One Week Down... Three Years to Go.

Well the first week of law school has come and gone and -- surprise, surprise -- I'm still here!

It was a whirlwind of a week and I really enjoyed it. I love my classes (except for maybe Legal Research and Writing…) and my classmates seem interesting and intelligent. I don't want to bore you all with the details, but I would have to say that, so far, my favorite classes are… never mind. I can't pick any of them as favorites. I'm sure I'll change my mind about this later, but for now, I really enjoy my classes and my professors and my classmates.

This past week has consisted of about 13 hours actually in class, at least 20 hours of reading/studying, lots of coffee, many late nights and an abundance of my favorite tea drink - Hot Fuji Snow. I am finding time for fun and relaxing, and I'm still working out - which I've heard on more than one occasion is really important (like I didn't already know that, hah).

We've had a lot of car drama this past week, too. I knew I'd have to buy a car when I moved home, but I wanted to get all my financial aid ducks in a row before committing to anything too seriously. My brother also turned 16 and finally got his license this month. As a result, we had 4 drivers in the house and only 2 cars. This is the first time in a very long time that I can remember drivers outnumbering vehicles in my household. It was okay during the summer when Michael and I weren't doing much, but we knew we'd need to get things figured out before the start of the school year.

Well, last Friday night, the radiator in the Jeep cracked, which makes the Jeep completely un-drivable because it overheats super fast. My poor mom was driving when it happened, but she got the Jeep towed and made it home just fine. The Jeep was then sitting in the shop all day Saturday, all day Sunday, all day Monday (when they actually opened, could look at the Jeep and figure out what was wrong) and most of Tuesday (when they actually got to fix it). This left us with 4 drivers, 1 car and four very different schedules on Monday and Tuesday.

It was a bit of scramble to get everyone dropped off at their appropriate places of work or school, but we managed. And mom and I went shopping for new cars! Mom settled on a bright red Pontiac Vibe, and I found a cute little blue Chevy Cavalier (very similar to the Corsica which we were all now sharing and would eventually be inherited by Michael). By Friday afternoon, the cars were ours and the Jeep was sufficiently repaired to be put back into commission. So now we've got 4 cars for 4 drivers and everyone is quite happy (although I think my mom is totally freaked out by Michael driving around Lincoln on his own…)!

PICTURES.....

Mom's Car

Sam's Car!!!!

That was my drama for the week. I know - I live a terribly exciting life, right? :) I'm quite content to have such minimal drama these days. School is enough work as it is, without adding drama llamas on top.

Random Notes of Interest:
(1) I'm cutting back on dairy, because this is supposed to help reduce the symptoms of allergies (ask Johnny for more info…)
(2) Amy and Ty's puppy, Ezra, is doing awesome. He is the cutest little guy and he is SO smart. He is the star of his puppy class, of course. I'd expect nothing less of someone from our family!
(3) I love Lincoln. It is really a beautiful little town and it is so happily green and windy these days. If you're not here, you're missing out.
(4) Can't wait for my upcoming trips to Chicago and Colorado. I miss you out-of-staters and I hope I get to see some of you within the next couple of months!

Love,
Samantha

Orientation

Orientation for Law School was preceded by an optional session on "Reading Like a Lawyer" on Wednesday. I decided that since I was in Lincoln already and since I don't have a job or anything else pressing or productive going on, I should probably attend this session. It was interesting and informative, although not as exciting as some of the other sessions I have since attended. I got to see my Civil Procedures professor in action, as well as Dean Pierce, whom I must say I really enjoy. I wasn't feeling particularly social at this session, so I pretty much just left afterward.

Later on Wednesday night I went to the ice cream social for students who had signed up for the Big Brothers/Big Sisters program, which pairs a 1L student with a returning 2L or 3L student. I was supposed to be paired with at 3L named Brooke, but she was unable to attend, so I was randomly paired up with this guy Stephen, a 2L, whose "Little Brother" also did not show up. I had a good time talking with Stephen about law school, sports (soccer!!! he's an Aston Villa fan - boo!), and other random stuff; and he was nice enough to introduce me to some of his friends. As it turned out, his friends were headed out for a drink at Risky's after the ice cream social and they invited me and a couple of other 1Ls along. It was great to get to meet real law students and see that they are regular people just like me. They have fun, they have jobs, they struggle in classes, they go out, they hate some professors and love others (and they don't always agree on which professors fall into which categories). They gossip and shop and make plans to go out for pizza. It's just good to see that you really can still have a social life while in school!

The first day of Orientation was a whirlwind. We had to have our pictures taken in the morning - these will be attached to our transcripts for the next 3 years (no pressure, right?) - and then we got to talk with students from various student organizations. I'm thinking I will join a law fraternity (they have a massive compilation of outlines for every class), the Student Bar Association (you get a good discount in the bookstore), the Women's Law Caucus (they have great parties and networking), and the International Law Association (they help with study abroad). After this we had a welcome from Chief Justice Heavican of the Nebraska Supreme Court, as well as some other people. The Dean spoke briefly and the associate dean (Dean Pierce, my favorite for sure) spoke at length of academic integrity and various rules that 1Ls are expected to follow. According to the ABA, 1Ls are not allowed to engage in any career oriented activities until Nov 1, so the dean from the career center could only give a very brief talk to us, but there will be a lot more of that to come! I then had lunch with my academic advisor, who is my Property professor for the fall. He's a pretty interesting guy, but he makes a lot of baseball analogies that I don't really get…

Then we had a big ethics session with Chief Justice Riley of the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals. He gave a kind of somber speech about how the law profession is viewed as lacking in integrity as of late, and how we should strive to change that. He paraphrased another judge (can't remember who, sorry) when he said we should respect the law, but never worship the law. The law is not the highest power of the land. Rather, it is the lowest common denominator, the lowest acceptable standard of conduct; and we should all hold ourselves to something higher. It reminded me of something from Law & Order (omg) when they said we should not just uphold the Letter of the Law, but the Spirit of the Law. Anyway, after this, we broke out into smaller groups to discuss various ethical hypotheticals. My group was led by Chief Justice Heavican - a pretty cool guy who was appointed by Clinton. He had great questions for us that would completely shift the paradigm in which the hypothetical might currently stand. If he wasn't such an excellent judge, he could be a great teacher.

Day two of Orientation was quite a bit shorter. We had a brief overview of the library, and then we got to meet our "registration groups". These are groups of 18 students with whom I'll have all of my classes. Each of the classes have a mix of different registration groups, so you should have at least one class with every other 1L. I don't really know my group very well yet, but I'm excited to get to know them. I hope I like them, since I have to spend several hours each day for the next 9 months with them… :) We ended the day with a lecture from our Legal Writing professor. It was kinda boring, but it was good to learn to brief cases and see what exactly they're looking for.

Later that night, the Student Bar Association hosted a "Back to School" party at The Alley. Lots of people went out and we had a good time. It was a lot of fun and I met a lot of new people, especially older students. The students at UNL are all so nice. Everyone wants to give you their outlines and their briefs and their advice. It's really reassuring. I'm not sure I would particularly enjoy one of those really competitive environments where students hide books and stuff. That's just crazy.

Looks like I'm getting better at this whole blogging on a regular basis thing… I'm headed out for the evening now - going to watch the No Coast Derby Girls for the first time with a bunch of girl friends. Should be quite exciting! Apparently there is a 2L who plays on one of the teams.

So I will probably update you all again on Monday-ish. By then, I should have completed my first day of law school and I'll give you some fun updates about my car shopping experiences!

Samantha

Colorado is calling...

Sorry it's been a while since I last updated my bloggy blog. Things have been a bit busy here, and I'll tell you why...

When we last left off, I had just finished telling you all of my fantastic family trip to the cabins at Platte River State Park, and of my growing excitement and anticipation for both my trip to Colorado and the beginning of my law school career. As I write to you now, I have returned from Colorado and just finished my first official day of Orientation at law school.

Let's start with Colorado… I went to Colorado with my best friend Mikayla to visit our other best friend Whitney who recently gave birth to the beautiful baby girl Zia. Mikayla and I drove to CO, a trip I know many of you would consider quite boring, but there's a reason I"m in Nebraska and it's because I have a very great love for wide open spaces, rolling hills, corn fields, soy bean fields, sunflower fields, open blue skies and decrepit windmills. That pretty much describes the landscape for about 6.5 hours of the 8 hour trip. Nebraska is a truly beautiful state, especially in the Spring and Summer times. Colorado is, of course, a lovely state as well. I always enjoy the mountains and the canyons and the multiple levels of ear poppery.

Our visit with Whitney and Zia (and Joe - Zia's daddy, and Chris - Zia's uncle) was pretty much fantastic - definitely one of the best trips I've had in a long time. It was great to see my best friend again. I think sometimes we forget how important it can be to actually see each other - to hear laughter, see the eyes smile, give real hugs. It's refreshing and nourishing to the soul (excessively descriptive, I know, but so true). Zia is such a cute and perfect little baby girl. She has the most beautiful and infectious smile! Toward the end of our visit, I could tickle her plump little cheeks and her little bitty chin and she would smile in the most adorable way. She is also a very blessed little girl, to have such loving and devoted parents, and an uncle who obviously cares very much for her. That house is full of love.

We didn't do much while we were in Colorado, besides fawn over Zia, catch up with Whit, and get to know Joe and Chris. Mikayla and I took a quick trip to Estes Park to see the canyon, the mountains and the Stanley Hotel (which The Shining is based on). Whitney, Mikayla and I also went shopping in downtown Fort Collins, took Zia and the dogs (Balou and Nanook) for walks, and on Saturday we took a big trip to the river (minus Uncle Chris). The river was pretty excellent - there were lots of families with dogs there and it was just a really relaxing and beautiful place to spend a few hours and get some sun.

It was incredibly difficult to leave Fort Collins. I knew that I would be returning to Lincoln to face the regimented ferocity of law school, while I was leaving behind a world of natural beauty, outdoor excitement and home full of loving friends. More than once, I wanted to turn the car around and bid "adieu" to Lincoln and law school. I think this kind of panic and uncertainty is common among 1Ls. I've spoken with a few others already who are nervous, intimidated, completely unsure of what we are attempting to throw ourselves, head first, into. But the car moved steadily east, away from rock climbing, camping and my cute baby Zia, and toward a different kind of adventure.

And so I write to you today from a favorite coffee shop of mine in the big small-town that is Lincoln, Nebraska. I've finished my first day of Orientation, in addition to some other pre-Orientation events, and I've briefed one case and will commence the reading and briefing of another once I finish this blog. I'm excited for law school. Sometimes I forget my own ambitions, until a zealous law professor raves passionately about his love of the law, or bright and eager 2Ls chat about their Law Review articles, or my orientation welcome is performed by the Chief Justice of the Nebraska Supreme Court, or the Chief Justice of the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals talks to me about ethics. Oh yes, it's been a fun couple of days. More about this on Saturday - I promise!

Love you all,
Samantha.

P.S. If anyone is curious about my Hot Fuji Snow, it's the awesome drink I get at the CoHo with mint tea, cream and vanilla. Delish!

We Are Family

I have been living at home for a little over two weeks now and I think we are all starting to adjust to my presence here. Sort of. :)

About a week after my arrival, my family hosted the 76th Annual Jambor Family Reunion. For those of you who aren't related, this is a reunion on my mother's side consisting of my grandfather's siblings, their kids (my mom), their kids' kids (me) and, their kids' grandkids (my cousins' children) and, in some family lines, their great grandkids! It's kind of a big deal. This year we made key chains with a picture of my grandpa's parents at their wedding. Also, my mom has a charcoal portraits of my grandpa's grandparents - both sets. She is big on genealogy and it is very cool.

After this reunion, we always take a family vacation with my aunts and uncles and cousins to some cabins at Platte River State Park. We stay out at the cabins for a week and generally do a lot of nothing, play cards, go to the water park, and now that we're all a bit older, drink. This year, some of my cousins played paintball! They have some really lovely red welts surrounded by gorgeous purple bruises. I opted to stay home for that outing.

To be honest though, vacation is getting kind of boring. Or rather, time off is getting boring. I miss working and having things to do. I've been doing a lot of reading for leisure and watching lots of soccer (so glad my parents have cable). And I'm very much looking forward to my next trip out of state - I'm headed to Colorado with one of my childhood friends, Mikayla, to visit another old friend, Whitney, who just had a beautiful baby girl in June!

As soon as I get back form that trip, I've got three days "off" and then it's time for Orientation. We go all day Thursday and Friday (August 19-20), but there's also an optional session on Wednesday, which I intend to attend. Also, in the next few weeks I need to buy a new (used) car and tomorrow I'll be ordering a new computer - a MacBook Pro! Super excited for that.

Oh and some updates since my last entry: (1) Michael passed his driving test and is now a licensed and legal driver. Please be safe and cautious when driving the streets of Lincoln!! (2) My foot is not healed. Super lame. Taking more time off from running.

For now, I'm kicking back to watch some MLS Soccer. NY Red Bulls are playing Chicago Fire at Toyota Park. Wish I could be there, but I'll settle for watching from the comfort of my air conditioned living room with Bo.

Samantha

P.S. I will try to update more frequently in the future to make these posts a bit shorter!