Day 901: In Which Ropes Have Ends

And I'm pretty sure I'm at the end of mine.

So...training on Wednesday was good.

Almost lost my mind studying on Thursday. Went to the hardware store on a study break to buy some half staffs for training and pretty much terrified the guys at the store, which was funny. Had fun bellydancing but spent the rest of the night wishing I'd gone to NAU with crazy Joe to get my MFA so I could teach comic books to college freshmen for the rest of my life.

Friday morning I finished off my outline and took my last exam. Native American law. Rocked the multiple choice (and laughed my head off at the Star Trek reference) but pretty much biffed the essays. Put some time in at the office for the trial, then went down to the dojo to train with Mr. Lemmons. Did a crazy victory dance in the parking lot (read: belly dancing) but Mr. Lemmons never showed. (As it turns out, he'd screamed himself hoarse at a metal concert.)

We did crazy distance dives and high dives, some combat techniques, and free-sparring. Sensei Marr says I get to test...this Friday. Since taking the bar is an unusual circumstance and all. I don't think he'd realize it'd take two months to study for the evil exam, but he was cool about it. Now I just have to train like mad.

Saturday was a good day - I went gaming shopping with one of my players, and then I went to see Legally Blonde The Musical with Angela and Catie. It was awesome - better than the movie in some ways, because Emmet was much more developed as a character, and I loved him lots. I got a little teary during the graduation scene, and when the actor who played the professor stepped forward and we applauded, he smiled just the way our professors do on the last day of classes when we applaud them, and I realized...I'm done. With classes. Forever. Overall it was an awesome experience, possibly extra fun because we were all law students.

Afterwards I took a nap, then went into school to do some work for trial prep. I talked to Daniel, who helped me with my closing, and I went to play Marvel Ultimate Alliance with Chauncy and Lucas. Lucas was coming off of a sixteen-hour shift and fell asleep before the end of the first level, so I went home.

Sunday was a good day - fast Sunday. Took a nap. Got things done. Talked to mom and dad. Had tasty food at break the fast.

And today...today. Yeah. So, Jenny's car dropped its clutch, so I picked her up so she could go to her exam. It was like being a real lawyer - I was all dressed up like a lawyer, and I got stuck in rush-hour traffic (and got to drive down the yellow lane on Dodge in the other direction for the first time ever), and then I got into the office. Spent all day prepping for trial, including a road trip down to the courthouse. Jen and I did the best we could, and then trial came, and...ugh.

It was an excellent learning experience. I did my direct as best as I could, and of course the witness got crazy out of hand, but for the most part the judge ruled in our favor on objections. Sometimes the witnesses got away with saying some of the dumbest things because I was slow on the uptake, and one witness pretty much welched on us altogether. Should have led like it was cross, but...Melilli's training stuck. I do my best to stick by the rules even if I know the other side won't object.

The other side was pretty much as incompetent as could be expected - best moment was when I made an objection, the judge overruled, and then opposing counsel kept defending his position. Opposing counsel was an idiot - he kept trying to make arguments on a motion to dismiss that he hadn't made at the previous hearing, which seriously grated on my nerves. He also was rude - kept trying to talk over the Boss, and...ugh. It was tense, though - I was all fired up until about twenty minutes before trial, and then I got nervous. For the most part I felt like the judge ruled well and followed the law, but we lost in the end.

For the record, I hate to lose. When it counts. I'm cool with losing at all sorts of things, like sports games and card games and the like. But this...struck harder, because we were the better attorneys - more polite, stuck to the law, actually knew the law, played a clean game (introducing a two-hundred-page exhibit three minutes prior to trial when all exhibits were meant to be exchanged three days before trial is ridiculous, and calling a witness you didn't list? grrr). However, our client was a beautiful witness on the stand, and she knew we fought hard, and the boss was pleased with how we did. So...yeah. It was a learning experience. Mostly of what not to do in court.

Also, afterwards, the other side was inveterately condescending, but I did my best to be polite and act like I cared. I was pretty drained, too. This is what my future is going to be like. And there wasn't even any homework.

I came home and ate junk food (and chocolate to cheer myself up), watched Bones and drafted a dungeon for WoD. Went to FHE.

Best part of my night was Ericka. She called to make sure I was okay, and we talked. We miss each other, and we love each other, and I'm pretty sure anyone who'd overheard us would have been convinced we were in love, but she's my sister. After FHE and the WoD game, she read me poetry before bed. She's awesome. Although, in retrospect, she misunderstood my request for a reading. Still. I love her voice, and she reads poetry unlike any other.

One of the other side's witnesses wanted mine and Jen's names. I gave him mine. Because he won't get a thing on me, and if he thinks he can take on the Chinese government, he's got another thing coming. Although after trial today someone called and claimed to be from Cox Cable and told me my account was in good standing and I could have a free land line, and did I have a land line, and did I have any questions? When I asked about getting my account set on holiday while I was away for the summer, the woman recommended asking customer service.

Only in retrospect, wasn't she from customer service? And wouldn't she know I had a land line if I did have one? The creepy witness tried to invoke FOIA on the Boss, which was retarded, as FOIA only applies to the government, and also he said he used to be a PI, and...urgh. But now I'm a little paranoid. Still. C'est La Vie. All that's left is file transfers and a divorce hearing. And then I'm all done.

Need to do laundry and clean and a whole host of other weird nonsense.

I need to eat and sleep better if I want to pass my test on Friday.