What I Did This Past Semester [by Jami]

For reasons that are too boring to get into in detail, about a year ago I decided to apply to law school.  (The main reason was that work has just become too unbearable--imagine working for Sarah Huckabee Sanders'  soulmate and you have some idea of what working at UM-Flint is now like.)  So, I took the LSAT test, a 6 hour, 7 segment multiple choice test last January.  It was flipping unbelievably cold outside and unbelievably cold in the test room.  It kept us awake, though.  I applied to two places, Michigan State University Law School and Wayne State University Law School and was accepted in both with full scholarships.  I am still amazed that I was given full financial support.  A free law degree!  So I picked Wayne State since they have the most flexible scheduling options.  And classes began in August: I had three at night and one class on T/Th mornings.  Each class met for 3 hours a week, and they were on: Contracts, Civil Procedure, Constitutional Law and Legal Writing/Research.  That last course is the more tiresome, but it is a requirement for everyone so there is no escaping--even Thomas has to take a version of the course.  Over all the classes are great: intensely demanding and interesting.  And I can't believe the access I have to our legal system now.  I always consoled myself with my job at UM-Flint by telling myself that I had access to search engines that gave me access to whatever I wanted--I had no idea how wrong I was!  Now I really have total access.  Even better, the Legal Writing and Research course is teaching me how to use those search engines most effectively.

Each of the evening classes meets from 6 pm until just after 9 pm.  So, by the time I get done with class, get back to my car (which is usually on the 6th floor of a very windy, cold, very large parking structure) it is already 9:30.  And, by the time I get home, it was around 10:45 pm--unless there was a traffic jam or car accident on the freeway (which happened frequently), then I was an hour or so after that.  (The reason for the roadway drama is that I have to take I-75 from Flint all the way to Detroit, and of course they are ripping up the 3 lane each way interstate to make a 5 lane each way interstate, and in the meanwhile, each direction is shoved into a single lane with no shoulders and so there are constant accidents and slowdowns.  Indeed, I was in a car accident in early October at exactly the point where the lane was narrowest.  My car was totaled and I am sure the 10 cars involved in the accident caused a slow down that lasted many hours.

My classes ended mid November and we had 3 weeks to study, and then three weeks for exams.  I was extremely nervous about the exams but, in retrospect, they weren't all that terrible.  I did study for 6-8 hours every day during that three week period and if I hadn't, I would have been in serious trouble.  But I only missed one class (a Monday night Civil Procedure class that was on the same day I was without a car because of another accident, but that's a different blog entry...) and so my notes were very complete.  And I did  pay attention during class, which helps a lot.  I don't know my grades yet and won't for another few weeks (the exams were multiple choice so I have no idea why it takes so long to grade them).  In the meanwhile, I was able to register for next semester's classes and my scholarship was applied to my tuition costs ($14,000 per semester that I do NOT have to pay...) so I will just work on the assumption that everything is fine.

I will have the same three night classes again, so Part 2 of Contracts, Legal Writing/Research and Civil Procedure and so I will have the same people in my classes again.  I really like my classmates; we have a good time together.  If I have the energy, I'll write more about them in future blogs.  My one daytime class will be Property, and will meet T/TH early afternoon, which will be a blessed relief from having to get up at 5:30 am to beat the morning freeway traffic to get to my 9:30 am class.  If I left the house at 6, I was able to get there around 8:30, which gave me time to get my notes organized and eat something.  The drive there is the worst part of the whole experience.

And now I am getting ready to start again on Monday:  I have all my books, I have my backpack packed and ready to go, and tomorrow morning I have having my car's brakes fixed in anticipation of winter weather--which we haven't had yet, but surely it has to hit sometime.