music which traverse genre, and that not being dismissive of entire genres does not alone show open mindedness to all forms of music as an art. I think that trying to open myself to different subject matters of music may also have the benefit of allowing me to think and write in different ways, helping me find more things to write about, while at the same time increasing my musical versatility. Additionally, I have found that my attitude towards music is different from my attitude toward poetry. When I wrote poetry I was (at least initially) very reluctant to show anybody my writings, I was terribly afraid that they would be found wanting. However, with music, I am excited and eager to share, though there is of course the slight nervous anticipation of hearing what others think. I am unsure why this difference is, except perhaps, that while I know several people who write poetry, there is no one to compare music to, at least in my immediate circles of friends. This, I think, alleviates some pressure, since I think that in a room full of guitarists, I would feel self conscious about my music as well. Anyway, I hope that I can get going on some music again, I have a lot of ideas, many of which just need some form. It'll be all good. Peace out, and word to your mothers.

Registering

2006-02-06T11:39:00.000-05:00

Ay Carumba. This weekend Erin came up so we could start registering for things. We decided on Target, Bed, Bath & Beyond, and Dillard's. First thing in the morning, we went to Target out near the mall, where everything else was too. We filled out the automated paperwork for about 15 minutes, and someone comes over to us and told us that whenever we're done, we should go to the guest services desk, and they'll hook us up with a scanner gun. We spent another five minutes or so finishing it up, and then head over to the guest services desk where another girl informed us that all their scanners were broken. She suggested we come back another time. We were displeased. So we went to Bed, Bath & Beyond. We waited a couple minutes for someone to come help us register, as their paperwork was not automated, and someone finally did. He was friendly, which was nice at first, but then he followed us around the store for an hour and a half giving us wedding advice. So we ended up registering for maybe 15 things there. However, when we got home and checked online, ALL of the attachments for the mixer we registered for were on our registry. We counted, I think, 25 different attachments, including an $80 sausage stuffer, and a $120 pasta maker. Not pleased. Anyway, then we went to David's Bridal, and I helped Erin look at wedding dresses, apparently a horrible crime, as Erin was told when she got home yesterday. Screw that. She wasn't even buying one that day, so there's a 99% chance that I didn't see the one she is going to pick at all, and even if she did, I wouldn't have any idea which one it was. So then we went to Dillard's, where pretty much the only thing we registered for was our China. This was by far the best registry experience of the day, but only incomparison to the other two. First, we had to wait for the lady to get back in an hour, because apparently she's the only one in their employ who can start a registry, at least they gave us an appointment time for when she would be back instead of just telling us to come back later or to sit and wait (We went and got lunch and looked at the ties in Men's Warehouse,, and found that surprisingly, Men's Warehouse's carry very differing stock). When we came back, the lady was nice enough, but the UPC codes were always on the bottom of the boxes, and apparently Dillard's is morally against shelves, so everything was stacked on small, overcrowded tables. Everytime we tried to scan something, it was like playing Jenga. Anyway, so we finished that up real quick and went over to David's Bridal again, so that Emily (Sister-in-Law), Janelle, and Adam could see the two styles of dresses Erin was looking at. Then we went to eat, and Adam and Janelle created the highlight of the day by doing some absolutely incredible graphic design work. And that was our Saturday from 10 am until midnight. Sunday we went to a different target and registered (their guns weren't broken) for several hours, and then Erin had to leave. I'm sorry if I was irritable, or grumpy, or whatever Sunday, but I was totally bedraggled (that's a real word, right?). Anyway, then I got a call from my mom who told me that since there were only ten things between three stores (she checked Satruday night before we could get a scanner gun at Target), it was obvious that we were only registering for things that we really needed. I proceeded to tell her that to me, ten items between three stores obviously said "not finished." But she had already called my aunt and grandmother to tell them about our registering, before even trying to contact us to find out whether we were done or not first. Anyway, other than registering not turning out to be as much fun as anticipated, things are going allright. Sorry to rant. Peace out, and word to your mothers.

Weekend

2006-01-31T12:10:00.000-05:00

This past weekend was a great one. I went home, and spent time with my grandparents on Friday. Satuday, Erin, my parents, and I went to see Wicked, which was really good. Not the best I've ever seen (but I tend to compare everything to my favorite, Les Miserables), but probably the funniest, and it had a decent amount of political satire, and themes about perspective. Mostly, it really was a lot of fun to watch. Anyway, on Sunday, I worked on my car with Erin's Dad. I had gone to the Saturn dealer in Tallahassee last Thursday, and they had told me (after an hour and a half) that they needed to replace my cabin air filter, engine air filter, and windshield wipers, and that this wasn't covered in my maintenance plan. I don't remember how much they wanted for the air filter replacements, because I had no frame of reference, but I saw that the price of changing out my windshield wipers was $38, and having replaced them once myself, I decided that this was bull, and I would figure something else out. So Erin's dad helped me replace the parts myself (except the cabin air filter which is apparently inside of some other stuff) and I was flabbergasted by how simple, quick, and easy it was. And cheap, comparatively. The windshield wipers were about $16 and about 2 minutes of labor, and replacing the air filter took even less time, and only cost $10. Anyway, I was proud of myself for not being dependant on the dealer's ability to fix my car, and I just enjoy learning new things. I especially don't like feeling like I know nothing about a certain subject, and cars are a subject that I know little or nothing about. Also, as my Intellectual Property class continues to shed light on my understanding of copyright law, I am deciding, I think, that it is a bad idea in general to post my songs online, in addition to the problem of figuring out how to go about posting them. As such, I will be glad (excited, even) to play them for you live, any time that I am around, and have a guitar within reach. There's still just the one, but hopefully, many more will follow. Anyway, I will talk to you all later. Peace out, and word to your mothers!

Possibilities

2006-01-25T18:09:00.000-05:00

My professor for Women and the Law just walked by and stopped to ask me if I thought that we were going too slowly in the class. It was odd, I guess because generally, the student does everything in their power to make the teacher think that they are a good student, but this seems to exemplify that teachers care about the students' perceptions of them as well. Just a random thought.
Anyway, have you ever noticed yourself putting off writing because you have nothing to say, only to find when you do finally begin to write, that you have so much to write that it is all trying to get out of your brain and causes a traffic jam? I am thinking about applying for an externship this summer. This would mean that I would be able to, essentially, find a job anywhere in the state, theoretically Lakeland, work there for the summer, and get school credit hours for doing so. This would be excellent, since I had been wondering how I was going to be able to take classes over the summer so as to graduate early, and at the same time get work experience that will help me get a job when I graduate early. Also, I would be able to be with Erin all summer (Word). There are still some wrinkles, for instance, there are several varieties of externships and many of them have prerequisite classes that I did not know about and thus did not take. I would want to take a week off in the summer for the wedding/honeymoon, and I don't know if that would be allowed. I tried to go talk to the externships office today about some of these and was unable to, because the half hour that I allotted before class started today was insufficient since they were discussing the program with someone else, and there was only one administrator there. I'm just going to go ahead and come early tomorrow as well, and if need be, stay after class, since I get out at 2:30 and have nothing else to do all day, except to drive to Tampa.
Additionally, the MPA (Music Publisher's Association, an organization of publishers of sheet music) has started issuing cease and desist letters to the operators of websites that provide lyrics and/or tablature to songs. They have even gone so far as to suggest/threaten jail time for those who run these sites. I was baffled to find that, in fact, jail time is one of the available remedies for copyright infringement. Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer. I am not hereby giving any legal advice. I am merely expressing an opinion. Anyway, I don't understand what claims they can have to other people's interpretations of works, that are incomplete (tabs do not include any form of rhythm, time signature, key signature, etc.) It's like suing someone for publishing your cake recipe when they wrote on their site that "you add some eggs and sugar and some other stuff and then bake it." That's not the complete recipe. But, honestly I don't know whether that matters, my Intellectual Property class just started copyrights today, so I don't know much about it yet. I will however be sure to let you all know what I do find out. Peace out, and word to your mothers.

Non-droppage

2006-01-16T23:51:00.000-05:00

I decided not to drop dissolution. It is an omnipresent issue at almost every lawfirm I've looked at. It seems from some of the firms' web sites that dissolution is their cash cow, and their other cases are more a labor of love. You don't make much money on civil rights cases usually, unless you can get the ACLU or someone to back you, so when I see a firm that does civil rights law and dissolution of marriage, I see the latter funding the former. Hence, if I want to specialize in something I like, it seems like taking on something profitable as well (rather than instead) may be the way to go. Anyway, I have been playing a lot of guitar this weekend, and made some serious progress. I can actually play (and sing!) about 5 or 6 songs from memory now, all the way through, though not necessarily well (especially the singing); they pretty much all need practice. I am incredibly pleased with my progress though, and I really think that this will help me with my confidence in my guitar playing, as well as bringing new depth to my writing as I practice hearing music and words, as well as rhythms and melodies, together. Anyway, I visited Adam today, and he seemed great. I know it's been three days, and I didn't see him right after the surgery, but seriously, if it weren't for the lack of shaving, and the gown, and the tubes and stuff, I might not have even known that he had had surgery. The point is, he seems like he is doing awesome. Word. And Janelle has been there like 23 and a half hours a day (totally not exaggerating) for the last three or four days straight (still not exaggerating), so give her a hug too, if you see her (or a telehug if you call her). Anyway, I have class in the morning, so peace out, and word to your mothers.

Droppage

2006-01-10T10:20:00.000-05:00

I am dropping Florida Dissolution of Marriage. This will put me at 14 credit hours, which, while it is one hour less than is standard, will still keep me ahead of schedule for graduating, since I took the insane 18 hours last semester. This will also adjust my schedule so that I get out at 6:10 on Monday and Wednesday. Also, I misread my schedule, and I get out at 2:30 on Tuesday, not 6:10. Anyway, I think this will be good. Also, the fact that there is a difference between DVD-R and DVD+R should be more well known, or advertised, or in some way available to consumers. I thought that the difference was that one brand had copyrighted the term "DVD+R" so the other brands used "DVD-R" in their labeling. I was wrong. So, apparently, have been a lot of people, as Adam assured me, while explaining the difference to me (Thank you!). Anyway, peace out, and word to your mothers!

Back to School

2006-01-09T16:27:00.000-05:00

Well, it's back to school for me. I have a strange schedule this semester, very frontloaded in the week. I get out at 6:10, 6:10, and 8:30 on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, respectively. On Thursday I get out at 2:30, and on Friday I have no class. I have 16 hours, more than standard (15) but less than last semester (18). It'll be all good. I played a lot of guitar with Mr. Eddinger (Erin's father) over the last week of break, and between that and writing a song for Erin for Christmas, I am really getting back into music. Also, I would like to share both the song I wrote for her when we first met, and the new one with all of you, and I don't know the best way to accomplish this. Suggestions? Anyway, I have my last class of the day, Copyright Law, in about ten minutes, so I should probably go. Peace out, word to your mothers.

Sweet.

2005-12-19T12:02:00.000-05:00

I just found another cool site, or at least the idea is cool, I haven't surfed it much yet. It's The Poetry Archive and it catalogs poets reading their own works as far back as Lord Alfred Tennyson. I've always thought that it was best to hear the words from the poet's mouth, which is one of the reasons in fact that I migrated towards song. Especially in english, so much depends on the inflection, especially things like sarcasm, or even just where emphases go. Anyway, I hope it turns out to be as awesome as it seems, but so far it seems to have a small number of authors. It's just getting started though, and I don't think it's actually that common for poets to record themselves reading. Anyway, Peace!

Truly Scatterbrained Update

2005-12-18T13:53:00.000-05:00

Last night Erin and I babysat her cousins, age 6 and 4. Absolutely adorable. Erin took some pictures of them, I'm sure you will all see them eventually. Other than that, I got a somewhat dissappointing grade in the only class that has grades posted already, but it's only disappointing because I thought I was going to do awesomely on it. It was an 80, which is what I want to bring my GPA up to, it's currently a 79.4. Anyway, Colorado was gorgeous, and snowboarding was tons of fun, though I definitely spent most of the time in the snow, on either my face or my butt. This evening I am going to dinner with my grandparents, and it will be great to see them. Last Friday night my brother threw a party for my birthday, well technically, for his roommate's dog's birthday, but I was invited, and since I was the only birthday boy with an opposable thumb, I cut the cake, which had a picture of the dog on it. It was a lot of fun, just like last year, and the year before that (before Obi the dog was born) when they got me a cake with a baby on it, so I would be, yes, eating a baby. It's all in fun. Anyway, I know this was insanely random, but congratulations to all who finished semesters, and even GRADUATED! (Janelle rocks out hardcore). Anyway, peace out, word to your mothers.

Cold.

2005-12-09T11:24:00.000-05:00

It's cold. Very cold. We left my place at 7:15 yesterday morning and got through securtiy to wait for our plane at about 9:00, which is exactly the time frame that we had planned on, which I thought was kind of cool. So we get on the plane at 10:30, take of at 11:00 and get to Denver at ten to one, four hours later. We met Carl, who was also running on time, and we drove another hour to Boulder, which is gorgeous, by the way. Carl drove us up the mountain a little ways to see some nice views, and point out Josh's dad's place, where we tried to turn around to come back down. Oddly enough, Josh's dad, and 2 year old brother, were walking up the driveway at the same time we were pulling in, and Carl decided that since it looked like he didn't recognize Carl's truck, we should stop and at least say hi so he knows who we are, so we got to meet Josh's dad, and brother Fletcher too. We came back down the mountain, and got our stuff into Carl's, where Carl promptly attempted to get me addicted to World of Warcraft. I liked it, but I am still just morally against paying monthly fees for one game. Anyway, then we saw Josh, which was awesome because it has been a LONG time since I saw him, and I don't think Erin's ever met. And soon after, we met Dana, who neither of us had ever met. We went to Pasta Jay's for dinner, and when we came home, we started a fire and watched Underworld, which was actually pretty good, I enjoyed it, although Erin fell asleep about two minutes in, which means that she missed out on Dana's hot chocolate. We were both exhausted, and so they pulled out the futon for us and got us massive quantities of blankets. We were out instantly, although the three of them went out to meet some people, which I didn't mind; for them it was only ten, for us it was midnight, after an incredibly exhausting day. Anyway, I guess that's about all there is to report. Peace out, word to your mothers.

Mission Accomplished.

2005-12-07T11:19:00.000-05:00

I completed the semester yesterday. Hooray! I went out and celebrated with some old friends from my first year study group. I really wanted to get home and play some Halo with you guys, and see Adam and Janelle before I leave for Tampa, but I had been drinking. It had been about six hours since we had started, and I had only had six drinks, so the standard one hour to metabolize one drink rule would dictate that I should be fine. However, we did not finish drinking for two hours after we started, so not all of the drinks had been metabolizing for... I decided not to drive home. Honestly, I probably could have made it home fine, I wasn't feeling it anymore, but I also know that alot of the effects are not actually felt consciously, and the trump card is that if anything did happen, I'd never forgive myself. So, I decided not to risk it (and I never will), even though I did want to get back here, see Adam and Janelle, and play Halo with Rob and Carl (and probably Adam). So instead I spent the night at Joy's (on the couch of course). Also, I had yet another crazy dream last night. Um, I'll just let people ask me, if they care, it would be really long, and I'm sure people are tired of hearing my crazy dreams. This one was more of a nightmare again though. Freaky. Anyway, I am heading home for Tampa today, and I am excited about the break, as well as about the trip to Colorado that Erin and I are taking. I hope you all have a great holiday season ahead of you too. Peace!

Final day before my final final

2005-12-05T10:26:00.000-05:00

Tomorrow is my last final. That's awesome. However, it means that today will be almost exclusively dominated by studying, which unfortunately means... no Halo. At all.
Also, I had another crazy dream last night. At least this time it wasn't a nightmare. I was at scout camp, and it was a big convention or something. We were about to be invaded by some group, I don't know who, but I remember that the NSA was involved, on our side. But the NSA wasn't going to get there in time, so it was up to me and a couple of the other older scouts and younger scoutmasters to repel the invaders with the guns from the boy scout rifle range, so that the thousands of scouts at the jamboree wouldn't panic. So we went out to meet them, and I remember thinking that the palmetto I was hiding under was horrible cover, not only because gopher tortoises like to make their burrows down there, and rattlesnakes like to take up tenancy there while the tortoises are gone, but because palm fronds don't stop bullets. They drove in in a jeep, and I remember being pissed that it was nothing like Halo. I got one shot and had to reload. I missed. Someone else got him before I was done reloading, but more importantly, before he shot me. Anyway, we went back, (apparently that one guy was the entire invasion force) and told everyone what had happened, since it was no longer a panic risk. Apparently the NSA had found out because of one of my younger scout friends (15 or so) who had found a bottlecap on the grounds that, I guess, was weird. Anyway, the wierd part about that is that they made a video game about it with his name in the title. Then I went home, and one of my cousins taught me how to mix recordings and equalize playback. That was alot more interesting in my head. Anyway, peace out, word to your mothers!

Nightmare on My Street

2005-12-04T04:39:00.000-05:00

I was just awoken by a nightmare. I was just going about my business, and people started going missing. I wasn't sure that they were being kidnapped or killed or anything (in the dream), but I had a hunch. Anyway, all of a sudden I come back to my room from getting a drink of water, a normal occurrence, and I reach up above me to turn on the lights. Instead of the pull cord, I feel above me a large, oddly shaped hanging lump. I reach to one side, find the cord, turn on the lights, and found that the lump was in fact a limp hand, hanging from a limp arm, hanging from a limp dead body, which was somehow installed (that's the only word that fits) between my ceiling and my light fixture. I have no idea what significance this has, but the dead body was totally wearing a Radio Shack Uniform. The big ripoff though is that, you know how usually in a nightmare, it ends with you killing the bad guy? This totally ended with me calling 911. That's not a nearly cool enough way to end a killing spree. Anyway, peace out, word to your mothers, and sweet dreams. (Seriously, I really hope that you all have sweet dreams. Nightmares suck. Seriously.)

Three day weekend

2005-12-02T16:13:00.000-05:00

Well, I took my last test of the week today, and I don't have the faintest idea how I did. The questions were basically "Describe two issues that we discussed where organized religion influenced the legal process. Explain whether it is appropriate for religion to play this type of role in the legal system." and "What are the legal precedents surrounding physician assisted suicide, and what would/what should a doctor do when confronted with a patient who is seeking physician assisted suicide? Which moral theories coincide with this approach, and which do not?" Needless to say, there were no straightforward "Yes" or "No" type answers. I have no idea whether I got any of the points that she was looking for, but it's over, and there's nothing I can do about it but take a nap. Good night. Peace.

Evidence

2005-12-01T17:28:00.000-05:00

Today's evidence exam went well. There were 20 multiple choice questions, only one of which I wasn't sure of the answer to, after re-consulting the statutes. There were 12 short answer questions, only one of which I didn't know the answer to, again after re-consulting the statutes. There was one long essay with two main issues, one of which I nailed, the other one I floundered on but eventually found the answer to, and I managed to fit in several extraneous tidbits that may or may not help, but can't hurt. Why the term "re-consulting" with regard to the statutes? It was getting to the end of the test, and I was freaking out, when the professor walked in. She walked to the front of the room, and I was frantically making guesses at the last few multiple choice questions that I had narrowed to 50/50 and put on the back burner, and then she wrote on the board "1 hour remaining." In all the studying I forgot that evidence was worth four credit hours and thus had a four hour exam. I had finished the exam, except for one or two of the multiple choice questions I hadn't made a final guess on yet, so I spent the remaining hour checking my answers, which was good, because although there were only a couple I had wrong, there were alot that I had almost right. Anyway, it's over, I think it went really well, and I only have one more until a three day weekend before my very last one of the semester. Peace.

Immigration Final

2005-11-30T17:06:00.000-05:00

It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. There were two essays and 135 True/False questions. The essay on asylum I think I hit out of the park. The other one was, I guess, more like a line drive to first. I think I got the answer, but I didn't understand what was disputable. Maybe I'm being paranoid, and it really was cut and dry, but that's so unusual for a law exam. Anyway, the True/False questions were not horrible, but I had about a 75% "False" rate, and I don't know how well that bodes. What really upset me though is that he specifically told us several times that we did not need to know case names or statute numbers, only the principals and doctrine. While there wer no case names on the test at all, there were at least 10 or 15 out of 135 questions that were specifically about statute numbers. Anyway, I was not pleased, but for now I have to get to Evidence, which should be better, I am a lot more confident there. Peace.

Inspiration

2005-11-29T11:07:00.000-05:00

Someone on Livejournal just posted this link. It is the video for Johnny Cash's "Hurt." It is a large part of why I picked the guitar back up. It is a beautiful song, a cover of Nine Inch Nails. The video is... touching. I am pretty sure I cried the first time I saw it. Maybe it just has a special meaning to me, because while NIN's version was really about a drug addiction, Cash's comes off more about maintaining who you are, not getting lost in the fame and the money. I think that selling out is one of my biggest fears in becoming a lawyer. I mean, you come out with a hundred grand in debt, it's like it's set up so you don't have any other choice. Anyway, the video is magnificent, it's shot at his actual home, with no makeup, and he made sure that they didn't cut out his shaking hands. It's honest, and heartfelt; it's a legend warning us not to make his mistakes. He and his wife are both gone now, I really think he was saying goodbye with this video, writing his own eulogy. Every song on his last album was in some way about death, and it ends with "We'll Meet Again."

Back to Immigration Law.

Unstoppable and Dominating

2005-11-29T09:50:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was my first exam, and despite numerous roadblocks, I think I did really well. I got up at 7:00 am, and left by 7:30 for my 8:30 exam, figuring that having an extra half hour is a good thing. So I get there about twenty minutes left, because traffic eats poo. I go upstairs and get a bagel and some orange juice, which was surprisingly good AND surprisingly cheap. So I walked back out into the main area and saw a line of people getting their BAGS (Something Anonymous Grading System) numbers. It is at this point that I realize that I got my BAGS number last week because I wanted to be a non-procrastinator, and unfortunately it was sitting on my desk at home, and I could not remember it. So I got in the line and waited to find out what the BAGS number was that they had already given me. So it is now time for my exam, so I go up to the room where our class meets to find another class in there just beginning their exam. Crap, where is my exam meeting then? So I go to the administration office before I interrupt anymore exams, and they tell me they don't have a schedule, so they go on the FSU Law website for me and look it up and print it out, which is nice of them. So I get into the only room on the other side of the law school, and they had already started so I just got my stuff from the proctor and sat down. I was only about two minutes late, so I got started, and I think I did really well. I got pretty much everything in my notes into the exam some way or another, except for cybersquatting law, which didn't really fit since the internet wasn't mentioned anywhere in any of the three questions. Three hours later the exam ended, and I went to save my test to the network, and surprise, it didn't work. The tech guy helped me out and just pointed out that I needed to sign into the password protected network before I could save to it, and to do so I had to log out of the secure exam software, but that I could sign back in and then save it to the network. Before I signed out I saved it to a floppy, but their way worked too. Anyway, it worked out in the end, and I really think I did well. Now, Immigration tomorrow, Evidence the next day, and then Bioethics on Friday. Peace out, word to your mothers!

I'm going to make a horrible lawyer if I ever graduate.

2005-11-26T13:11:00.000-05:00

I was at the law school today, seeing if there were any old exams on file from my professors, so I would know what the tests would look like, when an acquaintance from my Intellectual Property class came in. He asked if I was studying for IP, and I responded that I was studying for Immigration law instead, because it was on Monday, and thus took precedence due to immediacy. He then informed me that our IP exam was on Monday. I was not sure whether they had changed one, or if I had merely gotten them confused, or if he was just wrong, until I got home and checked my calendar to find that he was right, and thankfully, I had merely gotten the dates confused, there was no conflict. So, I have been focusing on Immigration for several days now, which isn't horrible, because I needed to work on it, but if it hadn't been for that chance meeting in the library copy room, I probably wouldn't have realized until Sunday night at bedtime that I had been preparing for the wrong test for a week. At least I have been working on both IP and Evidence as breaks from immigration, so I have a good groundwork for IP done too. It's lucky that I still have plenty of time to prepare the more detailed points. I will survive. Peace.

Let's get it on.

2005-11-22T19:14:00.000-05:00

That is the song I had stuck in my head all day. I got some very odd looks from people as I walked down the hallways subconsciously humming and muttering the words. It is the song I woke up to this morning, because last night I remembered that I was tired of waking up to static in the mornings, but was too tired to find a radio station I actually liked, so I moved the dial to the first channel on which I could make out the words, which happened to be "Cool 99.9" Anyway, it was an interesting day, debating end of life issues in Bioethics, etc. No more classes for the rest of the semester, just the exams and some review sessions tomorrow. And it turns out that the profile class (where they center the curve around the class GPA average rather than middle C because there aren't enough people in the class to have a statistically sound sample size) is going to be centered around 81, which is awesome, compared to 75 (middle C). I'm excited, but that means that there are a lot of people in there who get very high grades, so it's still good news, but competition may be really tough. Anyway, speaking of grades, back to studying. Peace.

It's raining again.

2005-11-21T19:33:00.000-05:00

I didn't think that it rained this late. I mean, it's cold, I thought rain was a summer thing. Anyway. I am full on into studying now, my first final is now officially less than a week away. Not much else to report I guess. Lots of fun this weekend with friends who came up, and a surprise visit from Erin. Saw the new Harry Potter, and went to a Harry Potter party, where the decorations and ambience were incredible. But before this study break becomes a study ending, I better get back to work. See you all later. Peace.

Goodbye law and literature

2005-11-16T19:10:00.000-05:00

Well, I got my last paper back from my Law and Literature professor today. It was interesting, I wrote essentially that I was tired of him accusing all of us of being future sellouts. He kept implying that we are all going to go out and let ourselves be corrupted by the world of lawyers. I basically said that I was going to do what was right, rather than what was profitable, and that I do realize at the outset that there will be times that it seems like I am never getting anything done, and that for every case I finish, there will be three more coming in to replace it. Anyway, I figured, based on the class discussions and the comments on my last papers that he would just call me naive and idealistic, and I would change my opinion as I got older. Instead, he told me "Good. You got the point. A+" I will not miss waiting until 4:45 for a class, or getting out at 6:45, but I will miss the discussions, and getting my thoughts down in writing once every other week. I am almost sure that I will not be able to keep that up without a deadline and a grade. Anyway, peace out, word to your mothers.

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

2005-11-16T15:25:00.000-05:00

The Good:
I am excited about the party this weekend, and I look forward to seeing people. Speaking of Harry Potter, a friend found this band, Harry and the Potters. Indeed, Voldemort CAN'T stop the rock, though the quality of the rock that Voldemort cannot stop is... questionable. Also, creative juices are flowing, and my own song pieces are beginning to fall into place.

The Bad:
The rage in my heart cannot be measure by mortal means. FSU Law decided, apparently between the time I booked our reservation a few weeks ago, and now, that next year they want to start classes at the same time as the main campus, a week later than usual. This has it's benefits for most people. Thanksgiving will no longer be the last weekend before finals, and therefore people will have more of a chance to go home for Thanksgiving. This is because finals will be a week later. Which means that graduation will be a week later, December 16th. This would be entirely insignificant except that I am supposed to be getting married on the 17th. Even if I chose to skip walking, it is still not unlikely that I will have an exam the Friday preceeding, which is the night of the rehearsal, etc. MASSIVELY pissed. And the worst part is that I can't really get upset AT anyone or anything. It is a perfectly logical decision, if you don't have your own wedding that weekend. The only thing I can really be upset about is that they only published it 13 months in advance, which isn't really something I can bring myself to hate anyone for. Oh well, that'll teach me not to plan 14 months ahead, I guess. Again, furiously livid, but without a goat to scape.

The Ugly:
I didn't write anything the other day when Rob posted about conservatives, because I just wasn't in the mood to stir up a hornet's nest that day. And honestly, after the scheduling incident, I'm not today. However, I must point out that calling all conservatives prejudiced is in itself prejudice. I probably could have made that a comment instead of a post, but then I couldn't have had such a cool title. Anyway, being intelligent AND not prejudiced AND unselfish do not exclude one from being conservative. I do not consider myself to be on one side or the other, but the entire concept that giving one an education cause them to agree with you is contrary to the definition of an opinion, or contrary to the concept of an education being factually based. The person with that bumper sticker on their car is obviously a supreme douchebag, and it pisses me off too, but he doesn't represent the entire right anymore than people with "High Times" bumper stickers represent the whole left. Anyway, I am not trying to take one side over the other, but hating the other side is only divisive. No one is going to listen to you if you open your argument with "you are selfish and prejudiced, and my goal in this discussion is to fix you." It pisses me off to hear Bill O'Reilly make racist comments about the French too, but you can't let that make you hate "the right" or "conservatives," just Bill O'Reilly (who it is TOTALLY okay to hate, individually). All of this is of course just my opinion. Part of me doesn't want to post this for fear of making people feel that they cannot post their true feelings where I can read them. This would be horrible because I think that as important as freedom of expression is in society, it is especially important to strong friendships, but another part of me recognizes that not saying this for that reason would in fact be limiting freedom of expression between friends.

Anyway, I just heard someone say there is free pizza in the rotunda, and I have twenty more minutes until my next class, so I'm gonna go grab some, peace out and word to your mothers.

Wading waist deep through molasses

2005-11-12T11:50:00.000-05:00

That's about how I feel trying to write music lately. I have been trying for a week and have one riff down, and a possible intro to that riff. This is extra frustrating because I remember writing with a band, where we could seriously come up with two or three songs in a day, lyrics not included. There are three major differences, I think. First, there were more people, and second, more time. I never had to write all of the parts myself, because each person wrote their own part, and we would practice for at least four hours, sometimes six, whenever we met. Third, and perhaps most importantly, I didn't care as much. When there are four people, each of them knows that they are not going to get the song to be "perfect" because everyone disagrees on what perfect is. One person thinks perfect is having unusual time signatures, while others may think that perfect is something you can tap your foot to. Either way, one must compromise, and you can't make the song your version of "perfect". Contrast this to writing alone, where you can just sit on something for months thinking "it's almost perfect, but it needs something more, I just don't know what. Maybe I'll think of it next week." Oh well, I do have more pressing matters, finals are coming, and I need to finish my outlining. Also, I have to write the last paper for my Law and literature class that is chronicling the last century. What do you guys think are the biggest news stories since 1980? Since 2000? September 11th is pretty obvious, but other than that... Anyway, peace out, and word to your mothers!

Do musical juices come from musical fruits?

2005-11-03T18:36:00.000-05:00

If so, then why is bean juice not more readily available in American supermarkets? I need to get my musical juices flowing. Anyway, today I finally figured out how to get my Cakewalk to work. Kind of. There was a technical issue, because DirectX 9.0 is not as backwards compatible as Microsoft would lead one to believe, and my version of Cakewalk is a couple years old. However, when I finally figured out what to do, via the troubleshooter, I was asked for the serial number. The serial number is in the box, which I can only assume is in the trash, since, as previously stated, the program is two years old, and even I don't keep empty boxes that long. So, I called technical support, who promptly directed me to customer service, who promptly put me on hold. It was actually slightly interesting hearing what kind of music a company who enables music creation plays on hold. Mostly non-descript techno beats. Anyway, I was finally geeted by someone whose name I couldn't make out because of the static (admittedly on my end) who kindly told me that if I e-mailed him a picture of the actual cd, then he could send me a new serial number. I got his e-mail address, took a couple webcam shots, and sent them. I hope he will get back to me tomorrow, as I know they close at 6:00 eastern. So, the point of this ramble is twofold. Firstly, it's just cool that I completely expected to have to yell and beg for a new serial number only to be ultimately turned down, that I am incredibly excited that things turned out so well, assuming he actually e-mails me back with a new serial number tomorrow. Secondly, I don't have to use Adam and Janelle (and their guinea pigs) as guinea pigs. Or rather, I can make recordings, and use all of you as guinea pigs, assuming you consent thereto. Mwahahaha! Peace out, word to your mothers!

Real quick

2005-11-01T21:00:00.000-05:00

Starting the first hearing on motions in five minutes. Wish me luck!

Generic update

2005-10-31T11:00:00.000-05:00

I went home this weekend. It was great. My parents set up this whole dinner thing at the Buca Di Beppo, and it was supposed to be a few people, including Rob and Karen, Jack and Nora, and my grandparents who just came down from North Carolina for the winter. However, the hurricane forced some of my family from south Florida out to other places, so there ended up being another seven family members there: my grandparents on the other side, my Aunt Donna and Uncle George (the doctor who harasses me about being a lawyer, but in good fun), my Aunt Robin, and her two children, Michelle (12), and Amber (4). It gave a kind of preview of the wedding, with different social groups blending, and it was good. Of course, the thing they bonded over was the same thing everyone bonds over, making fun of me. But that's ok. half the time when I make a joke it is making fun of myself. Anyway, I won't be back home again until winter break, because finals eat poo. It actually coincides nicely with Rob's expected lack of Halo. Perhaps when I need a study break, I will pick up the guitar again instead. I have gotten into playing again a little, but I really want to get back into writing. I may have to tie down Adam and Janelle to be guinea pigs for songs. Or maybe I could just play for the actual guinea pigs. Peace out, word to your mothers, and Happy Halloween!

Yay

2005-10-26T12:44:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I actually asked my Evidence professor to be a reference for me. I have never asked a professor for this kind of thing before, mostly because I generally don't become close with teachers. They teach, I listen, we each go to our respective homes. It was surprisingly simple, though. I asked, she agreed, I beamed all the way home. Anyway, I went Monday night to help Jason do a hardcore cleaning of Firehouse before the founders of the company came by Tuesday morning, and I have to send out a super, king-kong, mega, mega thank you to Adam for recording The Ultimate Fighter for me. It was a great fight. More details about the fight by request, I'm sure most people don't care all that much. To close, two questions: Is "The Entity 'Bob'" a "person", in the "legal person to be in Botticelli" sense (Kevin and I were bored helping Jason clean)? Secondly, throughout the last week or so I have been watching the original Star Wars trilogy, and a question occured to me; is verisimilitude so important as to go back and alter classics in order to obtain greater verisimilitude (Rob specifically, since he brought it up, but everybody else too, of course)? Peace out, word to your mothers!

Old Business and New (Warning: May include Halo talk)

2005-10-21T16:50:00.000-04:00

As for old business, someone asked why my journal is named "Cheap Like Your Mom." Well, back when I was first starting playing music with Matt and Kevin, Matt and I thought that "Cheap Like Your Mom" would be a great name for the band. Kevin disagreed, and when Jared and Angela joined, they too disagreed. The vote being three to two against, we did not name ourselves "Cheap Like Your Mom," and instead decided upon "False Impression." Since then I have wanted to call something "Cheap Like Your Mom," and this (and my other webjournal) are available. At least until there are children to name. Just kidding (obviously, I hope).

As for new business, yesterday was a little lame. Not really a bad day, because nothing significantly bad happened. Just a lot of annoying stuff. I was a little late to my first class, but what really got to me was what happened an hour in. I had been paying attention, but I started thinking about the topic, mostly about how you would go about proving the exception he had been talking about, and all of a sudden he called my name. "Yes?"
Apparently that was the wrong response. I sat there and he just stared at me. It didn't take me long to realize that he had asked the question before calling my name. "Do you even know where we are?"
"Ummm?" I knew where we were a couple minutes ago, but we were at the end of discussing a case, I wasn't sure if we had moved to the next one, and I was for some reason afraid to chance it.
"Well for starters, Mr. Gardner, we are in Immigration Law, that's the blue book, by Legomsky."
Silence. I was waiting for him to repeat the question, since he had made it obvious that he knew that I didn't know what he had asked. After what felt like forever, but was really probably a minute and a half, he called on someone else. I talked to him after class, and I am not sure whether this makes it better or worse, but he apparently thought it was funny. He smiled and joked about it with me. I was truly confused.
The rest of the day was actually allright, but my first class loomed over my head and rained on my whole day. Then on the way home, I almost got hit twice. When I got home, I wanted to kill some people, so I got on Halo, and sucked horribly. It was very frustrating. It's most frustrating when you know that you are not performing as well as you could. So I stopped after three games, and decided I needed to take a nap and wake up like it was a new day. After an hour nap I woke up with a headache.

Luckily it went away almost as soon as I got up and started walking around, and the day did get better, as I had dinner with Adam, and it was the first time I ever enjoyed tuna salad. Then we played Halo with Erin. We didn't start until 9:30 or 9:45, but we had a lot of fun. We also did really well. I know that a good kill/death ratio is not the point of a capture the flag match, but when someone on the other team is bragging about his, it makes me feel warm and fuzzy on the inside to be able to point out calmly to him that I had both more kills and fewer deaths than him, even if we did tie in flag captures.

So today I went to class, which was uneventful, and then to work, which was also uneventful, except that Kevin let me off about 45 minutes early. So I came home, and played a little Halo again, just one game. One game is all it took. Everyone in the rumble pit match was higher rank than me (except one who was the same rank), and I destroyed them. Technically I only won by one kill. But I also had significantly fewer deaths than anyone on the board, and I ran a riot (killed ten people in a row without dying) with a sword/sniper combo. I figured that I wouldn't be able to do any better than that, so I put it away, and started writing this.

Sorry if the Halo talk was a little esoteric, but it's been pretty much the high point of the last day or so. Except of course for talking to Erin, and Adam's cooking. Peace out, and word to your mothers!

Is America just bored?

2005-10-19T15:37:00.000-04:00

In the last 24 hours, I have seen four reports on a school that is not having their prom this year, and three on the record high Powerball Lottery prize. I also saw an add for a drug that purports to treat "restless leg syndrome." I really don't watch that much television, either. Wait a second, I am in the student lounge and another report on the Powerball Lottery just came on. Seriously. Is there that much of a lack of substantial news that this is what they have to report when there isn't a Katrina to occupy their airwaves? Or is it just the capitalistic motive to show what people want to see, so they can get more ratings and more money? Are they intentionally avoiding the international stories that most americans have never heard of, or are those stories just not profitable?
The restless leg syndrome thing confuses me too. I'm sure that this drug will help some number of people with this syndrome, but I can't shake the feeling that if I were a medical researcher, I would feel kind of silly working on something like this rather than cancer, diabetes, even migraines. Medical researchers can't possibly be bored. It is obvious that there isn't a lack of more substantial diseases and conditions to attempt to cure. Is it just more profitable to research something that you are pretty sure that you can find a cure for and market for than to funnel more money into cancer research that is still a longshot for finding a cure in the near future? Is there anything to the theory that the drug companies don't want there to be a cure for cancer or AIDS because it is more profitable to sell a hundred different drugs for the symptoms for the rest of one's life than to sell a one time drug that cures? Seriously there's like a million different questions here, and I truly want to know what y'all think. (Yes I know I just used "y'all" but if you can think of a better, more clear and concise second person plural pronoun, then please tell me.)
Wow. Sorry that was so rambling, but I am in my long, boring break on my long, boring day. Peace out, word to your mothers.
Also, as I was proofreading this, CNN reported that one of their producers just got engaged. They seriously spent a full minute on it, which is a lot, considering.

Verbal Boxing

2005-10-18T23:19:00.000-04:00

Jon Stewart just interviewed Bill O'Reilly. Wow. Just thought I'd let you all know. They'll probably show the re-runs all day tomorrow, and they have archives on the website too. Peace.

A new supreme court appointment.

2005-10-18T23:00:00.000-04:00

Today I was made the interim Florida State University Student Government Supreme Court Justice. They needed a fifth to make quorum for their case next week, so even though my application hasn't gone through yet, I got appointed. I thought that was pretty cool. Anyway, peace out and word to your mothers!

Success.

2005-10-17T17:49:00.000-04:00

I have registered. I had to drive back to my place to get my checkbook, and then back to the school again to take care of my hold, but after another hour since then, I finally got through the system and am registered. However, my 2 hour class on dissolution of marriage is apparently 3 hours, according to the system, even though I just double checked the course catalog and it still says 2. Whatever, I am registered, and happy about it. Peace out, word to your mothers.

Don't know what you got 'til it's gone.

2005-10-17T10:57:00.000-04:00

I never thought I would miss USF's administration, but then, I never knew it could be messed up as badly as FSU has. Apparently, everyone registers at the same time, a procedure that, if it were not done electronically, would surely cause a riot. At 8 a.m., they just yell "GO!" and inevitably overload the servers. I woke up at 7:30 to make sure I was ready at 8:00, and was promptly told that I needed to wait ten minutes and try again. After about twenty attempts, the message changed and told me that I had exceeded the maximum number of logins, and that I should call the system administrator. So I did. He told me that this meant that the maximum number of people were on the server at one time. Almost as soon as he started talking I realized that that's exactly what the message meant, but man was it written unclearly. Anyway, I continued trying to log in until 9:00 when I had to leave for class. After class, at 11:00, I finally got into the system. I went to register for my classes finally, and I was baffled to see that they think I owe them money. A lot of money. So I immediately went and tried to figure out why. I went to the site via the link that explicitly stated "click here to see your registration hold" and it said merely "you have a hold because you owe us [a whole lot of money]." This was incredibly redundant and thus not very helpful, so I called the phone number shown on this new screen. I got through, which is the first major obstacle, and was greeted by an automated voice that took me through five or ten minutes of menus, and when it finally transferred me to the office that I presume could have helped me, I received a busy signal. I will now go back and attempt to find another way to figure out why they think I owe them money, because they totally took my tuition out of my loan already. I don't know. Whatever. Hopefully my classes will still be open when I finally wade through the sea of red tape that is currently attempting to strangle me. Peace out, and word to your mothers.

Yargh.

2005-10-16T23:42:00.000-04:00

I can't get my links to work. I feel dumb. I am going to go to bed because tomorrow morning I have to register for my next semester of law school classes. Peace out, word to your mothers.

Word Up.

2005-10-16T22:16:00.000-04:00

Word. I felt a little silly posting things in one system that were essentially inside jokes to people in another system entirely. For instance, Matt, Kevin, etc. would probably not have appreciate my subtlely referring to Mr. Bento as T.H. Also, these ones look cool. Hopefully, I will update this one more frequently, but more likely I will just post one version on Livejournal, and one version here, each designed for it's own target audience. Peace out, and word to your mothers.