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December 28, 2005
Who needs sleep?
One of the many books I received this Christmas was Take the Cannoli
Anyway, in the Essay "Dark Circles" which is about insomnia, I had to laugh out loud at a line about sleep apnea and the "machine" people use to treat it... "Congratulations, you're a cyborg!" It's been over a year since I got my CPAP (as they are called in the lingo) and I have never slept better!! This was reinforced by a few nights away from the machine while we were visiting family over the holidays. I didn't get a single good night of sleep in until we came back home and I could strap on the mask at bedtime.
It did get me curious, though. I've used it everyday since I got it, with the exception of when I travel (which over the last year has been about 2 months). The machine keeps track of the hours it's been used, so I sat down and did some calculations. It turns out, that I only sleep about 5.5 hours each night, even using the CPAP, but I still feel really rested when I wake up, in fact, I've never slept better. Go figure.
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Le Chevrot
I've always loved cheese, but it's only been recently that I've taken on trying so many new varieties, thanks to the discovery of some really great cheese shops in Chicago. One thing that shocks and amazes me is just how tasty goat cheese is... who knew? I always thought goats were good for eating garbage in cartoons and as major staples in petting zoos.
I recently had a chance to try Le Chevrot which is a very fine goat cheese, which I will highly recommend to anyone who likes a little chevre.
Le Chevrot has a textured rind, which my wife said, "looks like a tiny brain". Don't let that stop you. Le Cevrot is a nice, slightly more mature goat cheese than some of the younger chevres. It is slightly chalky, but not to an extreme, and has the nice citrus overtones that I really love from goat cheese, but not quite as tangy as something like Humboldt Fog--this is a milder, more laid back cheese.
If you're a fan of chevre in general or if you've had a chance to sample some Humboldt Fog, I would add this one to the list of goat's milk cheeses you should check out.
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Queso Valdeon
I love a good blue cheese and over the holidays, I had a chance to sample some Queso Valdeon which comes from Leon in Spain.
Valdeon can be made from cow or goat milk and the version I had was made from cow's milk. It's a very attractive cheese, a pale yellow with beautiful blue mold--it looks great on a plate. It has a very sharp taste, which kind of reminded me of an aged English Cheddar as it also had a slightly chalky texture, definitely not a creamy blue. It was very piquant, although I like that in a cheese. If you're not a sharp cheese fan, it's not for you, but I think it was a very agreeable blue that I would certainly eat again.
Posted by Dave! Permalink
Welcome Back!
I made it through exams and holidays alive! I had planned on posting immediately following exams, with a post analyzing my exams and blah, blah, blah. But because my last exam was so late in the exam period, we basically had to fly out of town the next day to my wife's hometown for Christmas festivities.
Now, exams over, holidays over (almost) and the start of the next semester a few weeks away, I'm back and more relaxed than ever!!
I'll probably post some about exams when I get my results (like sometime in February!) but for those who may be curious, next semester is Constitutional Law, Trusts & Estates, and Trademarks/Unfair Competition. Whee!!
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December 19, 2005
Home Healthcare for the Elderly
Today on NPR there was a story on a Medical House Call Program in D.C. It happens to be the same practice my friend (and my wife's maid of honor), Robyn, works at! Check it out... they do very cool work.
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December 16, 2005
Point Reyes Blue
California wines are some of the best in the world, so why should the cheese be any different? Although I am very loyal to the midwest, which also has some mighty fine cheeses, the Point Reyes Blue is an amazing blue that I would recommend to anyone.
It's not as creamy as a St. Agur or a nice creamy Gorgonzola, it's a little more solid, with a nice marbled appearance. It has a really great range of flavor though, slightly sweet but with a wonderful slight tartness that makes it a nice, solid blue.
As a bonus, it's made on the farm from the Point Reyes' own heard of hormone free cows. A great, solid "farmstead" cheese!
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Two Down
Had my evidence exam tonight. Overall, it was pretty much as I expected. I enjoyed the format: a trial transcript with objections, you had to rule on each objection and state your reasoning. Then there was a section where you had to identify 10 objections which should have been made, but were not. So, yeah, I liked the format... we'll have to wait to see how much the format liked me.
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December 14, 2005
One Down...
Thank you to all the people who sent me good CivPro vibes for my first final of the season yesterday. I feel pretty good about the exam, so I either rocked it or failed it. You know how those things go.
Actually, it probably means I'll get a B+... workin' hard to be average!
(To those not in law school, a B+ is actually the equivalent of a C on the forced curve the school uses for required courses like CivPro.)
Now, on to Evidence...
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December 7, 2005
It's always Christmas time (for Visa)
From the folks that brought us Progenitorivox (Consumers Union) comes a holiday song, "It's Always Christmas Time (for Visa)". It's a catchy tune with an even better message...
[Via the folks at M+R Strategic Services]
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December 6, 2005
EFF? What is it good for?
The Register has a (typically) inflammatory article up which questions the efficacy of the EFF. The article, EFF volunteers to lose important suit over Sony 'rootkit', is definitely troll bait. But there is a nugget of truth in it: the EFF does not have a great track record.
This raises two questions in my mind. First, if the EFF weren't out taking on these kinds of cases, what organization would? Or what organization should be taking these cases? Second, what kind of oversight is there of the job the EFF is doing? I have not read/followed all of the cases that the EFF has been involved with closely, but a few (notably Eldred) have not left me overly impressed. But then again, I'm not sure some of these issues would even be raised if the EFF weren't pushing them forward.
I don't think there is a clear cut answer to the questions I posed; I also think the EFF does valuable work. It could very well be that the EFF has a bad track record because they are fighting a horrible system and every point of concession, however minor, is in a way an important victory. But it is plausible that the EFF is just doing a bad job, isn't it?
Posted by Dave! Permalink
December 5, 2005
Law Professors and the Bar Exam
There's an interesting article in the W$J today: Raising the Bar: Even Top Lawyers Fail California Exam. I guess it's news because Kathleen Sullivan (Constitutional Law Superstar and former Dean at Stanford) failed the California Bar Exam.
Over at Concurring Opinions, Prof. Solove has a good response, Abolish the Bar, in which he raises some very good points about why the bar exam is a poor means for ensuring quality lawyers.
However, given that for the time being the bar exam is a reality of practicing law, this post by Prof. Horwitz at PrawfsBlawg caught my eye. Prof. Horowitz mentions that he hasn't taken the California Bar Exam, in spite of having moved to California. Which leads me to my question: shouldn't he?
I'm not singling out Prof. Horowitz; there are many faculty members at many schools who haven't taken the bar in the state where they teach. Many are very fine members of the faculty. There are good reasons for not taking the bar for academics--career mobility, the nature of specialization in legal scholarship, etc.
However, part of the roll of an educator at any law school is to prepare students for the practice of law. In the current reality, that practice includes the bar exam. Therefore, don't they have a responsibility to take and pass the bar exam in the state where they teach?
Obviously, it's possible to know the material on the bar exam without having taken it or passed it; I would guess most professors have taken the exam somewhere. There is a valid argument that a professor teaching at a top 10 school, where most students will leave the state to practice anyway, would not be in a better position to train students for the bar exam in some remote state. There's also an argument to be made for reciprocity; if a state is willing to grant reciprocity, why should a faculty member re-take the bar exam for a career move? Perhaps they shouldn't. But I think there is an argument that they should.
I do not think schools should "teach to the exam". I'm sure that lowers quality on many levels. However, the reality is that the vast majority of faculty teach at Tier 2-4 schools which means the average student is less likely to become a constitutional scholar and much more likely to practice divorce or bankruptcy in the same state in which they are being educated. To this majority of law students, the bar exam is a very important aspect of their legal training and career. In order to get the best possible education shouldn't the faculty who are teaching them have first hand knowledge (i.e. take) of the exam for themselves?
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December 2, 2005
Am I Suspended in Gaffa?
No, just out of touch and in law school. :)
Kate Bush has a new album out called Aerial. Definitely something to add to my wish list.
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December 1, 2005
How do you know...
...that you spend too much time using a computer?
When you are organizing the papers on your desk and you encounter one that can be thrown away, and you mutter to yourself, "that one I can delete".
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Law School for Dummies
Actually, the dummies would be those of us actually in law school. It's finals time. Can you tell?
Anyway, I thought I would offer my take on all of the courses I've had the pleasure of taking in law school so far. You, too, can be a 2L with me in just a few easy steps:
Criminal Law
Yes, of course he shot that old woman, but did he intend to shoot that old woman.
Torts
Accidents happen, but someone's gonna have to pay for that.
Contracts
A promise isn't worth squat if there isn't money involved.
Property
It's Mine! Or how we can justify taking land from Native Americans and use it as the entire basis of our society.
Civil Procedure
Here's a rule. Pretty clear, eh? Now find a sneaky way to get around it for your client.
Constitutional Law
You thought this would be all Brown v. Board of Education? Sure, sure. Later on... first, welcome to the Commerce Clause!
Evidence
Fun and creativity with "facts"! (See Civil Procedure)
Statutory Interpretation
Congress is one fscked up mess, but they wrote this law, so how do we figure out what they meant?
Legal Writing
Good start! But try again. And again. Oh, and again. Work on your word choice.
Thank you, goodnight!
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