Taking a Break

I've been home for a week. I flew out last Tuesday, in spite of the fact that I overslept and missed my flight! I am still in disbelief that I did such a thing. However, Delta was extremely helpful. I woke up at 6 a.m., 40 minutes before my flight was scheduled to depart, and, after freaking out for about five minutes, called Delta to see if I could reschedule. When I called, an automated system asked me for my frequent flyer number, and then connected me to an operator who said, "Hello, Ms. Stempson, I see that you are going to miss your flight..." and proceeded to tell me that there was another flight I could catch at 8:25. I was amazed that she did all of this instantaneously without even asking me why I was calling. Plus, they only charged me a $50 fee, which I thought was very reasonable. I've been very impressed with Delta during my transcontinental flights over the past couple of years, and this is yet another example of their excellent service.

The first few days home were not quite vacation time, as I had a paper due on Friday. I decided that I preferred to finish editing my paper at home, rather than sticking around in D.C. In light of the crazy snowstorm that dumped 20.5 inches on Arlington and shut down the airports, I am very thankful that I decided to fly out early. I am pleased with how my paper turned out. I wrote it for my Transnational Law seminar, but got it to overlap with my Poverty Law Journal note. The topic was "Child Support and Indigence: How the Hague Convention on the International Recovery of Child Support and Other Forms of Family Maintenance Will Help Poor Creditor Parents."

Once I submitted my paper online, vacation officially began--not only for me, but also for my family! We've been hanging around the house, baking Christmas cookies, doing some shopping, and getting ready for our Christmas Eve gathering with my uncle and grandmother. Our family tradition is to eat crab on Christmas Eve, yum!

Also, I wanted to share some internship news. First, I am excited to say that I was offered--and accepted--a spring internship with the Washington Legal Clinic for the Homeless! So, next semester, I will be interning with the Legal Clinic 10 hours per week, which will involve direct client casework, researching legal questions, coalition work, and community education work.

I am still searching for a summer legal internship in the Bay Area. Yesterday, I had an in-person interview with the Santa Clara County office of Bay Area Legal Aid, for a summer internship position. (I had a screening interview with them in D.C. back in October.) The office is right in downtown San Jose, which would be a very easy commute from Sunnyvale. (I plan to live with my family again this summer to save money.) I enjoyed meeting the attorneys who interviewed me... They were both friendly and enthusiastic about their work. BayLegal provides legal services to low-income people living in the Bay Area. Law clerks get to work in one of three fields: domestic violence, housing, or public benefits.

Not sure if I'll post again before Christmas, so:

Merry Christmas!

(Doesn't that photo make my three-foot tree look enormous?)

Nativity

There has been a pumpkin sitting on the counter since the beginning of October. We didn't carve it on Halloween, so we kept it around for November. Well, folks, it's December, and the pumpkin is still on our counter! So, tonight, I was sitting in the living room, relaxing after having taken my Corporations final this afternoon, just staring at the pumpkin, wondering what to do with it. Jess and I had already talked about roasting the pumpkin seeds, but I also kind of wanted to carve it. I mean, you might as well if you're going to go to the trouble of scraping out the innards, right?

But, it would not be appropriate to carve a traditional jack-o'-lantern. We have Christmas lights and a tree up, after all! What, then, to do? My first thought was to carve Santa Claus' face, and then put a Santa hat on the pumpkin, but I decided that my carving skills were not quite at that level. I decided that a snowflake would be doable, and grabbed some paper and a pencil to sketch out what I wanted it to look like. I poked some strategic holes in the pumpkin as a guide, and, within two cuts, had already messed up the symmetry of the snowflake. Now, I could not live with an unsymmetrical snowflake, so I quickly abandoned that plan.

As I looked at my cuts, I realized that it kind of looked like a crucifix, so I added another cut to complete it. Then, I carved out part of the bottom as the ground. I liked it a lot, especially its avant-garde angle. But, then it hit me that this made it more of an Easter pumpkin than a Christmas pumpkin. What to do?! I thought about it for a little bit, and decided on this:

You see? The first crucifix was on the left, and then I added another one on the right to create a manger. The three triangles in the center are Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. It's an abstract nativity pumpkin! I think what I really like about it is that the family looks kind of like eyes and a nose, with the ground as a mouth, retaining an echo of a Jack-o'-lantern face.

Oh, Twitter...

Wow. The library just told me that I need to get more sleep:

Finding My Stride

I just found my stride in studying for final exams. I felt a little flutter of excitement in my stomach while reviewing my Tax Law notes just now. It was one of those "ah ha" moments where the reality of where I am and what I'm doing washes over me--wow, I'm in law school in Washington, D.C., only a year-and-a-half away from becoming a lawyer. Why do we grumble so much about final exams, when it is such a privilege to be here? As students, our job is to learn! We are so fortunate. I am reminded of the thrill that I get when I bring home new textbooks at the beginning of a semester. There is so much potential. It is important to harness that same energy and excitement at the end of the semester, to finish as strongly as I started.

It's snowing!

Good weather for studying with a mug of hot apple cider--which, incidentally, is good, as there is much studying to be done. Final exams on Wednesday (Tax), Friday (Corporations), and the following Monday (Professional Responsibility), plus a paper due on the 18th; keep me in your prayers.



Oh, and while we're on the topic of weather, I must share this with you: http://obama-weather.com/Obama/s/20001. Obama shows you how to dress for the week's weather! Hilarious, and makes checking the forecast so much less mundane.

Advent(ures)

Happy first Sunday of Advent! I love liturgical seasons, because they present opportunities to start anew. Advent, in particular, appeals to me because of the wonderful sense of anticipation. Everyone is looking forward to Christmas! Moving away from home has intensified this expectant feeling, as I am excited not only for Christmas, but also for the chance to go home. And, of course, all students eagerly await the conclusion of final exams. I pray that this season will be prayerful, productive, and joyful for all of us.

In the spirit of welcoming Christ into our lives and homes, Jess and I decorated our apartment! An impromptu visit to Target yielded wonderful results--stockings, lights, and even a little Christmas tree!

My favorite part is that we spelled out our names on the stockings using pipe cleaners. And, the lights look so gorgeous. Jess and I keep finding excuses to wander into the living room when we should be in our rooms, studying. The little tree is just right for us, too. (The tree skirt is one of Jess's scarves!) We are very pleased with the resulting atmosphere of our apartment.

The past couple of weeks, while fraught with another brand of anticipation in the form of final exams, have nonetheless been full of good moments. The weekend before last, of course, Cal kept the Axe! Jess and I had a good time watching the game at the Cal-Stanfurd D.C. alumni viewing party at Bar Louie in Chinatown. Go Bears!

I'm currently looking for a spring internship, to take advantage of all of the amazing opportunities for law students here in D.C., and last week was exciting because I had an interview with the Washington Legal Clinic for the Homeless! We'll see what happens... I've applied to other places as well, and have an interview coming up with the Department of Health and Human Services Departmental Appeals Board this week. I am looking for an internship to complete my Pro Bono Pledge hours, which I think is a great idea. So, keep your fingers crossed that I find an internship that allows me to grow through service.

Jess and I both stayed in D.C. for the Thanksgiving holiday so that we could get work done, but that didn't stop us from having fun! We attended not one, but two Thanksgiving dinners. The first was on Wednesday, hosted by the President of Georgetown University in one of the dining halls on campus, and it was fantastic. We ate a ridiculous amount of food, including multiple desserts, and made some lovely new friends at our table. Oh, and there was live music! Very classy, Georgetown. There were lovely flowers as centerpieces that [Jess and I decided] were up for grabs, so now I even have some gorgeous chrysanthemums living in my room!

The second dinner was on the law school campus on Thanksgiving day, sponsored by our dean and organized by Sr. Dorinda, who led us in an interesting Native American prayer before the meal. This meal was even better than the one on main campus, in my opinion. I'm not usually a stuffing fan, but something about this stuffing made it delicious. And, the gravy was fantastic. The best part was that they provided plates and plastic wrap so that we could take home leftovers! Mm, still have a bit of turkey in the fridge.

Thanksgiving morning, Jess and I did some volunteer work with Food and Friends, an organization in D.C. that delivers food to home-bound cancer and AIDS patients. After a training session at their very organized facility, we were off, armed with three gigantic bags stuffed with full Thanksgiving dinners to feed families of four, including entire turkeys, multiple pies, and all of the fixings. We drove around Northwest D.C., dropping off the meals at our assigned locations. One old lady cracked us up by asking where our "menfolk" were, and seemed disappointed to learn that it was just us. Oh, goodness...

On Friday afternoon, Jess and I went to the Kennedy Center to see the National Symphony Orchestra perform The Music Man, conducted by Marvin Hamlisch! We weren't sure exactly how they were going to do it, and were very surprised and delighted to see it performed on stage, right in front of the orchestra, featuring Shirley Jones, her son Patrick Cassidy, and Rebecca Luker. It was very entertaining, and a great way to take a break from our studies. (Though, admittedly, this break was not as productive as I had planned.) The best part was that we had fantastic seats in the orchestra for only $15, thanks to the Kennedy Center's Attend program for 17- to 25-year-olds. For goodness sake, parking cost more!

Other than that, I've been focusing on my studies, what with my Tax Law exam only ten days away, yikes! Well, actually, I did do one other little fun thing over the Thanksgiving break--I read Dan Brown's new novel, The Lost Symbol. Jess bought it last week (and raced through the 500 pages in a day), so I couldn't help but do the same. Obviously, as an English major, I could critique the writing--I mean, no one needs to use the word "esoteric" that many times in one book--but I don't think that Brown is trying to write a meaningful masterpiece. No, he's trying to entertain, and he succeeded in that regard. I was especially interested in reading the book because it takes place in D.C., which made it a lot of fun to read his descriptions of the city and think, I know what he's talking about! He made a few minor errors (e.g., the seats on the Metro are not hard plastic), but I'll forgive him. I enjoyed the story, even if Jess and I both saw the big twist coming from a mile off. At any rate, I recommend it if you're looking for a quick, light read, and, if not, it'll make a for fun movie in a few years.

Weekend Adventures

The past two weekends, I've been playing the role of a D.C. tour guide. One of my new year's resolutions was to "get to know D.C. like a local," so hosting guests is a great opportunity to test out how far I've come along in that goal.

Carla's Visit

The weekend before last, Carla was in town. She got in fairly late on Friday night, as she and her friend were driving down from Buffalo after an exam, so we stayed in, sipping wine and catching up with one another, which was quite lovely.

On Saturday, after a leisurely breakfast of cinnamon rolls and coffee, Jess, Carla and I started the day by visiting the Pentagon Memorial. Although I live two miles away from the Pentagon, I had yet to visit the site of the 9/11 attacks. It is a very mysterious memorial filled with symbolism representing each victim.

We then headed into D.C. to visit the Capitol. We took the Capitol Visitor Center tour, and, although it was my third time taking it, I nonetheless enjoyed seeing the rotunda. One of my favorite things to see are the statues from each state in the National Statuary Hall Collection. Each state has two statues in the Capitol, and they are allowed to replace the statues with different ones periodically. One of California's statues is Junipero Serra. Until recently, the other statue was Thomas Star King--yeah, I didn't know who he was, either--but, he was replaced this year by Ronald Reagan.

The most exciting part of our visit to the Capitol was that the House of Representatives happened to be in session all day to pass the health care bill! We were able to get tickets to go into the Visitor's Gallery of the House, which required waiting in line for an hour and going through multiple metal detectors. It was so worth it! When we sat down, a Democrat was giving a speech in support of the bill. Naturally, when he finished, the Democratic representatives applauded. However, when I joined in, I was swiftly reprimanded by the guard for clapping, which is expressly forbidden. I had read the back of the ticket, and knew this, but, but... I just got swept up in the moment! Oops.

We walked across the street to check out the Supreme Court (closed on the weekends, but still quite impressive from the outside) and the Library of Congress. I bragged without reserve about my Library of Congress researcher card, which gains me access to the Main Reading Room. My favorite part is Thomas Jefferson's Library, which is an exhibition of the books from Jefferson's personal collection, which he sold to the Library of Congress after the British burned down the Capitol. (Darn British!) The fascinating thing about the collection is that Jefferson had his own system of categorizing books--Memory, Reason, and Imagination. So intriguing.

After that, we strolled along the Mall, visiting the National Gallery Sculpture Garden (more on this below) and then regrouping at Starbucks. We decided to take the Metro back to Arlington to collect Jess's car, so that we could visit the Jefferson Memorial and F.D.R. Memorial, which are not easily accessible on foot. Jess and I agree that the F.D.R. Memorial is our favorite memorial in the city, and it is especially wonderful when lit up at night. We also checked out the White House, the World War II Memorial and the Lincoln Memorial. Jess took a very creative photo of us by using her 10-second delay function:


On Sunday morning, the three of us went to Mass at my dear law school's chapel, and then walked over to the Smithsonian American Art Museum, which had several fascinating exhibits. One featured American folk art, with art made from bottle caps, quilts, wood, and even tin foil. I also enjoyed the exhibition on 1934, which only had paintings from that year, capturing a wide variety of scenes from American life in that era. We concluded our time together by eating lunch outside at Busboys and Poets, taking in the beautiful sunshine. It was a joy to see Carla, not only because I missed her, but also because, with the three of us together, it felt like a little bit of ADX, which is a nice feeling.

Matthew's Visit

This past weekend, Matthew came down from MIT to visit. It was wonderful to catch up with him, as we hadn't seen one another since his semester in Berkeley. Matthew got in Friday afternoon; after we ate Chinese food in Chinatown, we walked to the Supreme Court to catch the last courtroom lecture of the day. There were a lot of high schoolers in the crowd asking obnoxious questions that demonstrated their complete misunderstanding of the judicial process. How is it possible for high school to offer only one semester of civics?! Not enough!

After that, we did a brief tour of the Library of Congress, and then walked around the city, stopping by the the National Gallery Sculpture Garden--well, until we got kicked out by a guard shortly after nightfall, when the garden closed. Boo. We saw most of the sculptures, though. My new favorite is a full-sized silver tree, which provides an interesting contrast to the surrounding real trees. We had dinner at La Tasca, a great tapas restaurant, which included very sweet duck, snow peas paired with Canadian bacon, delicious marinated beef, a green apple salad, and a bizarre deep-fried potato-and-chicken purée with a garlic dipping sauce (my least favorite dish).

On Saturday, Matthew and I strolled along the Mall to the Lincoln Memorial, and then took a tour to the top of the Washington Monument. It was overcast (Ida was still affecting us), so visibility wasn't spectacular, but at 500 feet it nonetheless afforded us a great view of the city. I noted that our tickets abbreviated the monument as "WaMo," which I really hope catches on as a new nickname. You know, like MoMA!

Next, we headed over to the National Archives. In my mind, the exciting documents to see are the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights, but Matthew was amazed by the Magna Carta. In retrospect, I think he has a point... and, yet, the Magna Carta is treated as a mere side attraction. As Matthew put it, it seemed like it would be pretty easy to steal the Magna Carta without anyone noticing, whereas two guards flank the U.S. Constitution.

After a mediocre lunch at the Archives' cafe (which I do not recommend), we walked to the Smithsonian National Museum of American History. We spent over three hours there, and only made it through about 70% of the exhibits. It's so huge! My favorite things there are Lincoln's hat, the original American flag, and the exhibit on American presidents. They had a new exhibit on The Scurlock Studio and Black Washington, which I loved. What fantastic photography, to tell such stories and capture such emotion.

We attempted to go to the Sign of the Whale (the official bar of the D.C. Cal Alumni Club) to watch the game against Arizona, but unfortunately Matthew couldn't get in without his passport to supplement his Australian ID. We were a bit bummed out at this, but then I took us over to Afterwords, one of my favorite restaurants, in DuPont. It's quirky... you have to walk through its bookshop to get to the restaurant, which really makes me happy for some reason. Anyhow, they often have amazing specials, and that night was no exception. Matthew and I both ordered the following:

Narragansett baked ½ lobster w/crabmeat
½ New England lobster
stuffed w/jumbo lump crabmeat
brushed w/sweet butter & fired under the broiler
w/puréed butternut squash & Café mac & cheese
corn & lima bean succotash; grilled fresh asparagus

It was amazing. Matthew and I were silent through most of the meal because we were too focused on the food to talk. Wow. The best part--it was only $20! Most of the entrées are around $15, so it wasn't much of a stretch. Neither one of us had ever ordered lobster before because it tends to be prohibitively expensive, so it was quite a treat. Lobster is good, but I still think I prefer crab because it has a more palatable texture. All of the sides were so good, too... They were all fairly buttery, which complemented the lobster perfectly. When I first read the description, I had assumed that those were our choices of sides--but, no, we got all of them! One of the best meals I've ever had, especially for the price.

After spending all day on our feet walking the Mall and shuffling through museums, we were pretty tired, so we headed back to my apartment and watched Rent. Such a great movie!

This morning, Matthew and I went to Mass at the Georgetown Law chapel, and I gave him a little tour of campus. Then, we had lunch (at Busboys and Poets, ha ha), and caught the Circulator bus toward Georgetown to visit the Dumbarton Oaks gardens. I had never heard of the place, but a friend of Matthew's recommended it, so we decided to check it out. It is so beautiful! It is humongous, with lots of little stone walking paths to meander. We explored the garden for an hour-and-a-half, which gives you an idea of the size. One of my favorite parts was the rose garden, which smelled lovely. Oh, and there was a lawn in front of a fancy brick house that looked like something out of a Jane Austen novel! I cannot wait to visit this gorgeous garden again in the spring, when everything is in bloom.

We took the bus back to Chinatown, and spent the balance of our time at the National Portrait Gallery before Matthew had to catch his flight home. Matthew was sweet enough to give me a novel called Dirt Music by Australian author Tim Winton as thanks for letting him sleep on our couch. Actually, I was amazed that Matthew, who is rather tall, fit on our couch. Then again, one of the reasons Jess and I chose that couch was specifically because we could think of tall people who might come visit. (And, Jess is quite tall, for that matter.) All in all, it was a lovely visit that made me feel like I was on vacation, too. I feel recharged and ready to study for final exams!

Window Watchers

Where is she going? I wondered, staring out the window of my living room as I ate my breakfast this morning. I don't usually have time to ponder the comings and goings of my neighbors in the mornings, but Thursdays are the exception, as I don't have class until the afternoon. So, I make myself some eggs over easy with a toasted English muffin, sip my hazelnut coffee, and stare out of our windows.

Our apartment complex isn't the most action-packed scene, but I've gotten to know the cadence of our little community over the past couple of months. The various dog-walkers are the most common players on our grassy stage--and, how exciting when more than one dog enters a scene, barking, sniffing, pulling along their masters with the vigor of a squirrel-chase!

Children and their parents are another common scene. When the weather was warmer, there were two little girls who would drag out an elaborate collection of bubble-blowing devices, running across our lawn to generate as many bubbles as possible, then giggling madly as they proceeded to destroy their creations. Some of the bubbles survived the massacre, floating serenely to the height of my third-story vantage point.

I learned that plumes of smoke billowing in front of my windows were not to be a cause of alarm, but rather indicated that the man with the little Weber barbecue pit was out again. During the warmer weather, he was out there at least twice a week! I contemplated sneaking out there to roast marshmallows when he went inside to eat his steaks, but I was never so bold.


It is more difficult to peek into the windows of our neighboring buildings, as most people pull down their blinds, to my dismay. When the blinds are up at night, I can mostly make out the ever-changing illumination of television sets. My apartment doesn't have a television--perhaps one of the reasons that I stare out of the window.

In the dorms last year, my view was of I-395, which sounds boring, but actually offered some interesting scenes. Most memorable was the time that I was awakened at 2 a.m. to the sound of a car crash. It appeared that the two cars knew each other, as the people from one car all quickly emptied the contents of their trunk and piled into the other, speeding off, abandoning not only the car that had been rendered immobile, but also one of the passengers! He ran after the car for a little while, then gave up, instead being forced to deal with the police, who showed up a few minute later. Shady, indeed.

The most common view was that of backed-up traffic jams in the evenings, but there were other, more curious sights as well. There was the man who screamed about salvation into his bullhorn. When the Barnum & Bailey circus was in town, I watched elephants parade on 3rd Street after a show. During the G-20 summit, I saw many motorcades. Being on the 8th floor, I had a great view of many storms. Perhaps my favorite view was the day of the Inauguration, when they shut down the freeway for pedestrian traffic, which was a very bizarre sight to behold:


This post was prompted by an article in today's New York Times, Window Watchers in a City of Strangers. I agree with the premise of the article, that, in staring out of my window, I feel more connected to my community. What do you think? Are you a window watcher? What have you witnessed?

Keen in Study

Oh, goodness, final exams are in six weeks. As always, the semester has flown by with remarkable speed. I feel pretty good about this semester, academically. I'm up-to-date on all of my reading, and I understand the topics that we've covered. I'm a bit nervous about my Transnational Law seminar paper, though, because our first draft is due in two weeks and I still have a lot more research to do, let alone writing 6,000 words. All in due time, I suppose.

The summer job hunt has been fairly productive the past few days. I attended the Equal Justice Works career fair on Saturday, and conducted a great screening interview with Bay Area Legal Aid. This afternoon, I had a second interview with the National Housing Law Project, which went well. I need to keep applying, though... It is so easy to ignore applications in light of all of the other work that I have to do, but the economy has made the 2L job hunt very competitive for all of us, so I must stay on top of things. Anyone want some accountability in their job search? We could call each other to check in on our progress each week. Just a thought.

Earlier in the month, I raised the question of how to establish a more consistent prayer life. Chris suggested that I pray a novena. I've never prayed one before, but my basic understanding is that you devote yourself to daily prayers for nine consecutive days, modeled after the disciples' prayer between the Ascension and Pentecost. Well, Chris has piqued my interest, so I'm going to try one starting tomorrow. There are tons of novenas out there, but I immediately felt called to focus on St. Thomas More, the patron saint of lawyers, because his biography always encourages me, especially during challenging points in my legal education. Indeed, the name of my blog is taken from a prayer written by More, which you can read in the right-hand column of my blog. A quick Google search yielded this novena, which resonated with me as I read it over. So, please keep me in your prayers over the next nine days, and I'll let you know how the novena goes!

Wow

Today at Mass, there was a little girl, maybe 3 years old. She was oblivious to the custom of silence observed by everyone else during the Liturgy of the Word, chattering rather audibly to the chagrin of her mother during the readings. Although I found her to be a bit distracting while I was lectoring, I must admit that I enjoyed watching her attempt to sing the Gloria. She studied her hymnbook with aplomb and--although it was evident that she could not read--sang nonsense words with a gusto that praised God in her own little way.

The best part, however, came during the Liturgy of the Eucharist. Fr. Alexei said the words of institution: "Take this, all of you, and eat it: this is my body which will be given up for you." He then elevated the host for us all to see, at which point the little girl remarked in a stage whisper, "Wow!" As I inclined my head to bow, I caught the eyes of some of my peers, and we all shared a smile at the sincere wonderment that had been expressed upon observing transubstantiation. "Amen," I thought to myself, my mind jumping to Luke 18:

People were bringing even infants to him that he might touch them, and when the disciples saw this, they rebuked them. Jesus, however, called the children to himself and said, "Let the children come to me and do not prevent them; for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Amen, I say to you, whoever does not accept the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it."

Ah, that we all might cultivate such childlike wonder.

NYC, Part IV

Ooh, David posted photos from the trip! Here are a few of my favorites, to supplement my posts...

In front of the Guggenheim. It was windy.

In the lobby of the Guggenheim.

We found bears at the Met! Go Bears!

The obligatory Wall Street bull photo.

A view of the city from the Staten Island ferry.

NYC, Part III

Sunday morning, David and I made crepes with Nutella and strawberries. I used to make crepes a lot in high school, so I was delighted when David made the suggestion. Mm, Nutella.

We had intended to go to Mass at St. Paul's, the Paulist church in NYC, but the subway failed us, so we ended up going to a service at St. Patrick's. During the collection, David and Daniel were chosen to be ushers, which was rather bemusing.

David and I then went to the MoMA. I was really excited about the MoMA, because I love modern art, but I was not terribly impressed by the first few floors, which featured the contemporary and special exhibits. Part of my displeasure resulted from the decision of the installers to cluster a variety of works by different artists on each wall, creating a collage effect that made it all but impossible to view any one piece independently. It was too distracting. The fifth floor was the best, as it had paintings and sculptures from the 1880s to 1940s. So much good stuff: Picasso, Miro, Matisse, Mondrian, Rothko, Cezanne, Chagall, Dali, Magritte, etc. Oh, and van Gogh's Starry Night is there, which I didn't realize. I was nearly dumbfounded when I saw it, since I wasn't expecting to see it there. It was much smaller than I would have anticipated.

After MoMA, David and I got some dinner, and then he walked me to my bus stop. We said our good-byes, and I took a wonderful nap on the ride home. The weekend was exhausting! It was a lot of walking for someone with a cold, and pretending not to be sick is not the most effective way to heal oneself. I'll probably pay for it this week, but the trip was well worth it. It was a legitimate miniature vacation. There is something refreshing about a change of location, even for a little while. Hm, perhaps I'll have to do some more exploration of this coast.

NYC, Part II

David and I began Saturday morning with some delicious blueberry pancakes and coffee. We then set off for a day of museums! To get to the proverbial Museum Mile, we walked through Central Park. The park reminded me very strongly of Golden Gate Park in San Francisco, and made me feel a bit nostalgic for California. It's too bad that DC doesn't have something akin to Central Park. The National Mall is just a bunch of scraggly grass... Though, I guess the monuments make up for it.

Our first museum of the day was the Museum of the City of New York. As with other museums, I was duly tagged. Honestly, the museum wasn't breathtaking. However, the Legacy exhibition afforded me a different perspective of the city, as it was a photographer's examination of the wild side of the city--that is, its parks. I don't think of greenery when I picture NYC, but it really is more than skyscrapers.

My absolute favorite museum that we visited was the Guggenheim. Wow! First off, I loved the design of the building. One of my biggest pet peeves about museums is when their floor plan doesn't clearly lead you through the exhibits. I hate worrying about missing something. Well, no such issue with the Guggenheim, which is one big upward spiral! It was a bit tiresome to shuffle up a ramp for seven stories, though; by the end, I really wanted to be on level ground. The perpetual balcony created some great people-watching opportunities, as well.

The current exhibit at the Guggenheim features the life works of Vasily Kandinsky, one of the first modern abstract painters. He is fantastic. His use of color was mesmerizing. He had a fascination with the parallels between painting and music, a synesthetic inquiry which resonated with me as a color-graphemic synesthete (I see numbers as having very specific, consistent color associations). For example, Kandinsky apparently associated bright yellow with the blast of a trumpet. As students, we got the audio tour for free, which really enhanced my understanding of his works. The exhibit was set up chronologically for the most part, which allowed us to see the progression of Kandinsky's works, not only through his own biographical story, but also through different periods in history--especially, the world wars. Seriously, check out the Guggenheim's online exhibition.

After a break for lunch, we tackled the Met. Oh, my gosh, the Met is huge. We spent several hours there, seeing everything from African masks to Roman statues to Picasso paintings. It reminded me of the Louvre--the attempt to see everything was futile, but I felt a drive to attempt to see as much as physically possible, to the detriment of my comprehension of what I saw. The Met is a good museum for locals with a membership, I would imagine, but it seems to be a nearly hopeless endeavor for visitors with a limited amount of time.

We gave ourselves a brief reprieve at Starbucks, where we met up with David's brother, Daniel. We were debating between walking across the Brooklyn Bridge and taking the ferry to Staten Island, and the ferry won out. I had a delicious pumpkin spice latte, my first of the autumn season. It was in the 40s and raining the entire weekend, which was not ideal weather for traipsing across the city, to say the least. However, there is something refreshing about this type of weather, and it added something to the tone of the city, with everyone bustling about in their winter coats.

Before we boarded the ferry, we walked down Wall Street, where we saw the New York Stock Exchange, Federal Hall (the first capitol, where George Washington was sworn in), and the Wall Street Bull. It was a little surreal, to be honest. Seeing the NYSE was kind of like seeing the Capitol for the first time--one of those, "Wow, really important stuff happens here" moments.

The Staten Island Ferry was great. We took it round trip without doing anything on Staten Island. Our main purpose was to catch some great sights of the city at night on the water. It was great to see the Statue of Liberty, and we all made jokes on the return trip as though we were immigrants coming to America for the first time. But, seriously, it made me stop and think about the experience of my Polish relatives as they came over. Wow. Here's a video panorama of our view from the stern of the ferry on the trip to Staten Island:

NYC, Part I

I took a bus to New York City Friday morning to visit David at Columbia. I was very excited about the trip, not only because I hadn't seen David in over a year, but also because I'd only been to NYC once before. That trip was centered around visiting law schools, and allowed for only a whirlwind look at the city.

I've been meaning to take advantage of my proximity to other East Coast cities. Indeed, taking a Chinatown bus to NYC has been on my DC to-do list since last year! The bus ride was pleasant, speedy, and uneventful. For those of you who watch Conan O'Brien: We passed through Newark, and I think that Conan's critiques are well-founded.

My bus let me off near Madison Square Gardens. David met me there, and we went for a walk, checking out Times Square, Rockefeller Center, and St. Patrick's Cathedral. At St. Patrick's, we accidentally attended Mass... It was just starting as we arrived! We later realized that it seems that they do Mass continually, because another Mass started up right after ours ended. I enjoyed the atmosphere of the church, because there were a lot of people there to visit, which made the place feel like a community in a way that I haven't seen other cathedrals accomplish. Then again, a guard searched my bag at the entrance, which was a bit of a detraction from that feeling.

It was great to walk through the city. David has a very good grasp of the important buildings throughout the city, and gave me an informal tour as we explored. The tone is very different from DC because the buildings are so much taller; in DC, nothing is allowed to be taller than the Capitol (roughly 12 stories). The pedestrian traffic is more... Intense? Bustling? I can't quite put my finger on it, but there seems to be a sense that everyone has somewhere important to be, and they're nearly late. Basically, it is a city full of rabbits from Alice in Wonderland.

David and I took the subway to get to Columbia. It's not as nice as the Metro, because it is dingy, and seems to have quite a learning curve. I just blindly followed David as to where to go. I'm glad that my daily Metro commute isn't like the subway here.

Columbia has a nice campus. They have a statue of Alma Mater, and she has a little owl hiding in the folds of her robes! I am perpetually surprised by how small some university campuses can be, but I suppose that Berkeley's gigantic campus is the exception, not the rule. The law school building is very nice. They have a lot more random study spots with cushy chairs scattered throughout the building than we do at Georgetown. Their lecture halls are prettier, too. We have a better cafeteria, though, and a nicer campus overall, as our three buildings have grassy quads between them. My California sensibilities still prefer plant life to a formally urban landscape.

David and his brother Daniel have a pretty cool apartment in the grad student housing. They painted some of the walls burgundy and taupe, and have lovely furnishings to complement the color scheme. They're on the first floor, though, which I wouldn't like, because of street noise and such. The apartment layout is a bit odd... Very closed. We were discussing it, and determined that a modern apartment would never be designed like this, as people have such a preference for open spaces.

Friday afternoon, we visited the Studio Museum in Harlem. It is located across the street from the iconic Apollo Theater. The Studio Museum features a contemporary collection of works by black artists. I really liked their Hurvin Anderson installation, which examined the varied use of the space of a barbershop. This was the first museum that we visited, and it taught me a couple of things. First, museums in NYC, unlike museums in DC, are not free. And, second, museums like to give you little buttons or tags to wear, as though you are an animal that they are studying and then releasing into the wild to continue to track. Very strange.

We attempted to visit Grant's Tomb, but it was closed. I was bummed--now I'll never know who is buried there! Instead, we strolled about the city for a little while, then reconvened at the apartment before attending vespers at the Church of Notre Dame. The church had a beautiful grotto (check out this virtual tour). We finished our evening with dinner at a diner, and then watched A Beautiful Mind back at the apartment.

Spiritual Deafness

What a beautiful morning! I am sitting in my living room on my kelly green couch, sipping some freshly brewed coffee, and soaking up the morning sunshine. I've had a bit of a cold all week long, but I am finally starting to feel better today, thank goodness.

Last Sunday, I attended the Red Mass and John Carroll Society brunch. The Red Mass is a special Mass for the legal profession, attended by many members of the Supreme Court, and the John Carroll Society is a professional organization for Catholics in Washington. The coolest part was seeing Justice Sotomayor. At the brunch, everyone gave a standing ovation for Sotomayor, but not for the other justices--including Chief Justice Roberts! Heh, whoops.

Bible study is still going well. Last night, we went through Chapter 7 of Mark. In response to verses 31-37, we had a discussion about spiritual deafness. What causes spiritual deafness for you? How do you know when you're deaf? How are you healed? For me, spiritual deafness is when things just don't feel quite right, when my heart feels clouded with guilt for the ways in which I have been neglecting my relationship with God. Spiritual deafness also manifests itself in my prayer life when I fail to listen to God, instead rambling my prayers thoughtlessly, or else by not taking the time to pray at all. In Mark, "people brought to [Jesus] a deaf man," which resonates with me: it is often the accountability and encouragement of others that opens the door to reconciliation for me. Thankfully, I don't feel spiritually deaf right now, though I do want to work on the consistency of my prayer life. I think I need to commit to some regular daily devotional exercise, like the Rosary or the Liturgy of the Hours or something. Any ideas? What has helped your prayer life to become more consistent?

September Digest

I didn't post last month because I was out and about doing stuff! So sue me. (Though, I wouldn't recommend it, seeing as I'm studying law and whatnot.)

I had a nice birthday, even if it was the second day of school. (Tax Law lecture = best birthday present ever! Or, not.) Jess and I went to the Cheesecake Factory for dinner, which was delicious. Especially memorable was the Chocolate Oreo Mudslide cheesecake (chocolate Oreos baked in creamy chocolate cheesecake with a chocolate-almond brownie crust), complete with a candle and singing waiters.

I am really enjoying being on the Georgetown Journal on Poverty Law and Policy. My grammatical nerdiness is finally paying off--I love being a staff editor! I also like that we do community service together as a journal, living out our mission. We did some cleaning at Central Union Mission last month, and I'll be doing some work with S.O.M.E. (So Others Might Eat) later this week. Also, I'm on the Article Selection Committee, which is exciting, because I have some input on which articles we choose for publication!

Things are going well for the Catholic Student Association. (We renamed the Catholic Forum, to clarify our purpose.) I'm a co-chair, and am very excited about the enthusiasm I've seen from students about this year. Attendance at our weekly Bible study has been more consistent than last year. We're going through the Gospel of Mark, which has been very interesting. To supplement my understanding, I am reading Mary Healy's fantastic book on Mark, written for the Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture.

A few of us attended a lecture by Fr. James Martin last week on "Laughing with the Saints: Joy, Humor and Laughter in the Spiritual Life." It was great--he told jokes the entire time, but with a good message: that laughter is good for your spirituality. You may recognize Fr. Martin as the author of several excellent books, including My Life with the Saints, and as a guest on the Colbert Report. In fact, you can watch his lecture on YouTube. I especially appreciated the discussion in the context of my confirmation name, Sarah, because she gives birth to Isaac at a very old age, causing her to remark, "God has given me cause to laugh, and all who hear of it will laugh with me." (Genesis 21:6) Indeed, Isaac means "he will laugh."

I checked out the National Postal Museum on a whim a few weeks ago. I've been meaning to do so for ages, because it is only a couple of blocks from campus, and now I can finally check it off of my D.C. to-do list. I must say, it was a lot more exciting that I had anticipated. Honestly, I was expecting a museum with postage stamps framed on walls. Rather, it was very interactive, and a good place to take kids, although it felt like the museum hadn't really been updated since the mid-1990s. I especially liked the exhibit of F.D.R.'s stamp collection.

Another item completed on my to-do list: the National Zoo. My Corporations class was canceled last week, so I went to the zoo instead! My favorite part, of course, was seeing the owls. They had adorable little burrowing owls (pictured at right)! The owl on the left kept flying around, perching on a tall cactus to survey the area, while the owl on the right was sleepy. The zoo also had two barred owls, who were serene and dignified.

My dear roommate and I have had our share of fun this month, too: watching Cal football with the Cal D.C. Alumni Club, meeting up for lunch and shopping at our local mall, giving some Iraq Air Force vets (one of whom was a friend of Jess from home) a tour of D.C., a spontaneous late-night trip to 7-11 for Slurpees, attending an Oktoberfest in Maryland via water taxi, cooking together in our beautiful kitchen, and watching House, M.D., in spite of the fact that we don't own a television. Good times.

The ultimate testament of how much better 2L year is to 1L year: I actually am finding time for a bit of light reading. Fr. Alexei (one of the Catholic chaplains for Georgetown Law) recommended The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell, so I'm reading it right now. In a nutshell--Jesuits in space! I think the Amazon review sums it up well:

In 2019, humanity finally finds proof of extraterrestrial life when a listening post in Puerto Rico picks up exquisite singing from a planet which will come to be known as Rakhat. While United Nations diplomats endlessly debate a possible first contact mission, the Society of Jesus quietly organizes an eight-person scientific expedition of its own. What the Jesuits find is a world so beyond comprehension that it will lead them to question the meaning of being "human." When the lone survivor of the expedition, Emilio Sandoz, returns to Earth in 2059, he will try to explain what went wrong... Words like "provocative" and "compelling" will come to mind as you read this shocking novel about first contact with a race that creates music akin to both poetry and prayer.

Well, that is my September digest. I attended some other museums and events, and caught up with a lot of people whom I hadn't seen all summer, but I think you get the gist of how September was for me--busy, but in a good way. Tune in next time to read about going to Red Mass with the Supreme Court (and possibly the President), celebrating Jess's birthday, and even attending a congressional hearing for the Senate Foreign Relations Committee!

Wake Me Up When September Ends

Um, where did September go? Well, I wrote the following post last week, and then things got busy, and I never finished editing it, and thus it was never posted. Oh, dear. I'm going to post it as-is, and move on.

*****

I think it is safe to say that this year is so much better than 1L year. I feel like I know what I'm doing, academically. Certainly, the courses continue to be a lot of work, but I no longer feel unsure of myself, unsure of how to study, unsure of what to expect. Let me tell you a little more about my classes.

Corporations. I never took any courses in undergrad related to business, so this course is really helpful. I feel like I'm learning stuff that "adults" should know, especially with regards to basic corporate structure. This is one of those courses that isn't required curriculum, but is strongly recommended by most professors. I think it makes sense, because corporations are such an integral part of how our economy--if not our society--functions.

Professional Responsibility. I am really enjoying this class! In a nutshell, we meet for two hours each week and debate moral quandaries presented as hypotheticals. I think the discussions have been fascinating, especially when a classmate argues that the ABA's Model Rules of Professional Responsibility are at odds with his or her personal convictions. The course is taught from a public interest perspective, which brings an interesting perspective, as the Model Rules often fail to address issues that fall outside of the traditional role of a lawyer.

Tax Law. I am utterly shocked by how much I love this course. I dreaded taking this class--in fact, I didn't want to take it, ranked it really low on my choice of classes, and considered it to be bad luck that I had gotten in. Boy, was I wrong about this class! First of all, I comprehend the material... which, in all honestly, I was afraid would not be the case. However, what I failed to realize is that the beauty of a dry topic like tax law is how clear the law is. Instead of murky common law, we have the Internal Revenue Code! And, if that's not good enough, we can check out the regulations! It's so simple! I find the course surprisingly refreshing after the ambiguity of much of what we learned 1L year. That being said, I don't see myself becoming a tax lawyer anytime soon, but I think I'll be far more adept at handling my own finances after this course.

Transnational Law Seminar. Pretty much everyone gives me a blank stare when I tell them that I'm studying "transnational" law, so allow me to explain. It is also known as private international law, or conflicts of law. Private international law deals with private parties, as opposed to public entities (e.g., state governments, the EU, the UN). This course fulfills my writing requirement, and I'm tying it in to the note that I will be writing for the Poverty Law journal by writing about the 2007 Hague Convention on the International Recovery of Child Support.

My schedule is pretty nice: no class on Fridays, and only Corporations on Mondays and Wednesdays. I've been attempting to stick to my 9-to-5 work mentality for homework, which has been a good system thus far. Whenever I'm not in class, I go to the library to get work done. I also come to campus on Sundays for Mass, and stick around to get work done afterward. The best part is coming home without textbooks on the Metro, because I'm already done for the day.

Mount Vernon

Jess and I went to Mount Vernon yesterday. Wow, haven't been in town two weeks, and I already get to check something off my D.C. to-do list! Mount Vernon, of course, was George Washington's Virginia plantation. It's only 10 miles south from our apartment. Jess and I decided to go on a day with a 30% chance of rain, so it wasn't even too crowded in the morning. Below are some of the photos from our trip (taken by Jess and myself).

Although the trip was mainly lighthearted, I really did enjoy learning more about our first President, and his wife. Martha was pretty incredible--did you know that she traveled to the battles to visit her husband, since he couldn't make it back to Mount Vernon to visit her? Apparently, she was a great morale booster. I learned much of this from the 20-minute video at the education center, which was introduced by none other than Pat Sajak! Sooo random (or so I thought--apparently, he maintains a residence in Maryland). Jess and I had to exercise incredible levels of self-control to not burst out laughing, especially when he strolled on screen in 17th-century attire.

The first thing we saw? Sheep! Adorable sheep.


Inside the education center, there was an opportunity to hold hands with Washington. In fact, the hand was worn down from so many tourists!


We weren't allowed to take photos inside the house, but here are some of the slaves' quarters. Wow. It was strange to be on an actual plantation, having only ever treated them as a part of American history.


The house looks grand from afar, but actually isn't that big up close. Also, although it looks like it is made of stone, Washington had the house made of wood, and then used a paint-and-sand method to make it look like stone. Apparently, he was quite frugal.


The view from the porch onto the Potomac is gorgeous. As you can see, the Maryland shore has been maintained as a state park.


Jess and I are going to frame this for our apartment.


Washington's tomb was impressive. We attended a wreath-laying ceremony. They invited members of the military, boy scouts, and girl scouts to participate, which I thought was cool.


Down at the wharf, there was a silly little owl hiding in a corner!


Jess is so cute.


Oh, trees... You're so lovely. The shade was very helpful, since it was really hot (and humid... always humid) in the afternoon.


This was not the answer that we expected as we pulled the lever.


Hee hee, an owl hand puppet in the gift shop. The head turned 360 degrees!

The Lion's Final Roar

The passing of Senator Ted Kennedy affected me more than I would have anticipated. As I watched the coverage of the burial yesterday evening (taking place a mere 3 miles from my apartment), I was particularly struck by Cardinal McCarrick's reading of excerpts from a letter that the senator wrote to Pope Benedict. I would like to share that letter here:

Most Holy Father, I asked President Obama to personally hand deliver this letter to you. As a man of deep faith himself, he understands how important my Roman Catholic faith is to me, and I am deeply grateful to him.

I hope this letter finds you in good health. I pray that you have all of God's blessings as you lead our Church and inspire our world during these challenging times.

I am writing with deep humility to ask that you pray for me as my own health declines. I was diagnosed with brain cancer more than a year ago, and, although I continue treatment, the disease is taking its toll on me. I am 77 years old and preparing for the next passage of life.

I have been blessed to be a part of a wonderful family, and both of my parents, particularly my mother, kept our Catholic faith at the center of our lives. That gift of faith has sustained, nurtured and provided solace to me in the darkest hours. I know that I have been an imperfect human being, but with the help of my faith, I have tried to right my path."

I want you to know, Your Holiness, that in my nearly 50 years of elective office, I have done my best to champion the rights of the poor and open doors of economic opportunity. I've worked to welcome the immigrant, fight discrimination and expand access to health care and education. I have opposed the death penalty and fought to end war. Those are the issues that have motivated me and been the focus of my work as a United States Senator.

I also want you to know that even though I am ill, I am committed to do everything I can to achieve access to health care for everyone in my country. This has been the political cause of my life. I believe in a conscience protection for Catholics in the health care field and will continue to advocate for it as my colleagues in the Senate and I work to develop an overall national health policy that guarantees health care for everyone.

I have always tried to be a faithful Catholic, Your Holiness, and though I have fallen short through human failings, I have never failed to believe and respect the fundamental teachings. I continue to pray for God's blessings on you and our Church and would be most thankful for your prayers for me.

As a Catholic and a Democrat, this letter reminds me of why I went to law school, and the hopes that I have for my own impact upon others. I know that Senator Kennedy wasn't perfect--we're all sinners, after all--but, I nonetheless look up to him, and pray that he finds eternal peace.

Settling In

I left California last week on the 18th, a day-long flight with minor delays in Atlanta. As I touched down at National Airport, my heart leapt with eagerness and trepidation--I would soon see my apartment for the first time. I had signed a lease based only on photographs of the place, as Jessica and I had conducted our apartment search remotely from CA. Would it be nice? Spacious? Safe? What of all the intangibles that cannot be expressed photographically? There was nothing left to do but hope and pray.

I caught a taxi from the airport. The cab driver didn't know where my apartment was, so I had to look up directions on my iPhone. (Thank goodness for GPS!) As we drove up to my apartment, I couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief--the neighborhood was gorgeous. The streets are lined with trees, children were playing outside, and everything seemed fresh, aided by the warm rain.

Once I entered the apartment and greeted Jessica, my joy increased dramatically. Our apartment is so nice! I love it! It has tons of room, everything seems new and clean, and, most importantly, the windows provided an ample amount of natural light. Jess and I literally danced in our living room, then devoid of furniture, out of sheer exuberance for our good fortune.

The week that followed was filled with many trips to IKEA, Target, a mattress outlet, Office Depot, and Home Depot. Thankfully, Jess brought her car, so we were able to get things fairly easily, though we had to have some things delivered, such as our beds, couch, and table. We were also fortunate to have Jess's family in town for a few days; they kindly helped us carry things upstairs and build furniture. It took me a few more days to finish unpacking my boxes, but everything is now complete! I took a ton of photos--the album is on Facebook.

It took me a little while to unpack everything this week because I had other things going on--namely, Georgetown Law's Early Interview Week (EIW). EIW is where law firms come to one's law school to conduct job interviews for internships for next summer. I had 10 interviews, all with law firms in San Francisco and Silicon Valley. I was a bit nervous about the interviews, but they went well. I had some interesting questions:

• What is your favorite subset of 20th century literature?
  
• What is International Political Economy?
• What do you do in your free time?
• I see that you worked for Kaplan. Did you hear that Stanley Kaplan died yesterday?!
• Tell me more about the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act.

Most of the rest of the questions were more standard inquiries about my resumé, and asking why I was interested in their law firm in particular. Consequently, I did a lot of research about the firms; the encouraging part of my research was to see how many firms have international law practice groups, and offices abroad. Very exciting! Keep your fingers crossed for call-back interviews, and I'll keep applying for jobs in the meantime. Can you believe that the job hunt for the summer of 2010 starts so early in the law school cycle?

Classes start up on Monday. Here is my fall schedule: Corporations, Current Topics in Transnational Law (Writing Seminar requirement), Ethics in Public Interest Practice (Professional Responsibility requirement), and Tax Law. I'm a little intimidated by some of the course topics, but I'm also excited. It's nice that my schedule is so light, with regards to hours:


I am taking more units in the spring, but I wanted to keep the fall a little lighter as I adjust to living off-campus, being on a journal, searching for a job for next summer, and fulfilling my writing seminar requirement (a 6,000-word paper, exclusive of footnotes). I'll share more about the classes next week, after I've attended a couple of lectures.