Law Students

Crazy Train

By Andrea

Aie! Aie! Aie!

This was kind of a lot to handle at the end of a week.

On Wednesday I had the most stress-inducing court hearing I could fathom, in which my client was running late on her trek from Providence, RI, and we had to deploy an intern who didn't speak her language to the bus station to pick her up, throw her in a taxi, and rush her into the courtroom. This is because if you are one minute late to immigration court and they call your name, depending on how small and black the judge's heart is, you can theoretically get deported in absentia. BAD. She made it and slid into the row next to me with tears in her eyes. And then they called us first.

Of course, I had just gotten over a separate freakout because when I got to court, for complicated reasons, I thought I might be at the wrong hearing and it was actually the day before, and I had a brief daydream about getting fired for getting my client deported. But then that one worked out too.

On top of that, I had been dreading this hearing for weeks because I figured I was going to get yelled at for trying to move this hearing date so I could actually attend my client's asylum hearing. Except for some reason that I have not yet figured out, the judge acted like it was no biggie and gave me two more weeks. I grabbed that hearing notice and booked it out of there before he changed his mind. I am told my pitch to him was very good, which I hoped it would be since I practiced it in the bathroom that morning.

Thursday was an all day jail visit, which was like it always is, but more so. Meaning: Getting lost on the drive. Crappy weather. Giving lots of bad news and a few crumbs of hope. Also, I talked to not one, but four Portuguese speakers, which was entertaining, since they seemed to understand me (speaking Spanish), but I was barely following them. Anyone know a nice CD language series with phrases like, "What sentence did you get for that conviction?" and "When did your tourist visa expire?"

Also, Becca has had a nasty cold this whole time, complete with mild fevers and a little throwing up, just to add excitement.

Then my mom showed up, and today, after battling some epic Boston traffic (rain + roadwork = no)  I got sworn in as an attorney. It was nice, but long, and I already heard everything 2 years ago when Dan went through this, so I wasn't exactly caught up in the magic. But, yay. I can sue people.

I will spend tonight lying face down on the couch, and tomorrow driving around with Mom while she does mom stuff like buy us towels that aren't 10 years old and scratchy like Dan after 3 days without a shave. Sounds nice.

Full post as published by Peanut Butter Burrito on December 12, 2008 (boomark / email).