A Change of Plans

So as of recently, I am thinking that I may not be attending law school this fall. I know most of you are like wtf? because I spent all that money and time on the LSAT and have gotten into like 7 schools. It is REALLY expensive though. I mean, basically all the aid I have been offered is in the form of loans, and the institutional support for public interest lawyers isn't really where it needs to be yet. That means I would be walking away from school with over a 100,000 dollars of debt and an income of at most 45,000 dollars a year.

Now, if I was super gung-ho, I would just do it. But the debt concern has made me really evaluate why I am going to law school. And the reality is that I am not super attached and committed to being a lawyer. I just really wanted to help people. And while that is a noble goal, I don't know that it is entirely appropriate for going to law school. The real reason one should go is because they love the law and really want to practice it, and I'm not sure that's where I'm at. I'm not saying I could never be there. I just am not right now.

So I'm not going to put myself into an unmanageable, painful amount of debt if I'm not 100 percent sure about my choice. My LSAT score is good for another few years, and now I am at least confident that I can get into a school, so maybe I will revisit the issue next year. Maybe I'll have an entirely different pursuit or maybe I will just end up going this fall. Who knows?

Either way, the current plan is to look into getting a new job where I am not exploited, maybe even a legal assistant position to totally figure things out and get a new apartment with Duchess.

Wish me luck!

3/31 EDIT - I think I'm going now. To American. See you on the east coast Lauren!

A Moment of Nostalgia

Okay, so I've been meaning to write this post for a while now, and seeing as how it has been almost a full year since I have left the Bay Area and all of you lovely people, I think the timing for this blog is perfect. The following list is a collection of all of the things I miss about Stanford and its surroundings. Of course, I miss all of you the most. That goes without saying, so without further ado...

(in no particular order)

• Hobee's Blueberry Coffee Cake
• Day Trips to Half Moon Bay
• Ski Trips
• Going into the City
• I just watched a special about the year 1968 and am currently reading Ken Kesey's Demon Box...San Francisco and the Bay Area was where it was at! Seriously! I mean I knew the area was pretty historically significant, but it's still amazing to think about.

• Watching The Office with all of you--it comes back APRIL 10th!
• Free Film Screenings
• Intellectual Stimulation
• Without college it's pretty difficult to come by. I'm trying my best to exercise the college brain cells I worked so hard for 4 years. I've been reading a lot: Into the Wild, East of Eden, Franny and Zooey, Rabbit, Run!, A Tale of Two Cities, and now Demon Box. I've also been watching a lot of movies/tv trying to use my pretty useless degree: There Will Be Blood, No Country for Old Men, The Darjeeling Limited, Across the Universe, Arrested Development (just a few of my faves at the moment).

• Stacks (the restaurant, not the library!)
• Cafe Borrone's
• specifically their rum cake that's oh so delicious!!

• Special Dinners
• Slosh Ball
• The Stanford Bookstore
• There's really no other bookstore like it. It was the perfect place to browse at books, study, and take study break by browsing down at people from the 2nd floor. (I know this makes me seems a little creepy, and I'm okay with that)

• Art Fairs in White Plaza
• Full of stuff I couldn't afford, but always fun to look around.

• The Stanford Theatre
• A great source for classic cinema.

• EBF Happy Hour
• Wine Nights
• The crepe place in San Francisco
• The chicken crepes at the CoHo (this I may never taste again..boo)
• Classico Gelato
• Being able to go over to Dina, Nora, and Yamanda's room to just chill
• Fountain Hopping
• Going to Stanford sports events
• I really should have gone to more. Now I try to catch Stanford sports on tv on the rare occasions they show their games on the East Coast.

• Playing pool

There's more to add to the list, but that'll do for a start. Oh, and just to make sure I'm not looking back on my past with rose colored glasses here's a short list of things I really don't miss:

• Caterpillars
• Community Bathrooms
• ALWAYS having work for classes to do.
• Not having a car

Okay, well, it was nice reminiscing. Now, I must be off to the exciting world of retail. Ugh!

They try to make me go to rehab...

I am obsessed with my pedometer. I know that statement should be a joke, but alas, it is true. Duchess bought me one about a year ago, and I used it once, only to decide it was too complicated and inaccurate. I put it away in the closet and never revisited it. Then one day at work, I heard that people should be walking at least 10,000 steps a day to be healthy. Suddenly I was motivated by the opportunity to compete with myself, and the pedometer came back in the picture. Shortly after, I realized that thing was better than crack. For the last 3 months or so, it has taken just about every step with me. I seriously would feel naked if I accidentally left the house without it. Kind of like how you might feel if you went out and forgot to put on a bra.

Sadly, this initial pedometer fell off and was run over by a car before I returned to it (only about 5 minutes later mind you). Since then, I have purchased a new, equally awesome pedometer that is literally glued to my hip. At first, I was pretty nonchalant about the mission. I would get the 10,000 steps a day during the week and then become completely unmotivated on the weekends. A typical Saturday consisted of about 812 steps which is apparently the grand total of steps from my bedroom to the bathroom, my bathroom to the car, the car to the dimsum restaurant, and then the car to the couch. However, lately I have been super militant, and the weekends are no longer off the hook. I get to 10,000 everyday. The other day I put it on just to get up out of bed and walk to the bathroom. Duchess was like "you can't be 5 steps off?" The simple answer is no.

To make matters worse, I went to the doctor a couple of weeks ago and the medical assistant noticed my pedometer. She was all like "I have one too. I'm so proud of you!" Then she told me she's been aiming for 12,000 steps a day. I realized the competition wasn't just with myself. So, this week I have been taking the Marguerite to and from work everyday and walking at lunch with some of my co-workers. Today, I missed my lunch walk and Duchess drove me to work, so I walked the 3 or so miles home to make up for it. This has resulted in 12,000 - 14,000 steps a day. So there.

The results? I have no clue. Higher endurance perhaps. 10,000 a day used to feel like so much, and now it's just no big deal. Wow, I do sound like an addict.

I think the fact that I just wrote an entire blog entry about my pedometer is evidence enough of my obsession. By the way, have you heard I'm going to law school?