New gig, new rig.

New gig...

I cannot believe how much fun law school is. Though the staff, professors, and 2Ls (Second Year Law students) put forth a concerted effort to warn us about how hard it will be and how very little time we will have for family and friends, and here are the numbers for Lawyer Therapists, and on and on. 

I am doing the "part time" program, which means it will take me four years instead of three. It also means that I only have three classes this term where everyone else has five. I can see how five classes would mean zero time for anything but eating, sleeping, reading, and attending class. 

Three classes is a very reasonable workload. 

I started school August 5, though "real law school" didn't start until August 26th. Willamette offers a two week, 7 hours a day, Intro to Law School course (which we quickly began calling "Fake Law School"). There were 49 of us, about a third of the incoming class. The course was free, all supplies provided. Our time was spent with two professors: one focused on teaching us law school skills (reading a case, reducing it to the nuggets of facts (case brief), outlining courses, studying for exams) and the second focused on teaching us the basics of criminal law as it applies to Murder and all the lesser included offenses (manslaughter, negligence, self-defense). We practiced the student behaviors on the murder topic. At the end, we had a "Fake Law Exam" which will be graded and returned to us. Very fun stuff. By the end, half of us were prosecutors and half were defense attorneys, negotiating a plea agreement for a woman who killed her abusive husband. 

Then we had three full days of Orientation. I was skeptical that any school would need three days to orient students to a program, and feared that this would be a great big waste of time. But it was not. Three days learning how to log in to the variety of tools available to us, learning about the Attorney/Student mentor program, learning the nuances of student loans, learning the basics of law (think: SchoolHouse Rock, How a Bill Becomes A Law").

And then, August 26, Real Law School. Real. Law. School. 

New Rig.

But early Saturday morning, the weekend before my first Real Day at school, I stepped out of bed to yell at the dogs to stop barking. Stepped out like I've done approximately 18,410 times before. On my toes, lower my heel. And Pop. Something went Pop. Accompanied by a quick electric shock. I have felt that before, though much stronger, when I ruptured my Achilles Tendon.

To the ER, and three hours later learned I had not broken my ankle, but I had torn a ligament. Ligaments keep the bones together so they can do their job. 

Monday morning, bright and early (*), a little floaty from pain meds, my crutches and I head to the train station. The train pulls into Salem at 6:42 AM, and Willamette is right across the street. No problem, I can swing over there and crutch up the road to the Bishop Wellness Center. I was hoping they had Knee Scooters to loan out. Halfway there, I just couldn't go any farther. So I took a break and leaned against a lamp post. Pretty shortly, Mike the Groundskeeper rolled by in his go-cart gardening rig and gave me a ride the rest of the way. Thank you Mike!! The BWC did not have a Knee Scooter to loan. But the PA-C looked at my ankle and said, "Yep, ligament." So then I caught a ride with Joe the Campus Security officer across campus to the law school (thank you Joe!!). After class, I got a cab to the Pacific Medical Supply Company on Commercial and rented a Knee Scooter ($75 for the month).

Here's my new rig.

Now, I scoot around school, my 124 pound backpack hanging on the handles. Pretty slick.

Tuesday morning, the first day of Legal Research and Writing, the professor asked for bids for the honor to start the sign in sheet each day. I asked what value that might have, so I could properly judge the value of my opening bid. He said that attending the class AND passing the class were minimum requirements to earning a JD. Don't show up one to many times, and you have to take the class over, even if you turned in all the work and earned passing marks on the assignments. Signing the sheet is the only verification that you've been in class. The person who starts the sheet is guaranteed to never miss signing in. 

Oh. That's quite important. I asked what winning bids had been in the past. Plates of cookies, stuff like that. 

Okay. I offered him a ride on my scooter. A chuckle. He asked if there were any other bids. One girl said she didn't want to bid because she kind of wanted to see him ride the scooter. The rest of the class agreed; I won.  So, Professor Edward Harri, a very renowned attorney and famous instructor of legal writing, scooted around the class on my scooter. A short ride. But very fun. 

Pretty soon now, I will post the photos and stories from my summer trip to England. But right now, I have to go finish packing the books and knicknacks (paddywhack, give the dog a bone) in my office and bedrooms so the carpet layers can move furniture and install new carpet TOMORROW!! oh, and I have to do some homework and studying for law school!

(*) I'm taking the Amtrak Train to school and the Amtrak bus home each day. The train leaves Eugene at 5:30 AM, arriving in Salem at 6:42. The "4:35 bus" has NEVER been on time, in fact has never been within 30 minutes of being on time, so I usually get to Eugene around 7:00. Before I blew out my ankle, my commute was: Drive over my hill and park the truck. Bike in to the train station, lock the bike and off to Salem. Return, unlock the bike, ride back to the truck, put the bike on the rack and drive home, usually arriving around 8:00. So, I spent the summer researching electric bike motors and found one I loved. The motor kit arrived Monday after I tore my ligament. I won't be able to use it until November or December. But when I can ride again, I can leave the truck at home. The motor will get me over the hill, then my own power to get to the station. Exercise, Fresh Air, and zero parking fees or gas bill.