It's November. That means people think it's Christmas time...which is just fine by me because it means I get to consume endless amounts of this stuff, which is now finally in season:
Yummayyyyy.
So, I ended the month of October by being trendy and dressing up as an Occupy Wall Streeter for Halloween. And can I just say how fulfilled I felt after protesting a self-created and dramatized cause that enables the hipsters of society to finally live out their idealized fantasies of starting a revolution like their heroes from the sixties? Man, good times... good times. And by protesting...I mean partying. Friday night I danced the night away with some of the coolest kids around San Diego on a three story boat that sailed around the harbor til 2AM. You know you're in law school when staying up that late is a struggle. But nonetheless, it was a fun night. Especially when Mr. 31 and I ventured off to grab some McDonald's on our way home. The one by my apartment was closed so we drove to the next closest one, which happened to be in some sketch area near campus. When I was taking my sweet time to order, like I enjoy doing, the lady at the drive through said something like "just letting you know you have one minute to order and then we're ONLY serving breakfast. Also I hate you."(Ok maybe I embellished that last part a bit). Then, she took like 20 minutes to give us our food, and then said I couldn't get a McFlurry because "the machine was off." As if you can't turn a McFlurry machine on. PLEASE, lady. I mean, who does that? Anyway, this story has no substance. At least at the end of the day I got my chicken nuggets.
The rest of Halloween weekend was pretty laid back for me. I had my Crim midterm Friday and had been studying nonstop for like two weeks up to that point, so I was burnt out and just wanted to enjoy myself after the test was over. So, I did. And it was great. You want to know what wasn't great? My Crim midterm. Let's discuss.
So, I studied hard. We all did. I entered the test room I had been assigned and was all ready to go. I had been listening to Eminem on the drive over and I just felt really confident in what I knew. I was prepared and I knew I was going to rock the midterm.
Exhibit A: Evidence of Audrey's insanity. Mirror outlines.
I sat in my seat and before I knew it the proctor began administering the directions for the exam--the first of which was to open up Examsoft. Law school exams are very heavy written exams, and most students will thus take exams on their laptops so they can type up their answers. In these exams, time is very limited and there is a lot of information to spew out. So, typing is your best bet because even for the slower typers, it's going to be the fastest way to complete your answer. So, you use Examsoft--a program that basically blocks everything on your computer except the test so you can type without cheating or whatever. I downloaded Examsoft before the exam and had also downloaded all the files we were going to need to take the midterm. Everything was golden. Well, at least it was supposed to be.
I opened up Examsoft and went to the folder where I thought my files would be. The proctor was directing everyone to open up the Criminal Law exam folder and to stop at the red stop sign. "Once everyone gets to the red stop sign we will begin the exam." Well, Audrey goes to where she thinks the test will be, and the only thing she sees is a trial file called "Mock Exam." Audrey was confused. Audrey had downloaded the test. Audrey was prepared. Yet Audrey did not see the Criminal Law exam in her folder. Ok, I'm going to stop talking in the third person now.
Mr. Web Designer, who was in the same testing room as I was, raised his hand and told the proctor he didn't see his exam and the proctor said something along the lines of, "Well you can try downloading it, but I'm sorry we can't wait for you." Instantly, a number of expletives ran through my mind. I had been doing practice tests and the biggest challenge for me was time. I knew the info, but I was having a hard time fitting my answers into the time slot available. So, before I went into the test, I knew that I was going to have to type fast, be efficient, and keep up with the clock if I was going to be able to get the grade that I wanted. So, you can imagine my distress when I discovered the possibility that the test would start without me and that I would lose precious minutes that were essential to my success. Mr. Web Designer then asked if he could just hand-write his exam. This made me even more stressed out because there was no way in hell I was writing that exam. I would be doomed! There was a moment where I concluded that I was being Punk'd and that Ashton Kutcher was going to pop out any second and tell me he was hiding my exam file in my iPhoto library or something like that. But then after about 5 seconds I realized Ashton was not coming out and paranoia began to set in that I was going to fail my exam.
Now, for anyone who knows me--when it comes to school, I am a perfectionist, I don't handle stress well, I have problems with anxiety, and I am very very bad at staying calm. Needless to say, anyone in that testing room that didn't know that then definitely knows it now. Honestly, I felt like I was going to cry. I felt nauseous. I felt sick. And I guess I was shaking. Oh my gosh I feel so embarrassed thinking back on it now. Anyway, it was the worst feeling ever. I was not doing well. But then, in my despair, I began hearing comments from my classmates sitting around me. "Audrey, did you put in the correct password?" "Audrey, it's your social security number. You just put it right in the slot." "Try starting the program again." As I heard those kind, comforting voices, a big weight was lifted off my shoulders. I felt more relaxed. I was still shaking, but I at least didn't feel alone anymore. I felt like I had found help in my peers, and I felt like there were people working through my problem with me as opposed to leaving me behind in the dust. Eventually, these people helped me figure it out and I found my test. After that, we began and I tried to shake off my stress as I started the multiple choice. After I got past the hurdle with finding my exam, I felt like the test was smooth sailing. I feel good about how I did, but you really never know until you get your grade. I could have gotten an A just as easily as I could have gotten an F. Only time will tell.
When I think about the exam, though, I don't really think about my performance--or about what I think my grade will be. I think about the wonderful people in my section that made me feel cared about and supported when I was beyond scared. I am still so incredibly touched by those people and what they did to help me. It meant the world to me. Thank you really doesn't say enough. In this environment where we're supposed to be so competitive and cut throat with each other, I have seen nothing but kindness and genuine character from the majority of my peers. Maybe it's just San Diego. Or maybe it's just Section C. Either way, the camaraderie here is so incredibly strong and it has lead me to one conclusion:
Rumor #1 of law school--the people are selfish and cut-throat and will do anything they can to get to the top.
Truth #1 of law school--Rumor #1 is false.
So, I got through the midterm, I celebrated Halloween, and I made more pumpkin pancakes. I asked Mr. 31 to write down the recipe for the pancakes for me so I wouldn't have to look it up again, and this is what I found. Please note the reference to Plessy v. Ferguson.
References to law come up even in recipes for pancakes.
Truth #2 of law school: You all go insane.
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