bring it on, bring it on, yeah

Oh, and while I'm thinking about it, I watched the season premiere of Veronica Mars at tv.msn.com at, um, school today. It requires Internet Explorer (....), so rather than go through the hassle of connecting one of my old PCs to the internet, I took a pair of headphones and used one of the (snazzy new) computers in the Lexis Lab. While I know better than to spoil things for those amongst you who watch the show (which should be ALL OF YOU, boys included, because what's not to like about a hot blonde girl who kicks ass and solves crimes?), I will say that I'm so glad to have the characters back again, but I worry that it's not enough to snag those folks out there who aren't already fans. I mean, the Keith storyline confused me and I haven't missed a single episode of this darn show (I'm hoping the TWoP recap will enlighten me). Oh, well--my fingers are crossed. If woxy can experience rebirth, why not our beloved Veronica on her spiffy new network, eh?

sunshine and chocolate

I just got brownies in the mail! From a law firm! Brownies by mail! I realize they probably do this for everyone, and I shudder to think what their recruitment budgets are (I remember chipping in to buy brownies-by-mail for my college suitemate five years ago, and they were Not Cheap), but boy, do I feel special. And with NALP deadlines for holding offers open fast approaching, I'm going to have to start paring my list of firms down, but this process becomes all the more difficult when there's chocolate involved. Brownies! Wow. I could really get used to this whole being-recruited thing.

in a/v club and glee club and even the chess team

So, I posted this on our group blog, but since I've watched it, oh, seven times in the last 24 hours, I feel compelled to post about it here, as well. Go on, check it out--it's pretty much the best video ever made.

in your own world

It's been awhile since I posted about music, which sucks, because that was one of the primary intents behind this blog initially. And having just heard really, really fantastic sample tracks from the new Joseph Arthur and Now It's Overhead albums, I felt obliged to point you guys in that general direction and say, "Go! Go and get!" Joseph Arthur is just all-around amazing, both as musical collaborator and as musician in his own right, so I'm really excited to hear more of his new stuff. I have a soft spot in my heart for Now It's Overhead, though, as it's thanks to them that I saw R.E.M. a second time--for free! on a guest list!--so I'm happy to endorse their new album without reservation. They sound more mature--there are more layers to their songs, but they still retain the haunting musical aesthetic that I associate with Andy LeMaster's work. Both albums are out now, so nothing's stopping you from getting them IMMEDIATELY. Go. Shoo.

Back so soon? Well, I realized that I never wrote about the end of woxy's broadcasts, but maybe that's for the best, as Bill Nguyen is in talks with the owners to resurrect it. Woxy's a phoenix, no doubt. It would be amazing if things work out to keep it afloat, but I'm not getting my hopes up until the audio stream is online again.

Now, if you'll pardon me, I have a journal outline to finish (narrgh) and a burgeoning head cold to nurse. *snif*

don't know when I'll be back again

Another first: blogging from the airport. Five hours ago I balked at the thought of paying $8 for wi fi here at LaGuardia; however, now that my plane has been delayed from 6:45 until 10:30 (and we'll probably sit on the runway for a couple of hours before we're allowed to take off, since every other flight out of Chicago this evening has done so), the $8 seems like money well spent. At this point, I'm hoping my stupid flight home doesn't turn into a red eye, for crying out loud.

More pressingly, however, there's a little grey mouse running around the empty concourse. The floor's pretty gross--lots of food debris, ergo lots of good pickins for the little fella--and he's so skittish. He's probably not long for this world, but maybe he's a fighter. I'd probably be freaked if he were in my apartment, but in this big, empty airport terminal, I don't mind the company. You keep on truckin', li'l brudder. Keep on truckin'.

the waiters are all stars

Greetings from NYC! I'm paying $12.95 for the privilege of having internet access in my room (grr), so I figured I may as well blog it up to make the most of it. I have an interview this afternoon--well, in an hour--so I can't stay long, but a conversation with a friend in the airport while wating for my plane to board got me thinking about the food I'm expensing to firms. With four interviews under my belt (though one was local, which means they got off really cheaply), I've sent in receipts for:
3 tall Starbucks Awake teas
2 Starbucks lowfat lemon muffins
1 Starbucks espresso brownie
2 Pretzel Time pretzels, one with cheddar cheese
1 lowfat cranberry muffin (possibly the best muffin I've had in recent memory)
1 ABP mediterranean salad (purchased outside the sterile zone, but the packet o' salad dressing was still allowed through the x-ray machines. SUSPICIOUS. Vinaigrette bombs are next, mark my words.)
...and assorted beverages (diet coke, vitamin water, etc.).

I was kind of worried that they'd take one look at my carb-heavy diet and deny me an offer simply on the basis of potentially-diabetes-related insurance costs, but it's really not as bad as I thought (though I foresee several more Awake teas and lemon muffins in my future). Also, since this hotel provides no free continental breakfast (boo--it's probably really gauche that I prefer Fairfield Inn and Suites to gussied-up places like this, but at least there the internet is free and the cereal is plentiful), I'm probably going to order up room service tomorrow morning. I think I've only had room service once in my life, and that was so long ago I'm fairly sure my age was still in single digits.

And a final food-related thought: I have a really difficult time sleeping on planes, partly because I have to be a vigilant ear-popper on ascent/descent, and that takes up a good hour of the flight. But more importantly, I just can't stand to miss out on my free drink and snack. Seriously. I will wake myself up if I hear the flight attendants rattling around on the cart nearby. Those Biscoff cookies or bbq soy nut snack packs will NOT pass me by, no sirree, even if it means curtailing some much-needed shut-eye.

(Oh, and I have two offers now. Hooray! Not only do I have a job, but I have a choice!)

loud and clear we all shout and cheer

I'm increasingly impressed at what a small world the internet really is.

See, in my efforts not to read this long article for my Supreme Court class tomorrow, I breezed by the 2 Skinnee J's message boards, as I do from time to time, just to see if there was anything new about the band's status. Instead, I find a link to this message board talking about "Nerdcore in '04" and how the Js were at the front of a movement (kind of). So I scroll down, and lo and behold, there I am. Er, I mean, there's a link to my website, in reference to the fact that I alerted friend Misch to their musical goodness via my college radio show. Crazy. Maybe not WHOA-unheard-of crazy, but weird enough.

And if you're looking for music to work out to, it doesn't get much better than Volumizer, really. I intend to make a kick-ass workout playlist for the 5k run I'm doing in two weeks (am I training? not so much. It'll be a big ol' character-building test of will), and "Horns of Destruction" is going to be front and center, no question.

maybe I'm crazy, maybe diminished

Things I can't deal with right now:

1) Comcast. I clearly spoke too soon last week when I was all elated at the repairman coming early. The LINE TECHNICIANS can't seem to get their act together, because my cable's still unwatchable, and I've spent an hour on the phone today trying to get that information through to someone on their end. FINALLY got a helpful person on the other end of the line who promised to call me tomorrow with more info, because their computer system is down right now. *headdesk* I just want to watch The Office without fuzz! Is that too much to ask? (NBC's the worst. The other channels aren't great, but NBC is absolutely unwatchable. Sigh.)

2) My bathtub. It keeps backing up, but not when I'm using it. Random times. And it's sewer water, so it smells like sewer and leaves little black hunks of stuff in the tub. I shudder to think what those little black hunks are. My whole apartment smells like sewer when this happens, and it's not pleasant and DEFINITELY not sanitary, and maintenance won't be back till monday, but it's SO GROSS AND I CAN'T DEAL WITH IT.

3) Laundry. Why can't it wash itself? I don't have three hours to spend messing with you tomorrow, Laundry, but I must, or I won't have shirts to wear to interviews, sheets to lie on, or towels to dry off with. Fie on you, laundry. Fie.
[See also (3a) Ironing--but we'll cross that complaint once the clothes are clean and dry, thanks.]

4) Snow Patrol. Damnit, your concert was supposed to be THREE MONTHS AGO, when I had TIME to go to concerts. I DO NOT WANT TO SPEND ALL NIGHT SEEING YOU TONIGHT, but I spent the money and I'm not missing it. I might have a (begrudgingly) good time. But I would be a lot happier if this were June 10, like it was supposed to be, rather than Sept. 16.

5) Dinner. I'm FREAKING HUNGRY which is probably why I'm so pissed off. Grrrrrrrowl.

joyful and triumphant

For once, I can honestly say that today was one of those good days that everyone blogs about now and again:

I got a job offer! hooray! Now I can proceed through the arduous callback process knowing that I've got SOMEplace to work (and a pretty darn nice place to work, too). I also had a really fun (seriously!) callback yesterday, so even if that offer doesn't come through, I met some supernice people and had a tasty meal. If only I knew how to make mushroom paella myself--I think I might eat it all the time. yum.

We were delayed on the tarmac at LaGuardia this morning (yeah, yeah, when AREN'T you delayed on the tarmac there), and traffic was HORRENDOUS on the way out of O'Hare, so I was really, really worried that I wouldn't get back in time to do my (videotaped!) 3pm negotiation with my classmate. The cab? Rolled up in front of school at 3:04pm. Nearly perfect. (Also, the negotiation went pretty well--I pretended I'd just flown in from a big meeting with a client. Heh heh. whooo. Anyway.)

And perhaps most importantly, today marks a year for The Boy and I! (Coincidentally, we aren't the only ones celebrating an anniversary today. Congrats, you two!) I honestly can't imagine struggling through the highs and lows of law student life without him, mostly because I only struggled through a very little bit of it before he came along. We're going out for tapas tonight to mark the occasion, which is good, because what better way to be festive than to enjoy some dates wrapped in bacon? mmm. bacon.

Tomorrow I research, I read, I write email and work the Lexis lab and get caught up, but I'm taking tonight off. I do believe I've earned it.

the clouds came tumbling down

So, I've said before I'm big on anniversaries. And I've felt, on past anniversaries of this treacherous day, that I genuinely had something to say, that I felt something that I needed to share.

It's odd, then, that today, I'm spent. I've got nothing.

I haven't watched any of the news recaps. I sure as hell didn't watch "The Path to 9/11." I felt no need to see United 93 or World Trade Center earlier this year. I haven't forgotten where I was that morning (German class), what I did that day (voted, under the clearest, emptiest blue sky), even whose music I listened to (Ben Folds), though the intense feelings I had initially have faded, as feelings tend to do. I do still get angry at times, still feel a twinge whenever I see an old photo with the towers spiraling over lower Manhattan, looking so stoic and constant.

But what can I say? We were never as safe as we thought we were, and we're probably not as safe as we think we are now. We re-elected a president who made a mess of our foreign policy in the wake of the tragedies. We accept regulation after regulation of our air travel, as though suffering these minor indignities will somehow atone for those four doomed aircraft on that bright September morning. We live in a different world, perhaps--but in many ways, it's the same world with the veil pulled back. I wish, as we all undoubtedly do, that our nation didn't have to suffer tragic loss to achieve such jaded understanding.

The worst part, though, the part that is keeping me from focusing much on the memories of today, is that I fear the way we've changed is exactly wrong. I worry that I'm not the only one who has lost the big picture, and that really, really frightens me. Saddens me. Drives me to think about other things, most of the time.

But right now, I'm thinking about five years ago, how I stayed up all night with the other Glee Club officers deliberating on our roster and our feelings. How I was lucky not to lose a loved one. How maybe, just maybe, the worst was over, but wondering if, really, the worst was yet to come.

Goodnight, America. Tomorrow's a new day. Tonight, we sleep.

honey in my chemicals

Another week, another hodgepodge post to make up for my lack of posting of late:

First off--go Comcast! Not only did my cable repairman show up early (which, I suppose, could be bad if I had anything to do other than sit around here all day), but he got the job done WITHOUT hitting on me the whole time, like last year's Comcast guy. More importantly, he told me that the cable problem is a "line issue" (meaning it's the entire 2nd/3rd floors of my building, not just my apt), so they're sending someone out to fix it either today or tomorrow. See, Creepy Cable Guy last year told me the same thing, but instead of offering to send someone out to fix the line, basically said, "Yep. Nothing I can do, you've just gotta live with it." Maybe if I'd agreed to go golfing with him (*eyeroll*), he would've stepped up... really, all I want is to be able to watch The Office's season premiere without fuzzy cable (NBC was the worst--bizarrely, the upper cable channels were fine. The Boy says it's because I'm the only person watching Bravo or Animal Planet. Har har).

In other news, I'm tired. No surprises there, but I fell asleep last night without washing my face or brushing my teeth, and I feel like my conscience woke me up every two hours as if to give me a shot at remedying the situation. But no, I rolled over and went back to sleep each time, and now I feel beat up. Fnurrr. I think I'm also still groggy from the 4:10 wakeup Thursday morn to get to my 7am flight to NYC, then turning around and flying back here that same evening. I need to recover faster from these callback trips, because I'm not going to have the freedom to spend the day sitting around watching Project Runway reruns and sipping diet berry Dr. Pepper for much longer. (Technically, I probably don't have that freedom right now, but whatever.) Speaking of, I missed the first ep of this season, so I taped it over Labor Day weekend and didn't get the chance to watch it till, well, right now. And some of the photos they used in the little montages to introduce Jeffrey and Uli were photos of them wearing the outfits they designed for themselves last week! Ok, so it's not such a big deal, but it's nothing I'd've noticed were I watching two months ago. (Also, I had no idea Jeffrey almost got kicked out on the first challenge. whoa.)

Re: the callback... I think it went fine, but looking back, I can tell that it was my first callback and absolutely have a couple of places in mind where I should've responded differently. Oh, well--with practice things should go more smoothly. My class schedule is settling into place, more or less, but there are still a couple things up in the air that need to get figured out by Wednesday. You know, lots of time, no problem. Sigh. And if I may voice a pet peeve? PLEASE please please please, people--if someone has emailed you or phoned you and left a message about a time-sensitive matter, GET BACK TO THEM. I am juggling far too many things right now to get bogged down because someone can't reply to an email or return a phone call. I'm a little less incensed about all of this than I was yesterday, as replies/responses have gradually trickled in (or, in some cases, I just said, "To hell with it," and moved on), but the point remains the same. I realize I need to have a little less of a visceral reaction to this in order to keep sane, particularly as I embark upon a legal career, but I've had about six or seven different variations of this same problem occur over the past four days, so I'm having a hard time being charitable about it.

Finally, is there a countdown special that Michael Ian Black doesn't participate in? WTF, man. I don't even know what I'm watching (Bravo's countdown of Best Sitcoms?), but there he is. I'm sure if I popped over to VH1 he'd be blathering on about metal videos or how much he loves the 90s or something. Sheesh.

punishing our transgressions

Oh, for crying out loud.

Sometimes it really, really sucks to have to claim Ohio as my home state. November '04 was one of those times. This, too, is one of those times. Guh.

Also, I had to be told by a music blog that Facebook has apparantly gone through a not-very-popular facelift involving a news feed that updates every change your friends make to their profiles. (Sucks for the guy on my friends list who just had to switch from "in a relationship" to "single." Chin up, Adam!) I guess I'm a bad mass-social networker for not knowing about this by now.

Really, though, I'm just plain busy. I've only had two days of class but it feels like it's been a week and a half. I have my first callback tomorrow. I'm so, so tired. The weekend really can't get here fast enough.

(Also, am I the only one who thinks Suri Cruise looks like a baby Bjork?

all the king's horses and all the king's men

I know, it's been practically a week since you've heard from me, and I'm too tired to say much of anything right now--

but the Crocodile Hunter died! And this makes me sad. Between this, the news about Pluto, and Woxy's impending demise, I dare say bad things really do come in threes.

Classes start tomorrow. aiieee. More soon.

too much of a good thing

Well, despite all my glibness of a few weeks ago, I do kind of see the benefit of a private/totally anonymous blog because I could perhaps speak with greater freedom about my particular OCI anxieties, which are pretty much all I'm dwelling on in my idle moments these days. But then, who the hell would I be speaking to? That being said, I guess I can divulge that the odds are looking better and better at yours truly being gainfully employed in New York (City) next summer. Nothing's in stone so everything's subject to change/abject failure at callback interviewing, but I will be visiting firms over mid-to-late September/early October to see if they still want me after talking to me for longer than 20 minutes apiece. Some of them will even have the pleasure of dining with me! (Memo to self: careful ordering soup or spaghetti. Don't be afraid to use a knife with your salad. Dribbles on clothing ≠ professional image, nor a cheap dry cleaning bill.) I have two more introductory interviews, but I'm far from being out of the woods yet. I get a momentary reprieve tomorrow, though...

...and I'll be spending my day trying to narrow my law journal topic idea(s) to something that's a) interesting, b) both in the subject area of my journal (criminal law) and the expertise of the professor I'm hoping to get to advise me, and c) not pre-empted (meaning nobody's written on that precise topic yet). I spent three and a half hours being oriented to my journal for the first time this evening, and I've got four more to look forward to on Thursday, when we'll be introduced to the joy that is "source and cite." I have only the most rudimentary knowledge of this particular activity at the moment, but I do believe it involves finding (hard copies of) sources and seeing if they really say what the author of the article says they do, as well as checking all the citations in the article for correctness. Hooray! I can't wait till I'm a 3L and can boss my own crop of 2Ls around, making them do all the journal (busy) work, because that's gotta be the light at the end of this particular tunnel. That, and building character, of course.

A final query: does anyone else think "bidet" rather than "B - day" when they see the title of Beyonce's new album? Because if I were her, I'd've re-thought that apostrophe. B'zarre, indeed.

edited to add: nooooo--another cutie from the '90s bites the dust. Or, at the very least, a twinkie or ten. T.S., you were SO CUTE in Mallrats! sigh.

if there's some confusion, who's to blame?

I'm presently on hold with Verison DSL.

I'm a Sprint cell phone customer and my internet is provided by MDI. So why am I on hold with Verizon?

Because someone in New York with my first and last name, spelled identically, just set up a Verision DSL/phone account and the invoice confirmation was sent to my email address (firstname.lastname@gmail.com). Rather than ignore it--I mean, how annoying would it be to get, like, bill invoices every month?--I called Verizon to let them know that they had the wrong email, but their only recourse was to cancel the whole account. I guess it makes sense--I mean, I have this person's new phone number and address, so I could stalk them at will. I do feel bad about cancelling their phone service, but really, now--if you weren't quick enough on the uptake to grab firstname.lastname@gmail.com, then don't start giving it out as your personal email address, cherie. You've probably forgotten a middle initial in there (or maybe you forgot to specify the "T" in your (*scoff*) Americanized version of my last name).

But the bottom line, honestly? I'm clearly not as unique and beautiful a snowflake as I thought I was. Oh, well.

it was for freedom

I've posted a little bit recently, but only about stuff and things, not about what's been happening on this end, so I'm going to try to rectify that now. First of all, greetings to Paul, maintainer of 2sj.com--dunno if you'll stick around or if some awesome act of googling only brought you to my Pluto post, but I support your online endeavors, as well. I'm an irregular lurker at the 2sj message boards, as they're my go-to reference for any tidbits about possible reunion tours, etc. Thanks for stopping by!

Anyhow, it's been a pretty relentless week of interviewing, but the bulk of my OCI duties are over with. I had no idea how exhausting the process would be, nor how busy busy busy my schedule would become (evening receptions, researching firms, hanging around in my suit between interviews, etc). I've had some luck, which is really, really gratifying, but as I've said to myself countless times, callback ≠ job, so I'm hedging my bets for the time being. Much like in bowling, I'm not at all sure what it is I'm doing right. I mean, the Boy and I were at Lucky Strike yesterday and in my first game, I bowled a 126--which is awesome for me--and then followed it up with a 76, which is pretty much par for the course in my book. I couldn't begin to tell you what I did differently between the two games, only that one worked out and one didn't. I feel that way about a lot of these interviews, too--when they go well, it's fantastic, but I don't really know why they go well. I can only hope I can keep doing what I'm doing and be able to report back here in a few weeks with a finalized job offer for next summer.

In other news, I think I'm coming down with a cold. I'm echinacea-ing, zinc lozenge-ing and zicam-ing the heck outta my sinus passages and throat, so hopefully it will be a minor cold and not a kick-me-on-my-ass cold, as I really don't have time for the latter. I blame being in close quarters with dozens of people whom I haven't seen all summer and who have, somewhere along the line, picked up and passed along germs. Blerg. I also can't believe that classes start in a week--well, a little over a week. I'm still wavering on my class schedule, and as of this moment, I'm only definitely taking Business Associations and Negotiations. I'm enrolled in Federal Jurisdiction as well as the U.S. Supreme Court, but I need to drop one or the other of those two. I was all Fed Jur gung-ho at first, but seeing as how I'm going to be verrrrry busy this semester, a challenging class like that might not do wonders for my GPA. The U.S. Supreme Court promises to be a little less demanding and the prof got some stellar course ratings last year--but that was for a seminar, not a lecture, so I don't know if the change in class structure will make a difference. I'm also enrolled in Computers & the Law, whose subject matter is right up my alley, but if I can make Directed Reading & Research work out in conjunction with my journal topic, I'll have to drop the seminar, I think. I'm coming into this semester with 4 credits from the summer Judicial Practicum and it just doesn't make sense to hang onto them and cash them in at a later date. 13-credit semester, here I come.

In more "fun" news, the Boy and I saw Little Miss Sunshine yesterday, and it was great. The theater was packed, too, with latecomers sitting on the floor in the aisles, and this was for a 3:30pm showing! The buzz around this film must be ridiculous. Anyway, it's genuinely funny, and the climax of the film is gasp-out-loud hysterical, but the characters seem real, not merely caricatures, which makes the whole experience a lot more meaningful. Steve Carell is a wonder, to be sure, but the film is generally well-cast (especially Greg Kinnear as the failing motivational speaker). Definitely worth seeing.

Also, my ninth They Might Be Giants concert was this past Friday at the Lincoln Park Zoo. I had no idea what to expect, never having attended a Zoo Show before, but the stage was in an... odd location. I mean, we ended up parking ourselves in a nook between a blanket and some folding chairs right in front of the stage, but some people had to sit waaaaaay off stage right because the lawn seating area was not very deep. First opening act was Tally Hall, who looked young enough to be still in high school but who played a solid quirky-pop set. These guys clearly grew up listening to artists like TMBG and their music reflects similar lyric sensibilities, only with the addition of more harmonies (three of them take turns singing lead vocals). I was pleased enough by their set that I intend on checking them out further--I'm sure they have a myspace, as all the kids these days do.

Second opening act was The Bad Examples. They played an hour and fifteen minutes, which was about an hour too long. They weren't terrible, they just were wholly unremarkable and boring. Enough said.

Anyway, TMBG were awesome. I realized when they whipped out "Dang [sic--it was an all-ages show, friends] Good Times" that I hadn't seen them since '03, so anything off The Spine was totally new-sounding live. The set was resoundingly upbeat--seriously, I think "New York City" was the slowest song. We got some crowd-pleasing faves like "The Guitar" and "No One Knows My Plan" (with Flans getting downright testy about the crowd's inability to either a) conga or b) get out of the way of the conga line), classics (yay for "Birdhouse" and "Don't Let's Start"--but when it came to "Particle Man" and "Istanbul," honestly? John and John sounded bored, but the newbies demand to hear them, I suppose), and some from-left-field choices--"The Famous Polka"? "We're The Replacements"???!! I loved that "Spider" went right into "The Guitar," as that's the way I expect it after hearing those two songs on tape/CD so many times. Also, I don't think I've ever seen them play outside before, nor for quite so all-ages a show, so there was definitely a different energy and enthusiasm than I remember from, say, the string of shows I saw at Toad's back in the day. They mentioned that they're working on new songs, too, which just warms my heart. I mean, these guys were MY first band. Even though I'm not so over-the-top crazy about them as I was ten (or fifteen?!) years ago, I'm still thrilled to see them perform, and I'll still keep buying whatever music they release. I will scream the words to "James K. Polk" (though I do miss the confetti cannon), I will annoy others with my poor imitation of the "Ana Ng" dance, and I will jump and jump and jump through "Twisting," just like the first time I heard it so many years ago.

Wow, this was a long post. Before I go do more firm research, please keep my mommy in your thoughts and prayers. She's having surgery tomorrow and everything should go well, but I worry--and I worry more because I'm far away. I'm going home over Labor Day, though, so I'll see her soon. Thanks, friends.

circling all round the sun

Terrorists are scary, to be sure, but it's this sort of thing that makes me really freak out about flying. I know, I know, statistically, you're in a lot more danger in your car. But I appreciate the control I have as the driver of my vehicle--not that the pilots aren't trained, but if they screw up, it's my life on the line... whereas if I screw up driving and hurt myself, it's my own damn fault. Also, being in the air is just so unforgiving--a crash from 10,000 feet is a crash you're not likely to survive, while a car crash seems to offer you a few more viable options for survival.

Anyway, I'm not sure I have much of a point, other than I'm not really an anxious flier. I've traveled frequently by air over the years and I've never even lost a bag (nor, thankfully, my lunch). I just don't care for takeoffs and landings, mostly because of stories like this one. Also, I've heard most flying mishaps happen during takeoff/landing (Bruce, want to back me up on this?).

And since I'm going to be doing some flying in the coming weeks... yeah. I just hope my pilots take the correct runway.

nevertheless this alien remains illegal

All I can say is if 2 Skinnee J's were still touring, the International Planetary Coalition or whatever it's called would NOT have demoted this small remote to affiliate. Oh, well. Sorry, kids. Small minds, apparantly, can't see past Uranus, after all.

the screen doors of discretion

From FakeGayNews.com, via the Nields Nook (via my father, if we're being detail-oriented here):

Iowa Not Like Dar Williams Song, Report Disappointed Lesbians

heeee.

Anyway. Four interviews down, five tomorrow, two (maaaybe three, if I can get on another firm's list) on Thursday, and then I get a three-day break. Oh, and orientation for 1Ls begins this Friday! I can't believe it. I totally remember the stress of it all last year, and while I'm certainly under a lot of stress now (and STILL sleeping really poorly, dagnabbit), it's entirely different. The faces in the halls are friendly (or, at least, familiar), I know my way around, and I have a confidence that I lacked for, well, much of first year, to be honest. I don't know when my insecurity cracked--maybe it was during my externship/judicial practicum, maybe it was taking some time to be with folks from other parts of my life this summer, but I feel a lot more take-charge now than I did then. Hopefully this exuberance is being reflected in my interviews--I am a strong, fun, smart person who knows what she's doing (at least, for the moment), and you WANT to hire me!

...right. Anyway. I am going to bed earlier tonight, so I'm researching one more firm and hitting the sack. If I can get through tomorrow, the worst scheduling day is over, so it should be relatively smooth sailing from there on out. I hope.

yours to keep if you want me

OCI began today--that's "on-campus interviewing," for the uninitiated. I ranked 50 firms and received twenty 20-min screening interviews over the course of the next two weeks, the goal of each being a half-day callback at the firm's HQ. I only had one today, but I have three tomorrow and five (!) on Wednesday, so it's not all fun and games, believe me. This being a somewhat public blog, I don't want to talk about the OCI process in any more than vague terms--suffice it to say that I'll report back with good news and, probably, slide bad news under the rug (perhaps I'll wave my hands and distract you with the Flaming Lips or Little Miss Sunshine or something). I'm getting a lot of positive support from The Boy, The Career Counselor, and The Mom (though that last one is genuinely chipper about everything I do in law school, having little or no knowledge of the conventional wisdom surrounding any of this, so I take it all willingly but with many grains of salt). I'm not sure I'll believe any of their optimism till I get a callback, though. Supposedly Firm #1 will let us know by the end of the week.

So, I wait. Twiddle the thumbs, casually research tomorrow's firms, watch a Grey's Anatomy rerun and an old ep of Alias that Friend Matt zapped to me (just what I need, another TV show to get hooked on, albeit a cancelled one). Fortunately, the next round of interviews doesn't start till after lunch, so I can take a somewhat leisurely morning and drink my tea out of a mug rather than a to-go cup. More than anything, though, I really, really hope I stop sublimating my stress into physical ailments, because I feel as though someone has jabbed a letter opener into the right side of my neck and has begun to twist it, slowly, every time I try to tilt my head to the left.

Yeah, alright, smartass, I won't try to tilt my head to the left anymore. But maybe a sound, peaceful night's sleep will help. Sigh.