January 27, 2010

Three weeks between posts. Not good. Hopefully, that will not be a normal interval.
I arrived at school today to learn my professor (for both classes) is out sick today. So here I am in the library, studying. Well, eating my lunch and blogging, then studying.

I finally had the chance to walk through the school bookstore. Ah, the smell of books! Found the blue books for exams. However, they are green. “You’ll need a blue book for the test.” “What do they look like?” “They’re green.” No chance for confusion there.

I’m carrying 21 credits. (One credit is for an all day seminar this Friday.) I have one professor for both Technology in the Law Office and Contracts & Negotiation. She is awesome. Keeps the class on track without being obnoxious. Has great real life stories. And, as I believe I said before, very clear on expectations.

My professor for Civil Procedures I is a different story. He seems rather annoyed that his students don’t come into class already knowing what we are there to learn. I’m not talking about being annoyed because we didn’t come to class caught up with assigned reading, either. We had an in-class assignment that required us to know things we won’t learn until next quarter, in Torts. It doesn’t help that he looks and sounds like Truman Capote. I would invest in a sense of humor if I had that working against me.

And then there is my Introduction to Law class. The sad thing is, I probably could have talked my way out of taking that class. But I wanted a full basic overview. Ha, ha. Too bad that’s not what I’m getting! Instead of focusing on what we’re supposed to be learning, we get lib ideology sermonizing. Last night, we were covering Article II of the U.S. Constitution. We got to hear all about how (in his opinion) the 2000 election was stolen. How Clinton didn’t hurt anybody, but Bush “lied” and got us into a “fake” war. How the electoral college should be done away with, because “those people in the middle” of the country are making decisions for all of us. If I want opinions from either end of the political spectrum, I’ll listen to talk radio or NPR. In Introduction to Law, I want to learn about the law. The other issue I have with his class is how the Constitution is treated. It seems he feels it is an outdated document and we are blessed with all the laws that have come since to make some sense of it. I honor the U.S. Constitution as the finest legal document in the history of mankind. The wisdom of the “rich white guys” who wrote it is astounding to me. To witness it be disparaged in an educational setting grieves me. Do I say anything in class about this? No. Why not? Because I’m a coward who cares about her grade. Anyway, the professor really is a nice guy. Very personable. We just have very different political views. I am sure he would be writhing if he had to sit and listen to me emote, too.

January 27, 2010

Three weeks between posts. Not good. Hopefully, that will not be a normal interval.
I arrived at school today to learn my professor (for both classes) is out sick today. So here I am in the library, studying. Well, eating my lunch and blogging, then studying.

I finally had the chance to walk through the school bookstore. Ah, the smell of books! Found the blue books for exams. However, they are green. “You’ll need a blue book for the test.” “What do they look like?” “They’re green.” No chance for confusion there.

I’m carrying 21 credits. (One credit is for an all day seminar this Friday.) I have one professor for both Technology in the Law Office and Contracts and Negotiation. She is awesome. Keeps the class on track without being obnoxious. Has great real life stories. And, as I believe I said before, very clear on expectations.

My professor for Civil Procedures I is a different story. He seems rather annoyed that his students don’t come into class already knowing what we are there to learn. I’m not talking about being annoyed because we didn’t come to class caught up with assigned reading, either. We had an in-class assignment that required us to know things we won’t learn until next quarter, in Torts. It doesn’t help that he looks and sounds like Truman Capote. I would invest in a sense of humor if I had that working against me.

And then there is my Introduction to Law class. The sad thing is, I probably could have talked my way out of taking that class. But I wanted a full basic overview. Ha, ha. Too bad that’s not what I’m getting! Instead of focusing on what we’re supposed to be learning, we get lib ideology sermonizing. Last night, we were covering Article II of the U.S. Constitution. We got to hear all about how (in his opinion) the 2000 election was stolen. How Clinton didn’t hurt anybody, but Bush “lied” and got us into a “fake” war. How the electoral college should be done away with, because “those people in the middle” of the country are making decisions for all of us. If I want opinions from either end of the political spectrum, I’ll listen to talk radio or NPR. In Introduction to Law, I want to learn about the law. The other issue I have with his class is how the Constitution is treated. It seems he feels it is an outdated document and we are blessed with all the laws that have come since to make some sense of it. I honor the U.S. Constitution as the finest legal document in the history of mankind. The wisdom of the “rich white guys” who wrote it is astounding to me. To witness it be disparaged grieves me. Do I say anything in class about this? No. Why not? Because I’m a coward who cares about her grade. Do I wish my Dad could audit the class? You betcha! That would be a discourse worth observing. Anyway, the professor really is a nice guy. Very personable. We just have very different political views. I am sure he would be writhing if he had to sit and listen to me emote, too.

January 4, 2010

I have decided to keep a record of this year.

After a decade out of school, I have returned for an AA in Paralegal Studies. I was reading a textbook description last night, which included the phrase, “becoming paralegalistic.” Don’t know that’s a good thing, but here we go!

I am 32 years old. Wife, mother, small business owner, and potential in-patient nut case.

Not sure how this is going to go. I was always a good student. But even though I had a job, my identity was “student.” Now my identity is “Mom.” How do I balance the two? I know we live in a day and age when women can supposedly have it all. But that’s not a philosophy I’ve ever bought into. Everything in life has a trade off. Choosing one thing always means saying no to something else. I am just worried that saying “yes” to school means saying “no” too often to my husband and children. But here I am. I’ve bought my books. Survived my first class. And am now waiting in the hall outside the room of my next class. Just spent ½ hour trying to figure out how to log on to the school’s wireless. Ha, ha. I followed the instructions on my paperwork. Got my user name and password. But it doesn’t like the user name and password it agreed to, apparently. Very frustrating. Since everyone and their first and second cousins are waiting in line in the student services building today, I will just wait on this. My first class is computer technology in the law office. I think I am really going to enjoy it. Teacher is nice and very clear on expectations. I also enjoyed being one of the youngest students in the room. I was worried I was going to be on the other end of the spectrum. I sat in the front row. Not such a big deal to me, but I’d forgotten how political seating can be. We get to dabble in 12 different programs, only a couple of which I’ve used before. VERY cool. My next class is Contract Law. I am hoping I enjoy it. I’m just a twisted enough soul that I might. My house is a disaster area and it drives my Mom crazy. (Yes, we live with my parents. More on that later.) When I was married, didn’t have a job, and didn’t have kids, my house was perfect. Charlie (aka Sweet Hubby) and I remember those days fondly. But those days are over. Don’t know if they will ever return. I don't wish away the kids, but I wish away the piles! I am trying to accept that fact, as I am actually happier when I don’t freak out over the messes. (Nicer, too, I've been told.) But, as I said, makes my Mom crazy. But I love filing and paperwork and organizing. These are the things my mom finds tedious. I find them precise, orderly, and calming. Papers are also something I have more control over than I do the organizational habits of my husband and two small children. Heck, I keep the files in my computer more organized than I do my bedside table. This makes me well suited (at least in part) for a career as a paralegal. Not so hot as a good house guest and daughter. So these are my ramblings. I hope they bring clarity to me and some bemusement to anyone who reads this blog.