I HAVE BALLS!

A nod to Prof. Civ. Proc. who likened the practice of law to juggling an ever-increasing number of balls - none of which you can afford to drop.

Dear Boss:

I'm juggling as fast as I can. Thank you for the opportunity.

Not An Empty-Headed Plaything!

I Passed!

Thank you so much to everyone who encouraged me!

Reopening November 2nd

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Dear ExamSoft Guy:

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I know this 'thank you' is a little late, but I've been kind of busy since last Thursday, trying to reassimilate into the real world. 'All bar all the time' has apparently taken its toll on my social skills (just ask anyone).

Just wanted to tell you how much I appreciate the awesome save when my laptop took a dive in the last 20 minutes of the last round on Thursday. Despite trying to plan ahead, given the repeated warnings that we were all using our laptops at our own risk . . . when the time came, I couldn't quite manage the simple instruction to 'raise your hand for a proctor' or 'two fingers (like a peace sign) for technical support.'

Fortunately, our location was well-equipped with both, and it couldn't have taken more than a few seconds for one of each to respond to my arms flailing wildly about. In an instant, I had a supply of books in which to scribble frantically, and you . . . right there by my side, trying to resuscitate my ailing Vaio.

I probably didn't convey my gratitude well at all, 20 minutes before cutoff and nearly a full 30 minute question behind schedule. I'm really glad that you didn't take my almost shooing you away to heart. It's just that in that moment, with very little hope left, my concentration completely shot, I was positive I could not focus with you hovering there by my side, and I didn't believe you could work miracles. I thought it better for you to just take the traitorous piece of machinery away and give it a decent burial.

Thank you for just scooting around to the edge of the table and bringing my 4.25 afternoon essays back to me. You might have read that exam takers in New York had more than a few heart-stopping moments last week, or that in some parts of the country, both software techs and proctors have been branded with less-than-flattering labels. I was fortunate to be in a place with clear, detailed instructions, helpful, knowlegeable staff, and a miracle-working ExamSoft guy. Thank you.

Tell Me How You Really Feel

Cracking Down (or Up)

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I love blogs. Writing mine a little ~ reading yours a lot. But I can't read or write anymore. Too far behind and this matters too much. Good luck to everyone - see you in August.

You Might Be Studying For The Bar If . . .

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You still had the energy and humor to compose this list on July 19th ~ no kidding, JULY 19th!!! I may never get around to another blog entry, yet this guy was still in full force just days before the exam. Astounding. And now for one of the best bar blog posts [including commentary] ever ~ (drumroll) . . . may I present 'Open & Notorious' :

http://openandnotorious.blogspot.com/2005/07/you-might-be-studying-for-bar-if.html

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Wouldn't You Prefer Porn?

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Doing a final email check before shutting down the computer last night, I found several windows open - Google, Ebay and a link to an article by Randy Wakeman. The search terms caught my eye first:

"winchester model 12 16 gauge value"

????

Then the article:

What Is the Best Type of Shotgun for Me?
(Randy Wakeman, Senior Contributing Editor, Guns and Shooting Online)

No one here is into hunting or recreational target practice ~ no one!
And while Texas may license concealed weapons, we live in a tiny - and safe - rural community where there's just no need to conceal and carry. Even if there were, it wouldn't require a shotgun!

Dear Significant Other:
I know I may have been a little difficult to live with lately ~ okay, maybe even impossible, but you know it's not really like me to be so remote, critical, and condescending. And unappreciative. And angry. And demanding (well, perhaps a little demanding). I know how hard you've been working to keep things going around here, listening to me rant and complain, cleaning, cooking (oh, by the way, please don't use water under the baked chicken breasts anymore - they need to be crispy, not soggy, capisci? I don't need that kind of thing right now, I really don't!)

Look, I know it's easy to go looking online for solutions when you feel misunderstood and abused. It's just this darn bar exam! And BarBri, and Trusts & Estates. You know how well that law school class turned out (sidebar: you didn't tell your cousins that I would do a will for them, did you? You promised you wouldn't. So help me, if I get another call while I'm timing the MBE . . . ). Anyway, I just wanted to let you know that it will all be over soon, and things will get back to normal. Maybe not the 'normal' we had before the 3-year senseless beating and the incredible student debt load, but still, some kind of 'normal.' I think. Maybe. That's all for now. Oh, and about "The Rules" ? You know they were really more like, umm, suggestions, right? You do know that, right, Sweetie? But just as a precaution, I've temporarily suspended our Ebay account until August, okay?

p.s. And since we're all loving and understanding now, you wouldn't mind staying out of the house this weekend, would you? Call your customers on your cell, transmit orders from your brother's place? Starbucks has Wi-Fi. Or play golf, you know how you love golf - just go enjoy ~ all weekend. The weather, what about the weather? http://www.nbc5i.com/news/13615542/detail.html?subid=10101601
I'm sure you'll be able to work something out. Maybe grocery shopping, or the laundromat. I've made a list . . .

The Rules

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1. Don't talk to me.

1(a) Only talk to me if I talk first, & only on limited topics (never the bar)

1(b) Unless I want to talk about the bar; do not comment except to agree

2. Do not ask me questions. Ever. About anything.

3. If I ask questions, please answer them.

3(a) Answer only the question asked.

4. If you have questions, go read other blogs & realize this is all normal.

Slipping Away

That's all.

Magnetic Poetry

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Out of the house again ~ this time to the bookstore/coffee shop for the day while work was being done on the house. Not a bad place to study: well-lit tables, comfy couches and sparcely populated. Quieter than the average bookstore with a non-intrusive sountrack playing in the background. The only interruptions were 2 inquires about the book-stand ("where can I get one of those") and 2 comments on my 'where fun goes to die' t-shirt. Otherwise, very effective study day.

Other than a Subway sandwich shop and a check-cashing storefront, there were no other businesses nearby, so my breaks were spent wandering randomly through the bookstore. Searching for fresh highlighters on one trek, I came across a game and gift section with an entire row devoted to magnetic poetry kits. With my brain full of Convisor and perplexing procedural issues, I pondered the array. We have a few magnetic words on our fridge - but too few to make much of a statement. What should we add?

'romance kit' -- unlikely

'love' -- not feelin' it

'original' -- maybe. can't decide whether seeing the inclusion of "drool" and "elaborate" through the cellophane attracts or repels me.

'pick up lines' -- yeah, right

'dog lover' -- no. we have a wonderful family pooch, but nothing to write poetry about (although the block words arranged on the box did make me smile - dog says - me like to roll in stink y thing s

'activist' -- not

'genius' -- definitely not

'healing words' -- maybe later. say, in several weeks, or perhaps November.

'put-downs' -- hardly necessary these days. seem to come to mind easily enough without any help from a magnetic dictionary.


Then I notice the Unemployed Philosophers shot-glass collection. http://www.philosophersguild.com/index.lasso?page_mode=home&bandwidth=0

Given the number of recent alcohol-related posts on various bar exam blogs, I thought this definitely had possibilities. By the way, thanks guys - all those posts on one day! Just happened to be the night that SO observed, 'You seem to be drinking more lately' - meaning that 3 nights in a row I chose a [single] bottle of Shiner to go with dinner rather than tea or water. Immediately after the ensuing discussion and while the issue of 'to have or not to have' was still up in the air and dinner was rapidly cooling, we took a few minutes to look up the AA definition of 'alcoholic' (his contention was that having a drink 3 days in a row could be a problem) and then we perused the daily bar blog collection . . .

. . . drinking . . .

. . . drinking . . .

. . . drinking . . .

SO didn't know whether to be more concerned given the online company I keep or feel reassured that I'm 'normal.'

Support

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Main Entry: sup·port
Function: transitive verb
Etymology: from Latin supportare, from sub- + portare > to carry

(1): to endure bravely or quietly : bear
(2): to promote the interests of; assist, help
(3): to hold up or serve as a foundation or prop for
(4): to maintain at a desired level
(5): to keep from fainting, yielding, or losing courage : comfort
(6): to take care of everything non-bar; NOTICING what needs to be done


Every experience is different, but just as 1L was its own special hazing whether you attended Harvard, State U, or Cousin Vinny's School of Law, your real-life v. bar-life might go something like this:

W explains the time & focus needed to prepare for the bar exam.

H understands & agrees to do whatever is necessary for W to pass.

Knowing H doesn't truly understand, W attempts to list/detail 'necessary'. H nods in agreement, but does not really share W's definition of the word.

Melt-down #1.

Draw the next scene using your imagination. Color the picture 'not pretty.'

W (with increasing frustration) reiterates bar-prep-support requirements.

In between licking his wounds, H is 99% perfect for precisely 4.2 days. During this time, W accomplishes much effective study. Confidence rises.

Life now reverts to "normal". Not good. W notices - a little more each day. H subtly changes degree of effort exerted - a little less each day.

Bar study diminishes inversely proportional to the rising level of tension. W notices both. H recognizes neither.

Melt-down #2.

And #3.

Slight increase in support-level and bar-focus. Not nearly enough to pass. W knows this all too well - enough to be afraid. H still does not understand.

Stay tuned.

More Mustard

SO surprised me this morning while moving a couple of boxes. Seems one big box taking up space contained misc. items still packed from my law school apartment."Look what I found!"

Yep. The TWO unopened bottles of Beaver Deli Mustard that had 'gone missing' during the move. Wonder what he'll think when he finds out that my unreasonable dissatisfaction with a lesser-condiment resulted in a bulk order that Amazon now cheerfully advises they "are preparing for shipment and this portion of your order cannot be canceled or changed. Need information on returning an item?"

In my defense, we do have a romantic history with said mustard (an anniversary picnic at a Calif. winery, for goodness sake - we're not that strange!) . . . there were no single bottles available, other web sites proclaimed it to be unavailable and even Amazon commended my ingenuity in thinking beyond a single jar: ("Only 5 left in stock--order soon!) . They'll make lovely gifts if the recipients aren't overly finicky about plastic 12oz. squeeze bottles. It is good stuff. Bratwurst, anyone?

Bob Loblaw

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http://barblogjuly2007.blogspot.com/2007/06/stories-are-boring-and-stuff.html >> Wednesday, June 13th.

YES! Someone I can identify with!! Tired, lazy, haggard-looking, chubby(+ in my case), although my spending is all online. Sure, there must have been a good reason for the two oversize gazillion-pound exercise mats. The order of organic crystallized ginger (http://gingerpeople.com/order_organiccrystallized.html) was a must because I MUST always have my ginger. Harder to explain was today's sudden order for Beaver Deli Mustard (yes, it really IS good mustard, but come on! Mustard?!??!??).

Today I decided to actually leave the house on a must-do errand ('do any clothes still fit? check.' 'will the car still start?' check.') and it also happened to be a Target-run. Caught sight of myself passing a full-length mirror under fluorescent bulbs and SO had to drag me away as I puzzled over the image in bemusement.

Have I mentioned that I hate BarBri and all things bar-exam related?

Or Did She Just Attend an MBE Workshop?

Speaking of ethics and the law ~ okay, you weren't, but it's an ongoing converstion here. Somehow SO and I have fallen into a steady diet of The Practice via our good friend, Tivo. While other bloggers are identifying various instances of tortious conduct and common law crimes in their t.v. viewing, I find myself noticing (and commenting on) gross ethical and procedural violations - on both sides of the docket. My family has long since gotten used to my Law & Order "that was not a 'statement against interest!" rants. More though-provoking are the ethical slippery slopes - especially the ones that are not in direct violation of the rules. I remember watching an episode of Boston Legal last season (a show that should rarely be taken seriously) that ended with Alan saying to his friend, "You will recall that I once advised you to flee the practice of law. It's an ugly occupation which calls upon its participants to do ugly things. I am very accomplished in the practice of law."
And (in the context of that episode) he was right. He was a 'good lawyer.' Very depressing realization, and not all that different than I was advised by a local attorney as I left for law school.

I was always a Law & Order fan until the evidence and procedure portrayals did me in. I like that a prosecutor's ethical obligation is the truth. While I'm not naive enough to think it is always true for every ADA, I probably am naive enough to want to believe. Nothing bothers me more than to see a slippery slope there - on t.v. or in real life. In law school, a negotiation class divided into pairs - prosecutors & defense attorneys - to deal with a plea negotiation where the defense facts clearly stated that the defendant was innocent. Possible pleas ranged from a minor violation with a fine or probation on up. The 'prosecutors' were under pressure from the DA, etc., to secure a plea or conviction on every arrest (vandelism). After each team reported the results of the negotiation (almost all ended in some kind of plea), the professor asked the class, "Did the fact that the defendant didn't do it influence your negotiations?" I expected to hear defense attorneys say that it mattered, but that in their opinion, a plea to a reduced charge would be better for the client in the long run v. a more serious conviction (still worrisome, but at least understandable. Maybe.) But the class response completely blew me away - no one who had negotiated a plea thought his innocence mattered! And this came from both sides! 'Nah, it didn't really enter into it at all . . . ' 'Not really . . . ' 'It was easier to just deal with the other side to get something worked out . . . ' omg. Does this worry anyone?

Watching a defense-oriented show now has it's ups and downs. It reinforces my belief that I probably could not do that job. I absolutely believe in the value and importance of a good defense attorney - I just don't think I want that level of potential conflict for myself. But then, I've seen real-life ADAs instructed to prosecute cases left over from 'a prior regime' that never should have been charged in the first place. Not life or death ~ not even serious (if any) jail time. But while everyone could look at the facts and wonder 'why did they even take this case ~ there's nothing here!' . . . the political climate was 'dismissals look weak and are closely scrutinized - can't be weak on crime'. And another where cases that should have been prosecuted, but weren't out & out 'slam dunks' were bargained down to nothing just to keep the conviction rate up.

How are we supposed to find our way and be true to ourselves, our clients, and the oath that we all hope to take in November? Being able to pass the MPRE isn't nearly enough guidance.

Maybe It's Not Really The Bar . . .

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but life and relationships that suck.

Best Product For Reading Ease

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Public Service Announcement:

Holds even large books. Why do you need or want a book stand if you have hands? Because you also have a neck that is really tired of supporting your head for hours while you look down at your books. (Random factoid: the human head weighs about as much as a bowling ball)

I know there are other brands and styles, but can be flimsy or hard to use. This is the only one I've owned that holds my law (and Bar prep) books and is actually useful. It's perfect on a table, desk or T.V. tray. A little more awkward, but still do-able in a recliner (place a couple of couch pillows on your lap under the stand). The benefit is that when you read, you look straight ahead instead of down and adding strain on your neck. If you're going through as many headache relief products as I am, you'll appreciate any help you can get.

I bought mine a couple of years ago at the Container Store. Didn't see it on their web site today, but did find this option:

http://www.backdesigns.com/AB1921000Store/product1.asp?SID=1&Product_ID=130 .

I have the 14" version, but the 18" might be even better.

PROPP(erti)ED Up At 4:00 A.M.

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Don't try this at home.

Awesome Blog Post

http://lawwithgrace.blogspot.com/2007/06/how-to-talk-to-someone-studying-for-bar.html

Why Am I Doing This?

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I am getting further behind on a daily basis. I feel like I have been stuck in Property forever. Doing BarBri lectures on my own (the 'more than 50 miles from a class/pay more $/MP3' version of bar prep) allows me to pause, think, make notes, work the hypos myself before continuing the lecture . . . but also allows me to get distracted. Mixed blessing or curse - I'll let you know which prevails when mid-July rolls around and I'm either very competent for having spent quality and quantity time on each subject, or completely screwed because I've only covered half of the 12 Texas Essay subjects when the 24th rolls around.

Today my distraction and reason for falling further behind was taking time out to post a trip report on a Zihuatanejo message board. Before I hit the books every morning, I have tea and toast and either skim through the Dallas Morning News or peruse the latest bar blog postings. This morning was blog day, but as there was not much new online, I moved over to a Zihua message board I used to read and found a thread about another traveler's bad experience with a particular condo and property manager - a person who went far out of her way to assist SO and I when we visited there in March.

I spent far more time than I should have composing an account of our experience, but when I finished I thought about how much her extra effort had meant and my internal stream of consciousness led me to this question about bar prep: why am I doing this??

Stream-of-consciousness: usually regarded as a special form of interior monologue; characterized by associative (and at times dissociative) leaps in syntax and punctuation that can make the prose difficult to follow, tracing a character's fragmentary thoughts and sensory feelings.

Thought process:
Carmen the property manager was in a position to do whatever she needed to do to take care of the owner, the condo and the guests. [which led me to this unrelated event->] Last year I had a serious health scare while I was away at school, but as now, really didn't have time to deal with it. Then, as now, I handed everything over to SO to handle for me. SO contacted a doctor in the area who agreed to see me the next morning. Doc1 decided I should see a specialist, and while I waited in his office, called Doc2 and asked him to fit me in that day, which he did. Biopsy a few days later revealed that all was well, so the story ended quickly and well.

What exactly does this have to do with a Mexican property manager or the beating we're all getting from the bar exam [see above re: associative and dissociative leaps]?

They were all professionals in a position to make things happen; two with professional degrees, one without, but all in a position to make a difference by how they approached their job. And all three made a significant impression - think about the doctors who, after all, have entire staffs dedicated to playing gatekeeper and arranging their schedule just so - yet both took the time to fit in a complete stranger and offer professional assistance. After the medical episode, I told SO that "I want to be the kind of attorney that they (docs 1 & 2) are physicians."

That is why I haven't left the house in over two weeks. The reason that I continue to read things I hate and work tedious (often demoralizing) MBE questions. I want to be in a position to do the things that are important to me, whether at any given time that means supporting my family, winning a case for someone who needs help, the thrill of beating the pants off an unethical jerk of a lawyer, putting away a bad guy - or defending a person accused . . . whatever it is - I wanted to be THERE, so for now, I am HERE, doing this - getting back to that damn Convisor.

Then Life Rears It's Ugly Head

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I've been operating under the philosophy 'all bar all the time' as evidenced by my sporadic and less than scintillating posts of late.

A friend of SO's called yesterday to relay news of the sudden death of a mutual friend. I listened to this end of the conversation, and the follow-up calls to other friends, and waited a respectable time before turning the property lecture back on. Later - hug, caring but not prying question to show interest - more property.

11:00 p.m. Realization that the sudden heart attack and almost-immediate departure into the beyond could happen to anyone, anytime. Self (although, honestly, in this artificial law school-to-bar world, that doesn't really seem like such a bad thing) -- family -- friend -- Significant Other. Suddenly the MBE percentage and the daily grind don't seem all that painful.

Perhaps instead of 'all bar all the time' we should pay attention to the people around us - not forget to love and connect? But this daily, driven focus really is necessary - at least for me. How do we balance it all - do we even try? There is no balance in this world - not for the next 48+3 days anyway.

Sleep On It

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From the June Reader's Digest:

The idea that you can learn while asleep lives at [certain unnamed] websites.

(I know law students - if the links were here . . . )

Not so, says Harvard sleep researcher Robert Stickgold : The only time listening to tapes at night will help you is if they wake you up." But, he says, there's evidence that if you learn something today and sleep eight hours tonight, you'll retain it better tomorrow -- and beyond.

That's a wake-up call.

June 1st - The Clock is Ticking

Wrote the date on a check this morning . . . 30 days has September, April, June and November, all the rest have . . . oh #@!$#@! -- today is May 31st -- that means that tomorrow is . . . . JUNE!!!!!

Haven't been online in over a week. I would like to say it's because I have been so focused and dedicated to keeping up with my prep . . . but the truth is that somehow my computer settings (or a higher power?) have been blocking me from signing into Blogger. I have, however, been skimming other bar exam sites (list to follow).

Most people blogging seem to be in high gear now - a few even post extraordinary results. I haven't saved those sites because I'm not sure whether they're written by bar-geniuses who just excel at the Multistate even though most bar classes only started in the past week or two . . . or by sadistic law students like the one in my first semester who not only wore a suit and tie to his first round of exams, but made a point of carefully draping his custom-tailored jacket over the podium at the front of the room, seating himself on the very back row, and periodically walking back and forth to rearrange said jacket, or remove and add the silk tie to the stack, etc. - trying to be as nonchalantly disruptive as possible. You all had one like that. You know, the one who walked out of the Civ Proc. end-of-semester beating loudly exclaiming, 'Man, I'm so glad I reviewed the Erie Doctrine this morning - I really nailed that one with the train!', causing the entire section to freak - 'train, what train??'. [There was no train question].

Most bloggers seem to be normal people (for law students : ) who are enjoying this as much as the rest of us. Those links I've saved - misery does love company.

Back On Track!

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Wednesday, May 23rd:

100 Torts MBE questions.
Time: 2 hrs, 45 minutes, including 'bubble' & 'go back to make sure I bubbled correctly' time. Yes, I'm still doing that after working all of the problems. I think doing one thing at a time works for me. Most bar-takers I know are following the 'solve question 1 - fill in answer to question 1 - solve Q2 - fill in answer to Q2' method for the MBE, no matter which format they preferred in law school. Is there some unwritten rule about this? As someone who has almost always been up against the clock, I understand the problem of running out of time with most or all of your scantron still blank, but isn't that easily resolved by stopping in enough time to fill it in, then going back question by question? I'm still willing to change, but only if there's a compelling reason to do so. Mentally moving back and forth between thinking and mechanically coloring in the answer on each question seems inefficient and distracting to me, but I'm open to suggestion.

Time was good - slightly better than the target 1.8 MPQ (minute per question) - however, this set of 100 were drawn from BarBri Drills (17), BarBri Easy Level (34) and PMBR's Blue Book (49). While encouraging, not a real indicator of how I will do on the harder levels or the real thing. I'm also still measuring my progress in 10-minute increments rather than the suggested 30 which may be an unnecessary waste of time. Both PMBR and MicroMash recommend doing 17 questions per half hour - which presumably includes filling in the bubbles and hopefully also leaving time to make sure you didn't skip one so that every answer thereafter is off. Measured in 30-minute increments, I managed to answer 16, 19, 24, 25, and 16, leaving 10 minutes to fill in the answers, 5 minutes to double check, and finished with a 15 minute cushion that I'm sure will erode quickly once I move to a higher level of difficulty - or another subject.

Accuracy improved as well - 70% correct, up from 44% on my first torts attempt. All on all, not a bad day. I think the improvement was also due to my extremely narrow study focus over the past couple of days. Trying to study on a 2000-mile road trip while packing, loading and driving a 17' U-Haul meant not accomplishing much. It seemed pointless to jump from subject to subject, or attempt questions without thorough prep or the ability to time them, so I've been pretty well indoctrinated with torts off and on for days. I liked the feeling of being well-prepared and improving my speed and accuracy, but I suspect that trying to cover all the remaining subjects that way will leave me scrambling for time in the end.

Now I'm curious about how everyone else is managing their time - but BarBri is calling, and surfing for bar blogs would not really be the way to spend the morning . . . would it?

They Don't Understand

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Studying for the bar is a lot like working at home. Despite repeatedly being advised that you are busy, have deadlines, etc., no one seems to think you're 'really working.'

"Will you take care of . . . "

"Can you call and check on . . ."

"We need to get together with . . . "

A big 'concession' and acknowledgement of your so-called schedule is the sly, sheepish, "Couldn't we take just one hour to go over . . . " Like they know you really DO have that hour (and just won't admit it) but want to sound oh-so-reasonable by limiting their intrusion on your time to 'just' one hour.

But it's not just one hour. It's constant. Daily. Incessant. The phone rings - not once, not twice, and never for an emergency. "Just wanted to check with you about . . . " Then the kicker - after stopping/starting/stopping/starting (and my brain does not work well that way!) . . . after taking the time to answer the questions, solve the problem, make the list . . . "well, I don't know that I can pick up all those things today - I'm pretty busy, I'll just do what I can."

[insert series of outraged expletives here]

And then there's the lunches. And dinners. And other assorted get-togethers ~ "now that you're back". 'People who need people' may be the luckiest people, but I guarantee they aren't so damn lucky if they're trying to study for the bar exam. Especially when the people setting up these little soirées then try to beg off because they're too busy. "I know he wanted us all to get together, but I've got a lot to do today - you just go."

[expletives don't even begin to describe the meltdown]

Eveybody wants, and everybody needs
Everybody asks for one more piece
Everybody wants to hear someone say please
Cause everybody takes, and everybody steals
Everybody cries when something feels
Everybody's looking for the drug that heals
Doesn't anybody wanna take another shot at me?
Go ahead the gun is loaded and the bullets are for free
...................................................... Artist: Stabilo Boss

That Whole 'Schedule Thing'

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Not working so well. I overestimate how much, if anything - I can accomplish in a given period.

Example: Friday - up at 4am - pack - catch cab at 5am to fly standby on 6am flight. Thought process: I may have a lot to do when I get back to Dallas, but I will have a good 30 minutes on the shuttle to read - and at least 30 waiting for the flight to board - then later another 3-4 hours on the drive to Austin. And the 2 hour flight - can't forget that. Only 7 hours, but not bad for a busy day. And I probably won't get anything done on Saturday - breakfast with the family, getting ready for and attending the graduation (big family event), reception and dinner after . . . but that's okay! Most people take Sundays off when preparing for the bar - this week, I'll just let Saturday be my Sunday, and Sunday I will have all day long to study . . . even though a big chunk of it will be on the road - I can study on the way!

Reality: Airport - yawn, just can't wake up, then no time to study - plane boarding early.

Flight: Exhausted. Flip through SkyMall, then zone out.

Shuttle: High hopes here, but the driver tells celebrity-passenger stories & everyone's laughing.

Dallas: One appointment or errand after another - don't get on the road til nearly 5pm. Tired.

Drive: Do listen to 30 minutes of PMBR Torts, but conversation with SO predominates.

Saturday: Prediction absolutely correct. Day went pretty much according to plan. No study.

Sunday: 10am-10pm. Help beloved family member pack, load, transport, unload. No study.

Monday: Misc. busy-ness. Prepare to help BFM complete cross country move next weekend.

Tuesday: omigod, how many days have I missed?
9:30am: Blog.
10:00am: Will Begin to read for 3.0 hours followed by MBE questions, notes, outlines.
9:42 am: Wonder why they recommend 3 hrs of reading if passive reading is ineffective

Already Tired

I'm learning. Or not actually learning , but at least figuring out what it takes.

I concur with Uncivil Litigator http://uncivillitigator.blogspot.com/2004/08/failing-bar-exam.html that studying full-time may be a common denominator among those who pass. Not all, of course. But probably for me.

And I need a system - a schedule - my own, in addition to BarBri & PMBR. Right now my days are full of PMBR: read, test, review (test), review (notes), read, internet, Shiner, read. Well, mostly PMBR. But there's only one more day of that, and even BarBri is only 3-4 hours a day. In an 8-12 hour day, that leaves a lot of hours to constructively fill (or waste). A life-long procrastinator, this is the one time I need to overcome. In fact ~ I am so determined, I bought a book on overcoming procrastination while I was at FedEx-Kinko's yesterday, having that hernia-creating'red book' cut down and rebound into managable sections. Probably not the best use of my time!

PMBR today was a double session - not their regular schedule, but a work-around to accomodate graduation. Apparently PMBR is the logistical middle-child trying to find its place in the scheduling family. Big dog BarBri pretty much took over at my school last summer, relegating PMBR's 3-day to our final's week. You can imagine how well that went over.

Graduations always present conflicts in May, and BarBri has dibs on late May through most of July, so a lot of bar takers opt to only take the 3-Day session a week or two before the exam. In theory, it sounds good to take a full MBE and get tips before the big day, but I suspect that the reality is similar to what I saw in my LSAT prep. I took the full-length TestMasters180 (ScorePerfect in Texas) and decided to add the last-chance weekend course for the enforced discipline and repetition. I had not ever seen such a stressed-out bunch of people in my life! Some seemed to think the weekend course would be enough, but realized how much was involved after the first day - with very little time to digest the massive amount of information, much less time to practice the techniques learned. I found the short course to be just that - short - necessarily skimming and only highlighting what was taught in the full-length course. I wonder if people who have taken only the 3-Day or other short course to prepare for the MBE have the same 'deer in headlights' experience. I am a little overwhelmed at the amount of information I need to master for that 40% of the exam, but very glad I decided to start early and will have time to practice.

Today's double session covered Criminal Law/Criminal Procedure and Property. I did all 100 questions in 3-hour session to get a feel for that kind of concentration. A little slower in both areas as well as less accurate. On the initial tests I did better better on Evidence, so-so on Con Law and Torts, and not as well on Crim and Property. Tomorrow will be Contracts, then I will be on my own.

Must. Be. More. Disciplined.

Coming in after class ( 9-3:30 less one hour lunch) and scrolling around online was NOT in my bar-prep plan, but is turning out to be a hard habit to break.

Today was Evidence in PMBR's 6-Day course. Apparently the first time around, most starters score lower on Evidence than Torts. I actually did better (60% 30/50) but considering I come from a school that is Evidence/Procedure-crazy, I probably should have done better. I wonder what most of my peers score on that first 50 Evidence Qs.

Tonight I MUST make myself go over both the Torts & Evidence notes and read some Con Law. I'm remembering those few MicroMash hours where I couldn't seem to get anything right, and the PMBR rep says that most people do better in Con Law.

Total so far for the day: Just the 5 hours of PMBR time.

First Day of PMBR

I liked it. First, a couple FAQ that should be on their website but are not.

What to bring? You DO NOT need to bring either the red or blue book (lighten those backpacks, guys!). They will provide you with a smaller book for the class – it is the only one you need to bring each day. You probably should bring paper to take notes and/or a laptop. Out of approximately 75 participants, I only saw a dozen or so laptops, so it seems to be a matter of personal preference. I took all my law school notes on my laptop, but today I preferred to write out only the basic rules/tips/explanations. I don’t need 160+ pages of more stuff I won’t have time to read. By the last hour my hand was starting to cramp, so I may take it with me tomorrow just in case I need it near the end.

What do we do there all day? We will start the each day by answering 50 MBE-type questions – today was Torts, tomorrow will be Evidence. They don’t tell you whether to or what to study beforehand. I woke up early and read about half of the BarBri mini-review on Torts. I do not want to do artificially well on early practice questions by cramming too much, but it seemed a little foolish to just go into it cold without reviewing anything. Not sure what the best way is – but I did like being able to see where I had retained material from law school v. the [many] areas where I don't have a clue.

The instructor told us that the average score on Day 1 was 17 [raw] out of 50. It made me feel a little better about my 22, but not much. The correct answers with explanations are in the back of the practice book so you can self-grade each day’s questions. I graded mine as soon as I finished (90 minutes, 1.8 per question – excellent for someone who always runs out of time!) by bubbling in the correct answer and circling it in the book using green ink. I used pencil during the test, so the contrast made it easy to see my answers compared to the correct ones. Because the explanations are in the back of the book, I also penciled in my wrong answer beside the correct, pre-printed letter. A lot of the explanations include specific details such as ‘why A was wrong’ or ‘why D was a better answer than C, even though C is also true.’

Tonight we are supposed to review Torts, and tomorrow we will cover Evidence.

Total hours for the day:

Read ½ BarBri short section on Torts: .5 hours
Answered 50 MBE Torts Questions: 1.5 hours
In-Class Review of those 50 Q’s: 3.0 hours

Reviewed Written Explanations: 1.0 hours
Read BarBri short section on Evidence: 1.0 hours
__________

Total: 7.0 hours

I can tell it’s not enough, even without the PMBR Rep’s admonition that we should spend 8-10 hours per day studying, outside of class, but I am glad to have finally begun.

South Carolina

Dinner at Mr. Friendly's. Sounds a bit creepy, but actually very good. Unpacked and ready for PMBR in the morning - sort of. Been googling blogs to figure out - do I take the books with me or not? Notepad or laptop or nothing? How does such a complete ignoramus earn a graduate degree? Oh, and February bar results are out. My school (small class) was 100% for Feb. Assuming that 2 of those were the lone re-takers from July '06, that means that 127 of the last 129 passed the first time around. No pressure here.

Is today May 4th Already?

Getting into the flow is harder than I anticipated. Monday April 30th was to be my one and only 'take care of misc. stuff' day. Unloading moving van, returning moving van . . .

Tuesday, May 01, 2007
Moved furniture & boxes most of the day. Finally settled down and read the first 50 or so pages of Micro-Mash introduction and reviewed some Federal Evidence. Total time – about 3 hours. Must do better tomorrow.

Wednesday, May 02, 2007
Realized that my Micro Mash MBE (1) offline-version is too big for my laptop screen (2) does not include log-in information for the online version (3) employees do not actually answer the phone nor do they return phone calls the same day, and (4) appears to only be a series of tests/questions (albeit with good explanations after you miss the first dozen or so). Perhaps I need to be reading/studying something first, then loading the program and letting the answers fly. I really wish they would answer the phone.

Thursday, May 03, 2007.
Planned to settle down with the small BarBri book section on Constitutional Law and then tackle that section of Micro Mash again. Instead, more moving and unpacking, and tonight is the night I bought tickets to Wicked for my best friend’s birthday last week and so the afternoon and evening went (but the play was excellent). I need an organized, knowledgeable plan of attack. And the ability to set aside the assorted household and moving issues that seem to be consuming my days. And I still need to cancel utilities from the old apartment. Sigh.

Friday, May 04, 2007.
Tomorrow I fly to Columbia, SC for PMBR’s 6-day course. Why South Carolina? Important family graduation/obligation next Saturday – and the Texas 6-day courses either cross those days, or begin much later and so conflict with BarBri. Packing now, emergency visit to doc for sudden, unexplained foot pain – but surely there will be 5-6 hours to settle in with my books. MUST – FOCUS – NOW.

The beginning ~ A very good place to start

Boring, boring. No posts, no life. Hardly surprising, really. Counting down the final hours of law school is a bit like slowly coming out of a coma. An ending, of sorts, but also the beginning of [insert ominous drum roll or theme from Jaws clip] . . . studying for the TEXAS BAR EXAM.

You really have to look at that last sentence - "studying" - what's the big deal about that? And - "BAR EXAM" - yeah, so this is a big deal, everyone does it, just like law school, so what?

But if you've found your way to this insignificant little blog, you've already realized that, sooner than you realize, some nameless, faceless cog in your state bar's wheel of fortune will become the hand that rocks your career cradle. For this, you must be prepared.

This will be just one more journey through that no-man's land we all know and love [to hate], the bar exam - Texas style.

We begin May 1st, 2007. Stay tuned.