Feeling down

I don't know how else to say it. I'm just feeling really sad today for a couple reasons. The deal on my house fell through yesterday when we did the inspection. The inspector found a major flaw in the foundation of the garage and three or four other major flaws that I won't bother to tell you about. Since we on plan to stay in the house for just a few years, we know even if we made the repairs it would hurt our resale value. So Lawrence is set to look at homes this weekend while I compete.

But what is really bumming me out is some other news I found out about yesterday. I got a call from a girl I worked with while I lived in South Dakota. We'll call her Jennifer (because that's her name). Jennifer left me a message saying she wanted to talk to me about another friend of mine we'll call Marie. Now I hadn't talked to Jennifer since I moved out of Rapid City nearly two years ago. We were more like work friends than hang out on the weekend friends. And I couldn't figure out why she'd be calling me about Marie because Marie moved out of Rapid City almost a year ago. I figured maybe she'd gone back to visit family and Jennifer had run into her or something benign. Anyway, I call Jennifer back and she tells me that Marie is under indictment for grand theft by embezzlement and that she's accused of stealing tens of thousands of dollars from her employer. I was so shocked I didn't know what to say. I hadn't talked to Marie since Christmas but I hadn't really thought much about it because we both tend to be busy and we always catch up eventually. I had even sent Marie a note in February just telling her I was thinking about her, not knowing what was going on. The other odd thing is that Lawrence is very good friends with Marie's husband and they talk probably once or twice a week; he hadn't mentioned a thing about it.

I am just devastated. Marie has a little boy who is in grade school. She faces the possibility of 25 years in prison and the State's Attorney's only plea deal has been to plead guilty to all charges, which isn't really a deal at all, unless she just wanted to avoid trial. I did talk to her last night. She wouldn't take my call at first and her husband said she was embarrased and assumed I would never want to talk to her again. But that isn't the case. She and her husband were really our only friends in Rapid City. We hung out together all the time. Even since we've moved we've spent Thanksgivings together and kept in touch. I think of her like a sister and her husband as a brother.

That's why I'm so sad. I'm sad because she's going through a rough spot that has a negative end no matter how you look at it. I'm worried about how this will effect her little boy, how her marriage will survive, how she will be able to cope with the possibility of so much loss and guilt.

Lack of knitting content

Okay, so I'm sure you've noticed the utter lack of knitting content lately. There has been an especially egregious lack of knitting progress. But I assure you there is a good reason for that. First, I haven't been knitting much lately (ok that wasn't a good reason, I admit). I've only been working on one sleeve of my ribby and it's not particularly interesting. Second, I've been busy with this competition I entered (still waiting for a good reason, I know). Third, I am also in LAW SCHOOL, in case you forgot or didn't realize it (keep waiting). Most importantly though, I've been looking for a house, my first house. That's a good reason, right? Now I'd like a drum roll, please....

I'M BUYING A HOUSE or at least my husband is and he's going to put my name on the title! Our very first house! I'm pretty excited. Our offer was accepted on Sunday and we close at the end of May -- right after finals. I suppose you'd like to see a pic, heh?


Here's the front of the house. There are a couple features that make me prefer it over our rental home, which isn't a bad home but has clearly been a rental for too long. One, we have our own mailbox. In my area, communal mailboxes are all the rage, but not on my new street. I have a box right in my front yard, just like it should be. Two, we have an entryway -- a bufferzone between the street and my living room. This is great for keeping the dogs from immediately dashing into the street when I open the front door. Three, even if the dogs do dash into the street, my new street is much quieter and farther from a busy street than my rental home so it's less likely I will have a heart attack if they get out because I worry about them. Finally, we have trees. Two tall, grown trees! That is a real bonus when you live where I do. I can't tell you how many homes I looked at that had just one tiny pathetic little tree in the front. Trees are essential to home happiness, in my opinion.


Here's the view of the backyard. Again, there are advantages over my rental. One, there is room to turn around in my new yard. The dogs may actually have room to run in this yard. Two, my new home has a main floor walkout. No more walking into the basement to get outside for me. Nope, just step right out of the kitchen and there you are -- in the yard! My new home also has a deck that doesn't sway from side to side while you stand on it. I won't miss that about the rental. There are also more trees in this backyard, although this picture doesn't show them. Trust me though, there are at least four or five more trees. Oh yeah, don't be thrown off by the window unit air conditioners. They have just recently installed central air to my home. No more evaporative cooler for me people! No more trying to harness the cool air coming from one window in the lower level to get it up to second floor bedroom. I will sleep in cool comfort this summer...in my own house!!

So eat that landlords everywhere! Even if my dishwasher breaks unexpectedly and I have to shell out some money for a new one, at least I'll buy one that matches the rest of my appliances. I am going to paint my walls whatever damn color I want. I am going to take care of my yard because I'll have pride in my own place. I'll even perform regular maintenance rather than letting my home languish for years until everything just starts to fall apart. So that's why I haven't been knitting much. But I'll get back to it, don't worry!

Ever driven across Kansas?

Going on a mini-vacation makes me tired. I couldn't stop yawning all day. But we had a good trip.

The baby looked lovely in her new blanket.



Lawrence's family lives on a small farm outside of Kansas City, Missouri. They even have a couple alpacas! Meet Pactu and Baby.



Here's another shot of Pactu eating a little snack. Hehe it's hard not to laugh when you're around them.



Then just as soon as we got there, we had to come back home. Driving through Kansas is like some form of medieval torture. Imagine seeing this for 8 hours straight.



We decided to break it up by visiting the Cathedral of the Plains. This huge Cathedral is located in Victoria, Kansas.



So we drove around town and determined that Victoria is absolutely the cleanest small town we've ever seen. Having lived in South Dakota for awhile (which really only contains small towns) and having driven through many small communities -- Victoria takes the cake for being neat, clean, and looking generally proud.

In knitting news...

I also managed to finish the first sleeve of my Ribby Cardi. Now just one left to go and I can start piecing it together!

Law school perk

I know y'all like to tell lawyer jokes and even, ahem, leave comments about how lawyers are all pro(crastinators), but there are also some perks. One of them being the respect some people will give you because you are or will be a professional. Hmm...a whole different kind of pro. This wasn't intentional. I don't want to bore you by making my posts all about words that start with p-r-o. Of course, it's also total crap that people treat you better just because they find out that someday you might have some power because you will be a gatekeeper to the law.

So here's how this came up today. We're getting ready to buy a house. We pay way too much in rent so we thought buying a house would be a good idea. However, I'm not making any money right now. This means that we can't afford a fancy house. I definitely can't afford my dream home. I'll settle for something in a clean neighborhood. We have two dogs so we have to have a yard. I went out today with a realtor. She was certain that we'd rather have a new home than a re-sale (re-sale? I guess that's nicer than calling it a "used" house.) Keep in mind that new houses in my price range typically have miniature yards and no trees. But she was still pretty certain we could get a good deal from a builder I'll call C.Q. Gorton (you can figure it out, right?). Realtor and I went inside Morton's office to discuss options. Here's a transcript:

Realtor: Hey Gorton Guy who looks suave what do you have
in ___ price range?

Gorton Guy: (scoffs) $____?! Nothing. The lowest we can go is
$____ (outrageous price).

Realtor: Really? That's it huh? Hmm, well
we're looking for something less because Kaitie Tee is in school right now.

Gorton Guy: (condenscendingly) Ohh that's good that
you're in school. (If I were shorter than him, he probably would have pat my
head.)

Realtor: What about your company's other developments in
this area? I know you're building south of here.

Gorton Guy: Oh yeah, those homes are built by one of
Gorton's subsidiaries. I don't have anything to do with them (because I'm
too good for them). But really, in your price range you'll probably have
to buy a townhouse. Anyone buying a house below $____ (my price plus $50K)
says single family homes in that range are pretty bad.

Me: (rolling eyes -- thanks a lot, like I didn't already
feel broke and depressed about my options, yet still not wanting to waste money
on rent)

Realtor: hmm okay. Where are those townhouses you're
talking about?

Gorton Guy: (gives directions -- followed by awkward pause
in convo) So what are you studying? (again
condescendingly)

Me: (matter of factly) I'm in law school.

Gorton Guy: (perks up) Oh really?! That's
great!

Realtor: Yeah, Kaitie Tee already has two years in with
just one to go.

Gorton Guy: That's great. What are you going to
specialize in?

Me: (tells him some made up specialty because I'm tired of
trying to explain to people that I don't really know what I want to do and that
it's not like undergrad where you major in something lame that you never really
do...like political science...what was I thinking?)

Gorton Guy: That will be good. I have several
friends who are lawyers...blah, blah, blah (um great dude. does that make you cool by
association?)

Then we left.

WTF!? Suck it jerk! How come I wasn't worth the time of day until I told you I'm in law school. How come you acted like I was some lame little girl before you learned that I have more ambition that you'd ever dream of having. Go "sales" someone else. In three years, when I'm ready to buy my dream house you can guarantee I won't be buying it from C.Q. Gorton. Not that I had ever really considered it, but now I'm definitely against it. When he asked me what I was studying, I really should have flipped my hair and said something like women's studies with a minor in anthropology. Not because I think these are bad majors, but because it was so obviously that cocky, sales-y, Gorton Guy probably would have laughed in my face. So I guess it's a perk that people think you're legit because you're in law school. But it's also bullshit that sales-y losers don't want to talk to you until they think you're more "like them."

I'm alive!

I know you were worried about me, but it's okay. I finished my brief last Friday at 5:15. It wasn't even due until 6:00, so I was ahead of schedule. I needed to finish up so I could get to my St. Paddy's Day celebrating, which was also successful!

I finished my scarf over the weekend. I thought it was finished before, but it really needed an extra couple inches.



I wore it out last night when I attended my precinct caucus. It turns out that I'm going to be a delegate at the county assembly. I was unanimously elected. (I was the only person there for my precinct so I voted for myself. :-) ) The amount of apathy was a bit scary, but there's not a presidential election this year so I guess people aren't so concerned.

I've made minimal progress on my Ribby Cardi. I'm hoping I can finish it on the ride to Kansas City. I also need to start seriously thinking about what I'm going to knit for my brother's baby. They thought they weren't going to learn the sex of the baby. But now they've decided to invite everyone out to dinner at which time they're going to reveal the sex. My mom says the plan involves an envelope and drama, of course.

When you're a pro

When you're a pro(crastinator) you get to spend your spring break catching up on the learning you should have been doing for the last month and a half. A real pro doesn't just resolve to do this, she puts off writing a brief so that she can assemble a study schedule for her spring break.

• Monday - Trusts and Estates
• Tuesday - Elections law
• Wednesday - Advanced Civil Procedure
• Thursday - Constitutional law
• Friday to Sunday - prepare oral argument

When learning about the characteristics of a pro, it's important to explore the truth behind certain myths. Pros are NOT slackers. Slackers are people who generally don't care if they do their work. Law school slackers are pleased merely to carry a GPA anywhere between 2.2 to 3.0, with 3.0 being right in the middle of the curve (yes, I know a true curve would have a median of 2.0, but that's a another story). Pros, on the other hand, generally do their work. They read before class, albeit usually in the hour just before class. It's only when a true deadline looms that their procrastinating ways are noticeable to the naked eye. Some pros even perform better when they have deadlines. They thrive on the adrenaline rush that comes with the realization that they have wasted large amounts of time before deciding to get to work and that their task would have been sooo much easier if they had only started sooner.

A pro's motto: If you wait until the last minute, it only takes you a minute!

(I promise some knitting content soon. As soon as I turn in this brief I can take the rest of the weekend to knit and relax!)

I'm a real pro

A real procrastinator that is! I am only about four pages into my brief. I need to write about twelve pages, which I'll then combine with my partner's for one complete brief of thirty pages. I'm starting to think that it doesn't even matter if my brief sucks because the brief score is only counted for the first two rounds of the competition anyway. (That doesn't mean I won't still obsess over every word I write.) In addition, I found out today that of the 20 teams signed up originally, there are only 11 remaining. By the time Friday rolls around, it may be sufficient that I merely have a pulse. Oh, one more thing...remember when I said we'd have to do 2 or 3 arguments? Make that more like 5 or 6. Did I mention I don't like public speaking and that I'm forcing myself to do this competition in the hopes that I will become more comfortable with speaking to a group. Hmm, guess this should to it then!?

Work, work, and more work

Ahh the life of a law student who not only keeps up with class and student organization membership, but also voluntarily decides to participate in a moot court competition. Uh huh, that's right, I'm crazy. I signed up for the only competition that requires you to write a brief in addition to giving at least two oral arguments. The brief is due next Friday, which in theory sounds like plenty of time. I spent all of today, so far, reading cases and trying to figure out how I want to frame my argument. My fake client has been sentenced to 25 years to life imprisonment under a three strikes law (three felonies, you're out). So my brief will argue that her sentence is cruel and unusual punishment under the 8th Amendment. This is a tough argument and one on which the Supreme Court is still not clear. We'll see how this goes!

In knitting news...

I started a scarf this week after realizing that the cold weather was not over. I'm quite pleased with how it looks so far:


Dog update...

Still relaxing!

Bingo!

Look what my secret pal, Jen, sent me! Isn't it cute? She takes old bingo cards and then binds them into notebooks. This little treasure arrived at the end of last week, but I kept forgetting my camera in the car. Of course, I probably won't write anything in it for fear that I will ruin it. Did you ever do that with a journal? I can't tell you how many times I've tried to start a diary. I write a few entries and then when I return to it later I feel like I have to rip out those old entries because they are so not me or at least not cool enough that I want to remember them.



In knitting news...

I haven't been knitting much since the end of the Olympics. The weather has been absolutely gorgeous here. It was 70 degrees and sunny today. But now I realize that I should have been scrambling to make some cold weather gear because it's supposed to snow 4-5 inches tomorrow...crazy Colorado weather.

So glad it's Friday!

I've been grading citations for the better part of the day. (I'm a teaching assistant for a first-year legal writing class.) Man, some of these students cannot write! I decided I deserved a break.

I've been holding out on you all week. I got this yarn several days ago, but didn't have time to take pictures in the daylight. This yarn is from the ebay seller, 100% purewool. I ordered the yarn through the Yarn Co-op and got a great deal. Of course, now I can't remember what I planned to make with some of it. I know I wanted to make another So-Called Scarf. But I can't remember what I planned to knit with the blue and white yarn. I'm thinking a sleeveless top might be nice for the transition from Winter to Spring.


Two skeins Otono fantasia


Three skeins Liz


Six skeins Celeste fantasia

I've made a little progress on my Ribby Cardi. Please ignore the very uneven stitches.

Gold medal winner has to return to real life

I haven't posted anything since Saturday. Why, you ask? Because I have been running around like a chicken with my head cut off all week! I am really about to crack here people. While I was sitting in class I made a list of things I need to do today:

1. Read for Advanced Civil Procedure
2. Read for Trusts and Estates
3. Read for Con Law
4. Go to post office
5. Start research for Elections Law paper
6. Start research for brief due on March 10
7. Turn in X's papers for travel reimbursement
8. Update blog

This is an impossible list. I am a procrastinator so I decided to start with my blog update -- arguably the least important item on my list. I will probably accomplish items 1 through 4. I will then feel guilty for not accomplishing everything on my list, even though I know it's not possible to do ALL of these things today.


Just in case you don't know, today is Ash Wednesday. I was raised Catholic and attended a Catholic high school. I can't remember the last time I went to church. However, this doesn't mean I don't know about sacrifice and guilt! I have decided to give up eating chocolate for Lent. So from now until Easter, I will not eat a single piece of chocolate. Is this really possible? I am pretty sure I can do it. But I am already wondering if this sacrifice should include hot chocolate. I talking about Swiss Miss. Really folks, is this chocolate? I'm not so sure it is. But I should probably abstain, just in case. Also, does white chocolate count? I don't even like white chocolate. It doesn't even contain cocoa so I guess I won't worry about it.

Tip 'O the Day:
Don't eat yogurt with a plastic fork -- You will end up with big blob of yogurt on your shirt. You will have to walk around for the rest of the day wearing your yogurt stain because you have class until 7:15pm and you don't have time to go home between classes because you need to read for class instead.