Law Students
Magic Cookie 
Post Frequency: 0.8/day Last Entry: November 14, 2009 at 15:21:00 Recent Entries: 274
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Conversations with K
Posted on November 14, 2009This morning...K: Apples grow on trees. But berries do not grow on trees. They grow on bushes. SO, if you EVER see a tree... (looks uncertain and then walks away)Last night in the tub...Revisiting the "Sing After Me" song after not singing it for months:Tra la la (Tra la la)Mi mi mi (You, you, you)Ha ha ha (NO NO NO)Hee hee hee (HO HO HO)Pick a peck of peppers (Pippapippapippa)Fiddle diddle dee (Fiddle diddle dee)Be my echo (Be your gecko)Sing what I sing (I will!)Follow the leader and sing after me (looking annoyed: I WILL!) A few days ago...
I love you more
Posted on October 26, 2009Me: I love you a LOT.K: No. A little bit!Me: No, a lot! I love you bigger than... Jupiter!K: I love you bigger than Saturn!Me: I love you bigger than the sun!K: I love you bigger than the moon!Me: I love you bigger than INFINITY!K: I love you bigger than THE TUB!
Thank you, Columbus
Posted on October 13, 2009And thank you, The Firm, for giving me my first Columbus Day off since high school. JW had to work, so there was no hope of accomplishing anything. Instead, K and I just hung out all day and did whatever our little hearts desired. We hopped a bus to Harvard Square and browsed in a bookstore for a while...
More work lessons learned
Posted on October 12, 2009Maybe this will be an ongoing series.Lesson #1: Read every word (and then some).Lesson #2: Find someone who's done it before and ask them, no matter how straightforward it seems!I was assigned to do what seemed like a fairly simple corporate transaction...
Daily routine
Posted on October 09, 2009My periodic posts describing our daily routine are probably boring for readers, but I like looking at them when I go back to my archives -- they remind me of what life was like when K was smaller. Our current routine:5:30 a.m. - I wake up, exercise, shower, fix K's lunch if necessary...
What gets you a date
Posted on October 06, 2009The OKCupid blog is awesome -- it's full of statistical analysis of people's online dating behavior. Check out this dating flowchart, and this analysis of what language in an initial message gets you a reply. Then head over to Ana's blog to give her some online dating advice...
My board of advisors
Posted on October 05, 2009Right around review time, I got a phone call from the department chair that threw me for a loop. I couldn't concentrate after that, and went around knocking on people's doors saying either, "Did you get the call?" or "I got this call... what should I do?" I talked to a few other associates who were in the same boat, and then to some partners and senior associates who I thought would give me good advice...
Weekend baking
Posted on October 03, 2009Tonight: Chocolate chip cookie dough. The trend these days is to let your dough rest for 36 hours before baking. It only took about ten minutes to mix the dough, and then I stuck it in the fridge. Done! Delayed gratification -- what a concept. I've been into the idea of having all sorts of pre-baked or pre-assembled meal components in the freezer, and this is part of my plan...
Too much two
Posted on September 21, 2009Lately I've been feeling a little toddlered out. I've been gritting my teeth at behavior that I would normally shrug off, or even find charming. (For example, today I woke up at 6 a.m. to a rhythmic chant of "WIPE MY SNOT. WIPE MY SNOT.")Maybe that's why this NYT piece by Tim Kreider, a single man in his forties, resonated with me:Most of my married friends now have children, the rewards of which appear to be exclusively intangible and, like the mysteries of some gnostic sect, incommunicable to outsiders...
Socks on
Posted on September 18, 2009"NO! Don't take my clothes off. I don't want to get in the tub!""Do you want to take your socks off by yourself, or should I take them off for you?" K considered, and then replied: "I just want to keep my socks on."Argh! That "do you want X or Y" trick is a staple in my parenting repertoire...
Memo to myself
Posted on September 17, 2009On the subject of being a corporate lawyer, here is a lesson I've had to keep learning over and over again: NEVER STOP READING.Don't read just the first page of a document and conclude that it's not what you're looking for. Don't breeze through a provision, assuming that it's identical to all the other provisions you've seen in the same type of agreement by the same party...
Being a first-year corporate associate
Posted on September 16, 2009Part of the reason I haven't felt inspired to post lately is that I am now an employee. My days don't vary that much and I'm wary about my blog being discovered and scrutinized. But I remember being eager to hear what being a junior corporate lawyer is really like...
Or if you only have five minutes
Posted on September 15, 2009Watch this video, K's current obsession.It's from They Might Be Giants' new album Here Comes Science, which has been on constant rotation in our house since it arrived last week. Many of the songs are a little advanced for a 2-year old, but that hasn't stopped K...
What you should do with that twenty minutes of free time you manage to scrape together over the course of three days
Posted on September 14, 2009Read this story.(I just kept it on my iPhone browser and every time I had to wait for anything, I would read some more.)
Catching up
Posted on September 12, 2009I think this is the longest I've ever gone without updating.Life has been uncomfortably busy. Both JW and I are involved in major projects outside of work. K's 2.5-year doctor's appointment went smoothly, thanks to the "I Go to the Doctor" story in his "About Me" Childcraft book...
Big boy bed
Posted on August 15, 2009For the first time in months, a weekend stretched out before us with no plans. We had plenty on our to-do list, but no agenda.Still, I was glad when JW, who had been lying on the coach bemoaning the latest of a series of minor illnesses, suddenly sat up and said, "Let's go to Ikea and buy K a bed...
Interview with a 2-year old
Posted on August 14, 2009Q: How was your day, K?A: Good. It was not bad. It was good. Q: What was the best thing that happened to you today?A: I wanted some water and Mary gave me a cup of water. Q: What was the worst thing that happened to you today?A: I cried and cried. Q: Why did you cry and cry?A: Because I had snot in my nose...
Post-bar reading list
Posted on August 10, 2009I read my last non-law book at the beginning of May. I don't remember what it was, but I do remember thinking, "This is it. No more pleasure reading until after the bar."On a mini-vacation with CT, I bought three books. I rarely buy books (except for K), but I was feeling indulgent...
Tiny violin
Posted on August 08, 2009I bought it off eBay after K kept trying to play my violin and ruined one of my bows (but actually made some vaguely musical sounds in the process). It took forever to arrive. I made the mistake of telling him that the mailman was going to bring him a little violin...
Money
Posted on August 07, 2009Ana wrote about her views on money. I agree with nearly all of them, but for different reasons than she wrote about.1. Rules for expenditures. Ana judges the wisdom of an expenditure according to whether the time will appreciate, depreciate, or retain its value...
Salary negotiations
Posted on August 06, 2009Over at Starting to Melt, Cee asks whether she should negotiate her salary.I wrote her a long comment (with a resounding YES), but here's my personal story. I didn't negotiate at one of my early jobs because a friend who worked there told me it was a small company and they probably couldn't afford much...
New car
Posted on August 05, 2009We test drove a car. I think this is our official entry into the market. JW has been asking when we'll replace our ancient Saturn for over a year now. During school, I could use the excuse that we couldn't afford it. Lately my standard response is, "When it explodes...
Everything I hate about Long Island in a neat little package
Posted on August 02, 2009As I drove down the six-lane highway past miles of strip mall, a kid in the car next to me stuck his head out and kept screaming at me, "HEY! HEYYY!!! SEE HABLA ESPANOL! SI! SI!!" F*** you, kid. You too, Long Island.
Done with the bar exam
Posted on July 31, 2009Wrists still work, although they need some rest. The essay day was okay. There were one or two essays where I read all the way through the fact pattern and got to "What are the rights of the parties?" and hadn't spotted a single issue. But when I thought long enough, I could come up with various ways for everyone to sue each other...
I did the MBE and it wasn't so bad
Posted on July 29, 2009Done with Day 1 of the bar exam.Yesterday I blew off the last few study items on my list and took a mental health day. I finally used the birthday gift certificate from my sister-in-law and got a massage and my first-ever facial. Then I went to see a movie, and spent the evening hanging with the family...
Optimism
Posted on July 28, 2009Yesterday morning K put up stiff resistance to leaving the house. I set up the stroller while he ran around inside. When he became interested in the door hardware, I seized the opportunity to pull his shoes on while explaining how the door worked. Relieved that we were finally ready to go, I hustled him outside and told him to listen for the click when the door closed, because that was the sound of the door hardware clicking into place...
Library!
Posted on July 22, 2009I abandoned today's Barbri session after about fifteen minutes, deciding that studying solo was far preferable to hearing some guy drone on and on about the rules of evidence. Cutting through the law library on my way to the student center, I looked wistfully up toward the fourth floor reading room where I spent so many hours napping in a comfy armchair (and occasionally studying)...
Those Harvard guys
Posted on July 19, 2009In conversation with somebody from town, JW told him that I was studying for the bar. "Are you doing Barbri?" he asked. "A friend of mine from Suffolk was doing that, and this guy from Harvard asked for his notes because he missed class. Can you believe that? He was pretty annoyed, but he gave him the notes...
Five years, part 2
Posted on July 17, 2009Part 1 left off at K's birth. When I think about it now, life with a newborn seems sort of awful, but apparently at the time I didn't think so (except for the C-section recovery part). Which is good because we may just do it again one of these days. I did spend most of my 29th birthday in tears, but they were wiped away when my baby gave me his first smile...
Five years, part 1
Posted on July 16, 2009Five years ago today I wrote my first post on this blog. I had just decided to disrupt our comfortable lives by applying to law school, after months of soul-searching about what I really wanted to do with my life. I applied to five schools, three in Boston and two in New York...
Two weeks
Posted on July 15, 2009The bar exam is exactly two weeks away.Until now, I've been feeling pretty laid-back about the bar. Standardized tests are the one thing in life that I totally know how to do. I am constitutionally incapable of walking into a test unprepared. Besides, this is Passachusetts...
Done with bar lectures!
Posted on July 14, 2009Does it reflect badly on my career choice that the only bar subject I found intolerably boring was Corporations? At least it was also the subject I knew the most about.
Weekend baking: soft pretzels
Posted on July 12, 2009From Smitten Kitchen. Despite the wow factor, I have to admit I prefer the ones from the street cart. And I'm less tempted to eat five of those in a sitting. These took about four hours from start to finish, with about an hour of active time. The process is very similar to bagels -- after an initial rise, roll the dough into strips, shape, poach in boiling water with baking soda and sugar, and then glaze and bake...
K's joke
Posted on July 10, 2009K (knocking on my leg): Nop, nopMe: Who's there?K: Nobody.Me: Nobody who?K: Nobody is at the door.He made up this joke himself. Don't quit your day job, kid.Another favorite K-ism of late: he'll start fake-crying and when I ask what's wrong, he'll say, "A monster ate my breakfast!"
Prince Philip
Posted on July 09, 2009Speaking of fraud as grounds for annulment, the Barbri family law lecturer (Schechter, my favorite) told a story about a woman who tried to get her marriage annulled because her husband was not, as he had claimed, European royalty. No dice.A friend took the bus from New York once to visit me at college...
What I learned from half a lecture on family law
Posted on July 08, 20091. It's called a "shotgun wedding" because the pregnant girl's father would march the baby daddy there at gunpoint. I never knew that.2. You can marry your cousin in Massachusetts. But you can't marry your step-grandparent, your in-laws, or your grandchild's spouse...
Lessons from the simulated MBE
Posted on July 07, 2009Or, what not to do for the actual bar exam:1. Go to bed at midnight the night before. Wake up every hour and a half until being forced out of bed for good at 5:30 a.m.2. Lose your watch.3. Arrive at the exam five minutes after it starts... 4. ... without any #2 pencils...
A rant about the law
Posted on July 04, 2009Studying con law. Just like in law school, it pisses me off. Take state action, for instance. The only way to know what constitutes state action is to memorize all the relevant decisions and guess about the rest. For instance, we all (assuming the only people who read this blog are lawyers) read Shelley v...
More Statute of Frauds
Posted on July 03, 2009Bar studying continues apace. Next week I start my leave from work!K has been helping me. "Hey, K," I'll say, "do you want to hear about the Statute of Frauds?" He always says yes, and when I'm done listing all the types of agreements and defenses, he says, "More Statute of Frauds!" That kid has always had a massive attention span for his age...
Bar study update
Posted on June 24, 2009Toddler.Full-time law firm job.Studying for the bar exam.Any two out of the three would be plenty, but all three at the same time is... challenging.Work has been heating up, which would otherwise be good except that I'm getting way behind on my studying...
Point seven
Posted on June 23, 2009Met a Very Important Partner from another law firm. Somebody asked how many lawyers at his firm. He answered, "243.7.""Point seven?""If you count up the people working part time.""Oh, I thought it might be because one of the attorneys is eight months pregnant," I joked...
Potty time begins
Posted on June 22, 2009"I'm ready to poo!" said K this morning.He has never announced this before. Usually he'll play quietly by himself and avoid attracting my attention after he poops, to put off the diaper change as long as possible."Do you want to poo on the potty?" I asked him...
"Avoid marriage"
Posted on June 17, 2009The Internets are abuzz with news of Sandra Tsing Loh's divorce and, more specifically, her anti-marriage essay in the Atlantic (which I first came across through Amber). So here's what I got out of this piece: Marriage requires too much work.So much work, in fact, that most people just don't have the temperament for it...
The greatest gift a bar exam studier can receive
Posted on June 16, 2009At orchestra rehearsal, a friend asked how bar studying was going. "I was just listening to a lecture on the way over," I replied. "I can tell you anything you want to know about defamation." I expected her to laugh and change the subject, but instead she said, "Really? I've always wanted to know about defamation!" And she really did...
Weekend baking
Posted on June 14, 2009Blueberry oatmeal muffins: recipe from the oatmeal canister, or maybe it was the yogurt container. Anyway, tasty, pretty healthy muffins, with that characteristic springy texture that yogurt provides. I made them with frozen blueberries.Recipe:Wet: 1 egg, 1...
2 years, 3 months
Posted on June 11, 2009Dear K,Lately you are obsessed with bees. "Want to go outside and see the bees!" you tell us, several times a day. And you repeat the advice we have given you: "Look, but don't touch a bee. It can sting you!"You also like singing "Happy birthday" to everything...
Haircut #4
Posted on June 10, 2009This time we went to Lulu's Kids' Cuts in Cambridge, on the recommendation of several moms on one of the local mailing lists. Great place, although pricey, with toys to make the wait go faster. K grabbed some trucks and played happily -- until it was time to get in the chair...
Reflection
Posted on June 08, 2009I caught sight of my reflection in the window while riding the T.First thought: "Wow, I look pretty today."Second thought: "Hmm, I look different today."Third thought: "That's not me. That's the reflection of the girl sitting next to me."I try to cultivate a zenlike calm...
How to exit a conversation
Posted on June 07, 2009Usually I look to CT, the journal-keeper, as the repository of college memories. But this is one she didn't remember, so I'm recording it here. We were in yet another endless conversation with Boring Person, who said something about walking. Either CT or I replied, "Speaking of walking, have you heard about...
First week of Barbri - ARGH.
Posted on June 05, 2009Tuesday: First day of class. I get a preview of what the rest of the summer might be like: after being swamped at work all morning, I rush out of the office and arrive at class 15 minutes late, after taking three different trains. I doze off halfway through because I'm exhausted and skipped lunch...
Middle child
Posted on June 04, 2009Last night I dreamed that I had a new baby girl. Her name was Susie.Then this other kid started reading a book to Susie. "Look, he can read!" said JW. And I realized that was OUR kid, our second child, in between K and Susie. I had just forgotten he existed...
Update
Posted on June 01, 2009We spent Saturday morning on the Island of Sodor. I'd post a picture, but K is scowling in all of them. He loved the bouncy castle, but wasn't as big a fan of the train ride on Thomas. (At least he was not one of the many toddlers throwing a tantrum and screaming, "I want to get off the train!") Today I had no work to do...
Reunion, part 2
Posted on May 25, 2009Reunion was a bit of a letdown at first. Much smaller crowd than the 5-year, mostly people I already saw around Boston, and everyone seemed more interested in hanging out with their little group of close friends than with catching up with old acquaintances...
Reunion
Posted on May 22, 2009My ten-year college reunion is this weekend! I can't wait. I've been teaching K our fight song. At our 5-year reunion, I loved the feeling of walking down the street and seeing so many people I knew. I felt like I belonged there again. There was an article in the Harvard alumni magazine about how Harvard alums avoid their reunions because they feel their lives can never measure up to the expectations of their classmates...
Buying stuff
Posted on May 21, 2009NYT post, based on research by Dr. Miller from UNM, suggesting that we buy stuff primarily as a status signal to others. I'm skeptical. On a related note, I'm also reading the much more persuasive Buying In by Rob Walker, which argues in part that we buy stuff to assert our identity, both as a unique individual and (paradoxically, at the same time) as an identifiable member of a certain culture or subculture...
Yard sale
Posted on May 18, 2009We had a yard sale this weekend. Several neighbors stopped by, concerned that we were moving. One lady came by in the morning and cleaned out our Lenox and Waterford stuff that we got as wedding gifts and never took out of the box. She came back late in the afternoon and took almost everything we had left for free...
Lies I tell my kid
Posted on May 15, 2009In some magazine I read, a mom confessed (or maybe offered as a parenting tip, I don't remember) that she takes advantage of her kid's inability to read by telling her that signs say things like, "It's time to go home," or "Don't touch," or whatever the mom wants them to say...
2 years, 2 months
Posted on May 11, 2009Dear K, Sometimes you drive me nuts. But far more often these days, I catch myself wishing I could hold you at this age for a little longer. You can run, and jump -- your primary form of locomotion for a while, jump, jump, jump instead of boring old walking -- and give spontaneous hugs and tackles and tickles, and best of all you can TALK! You rarely stop talking, whether you're narrating a Thomas adventure as you push your engines around the track or singing the song you learned at school (which, as far as I can tell, consists of the words "Hello Lucas" repeated fifty times)...
My third Mother's Day
Posted on May 10, 2009For Mother's Day, I got a surprisingly cooperative toddler, an unsolicited "I love you, Mommy" with a big hug from K, and a sleep-in with pumpkin waffles when I woke up from Daddy.Last night I half-hoped the rainstorm would last until this morning, so we'd have an excuse for skipping the Duckling Day Parade...
Leaving work now
Posted on May 07, 2009Suddenly I understand the appeal of keeping a cot in your office.
Dream of a corporate associate
Posted on May 06, 2009Last night I dreamed that all the first-years in my department were assigned to slice hard-boiled eggs all afternoon. (I think the dream was inspired by this.) I tried to do something different, or at least take my eggs outside, but was handed an egg-slicing instruction sheet and told sternly, "It's very important that these eggs be sliced correctly and uniformly...
Mayhem
Posted on May 05, 2009Did you know that at common law, mayhem was the crime of dismembering or disabling a body part? And did I mention I started studying for the bar? I'm not going to have lots of time to devote to studying this summer, since I'll be working, so I'm starting early...
Gardening
Posted on May 02, 2009While K ran up and down the aisles of the outdoor flower display, I was having visions of the two of us, hands in the earth, bonding over the wonder of helping a living thing set root and grow.Fast forward a few hours. K keeps trying to lick the spade and yells at me when I try to dig with it...
Competence
Posted on May 01, 2009LL: A feeling of competency is vastly underrated as an indicator of job satisfaction- or at least I underrated it when I first picked my legal specialty.When I applied to law school, I wondered if I would regret leaving software. I assumed I would, in fact, and steeled myself to get over it...
Fish pancakes!
Posted on April 25, 2009The other day K ate two things that he has consistently refused to touch for the past two years: fish and potatoes! I planned to make cod cakes, but I'm not a big recipe-follower and the batter turned into a mess. (The use of the word "batter" to describe a pre-fish cake mixture should be a clue that something went wrong...
My work-life balance
Posted on April 24, 2009It's been nearly three months on the job. So far, so good.The "work" part: I've been getting to work a little before 9 and leaving around 6. If I'm having a slow day, I leave at 5. No point in sticking around if nobody's calling and I'm going to come in the next morning with nothing to do...
The female model of law firm practice
Posted on April 23, 2009Ms. JD discusses an article about how now is the time for law firms to focus on diversity and retention. Quote from the article:Women associates leave because they see few if any women partners who reflect a 'balance of life' success story. Instead, they see variations of the theme?the male model with lipstick...
Lies My Parents Told Me
Posted on April 22, 2009So E. McPan mentioned in the comments that her parents told her they bought her at K-Mart.My parents -- actually, it's all my mother, she's the inventive one in the family -- have told me many questionable facts over the years. The two that stick in my head are:1...
Harnessing the Power of the Mind
Posted on April 21, 2009K loves the They Might Be Giants song Hovering Sombrero. Or rather, he loves the refrain, but not the verse. To avoid demands to restart the song every time the refrain ended, JW told K that if he thought hard enough, it would come back. K thoughtfully put his hand to his chin and said, "Hmm...
The most boring children's book ever
Posted on April 20, 2009"'En... lil bird saw... a lion. 'Hello ... Lion,' said... lil bird. 'Wha you do--'""HEN," interrupted K. My eyes popped open and I saw him pointing indignantly to the picture of the hen in "Are You My Mother?" "Sorry, hen," I said, and managed to get through the next dozen or so pages without dozing off again...
On the other hand
Posted on April 16, 2009The logistics of having a second kid will be tough. We enjoy the relative freedom of our one-kid life. And I'm not eager to have abdominal surgery again. But, another kid who's as awesome as K? Another kid who I love just as much, and who will have her own personality quirks, and make her own jokes, and have her own favorite books? Sometimes that sounds really nice...
Second kid
Posted on April 14, 2009During a weekend playdate, a friend confessed that she's pregnant again. She said the pregnancy had been rough on her, but they were excited to have a second child.JW had just asked me how I felt about a second kid. My response: "Do I want another kid? Sure, that doesn't sound so bad...
Birthday recap
Posted on April 13, 2009My 31st birthday was grey and rainy, but otherwise excellent. After sleeping in (until 8 a.m.!) I found K in his crib just about to start yelling. When he saw me he grinned, lifted up his arms and said "I think I'm going to fall!" I scooped him up and brought him into our bedroom, where we played his favorite game (I stagger around while holding him in my arms, pretending I'm about to fall, and then drop him on the bed and fall down next to him)...
31
Posted on April 10, 2009When I turned thirty, I felt all empowered. You can't tell me what to do! I'm THIRTY. I tell YOU what to do!Now that I'm turning thirty-one (tomorrow), I just feel a year closer to middle age. I am no longer refreshingly not-young. Now I am just continuing to get old...
Fourth day of "school"
Posted on April 09, 2009A little better each day. He was fine until we got to the classroom. He started crying when I took off his coat, but it wasn't the wailing and clutching routine of the past few days. I gave him a big hug and said goodbye. As I walked out the door, the teacher went over to him and said, "K, would you like to read a book with me?" and I heard him sob, "Yes!"He'll be fine...
Third day of "school"
Posted on April 08, 2009Some resistance to getting dressed, but after we chased each other around the kitchen for a while he consented to putting a shirt on.As I got him dressed, he looked at me and said, "Lina house." Like yesterday, he got upset when I told him we were going to school...
Second day of "school"
Posted on April 07, 2009Morning:NO to getting out of bed, NO to getting changed, NO to breakfast.I eventually wrangle him into a fresh diaper and clothes and get him out into the living room.I pack his lunch and fix both of our breakfasts while he plays across the room. Hey, that wasn't so bad...
First day of "school"
Posted on April 06, 2009Today K started his new daycare, a.k.a. "school" (they do have a preschool class, but he's in the Toddler II room right below that). We've been bringing him there to play a few times a week, just to get him used to it, and we've been talking to him about leaving Mrs...
Crash
Posted on April 05, 2009Saturday we passed a group of people on the street who were listening to a woman discuss the best places to buy pistachios in the neighborhood. I nudged JW. "I think that's Ana Sortun!" "Who?" "The chef at Oleana." He rolled his eyes. "How am I supposed to know that? You're the only one who knows who these people are...
Weekend baking
Posted on April 04, 2009Last weekend I made icebox cupcakes. I was intrigued by the icebox cake concept (chocolate wafers + whipped cream, stacked and softened overnight) and needed a dessert to bring to a big party, so it seemed like a good opportunity. For each "cupcake," I used four or five wafers with whipped cream lightly sweetened with confectioner's sugar and spiked with Bailey's...
Growing up
Posted on April 01, 2009K is growing into his two-ness. You can have an entire conversation with him now. Example:K: Sad.Me: Who's sad? K: K sad.Me: Why are you sad?K: Because... toys over there. (He points to his toys at the far end of the tub, where he can't reach.)Sometimes he just says "because" and trails off, but I like that he understands the concept of "why" and "because...
J.D., finally
Posted on March 25, 2009The long road to law school graduation:June 2008: Parents and in-laws (who insisted on the ceremony in the first place) descend on Cambridge with cameras. I put on my cap and gown and walk across the stage to receive my empty diploma folder. People who don't know me well say "Congratulations" and I smile and nod...
Special occasion
Posted on March 24, 2009K missed his bedtime for the second time EVER (the first time was just a few weeks ago, for a relative's birthday party). He didn't care. He got to eat cake. And we got to be in the room with the man himself, Dan Pawson, while his on-screen past self become the Ultimate Jeopardy Champion! It was hilarious to see Becca matter-of-factly point at the TV and say, "Daddy...
My first securities filing
Posted on March 23, 2009I did my first securities filings last week!(You can tell you're still in the honeymoon phase of your job when you get excited over email from the SEC.)It was a little frustrating because everything got done at the last minute, so I was sweating over each delay in the process...
Sunday cooking
Posted on March 22, 2009I've been obsessed with Smitten Kitchen lately, and today I made two Smitten-inspired recipes.For breakfast, we had lemon-ricotta pancakes. I could never resist ordering ricotta pancakes I saw them on a brunch menu (past tense because, post-baby, I can't remember when we've gone out for brunch)...
Grapefruit yogurt cake
Posted on March 19, 2009I was going to work out, but instead I baked a cake. I blame the New York Times. I was being industrious and looking up something work-related when the NYT wedding announcement of one of our clients popped up, so of course I had to go look at that, and then they had their list of frequently emailed articles on the side, and one thing led to another...
Bostonian's lament
Posted on March 18, 2009Warning! I am about to commit two cardinal sins of blogging: (1) whining (2) about the weather.I lasted until mid-March, but now I'm calling it. I am officially sick of being cold. I'm tired of wearing three layers indoors, tired of my eyes watering and nose running when I stay outside too long, tired of jogging in place in the shower...
Pinkeye
Posted on March 17, 2009I may have yelled at K more this weekend than I have in his whole life. I'm usually pretty good with the gentle discipline, but when the child is trying to kick you as hard as he can while simultaneously yanking a poop-filled diaper out from underneath him, it's not the best time for a discussion about consequences...
Two things I learned in the past two days
Posted on March 13, 20091. Vermouth is wine! All this time I thought it was nonalcoholic.2. You can graduate from an unaccredited law school and still become a lawyer in certain jurisdictions. (Did I say I went to Harvard Law? I meant Herbert Law.)I learned this after looking up the Massachusetts School of Law...
Things we have eaten
Posted on March 12, 2009Some things we've cooked lately:Basic seared scallops from Joy of Cooking. Dredge 3/4 pound of scallops in 1.5T flour + salt + marjoram, sear in a little olive oil over medium-high heat for 3 minutes on each side, remove from pan. Reduce 1/2 cup white wine (we used vermouth for the kid's sake) and 2t balsamic vinegar in the same pan to make a sauce...
In the past 2 weeks...
Posted on March 10, 2009K turned 2, had a party with a duck cake and babies running around. He's like me -- he needs to take breaks from parties. So every half hour or so, he asked to go to bed and hung out in his crib reading books for a few minutes before heading back to the party...
Baby corporate lawyer
Posted on February 23, 2009After three weeks, I know a lot more about corporate law. But I still know very little about corporate law.Work has been slow. I'm on a very complex deal, so there's not a whole lot I can do to contribute. I have some pro bono nonprofit work, but other than that I don't really have ways to get work...
Almost two
Posted on February 20, 2009K's conversation on his toy phone in the tub: "Hello. I listening monkey song. Then, Thomas movie!" He's going to be two in a week. A friend who's expecting soon told me about the tiny clothes she had bought. I remember seeing the 12 month pajamas on the same rack while shopping for newborn pajamas, and thinking they were impossibly huge...
Work goals
Posted on February 19, 2009I wrote about my pre-law school goals. Now that school is over and I'm starting my new career, here's a new set of goals for the years to come. For the first two years, don't even think of being unhappy or bored. Just learn as much as possible. It's all training for whatever comes next...
Looking back on law school
Posted on February 18, 2009Before I started law school, I wrote two posts about my goals: Things I want to do in law school and How I hope law school will change me. I thought at the end of school, I'd go back and reflect on my expectations and what had actually happened. But actually, I moved on pretty quickly...
Work continues
Posted on February 15, 2009Not much to say there. I'm on a deal, but given that I have a whopping two weeks of experience, I'm doing stuff that's a notch above secretarial work. Not that I'm complaining -- I'm happy to do whatever I can.I read these two books, Jagged Rocks of Wisdom: Professional Advice for the New Attorney by Morten Lund, and The Young Lawyer's Jungle Book: A Survival Guide by Thane Messinger...
The juggle begins
Posted on February 07, 2009Here's our new schedule:6 a.m.: Everybody wakes up. (We set the alarm, but usually we hit snooze and are woken up by a yelling toddler before it goes off again.)6:45 a.m.: JW leaves for work.8 a.m.: K and I leave for daycare and work.4 p.m.: JW leaves work to pick up K...
But I do see that
Posted on February 01, 2009K: Underneath. Can't reach! Underneath!Me: Do you need help?K: Yes. Mommy get it!Me (peering under couch): I don't see it.K: But I do see that.Whoa. Did we just have a conversation? When did this happen?K has figured out "Yes I do" and "No I don't" lately, which has added quite a bit to his conversational abilities...
Reading list
Posted on January 31, 2009I passed a happy hour in the local bookstore browsing through all the fiction from A to Z, and have been getting a few recommendations. Here's my new to-read list:The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan DidionThe Blind Side: Evolution of a Game by Michael LewisAmerican Wife by Curtis Sittenfeld (book club)Birth: The Surprising History of How We Are Born by Tina CassidyAsk For It: How Women Can Use the Power of Negotiation to Get What They Really Want by Linda Babcock and Sara LascheverOpening Skinner's Box: Great Psychological Experiments of the Twentieth Century by Lauren SlaterYour Brain Is (Almost) Perfect: How We Make Decisions by Read MontagueFamily Planning by Karan MahajanThe God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy*The Position by Meg WolitzerThings I've Been Silent About by Azar NafisiSlam by Nick HornbySongs Without Words by Ann PackerThe Audacity of Hope by Barack Obama* I could have sworn I read this book years ago, and I can't count how many times I've left it untouched on bookshelves thinking I had already read it...
Reading roundup
Posted on January 29, 2009Catching up on about six months' worth of non-law reading. I don't remember everything I read, so this is based on my library records.Loved it: A Spot of Bother by Mark Haddon. Same guy who wrote The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, this time writing a domestic comedy about a guy who's convinced he has cancer...
Slow news day
Posted on January 24, 2009The New York Times has an entire article, replete with map, of UK towns with embarrassing names.
23 months, almost
Posted on January 22, 2009Dear K,You're going to be two soon! You're not really a baby anymore. When you were a newborn, we had to guess what was wrong when you cried. When you were one, we could usually figure it out, but we could pretend we didn't understand when you asked for a sip of Daddy's beer...
Shout-out to the nonbelievers
Posted on January 20, 2009We were debating going to D.C. After seeing the crowds, I'm really glad we didn't. I'm happy to watch from afar as Aretha Franklin belts out "Let freedom ring," and President Obama warns us that there's no room for slackers in this country. After hearing Rick Warren's opening prayer, I thought about how the country may be ready for a non-white president, but I doubt we're ready for a non-Judeochristian president...
Fighting
Posted on January 14, 2009"Good morning, buddy," said JW, pulling K up on to the bed. "Have you been having a good morning with Mommy?"K didn't say anything. "No," I supplied. "What have you been doing?""Fighting.""Fighting!" repeated K. "Fighting! Fighting!"The immediate cause of the fighting was his repeated attempts to rub his snot into my hair...
Phew
Posted on January 09, 2009Called The Firm and confirmed my start date, a few weeks from now.Now when people ask when I'm starting work, I can stop adding, "...unless they call and tell me not to show up."P.S. - Update on my previous anxiety post: I realized I was being like a commitment-phobe who gets scared when their fling starts becoming a relationship...
I'll know I've hit bottom when I eat an entire pint of ice cream
Posted on January 05, 2009Which could be tomorrow. I have been eating everything in sight lately.I am an anxiety eater. But I'm on vacation. What could I possibly be anxious about?After thinking about it, I realized: Work looms.I like my firm. I think the job will be good. I enjoyed the work I did last summer...
Happy New Year!
Posted on January 01, 20092009!This year always seemed so far off. 2008 was far off enough, and then when I took a semester off from school and realized I wouldn't graduate until 2009, it seemed like I would be in law school forever. (Which, really, would have been fine with me...
Help me, Obaba, you're my only hope
Posted on December 23, 2008Barack Obama is probably the one person he hasn't met in real life that K is aware of. And he invokes his name regularly.br /br /In one of his books, there's a picture of a tall, slim man in a suit. "Obaba!" K says, pointing to it.br /br /"K, who gave you that feather?"br /"Obaba!" br /br /"K, are you okay? Are you stuck?"br /"Yeah!" br /"Daddy will help you...
Lament
Posted on December 22, 2008Our dinner was punctuated with cries of "Ned, Ned!" and "Sun! Sun!" br /br /K recently got a book called a href="http://www.amazon.com/Snow-Philip-D-Eastman/dp/0394800273/" target="newWin"Snow/a. The main characters, two girls and their dog, have all sorts of snow fun...
Back
Posted on December 20, 2008For a week we were warm, and instead of sitting on the couch with our laptops open, JW and I wandered around at night and ordered tropical drinks at open-air bars.br /br /K asked to go home every day, and after a couple of days also started requesting to go to daycare...
Kicking and screaming
Posted on December 15, 2008HLS! After gathering me unto your bosom lo, these many years ago, you are now thrusting me forth into the cold world. (Well, it will be cold after I come back from the Bahamas.)Don't make me go! I'll do winter term. I'll write papers and give tours! Just give me more time...
Baby hygiene updates
Posted on December 13, 2008Haircut: a disaster. It's worth it to go to the specialty kids' place, I now realize; they are unfazed by screaming toddlers and will swiftly execute the cut. At the place around the corner, the hairstylist was so upset by his hysterics that she didn't even trim the back...
Second time's the charm?
Posted on December 12, 2008It's haircut day for K!Here's how he reacted to his first (and last) professional haircut:Wish us luck.
Something I'm supposed to do
Posted on December 12, 2008I had all these dreams last night that shared a theme of me neglecting my duties.I hope this has to do with my failure to get any work done last night, my lack of preparation for the holidays, the fact that I don't even know the flight times for our upcoming vacation, or the mess in our house, and not something else that I'm forgetting about...
Shower scene
Posted on December 11, 2008At 3:30 in the morning, K started SCREAMING. I raced to his bedside and scooped him up. Quick check: kid, bed, room all seemed fine. "Scary dream?" I asked. He nodded, burrowing his head into my neck as I hugged him tight. "It's okay," I murmured. "You're safe...
Internal dialogue during an exam
Posted on December 10, 2008Me: They said it would be straightforward and not to worry, but this seems too straightforward. Still me: So you're worried that you're missing something? Me: No... I don't think I'm missing anything. It's just that I'm not doing brilliant analysis or anything...
Idiopathic non-starting
Posted on December 04, 2008Our car wouldn't start this morning. Thanks to our town's winter overnight parking ban, the car was in our very steep driveway. We managed to push it out with the other car, pull the other car out over the lawn, and leave the non-starting car on the sidewalk (sorry, pedestrians)...
Clingy
Posted on December 02, 2008All weekend it was "MOMMY MOMMY MOMMY MOMMY." I kept trying to escape upstairs to get some work done while the grandparents hung out with K, but I found it hard to ignore the cries. The second he saw me K would run over and attach himself to my leg."He's getting clingy," I said to JW...
The end of the internship
Posted on December 01, 2008My government internship is over! YAY! I am very glad I did it, and very glad I don't have to do it anymore.I learned...lots about criminal law, and that I never want to do it again.about the dark side of government work.much more about the techniques of child molesters than I ever wanted to know...
Post-Thanksgiving
Posted on November 29, 2008Ate two rounds of turkey. #1 was at a family friend's house where "the kids," who are all now in their 30s and 40s, converge every year. I still remember a few years ago when one of us was pregnant, and then the following year when everyone was all excited that we had a baby at the party...
Goodbye billable hour
Posted on November 26, 2008While researching for my business school-style class on how to run a professional services firm, I came across this fantastic blog: Gruntled Employees. It's run by Jay Shepherd, head of the Shepherd Law Group here in Boston -- a firm with NO BILLABLE HOURS...
Evolution is just a theory
Posted on November 24, 2008One of the most interesting parts of A.J. Jacobs' The Year of Living Biblically was his visit to a creationist museum. The museum had a Ph.D. on staff, a guy with a doctorate in archaeology or geology or some sort of earth-sciencey subject, who Jacobs described as bending over backwards to explain why evolution was wrong...
If I had time
Posted on November 21, 2008...I would have posted copiously this week on the following subjects.This interview about Obama's faith, from 2004 but just released in its entirety. I've never been an Obama true believer, but this interview sways me a little in that direction. One quote: I'm not somebody who is always comfortable with language that implies I've got a monopoly on the truth, or that my faith is automatically transferable to others...
Weekend
Posted on November 17, 2008Life has been crazy. JW has been working almost literally nonstop, so it's me and K against the world.Saturday it rained all day. I took K out for a walk and we both got soaked in the ten minutes we were outside.Sunday we had an adventure. I was about to load K into the car to go grocery shopping, but after being cooped up in the house all day he wanted nothing more than to go outside...
Lightbulb
Posted on November 14, 2008As a pre-baby Christmas present, CT got us a full set of Childcraft books. My brother and I loved these books as kids. When I was pregnant I went looking for our 1970s set, but my unsentimental mother had thrown ours out without telling us. I was thrilled to get the books for K's shelf...
Looking back
Posted on November 13, 2008I finally upgraded my template (not that it looks that much different -- I couldn't bear to get rid of my dinosaur) and now I'm all organized with labels.I went back and looked at all the "doctor's appointment" posts. In one of the early posts from when K was just a few months old, I found this, referring to an advice column that said your four-month old baby will stare at you while nursing because he wants to show how much he loves you:I got all excited, thinking, really, he's going to love me when he's four months old? That kept me going for a while...
Anything to get out of a nap
Posted on November 10, 2008JW left for the airport right before K's naptime on Sunday. Maybe that's why K wouldn't settle down. I went in a couple of times and did the patting-and-singing routine, ignoring his efforts at conversation.K has the alphabet on his walls, starting with A in one corner of the room and going all the way around to Z...
Hey you kids, get off my blog
Posted on November 08, 2008And stop cribbing your book reports from here.(Yeah, I checked my Sitemeter stats again. I know what you're up to!)
President Obama
Posted on November 05, 2008Years ago, when we drove cross-country to our new home in Massachusetts, JW and I stopped at the Museum of Questionable Medical Devices in Minneapolis. We each got a phrenology reading from a contraption that poked our heads with metal prongs and spat out a list of attributes...
Afterwards
Posted on November 05, 2008On the streets: Everybody?s got at least one newspaper. Among minorities, lots of grinning at random strangers.In my ?Race Relations and the Presidential Election? seminar: Jubilation, cupcakes, tears.From some of the clinical faculty: Speculation of a mass exodus out of HLS (and Stanford Law) to D...
Election night
Posted on November 04, 2008JW is off at a party. I get to stay home to make sure the house doesn't burn down and the kid is safe. It's a good thing, actually, because K has been sick and has been having trouble sleeping. I've already been in and out of his room twice. The problem is, since he keeps waking up, I can't turn the TV on because the noise will disturb him! Just when I think it's safe, I hear a squeak from his room...
Voting time is here
Posted on November 04, 2008Those are the lyrics of today's Election Song. (September's began, "Vote, vote, we love to vote.")At a class dinner party, a friend made a pro-Obama comment that she thought one of our professors made a face at. She looked up his donation record and sure enough, he had maxed out to McCain...
Big Dog, Little Dog
Posted on November 02, 2008Dear K,One of our favorite books is Big Dog, Little Dog. We have read it countless times since you were born, just like Grandma used to read it to Daddy when he was a little boy.But this weekend, when we read Big Dog, Little Dog, you became fixated on two words: TUBA and IDEA...
Happy Halloween!
Posted on October 31, 2008And, if you're looking for costume ideas for next year...
Shar-pei stomach
Posted on October 31, 2008A frightening topic for Halloween...I forget about my Sitemeter stats for months at a time, but I checked them recently. A bunch of people find this blog by searching for "cesearan section recovery", and one person searched for "i had a cesearean my stomach still high...
Top baby names of 2007
Posted on October 30, 2008The Social Security Administration's list of the top baby names for 2007 is out! Always a fun read.As usual, I am appalled by the girls' names. I hope little Ashly, Rylee, and Miley have fun playing together.K's name made the top 1000, with an alternate spelling...
Work-life boundary
Posted on October 30, 2008Yesterday I went to to a talk by ?pela Trefalt about her doctoral research on how large law firm attorneys deal with work-life boundary issues. She studied seventy people at an AmLaw 100 firm, about half men and half women. She found that one the attorneys' biggest concerns about work-life balance was jeopardizing their relationships at work...
Clothes horse
Posted on October 29, 2008"What clothes should we wear today?" I said to K. "How about your blue sweatpants.""No!" he said.He has never shown the slightest interest in his clothes, except when they have pictures of dogs or fire trucks on them. Even then, he'd just as soon hug them or eat them as wear them...
Parenting philosophy
Posted on October 28, 2008K got a visit from both sets of grandparents last weekend. My parents arrived Thursday night, after his bedtime, and took him to two different farms on Friday. (The first was a vegetable farm with a farmstand. The second had animals and a hayride.) When K woke up from his Saturday afternoon nap, Dida and Dadu were gone, and Grandma and Grandpa had taken their place...
Living in the twentieth century
Posted on October 27, 2008"Okay," I announced to JW, "I'm going to learn how to send a text message.""I guess the day had to come," he replied. "It's time."[Ten minutes passes]"??!!! I just keep getting this message that says 'Short Mail!' There's no way to send a text message!""Let me see...
19 1/2 months
Posted on October 22, 2008Dear K, It's almost Halloween. This year, you will be a bat. I wanted you to be a dragon but we are lazy and we found a bat costume on sale. I don't think you get the Halloween thing yet. Next year you'll probably want to go trick-or-treating.I haven't written about your daily routine in a while...
Two kid questions
Posted on October 21, 2008First, a matter of playground etiquette: A toy is on the ground. Your toddler grabs it. Do you take it away, or let him play with it? (JW and I differ on this one. I'll wait to hear what other people say before telling you what we think.)Second, a gadget/toy question: is there some device that's like a little-kid radio, where I can preload a couple of songs and he can hit a button to play the song? Something like the Mozart cube, but instead of Mozart it plays the songs that I pick...
Bar update
Posted on October 18, 2008The firm won't pay for the Bar/BRI iPod option. But apparently they'll give me time off to attend the lectures. (Which doesn't seem cost-effective to me, but okay.) So even though I hate the idea of being stuck in a room watching a video for four hours a day, if they really won't have a problem with me taking off at noon, I guess I won't complain...
The dark side of the law
Posted on October 17, 2008People always say that working for a big firm is like selling your soul. They suggest that you'll be asked to do awful, unethical things on behalf of your clients, selling your services to the highest bidder regardless of the moral content.Public service work, now that's noble...
Thinking ahead
Posted on October 16, 2008All the 3Ls were invited to a bar prep session this week. The Dean of Students reminded us that if we have committed any crimes or have done bad deeds, we should tell her before writing it on our bar application. Then the Bar/BRI rep said we would have to study 8-12 hours a day and should say goodbye to our families and friends and do nothing but study for two months before the exam...
The five bloggers meme
Posted on October 10, 2008I've been tagged a few times now (hello pickled), and inspired by Ana's lovefest, I'm finally participating. But not as eloquently as she did.Just in case anybody feels left out, please know that if you are on my blogroll (and don't blog mainly about substantive law) I read you religiously and would happily have you over for dinner any time...
Hitchhiker
Posted on October 09, 2008People around here like to complain about certain people or events being "so Cambridge." I can't tell you exactly what "so Cambridge" means, but it's some combination of affluence, entitlement, liberalism, obliviousness, and a busybody-ish intrusive quality...
K&M
Posted on October 07, 2008This weekend we had a visit from my brother, his wife, and my four-month old niece! K tends to be territorial and got very upset when I paid her too much attention, but overall he liked having her around, I think. He's still talking about her a few days later...
Not-so-forbidden foods
Posted on October 05, 2008A friend once told me how her little sister always asked for a taste of their father's beer. One day, when her sister was six or seven, her father said, "Okay, you can have a sip," figuring she'd hate it and that would cure her. She loved it, of course, and after that he could never drink beer in front of her because she would go crazy begging for a sip...
Mommy
Posted on October 04, 2008K said "Mommy" for the first time today!He tends to just say the beginnings of words (a request to be picked up is "Pi uh," if he wants extra grapes he asks for "mo," etc.) So he's been saying, "Ma" and "Da-y" for a while. But suddenly, this morning, when I was in the basement I heard him saying from upstairs, "Ma...
The advantage of the billable hour
Posted on October 03, 2008A week ago, I wrote about the joys of freedom from the billable hour. But I've realized that the billable hour does have one big advantage: it limits the time you spend.I used to do the occasional psychological study for pocket money (and because they're fun)...
Low expectations
Posted on October 02, 2008NPR's summary of the vice presidential debate: nobody expects anything of Sarah Palin, and Joe Biden will be fine if he just curbs his tendency to be "long-winded and gaffe-prone." The format prevents the candidates from responding to each other directly, which will "help them to avoid making mistakes...
19 months
Posted on October 02, 2008Dear K,How does it feel to be 19 months old? I know what you would say: "Yeah!"In the past month, you have started saying two-syllable words and repeating what Daddy and I say. (Who are we going to vote for President next month? OBABA!) You have learned to eat with a real fork, not just a baby fork, and to use a spoon all by yourself, making mealtimes much easier and more pleasant for Mommy...
Minority experience in large law firms
Posted on October 01, 2008Interesting report by the Minority Law Journal (summary here) about experiences of mid-level associates at large law firms, broken down by racial background.African-American associates are less satisfied overall. They perceive that they need to work harder than other associates to get to the same level...
Personally kickstarting the economy
Posted on September 29, 2008JW and I have been talking about replacing our windows forever. Our house, built in the 1960s when oil was cheap, came with virtually no insulation and windows that actually ice over in the wintertime. JW and his father have filled the attic with insulation, and we decided it was finally time to take care of the windows -- except, gulp, it cost thousands of dollars more than I expected...
Thinking like a lawyer
Posted on September 27, 2008A neighbor stopped by to talk about a town controversy involving poisoned pigeons. The gears in my brain started turning and I guess I wasn't reacting as much as she would like, because she said, "I can see your sympathies aren't with the pigeons. But imagine if a hawk ate the poison! Think of the hawks!" I nodded, still processing...
Life at the AG's office
Posted on September 22, 2008Week 3 of my internship. Two things that are really different about the AG's office versus the firm:1. Especially because I'm in a criminal division, the AG's office is an arm of law enforcement. The AAGs may not do the same job, but they see themselves as essentially on the same team as the police and work with them closely...
Law school v. business school
Posted on September 18, 2008Yesterday in class I sat next to somebody I didn't know, a not infrequent occurrence these days. "Hi," he said. "How are you?"I was taken aback, until later in class when I looked over at his browser and saw that he was a business school student. Then I understood...
This is how we do it
Posted on September 13, 2008I get this all the time: "Wow, a baby and law school! How do you do it?"It surprises me when it comes from female attorneys, you know, people with actual jobs. I remind them that during law school you're only expected to be somewhere about three hours a day, and even then it's not the end of the world if you don't show up...
Sing after me
Posted on September 12, 2008I discovered this song on YouTube and have been singing it with K. We both love it. My favorite part is when I sing, "Be my echo," and he replies, "Echo, ego, aggo, I go." Just thought I'd share for other parents of music lovers. (There's a cute intro, but the actual song starts at around 1:28...
My last semester
Posted on September 08, 2008Here's the lineup:1. Taxation and Regulation of Nonprofits. More tax. Bring it on.2. Internet law seminar. Professor supplied food at the first class. Readings are both light and interesting. Promises to be an engaging course.3. Professional Services, a business-school style class about how professional services firms like law firms, consulting firms, and accounting firms are run...
We have a new baby!
Posted on September 07, 2008That's the collective "we." Congratulations to Cee, who has a beautiful new boy!
Political rant time
Posted on September 04, 2008Indulge me. Or skip it. Either one.Two statements made during this campaign keep echoing in my head. Both, to my mind, explain the difference between Democrats and Republicans.One is from just last night: Sarah Palin's little dig at Obama. "I guess a small-town mayor is sort of like a 'community organizer,' except that you have actual responsibilities...
Last first day
Posted on September 03, 2008I keep thinking I see people I know, and then realizing it can't be them because they graduated and moved away.I went to my first class, which I was thinking I probably would drop, and loved it. But taking it would mean I have 5 classes plus a clinical -- 15 credits, the maximum load...
18 months
Posted on September 01, 2008Dear K,You are a year and a half old! And you are a wonderful little boy, funny and curious and charming.This weekend you had a visit from your Aunt CT. You took to her immediately. Usually you take a few minutes to warm up, even with close relatives...
The sort-of ideal schedule
Posted on August 28, 2008For my only week of true vacation -- no work, no school -- I've been sending K to daycare for half-days. I hang out with him all morning, drop him off for lunch and his long afternoon nap, and then pick him up early and take him to the park. It's perfect...
6 years
Posted on August 24, 2008Or 11, if you count from when we started dating.Quoth JW: "The state of the marriage is strong. We must remain united against the baby." (General applause.)Happy anniversary, JW!
Dog catcher
Posted on August 21, 2008I trekked out to the law school gym for an afternoon yoga class, which turned out to be cancelled. I planned to substitute a home workout, but then I started doing some work I'd been putting off and decided that was more important.After an hour or so of research and typing, I hear some shuffling outside the door...
Hey apple
Posted on August 20, 2008I am the last person to be giving out fashion advice, cf. the preceding posts. But every once in a while I see something so egregious, like a sixty-year old woman squeezed into those Juicy shorts, that I think, somebody should say something to her. Not me...
Closet cleanout
Posted on August 20, 2008At the beginning of the summer, I folded and put away my sweaters, lugged the summer clothes upstairs, and separated the maternity clothes from the pre-pregnancy clothes. Then I ran out of time and shoved everything into drawers, figuring I'd sort it out tomorrow...
New dresses
Posted on August 18, 2008I have not been feeling good about my appearance lately. I've been feeling flabby and out of shape, but scared of starting a new exercise routine because it seems like I get injured every time I make a move. I've been pulling on the same black T-shirt and shorts every day -- why bother getting dressed when I'm just going to end up covered in drool, snot, and wet cracker crumbs...
Playing Mommy
Posted on August 14, 2008While straightening up the basement, I found an empty pocketbook that I meant to bring upstairs. K grabbed it from me, put it on his shoulder, and started walking around. Cute, I thought. Then he came over and proffered his face for a kiss, saying, "MMMWAH...
I blame Lifetime
Posted on August 13, 2008I used to work out with Denise Austin every day for years. I loved her combination of yoga, pilates, aerobics, and strength training. I loved her short segments that I could mix and match into my own personalized workout, thanks to TiVo. I even loved her little sayings and jokes that she would repeat every show as if she had just thought of them off the top of her head, like, "Let's make that gluteus maximus our gluteus minimus! Ha ha!" and "Squeeze that butt! If you don't, no one else will! Just Kidding!"Since her shows on Lifetime were cancelled a few months ago, I have been neglecting my workouts...
Last August of law school
Posted on August 12, 2008It's August. I shouldn't feel stressed. But I actually can't sleep. I overcommitted this summer, big time.Here's the tally: 80 hours for a professor. 10 hours a week for mediation. Another 15 hours or so of stuff for student organizations. Over four weeks, that's a total of 135 hours of stuff I need to do...
Vacation, all I ever wanted
Posted on August 08, 2008This seems to be my new vacation pattern: clean my house like crazy, then hurt my ankle so that I'm confined to the couch. What is wrong with me? At least I didn't sprain it like in June. But you'd think I would have learned my lesson and tried to do something fun while I was up and about...
Goodbye old friend
Posted on August 06, 2008We threw out our "dining room" rug today. (We don't actually have a room, just a corner at the edge of the kitchen.) It wasn't a particularly nice rug, but it predated our relationship. JW bought it for twenty bucks at Target during college. It followed us from dorm room to apartment to house, where it finally succumbed to a full year of toddler abuse...
He recognizes Elmo
Posted on July 28, 2008Usually, when I drop off K at daycare, I hand him over at the door, kiss him goodbye, and leave. But this morning the backup assistant was there alone, and she had her hands full of babies, so she asked me to bring him into the playroom. (Bad move. He thought I was staying, and freaked out when I left...
17 months, almost
Posted on July 22, 2008Dear K,I hardly know where to begin. You've changed and learned so much since the last time I wrote.You're talking a lot these days. Your favorite word is "No," which it took me a few days to realize you don't always mean. I've been trying to teach you "yes," and I think it's starting to catch on...
HLS waitlists and course capacities
Posted on July 16, 2008The Registrar sent out a table listing the number of enrolled and waitlisted students for each fall class today. In case anybody stumbles across this blog who's thinking about attending Harvard Law, I thought you might find this interesting. It gives you an idea of not only the courses offered, but also which courses and professors are popular and which classes are easy or hard to get into.
Got my kid back
Posted on July 16, 2008Let's recap:Thursday: JW picked up K two hours early; Mrs. Daycare called to say he had a fever.Friday: I stayed home with feverish K.Saturday, Sunday, Monday: Miserable baby. Lots of yelling, little sleeping.Tuesday: K coughed all night and woke up covered in snot...
Summer associate, take 3
Posted on June 12, 2008Summer job is nearly 30% over. One thing I love: I have a job that requires me to go the library, which is in the building, on a near-daily basis. One thing I hate: They installed enormous new printers, which I can only reach on tiptoes if the printer is pushed all the way against the desk...
Aunt-to-be
Posted on June 11, 2008My phone rang at 6:45 a.m. "What do contractions feel like?" groaned my sister-in-law. "Sounds like you already know," I replied.My brother called this evening asking about natural childbirth tips. "Don't you have any breathing techniques or anything?" "It's a little late for that!" I told them both to just hang in there and it would all be over soon...
Commencement
Posted on June 05, 2008I Commenced. It was okay. The morning university ceremony was long and cold and dull. The lunch law school ceremony was casual. I sat with my family and cut up chicken for K, lined up when it was my turn, walked across the stage to get my empty Harvard Law folder, returned my gown and hood, and went home...
Got no class
Posted on June 04, 2008Today was Class Day. I missed half of it. I didn't get a lot of the emails about commencement, since I'm no longer officially a member of the Class of '08, so I didn't realize this was the day our commencement speaker would speak. I was looking forward to hearing him, too...
Reading roundup
Posted on June 02, 2008I haven't done one of these in a while. Partly because during the schoolyear, I rarely read anything that doesn't have to do with either law or babies.Currently reading: Divisadero by Michael Ondaatje. Not liking it all that much.Books I've read recently:Palace of Illusions by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni...
Our day
Posted on June 01, 2008Today I got to sleep in while JW got up with K. I was happy to put on my clothes and go to the bathroom in peace. In the morning I pushed K around the neighborhood in his blue car. We were going to go to the playground, but the weird lady who pushes a shopping cart around the neighborhood was there...
Baby passport
Posted on June 01, 2008How to get a passport for K:Download and fill out application, Form DS-11.Bring:Certified birth certificate;My driver's license;Notarized Form DS-3053, saying JW consents; andTwo passport pictures of K.Show up in person at the passport acceptance facility (post office) with K...
What I did on my summer vacation, part I
Posted on May 28, 2008Part I of my vacation, that is. Part II will be in August.I cleaned and did laundry.I went to the gym.I sprained my ankle and spent the next three days on the couch.I read lots of books, made some progress on the Rubik's cube, and learned how to fold an origami duck and penguin...
The latest book meme
Posted on May 27, 2008Borrowed from E. McPan. These are the top 106 books tagged "unread" at LibraryThing.Bold the ones you?ve read, underline the ones you read for school (I didn't do this), and italicize the ones you started but didn?t finish. I am a little shocked by how many of these I started but never finished...
Early bar prep thoughts
Posted on May 22, 2008I'm not taking the bar until next summer, thanks to a lovely university-wide policy that restricts official graduation dates to March, June, or November, rendering me ineligible for the February bar. But I'm thinking about it now because at the end of the summer, I'll have to talk with my firm about taking time off for the bar...
The aftermath of marriage
Posted on May 21, 2008I started writing this impromptu series about setups, arranged marriages, my relationship with JW, and how our families handled it after reading a short story (PDF) about a young Indian-American woman reacting to her friend's setup. I kept writing because I realized all of these stories happened so long ago that I rarely think about them anymore...
A tale of two geeks
Posted on May 20, 2008JW and I met in the spring of our senior year of high school. We had both come off bad breakups and ended up in the same tattoo shop one night. JW's friends had convinced him that this was how he would get over her. It started out as a joke, but as they got more drunk, they started believing they were serious...
Setups I have known
Posted on May 19, 2008Thinking back over the many weddings I have attended within my Indian community, I can only think of two other people who married someone non-Indian. Out of the others, I'm not sure how many were setups. I can think of five that definitely were. Two of those ended in divorce...
The other side of the family
Posted on May 18, 2008I mentioned that it took my parents a little while to get used to the idea of me and JW. His family, on the other hand, welcomed me with open arms. His high school girlfriend had been a picky vegetarian, and when his mom asked me what I ate and I said, "Everything," I thought she would weep...
A suitable boy, part three
Posted on May 17, 2008My parents disapproved of my relationship with JW for a while. At first, it was because he wasn't Indian. But I think they got over that pretty quickly. The problem was that we were dating.You probably know that arranged marriages are traditional in Indian culture...
A suitable boy, part two
Posted on May 16, 2008During college, I was at somebody or other's graduation party or sweet sixteen, one of those Indian parties that are always at the same restaurant with the same people, talking to a friend. She dropped her voice. "You know what your mom said to my mom?" she said...
Somebody else's life
Posted on May 15, 2008I wrote this during finals and never posted it...I have no time to read for fun. I have way too much work to do.Well, maybe I can sneak in a short story here and there. I picked up Karma and Other Stories by Rishi Reddi and the story I read today is about a 22-year old girl named Lata who is a bit of a rebel in her Indian community...
Vacation
Posted on May 14, 2008I have two weeks off in between the end of finals and my summer job starting. I planned a whole list of things to do, some fun, some necessary. Today, for instance, I was going to run some errands near JW's office, then have a lunch date with him, and then take K to the Audubon wildlife trails nearby...
Finally
Posted on May 10, 2008After handing in my take-home final today, I stayed at school for three more hours editing the final paper for my clinical. Then I sped home, packed up the car and K, and drove to my parents' place in New York, where I took out my laptop and continued typing away...
Insult to injury
Posted on May 09, 2008JW: ... and he gave her syphilis.Me: If you ever give me syphilis, I'll divorce you. Deal?JW: What if I get it from a toilet seat?Me: That must be one disgusting toilet seat.JW: It was.Me: It's bad enough if your spouse is cheating. You might be able to forgive that...
Small K moments
Posted on May 07, 2008We've been trying to teach K not to throw food on the floor. Today at dinner, every time he didn't want something, he handed it to me. I was proud of him. He did fling a piece of pasta across the table, but I'll give him one freebie. Besides, it didn't hit the ground...
Firm advice
Posted on May 05, 2008On the last day of my Legal Profession class, the professor stuck around afterwards and bought us pizza. I had been meaning to get to office hours all semester, but somehow it never happened, so I was glad to have a chance to ask him my burning question: was I completely naive to believe the things that my firm has been telling me? That I'll be able to balance work with my outside life, that I'll do lots of pro bono and have plenty of mentoring and training opportunities? We spent several weeks discussing how large law firms work, and I often left class feeling grim...
Timing
Posted on May 04, 2008JW and I were talking about timing for a second kid. I realized that if I got pregnant again today, our kids would be two years apart. Two years sounds like a fairly long time, but when you factor in the length of pregnancy, your kid turns one in the blink of an eye and suddenly you're starting over...
Overheard at the coffee shop
Posted on May 03, 2008First guy: Here is your coffee.Second guy: Thank you.Third guy: I went ____ plane ___.First guy: Yes, __________.Second guy: You ____ was okay, but _____.Third guy: Ha! Ha!Second guy: Japanese people, Chinese people, and Korean people ____.Third guy: I think ______ different...
Study groups
Posted on May 02, 2008The other day I had a fantastic study session with just the right balance between laughing and getting work done, and learning from the people I was studying with and being able to contribute.Yesterday I did not. Guy #1 showed up late, said he didn't feel well, and went home...
3L roundup
Posted on April 25, 2008Other than the occasional reference to the Internal Revenue Code, I don't think I've posted about my classes at all this semester. In honor of the very last day of class, here's a summary.Corporate Tax kicked my ass.Legal Writing. I thought it would take up lots of my time and be a chance to seriously work on my writing...
Almost 14 months
Posted on April 24, 2008Dear K,Over the baby monitor, I can hear the telltale thumping noises that mean you're jumping in your crib. You threw so much food over your tray at dinner. We've been trying to teach you not to do that, and you know now that you're not supposed to. I'll give you the benefit of the doubt and say that sometimes you forget...
Resistance is futile
Posted on April 23, 2008I never got around to publishing it, but I had a post half-written entitled "Why I'm Not on F***book."1L year I joined F***book because people in my section kept telling me about pictures they had posted there. I joined. I saw lots of pictures of drunk people...
Flashcards
Posted on April 22, 2008I have written before of my love for flashcards. Last semester, in JW I found a tax flashcard soulmate, with whom to study cards and to speak fondly of the cards we had studied. I was upset to discover that Law in a Flash for Corporate Tax does not exist...
Thirty, part 2
Posted on April 14, 2008A friend who shares my birthday called and asked, "How do you feel about turning thirty?""I didn't think it would be a big deal," I said. "I thought having a kid would be the big milestone in my life. But my birthday has actually made me reflect about where I am in my life and where I want to be...
Non-contingency
Posted on April 13, 2008Last night I dreamed that JW and I moved across the country, went to grad school and got jobs, and planned our lives around each other. Just like we did in real life. But in my dream, we didn't get married. We broke up. I felt completely at sea. I had no idea what to do with myself...
Monster
Posted on April 12, 2008I never watch commercials. I have TiVo.But this one is so brilliant I feel compelled to share.
K in his natural habitat
Posted on April 11, 2008He's not doing anything particularly exciting -- this is just a short video I happened to take.
Liveblogging 30
Posted on April 11, 2008I wake up at 5:20 for absolutely no reason. K has been waking up really early since JW has been gone, but today he is following my birthday instructions and sleeping in. Still, I'm wide awake and decide to have some me-time before he wakes up.I look at myself in the mirror...
T minus one day
Posted on April 10, 2008Tomorrow JW is coming back from his business trip. K misses him, I think -- he's been waking up at night crying. My classes end at noon and as a birthday treat, I have planned a guilt-free afternoon of lounging, browsing in Harvard Square, nibbling on mice, and reading the book I've had out from the library for the past month and have barely made a dent in...
Time is on my side
Posted on April 08, 2008Citations wrote this comment on LL's post about a moment of wondering whether it was a mistake to have kids:And of course it wasn't a mistake at all. It is, though, a sweet day when you look at each other and realize that soon it will be just the two of you again, and you're still young enough to enjoy it...
Always be my baby
Posted on April 06, 2008Growing up, it used to drive me crazy when my parents treated me like I was the same person at 15 that I had been at 8. I hated it when they would say to someone, "She loves X," when in fact I didn't like X at all, or when they would tell my teenage self, "Be careful, you always break the glasses," in reference to a butterfingers phase I had gone through years earlier...
Yip, yip says the baby coyote
Posted on April 05, 2008Dear K,When you're old enough to read this, I hope you'll forgive me. But I'm really glad it's the 21st century and I can have a career of my own, because if my biggest intellectual achievement every day was reading you "Baby Animals of the Southwest" seventeen times in a row, I think I would have to throw myself out the nearest window...
Bob, bob, bob
Posted on April 04, 2008K has been saying "bah" for bus (which I count as his first word) and "cah" for car and "cuh" for cup and a few other half-words here and there. Today he said his first honest-to-goodness word that he could fully pronounce. It was "Bob."As in Bob Greene, Oprah's personal trainer...
Starting to feel at home
Posted on April 03, 2008I have been going to the gym!My reading-on-the-treadmill strategy has worked out well so far. In fact, when I have reading to do, I WANT to go to the gym because it's more efficient than sitting on the couch -- I don't get drowsy and I'm not tempted to jump up every five minutes and check my email...
Baby monitor
Posted on March 31, 2008Since we let K cry it out when he was about 10 months old, he's been nearly a perfect sleeper. 11 hours, no fuss. But tonight he screamed at midnight. He calmed down after a minute or two, and then started back up again. After a little while, I went in and gave him a pacifier...
Return from the South
Posted on March 31, 2008Highlights of the family vacation:* K learned how to walk!! Like crawling, he progressed gradually with walking -- he's been standing up on his own for months and cruising for even longer, and for a while he's been willing to take one step in between holding on to things...
Party like it's...
Posted on March 20, 2008I just sent out invitations to my birthday party. Normally I am paranoid about throwing parties because I worry that no one will come, and that if they do come they will be bored. I am even more paranoid about using Evite because then everyone can see that only two of the ninety people I invited said yes...
Plum
Posted on March 18, 2008I was eating a plum. JW came up and stood next to me and stared at it until I gave him a piece. He dropped it on the floor, then picked it up and ate it. He kept pointing and grunting for more. When I didn't give him pieces fast enough, he tried to grab the entire plum and lick it...
Why married guys are hot
Posted on March 16, 2008Roonie (welcome back!) confesses her crushes on friends' husbands.Of course you have crushes on your friends' husbands. Look at it this way. You meet a guy in a bar. He's cute, smart, and funny, and he seems into you. But you still think twice before handing over your number: what if he doesn't call like he says he will? If he does follow through, are you willing to let him break your heart?Now think about your friend's husband...
Journey to a foreign land
Posted on March 15, 2008I keep thinking I should get back to my old workout routine. Wake up at 6:30, work out for about an hour, shower, get dressed, head out for the day.But realistically, this is my morning: wake up to crying baby at 6 a.m. if I'm lucky; entertain, feed, change, dress baby; try to find clean shirt and run to school...
Love at the Lexis session
Posted on March 14, 2008Yesterday the guy sitting next to me at the Lexis session started chatting me up. I thought he was just being unusually friendly until he asked, "What are you doing tonight?" I said, "I'm going home to my kid."You know that feeling of infinite possibility you have when you're single? I have been married for five and a half years...
More things
Posted on March 13, 2008K's new favorite toy is a school bus with a toy driver (Ralph) and a little girl to ride in it. It comes with a book about a boy who rides the bus on his first day of school. He wanted to read the book, but I couldn't find Ralph. "Where's Ralph?" I asked him...
Things
Posted on March 12, 2008My current favorite K book is "One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish."I have no memory of reading this book when I was a kid. I must have read it, but when I picked it up recently it was completely unfamiliar. (It's not now. I have it memorized.) It's about all the pets that go by...
Faith in politicians
Posted on March 11, 2008Lots of commentary, unsurprisingly, on Spitzer. I find it pretty unbelievable. (Then again, Buddy Cianci also ran as the anti-corruption candidate.)I didn't have a huge emotional attachment to Spitzer, but I did buy the hype about a tough, highly ethical politician who wasn't afraid to take on the bad guys wherever he found them...
Fridge-poking friends
Posted on March 11, 2008JW and I have been living here for a while now. We have friends, who we invite over for dinner and meet for brunch. (Now that I think about it, we rarely seem to do any other friend activities, maybe because we don't want to subject them to kid stuff and we can't do any adult stuff...
53 weeks
Posted on March 10, 2008Dear K,You are ONE. People call newborns "little bundles of joy," but that term describes you much better right now. You are always ready to laugh, play, and explore. I keep reading toddler books that talk about how to deal with your difficult child. You're about as far from a difficult child as you can get...
Procrastinating
Posted on March 09, 2008I have been good this semester. I've been spending most of my non-K, non-JW, non-household minutes studying. Even so, I'm just keeping up -- no outlining for me.But tonight I am not being good. I'm not being productive. I'm not even doing anything fun...
Happy birthday, K!
Posted on March 05, 2008We were trying to plan out K's nap schedule and decide accordingly when we should drive to Great-Grandma's house in the Bronx for the party. "Who are we kidding?" I said. "He'll nap for twenty minutes in the morning, refuse to go down at all in the afternoon, and have a meltdown five minutes after everybody shows up...
12-month doctor's appointment
Posted on March 04, 2008Quick recap: 15-20th percentile in both weight and height. Sounds about right for our family.Time to start drinking whole milk instead of formula. The doctor said we could finish the formula we have, or start doing half-milk, half-formula. He said there's no need to wean to a cup until about 15 months and then we can do it gradually, switching out one bottle a day at first...
Bus adventures
Posted on February 27, 2008I have been taking the bus a lot lately.Yesterday I went to see PBB and Becca! Becca was asleep the whole time but I got to hear some adorable newborn noises. Newborn-land is like New York City -- I love to visit, but I'm glad I don't live there.Today I went to pick up the car...
Duck, duck, duck, cake
Posted on February 25, 2008Another week gone by, no time to blog. I was hoping to at least post a picture of K's second Mommy-inflicted haircut. The first, right around Thanksgiving, was too short but arguably decent. This one is completely uneven and looks as though I snipped away haphazardly while he was distracted by his duck in the tub, which not coincidentally is true...
(Not) Graduating
Posted on February 17, 2008The other day a friend said something about graduation. "I don't think I'm going," I said. "It would be fun to see everybody, but I'm not graduating and I'll have already started my summer job." (Hahvahd does not deign to work with the schedules of peasants...
A taxing Valentine's Day
Posted on February 15, 2008Nothing like calling a V-Day time-out so you can read about the different ways of structuring a corporate liquidation.Ooh, baby. I love it when you step up that basis. Step it up. Step it up to FMV. Yesss.It's been a busy week with lots to say but no time to blog...
As such
Posted on February 08, 2008From the BHA home page:The Boston Housing Authority is the largest landlord in Boston and the largest public housing authority in New England. As such, the BHA houses approximately 10 percent of the city's residents through its programs.This is the first time in MONTHS, maybe more, that I've seen "as such" used correctly...
Tiny adventures in baby development
Posted on February 06, 2008A few small, non-milestone things that K has been up to:* Head-shaking. K sometimes looks at me seriously and shakes his head. (I don't think he's saying "no." He may be saying something, but I don't know what.) I can't resist mirroring his expression and shaking my head back...
Super Tuesday quote of the day
Posted on February 05, 2008Straight out of a movie: on our way to the polls, we saw a police officer walking down the hall with a young African-American boy. As they passed us, we heard the officer say, "If you keep doing well in school, I don't see why you couldn't be president one day...
Snacktime takeover
Posted on February 03, 2008I'm a big boy. I can feed myself!Ten minutes later I was still wiping yogurt out of his hair.
Applicants
Posted on January 31, 2008I've been talking to two types of applicants lately: high school seniors applying to college, and people applying to my student organization. Just so I can get it out of my system, here's the advice I wish I could give them. Of course, it won't do them any good here...
Almost-11-month update
Posted on January 29, 2008What K has been up to:Drinking. Last week he learned how to drink from a sippy cup by himself.Eating. All manner of things, including dalya (an Indian dish of cracked wheat, lentils, and vegetables), spinach casserole, and quiche. Last night I made him a scrambled egg with broccoli and cheese for dinner, and he had strawberries for dessert...
Fall grades
Posted on January 23, 2008I want not to care. But my grades matter to me. I feel like I'm not earning money and this is my job now, so I should at least do well in school. (I know, already have a job, but that's not why I care.) Tax: B+. Bummed, thought I did well on that final and that I really knew the material...
$160,000
Posted on January 22, 2008Over at Ms. JD, a first-year biglaw associate discusses a meeting with law firm partners about work-life balance. The partners' view was basically, "Your starting salary is obscene, so don't complain to me about balance."To me, the most interesting part of the post is that she describes law firm partners as "angry" about the ever-increasing first-year associate salaries...
Book review: The Power of a Positive No
Posted on January 20, 2008I reviewed Getting to Yes a few years ago. The Power of a Positive No is by one of the same authors, William Ury. He refers to this book as a "prequel" because it discusses ways to assert yourself and protect your own interests, while Getting to Yes and its companion volume Getting Past No focus more on the other side in a negotiation...
Girls 2, boys 0
Posted on January 17, 2008It's college interview season. I had four interviews to schedule, two with girls and two with boys. I'm always interested to hear the reaction when I first call up -- is it excitement, trepidation, or "I already filled out the stupid applications, is this lady STILL trying to make me think about college?"The two girls I called were enthusiastic and polite...
Not an infant, not yet a toddler
Posted on January 16, 2008Lately K has been protesting when we stop him from, say, eating a giant dustbunny off the bottom of an overturned footstool. But today was the first full-out display of toddlerish willfulness. I had his dinner all ready: spaghetti with tomato sauce, green beans, and tofu, with grapes for dessert...
Things I found myself saying more than once today
Posted on January 14, 20081. "How did this get sticky?"2. "No, sweetie, don't lick the toilet!"3. "See that white stuff? That's snow."
The pitch
Posted on January 11, 2008Over the past week, we've been developing business ideas in my Venture Capital and the Technology Startup class. Today we had actual VCs come in and hear our pitches. Afterwards, our VC told me that he had a very similar idea pitched to him a few months ago, and our pitch was ten times better...
10 months
Posted on January 04, 2008Dear K,Recently we got together with friends who we haven't seen in months. Their baby, who is two months older than you, had developed a ruglike head of hair since I had last seen him. His mom kept exclaiming that you look so different now. Really? I didn't think so...
I love winter term
Posted on January 03, 2008Three weeks. One class. I get to devote my full brain to only ONE thing for three lovely weeks. Can we always have winter term?Last winter I took Negotiation Workshop. I thought I would pick up valuable career skills, and I did. I also got to take a hard look at how I communicate and present myself, learned strategies for improving, and gained confidence that I can get what I need without having to transform my personality...
Happy New Year!
Posted on January 01, 20082007 was life-changing and wonderful. 2008 will bring K's first birthday and my thirtieth; a new baby cousin for K; a taste of juggling work and family; and the end of law school, possibly accompanied by a long trip to India. Big year.My resolution is to make a new 101 in 1001 list (although it may be more like 30 in 365)...
Merry Christmas Eve
Posted on December 24, 2007Dispatch from the in-laws': K has a bad cough and is getting over a bout with diarrhea. Poor baby. He has been sleeping tons and barely eating. Our traditional Christmas Eve dinner is off because their grandkids are even worse off -- one just returned from the hospital after having pneumonia and now the other is sick...
Curtains for 2L
Posted on December 20, 2007Whew. Done with my IP final. I don't think he'll be begging me to cowrite his next book, but it wasn't a complete bloodbath. I finished up early, in contrast to last week, when I was sprinting for the exam turn-in room at exactly 4:29. I had time to sell back my Con Law book, trudge through the Yard, hop a bus home, shovel the driveway, and still pick up K on time (thanks to fluffy snow and a neighbor with a snowblower who cleared the scraper bank for me)...
3L paper... And there was much rejoicing
Posted on December 19, 2007We got email from the Dean today announcing changes to the written work policy.Harvard only has two real requirements for graduation, aside from completing 1L and taking the requisite number of credits. One is the astoundingly easy to meet pro bono requirement...
Capital losses can only be deducted against ordinary income up to $3,000 per year
Posted on December 18, 2007I had a heck of a time getting to my Tax final. I drove to school, only to find that the former street parking spots had turned into giant piles of snow. All the cars were either plowed in or were giant SUVs parked on top of the giant piles of snow. I turned around, went home, chased a bus down the street, caught the next bus, walked to school from Harvard Square...
Why I love my father
Posted on December 13, 2007Last weekHim: What do you want for Christmas?Me: I could really use some nice woolen socks.Him: Woolen socks? What are you, a house-elf?Last nightMy mother: What do you want for Christmas?My father: She said she wanted socks.Her: Socks?? That's not a gift...
One down, two to go
Posted on December 12, 2007Took my first final yesterday. Hours allotted: 8Hours I needed: 9.5Page limit: 10Pages written: 8What I brought to eat: An apple, an orange, nuts, and cheeseWhat I actually ate: Cheese, a donut, two cookies and a hamburgerLeast useful note I took on my first pass through: Brown...
9 month appointment
Posted on December 10, 2007Height: 28 inches. ("You're tall!" I said to K. "He's not a giant," observed the doctor.) 40th percentile.Weight: 19 pounds. Down to the 25th percentile. Gained 2 1/2 pounds since the last appointment, so the doctor said it was fine.Head: I forget the percentage, but big head...
She'll have to change the name of her blog
Posted on December 08, 2007Congratulations to Proto Attorney (who has posted FOUR TIMES in the past two days, pausing in between to give birth)!
Study tip: Law in a Flash!
Posted on December 06, 2007"Are those flashcards?" someone said to me the other day. "I used to use flashcards all the time. I haven't seen anyone using them in forever!" another person chimed in. "I wish I was organized enough to make flashcards," said a third person. "Did you type those?"Are you kidding me? Law in a Flash, people! I have used these for practically every class, plus the MPRE...
My Wednesday
Posted on December 05, 2007Woke up with K, did the normal baby morning things.Left early to go to a PON forum. Russell Korobkin talked about a study he conducted where first-year law students did a mock settlement negotiation. He was trying to figure out what influenced the result in a controlled environment where neither person had any negotiation experience or training...
Standup baby
Posted on December 03, 2007K is STANDING UP! Not holding on to anything. All by himself! He can only stand for a couple of seconds, but he is up on his own. He squats on his hands and feet, slowly rises into the air, and then waves his arms around until he collapses back down agan...
Women in Law book club: Nice Girls Don't Get the Corner Office by Lois Frankel
Posted on December 01, 2007PTLawMom came up with the idea for this book club after a discussion about whether women need to act like men to succeed in the workplace. Lois Frankel sidesteps this question by telling her readers to "quit bein' a girl." PTLawMom found this patronizing, but I like it: she's not talking about being someone we're not (a man), but instead telling us to act like the adults we are...
Ham
Posted on November 30, 2007We were talking with friends about how we would describe our babies' personalities. I said K was playful and curious. JW added, "He's a ham." K has discovered that cocking his head makes strangers coo and do it back to him. He now does this to everyone he meets...
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