Quandry

My car's washer fluid is not coming out when I pull the lever to clean the windshield. So I went to a nearby mechanic at the local gas station (yeah I know....what was I thinking) & he told me he thought he knew what the problem was. $95 dollars & 4 hours later, he couldn't find the problem since he ran out of time but told me to bring the car back. So I asked the question that begged to be asked, " . . . are you going to charge me for additional labor to continue trying to figure out the problem?" Yup. Now what's a girl to do? Do I cut my losses & go to the dealer; do I ignore the problem since it doesn't affect the running of my car; or do I take it back to Dufus the mechanic since he said he was close to isolating the problem? Hmmm.

Call-Back Interview

Yesterday: It was about a 3 hour drive to where I was interviewing. Got to the hotel the firm put me up at & it was fabulous. Just lovely. The recruitment coordinator even got me a goodie bag full of little knick knacks about the city that I found sitting in the hotel room. Then had dinner with two attorneys & it was surprisingly nice after which they took me on a brief tour of the city.

Today: Interviewed with 10 attorneys in half hour intervals. I guess it was payback for the really nice hotel room they put me up in. They got their money back in spades. I would be surprised if I got an offer from this firm since the question I got asked constantly is why I was interested in the city. I got the feeling my answer was a little too flimsy for their taste. Firms want the 2L's for the most part to come back & work for them permanently after they graduate. They don't want to pay them beaucoup d'argent for the summer to never see them again. That would be me. The city was nice but I can't see myself there beyond one summer.

Why A's Continue to Elude Me

Bourne Ultimatum: Loved it. Highly recommend but you have to catch it at the theatres to get the full effect of all the non-stop action. It's too bad that's the end of the Bourne trilogy. Finally got to watch "The Lookout" which was good but it didn't quite live up to the hype.

Newport Harbor: Another MTV reality show. Had never seen it before until last Sat when I caught a marathon of past episodes. Good thing the season is just about over because I'm hooked.

Kid Nation: The CBS reality show about kids living unsupervised in the middle of nowhere premiered today. It was interesting to see how much more rational & thoughtful kids are compared to grown-ups. Not must-see tv but catch it if you can. We can all learn a few lessons from these little tykes.

Next Week: Fall season line-up begins! I caught a few episodes of Criminal Minds this summer & does that show take the cake for having the most realistic creeps or what?! Love the story lines but I watch all the murder scenes with my eyes closed. Way to vivid for my taste. But I'm afraid I have to add it to my ever-growing list of must-see tv which is (in no particular order):

-24
-House
-Criminal Minds
-Grey's Anatomy (might boycott since Preston Burke is no more but I've yet to decide)
-All the new dramas - have to watch them at least once. Hopefully I'll hate them all so I can have time to study.

Small Legal World

So I'm riding in the elevator in school today with this girl & we begin to chat. She tells me she's glad her classes are over for the week but she's bummed out that she has to work Thu & Fri. Here's our conversation:

Me: So where do you work?
Her: At XYZ.
Me: What?! (my big mouth continues) I had applied to work there & received an offer but I called & quit on my starting day.
Her: (with her eyes wide open) You must be ...... (insert my name here)!!! They had sent us all these emails about you starting, & to be nice to you, & to show you the ropes, & then they sent us an email saying were no longer coming.
Me: (thinking...why did I have to open my big mouth) OMG...I feel so bad. I didn't know they had made such a big deal about it.
Her: Oh yeah they did....it's a very formal work environment & be glad you quit. The industry is very complicated so the research is very hard & everyone is so proper that you cannot do anything without having to fill out forms, sending out emails..... (she's been working there since May).
Me: .....(we continued to gossip about the place). It's a small legal world indeed.

I digress: I received a call for a call-back interview scheduled for next week! Woo hoo! This is a firm I interviewed with at one of the job fairs I attended. Will share all the gory details after the fact.

6 Years Later....

71,720-78,296 Iraqi Civilians Killed

27,767 American Troops Injured

3,774 American Troops Killed

298 Coalition Troops Killed

2,974 Killed on 9/11

OBL...Still at Large

Raw Deal

As we enjoy the game of football every Sunday, let's not forget what a violent sport this is. Kevin Everett of the Buffalo Bills will probably never walk again after receiving a catastrophic neck injury due to a head-on collision with another player yesterday. Even though these men assume the risk that comes with playing this sport, it's still saddening when an event such as this happens. We all wish him a speedy recovery.

Things Annoying Me Today

1. Why did Dell install Adobe Reader 7 on my desktop knowing that it did not support Vista? I've been trying to open pdf files for the past two weeks unsuccessfully & it wasn't until I pulled up Adobe on wiki when I found out what the problem was. Had to download Adobe 8 which only took a few minutes but it's the fact that Dell knew (I know they did) but still installed an incompatible version. I'll be shooting them an email of disgust shortly.

2. Why is it that my lights go off or flicker every hour on the hour when it rains? I love my new place but this is driving me nuts!! When I went outside to investigate, I noticed that the power lines sag & seem lower to the ground than they are supposed to be. Why not call the electric company to come fix the problem, you ask? Well, the lights do not stay out long enough for me to call them so until that happens, I'm stuck resetting my radio, stove, & microwave clocks as well as rebooting the cable box everytime it rains. Ugh.

3. Why is it I cannot seem to get going on my appellate brief? A draft is due this Wednesday but it's proving tougher than I thought it would. My group has been given a case that is pending before the Supreme Court. We are to write a brief supporting the petitioner's side, Fedex, which was sued in 2002 by plaintiffs alleging the company was discriminating against them on the basis of age, in violation of the ADEA. The 2nd Circuit Ct of Appeals ruled against them & we are appealing to the Supreme Court to resolve the key issue in this case - whether an "intake questionnaire" (i.q.) suffices as a formal charge of discrimination. I got the raw deal on this one because I have to write a brief supporting Fedex which is arguing that the i.q. does not suffice as a formal charge. I think it does but what do I know?! It's going to be a long week.

On a happier note: Disney on Broadway's "The Lion King" is making a stop right here in Columbus! Finally. So when will Mufasa grace us with his presence: Aug 28-Sep 28, 2008!!!! WTF?!

A couple of years ago, my cousin was killed by a drunk driver who jumped a light at a crossroad. Since then, on Labor Day weekend, the whole family has been getting together for family reunions to celebrate life. So this weekend, I was in Indiana & had a great time. I missed the last reunion & hadn't seen folks for a while so it was great to see them all again. For some reason, there were no crowds at the airport which was surprising. On my way there, I got to the airport a couple of hours early thinking there were going to be massive lines at the security checkpoint but there was hardly anyone. I guess people hit the road this time around.

I've been trying for the past 3 weeks or so to get a copy of "The Lookout" from Blockbuster but my efforts have proven futile. They only have about 6 copies & it seems to be the most popular movie in stock. Even the guys that work there do not understand why such a good movie (from reviews) would have such few copies in stock. I check in about twice a week but so far, nothing. I will try again tomorrow at 2 different locations & if I don't get lucky, then I'll wait for about a month & see if I can get it then.

I start my new job next week & it should be interesting. I actually get to interact with "clients" (who are really just OSU students) & follow their cases through to the end like a "true" lawyer would which is very different from a firm where all you get to do is research for clients whom for the most part you never get to see.

The NFL kicks off the new season tomorrow! My crystal ball predicts a Super Bowl showdown between Chicago Bears v. San Diego Chargers. You heard it here first!!!