And... that's a wrap for semester one

The poor old proverbial putts have been cast aside for the past few months while I have been occupied with my first semester of law school, and now that I've emerged from the rubble after nearly three weeks of finals, I figured I'd try to jot down what few thoughts I have at the moment.

1. My writing ability has gone to crap. I've been reading too many confusing and long-winded sentences, so humorless, absent of poetic flair and devoid of any style in sentence construction that I think it's rubbing off on my own writing, which already didn't have much ability to spare.
2. This semester was my first where I actually felt like I was dependent on coffee/tea 5 days out of the week. I mean, I've commonly been sleepy during post-lunch afternoons before, but I would just let it slide. That simply won't fly anymore.
3. Someone once told me about their first year of law school that the maturing process was equivalent of all four years of undergrad. Still on the fence with how I feel about that; this semester felt long, but I don't know if it equates to two whole years of undergrad. Close, maybe.
4. The perks of living in a cool city are severely diminished when you are there to go to law school. 
5. Major conference college basketball is not that fun. Sure, the players are more talented, but there are also a lot more meaningless games/games everyone expects you to win. Maybe my tune will change if UCLA actually picks up their play for conference schedule.
6. Still, I feel very fortunate to be at UCLA. Sometimes I like to pinch myself and remind myself not to take it for granted.
7. Trader Joe's is really good at what it does.
8. I love being able to try unique places to eat almost every time I eat out. I also enjoy supporting mom and pop shops over the typical chains, which is quite a departure from my prior mantras.
9. You appreciate the days off so much more when your days at work are grueling.
10. I'm so very thankful for having a caring girlfriend and loving family within driving distance.

On an aside: happy birthday to my good friend Diane, who turns 24 today. We getting old.

thyme is of the essence

It's never about a lack of time, it's about a lack of gratitude. - Rankin Wilbourne

somehow it's the end of October

This whole law school thing is going by really fast. I'm afraid it's only going to pick up steam from here.

Also, it's been all too easy to keep my eyes focused on myself instead of focused on Him.

thoughts from a law library

Every so often, I get the urge to give up on trying to abate the onslaught of cases that we are forced to read, and just pick up a notepad and go interview the guy who has been working at the school coffee shop for over 40 years. Or to follow up on the new coach who is fulfilling a dream of returning to his alma mater but at the same time facing his old team that he has spent 10 years pouring his heart and soul into.

I also find myself falling into some of the same time sinks that used to plague my undergraduate career, despite my best-laid plans to turn over a new leaf. Some time I catch myself reminiscing over the good old days and wish that I could still partake in some event, even if it's not conducive to where I'm at now, and where I'm heading. Old habits die hard, I guess.

Rome to Los Angeles

I've been meaning to post an update since getting back from Europe, but just haven't gotten around to it due to various inconveniences of moving to L.A.

In short: Europe was eye-opening and fantastic in all the ways you usually hear praise regarding Europe. I loved the incredible history of Rome and the Vatican and Florence, the Mediterranean beauty of Greece, and the friendly peoples of Turkey and Croatia. It was mind-boggling to see the ancient theater where Paul spoke to the Ephesians, where the very first ancient Olympics were held, and St. Peter's Basilica honoring Peter the apostle himself. Usually not a true aficionado of art, I had my breath taken away by Michaelangelo's David and could have stayed in the Sistene Chapel for the entire day. 

On an entirely different level, I cherished getting to spend quality time with family, doing simple things like playing Hearts and sharing stories about the old days -- how quickly time has flown that Jonathan is now going to college in the fall.

***

Since starting law school, I haven't had a dull spare moment to twiddle my thumbs. If I'm not reading and trying to comprehend class, I've been setting up my new apartment and dealing with the difficulties of living by yourself. Ex: having a UPS package that requires signature while living in an apartment complex that doesn't have your name on the directory while not being home everyday from 9-5.

I will say that there just isn't all that much law school material that is interesting to blog about. Ex. no punitive damages can be awarded for breach of contract! The injustice! I will say that I am excited about the volunteer opportunities and organizations, and I like all of my professors. From time to time, I still pinch myself and think that it's pretty cool that I'm at UCLA... hopefully I'll still have these sentiments in a few months time. 

Week 11: Home Sweet Home

I'm safely back on American soil here at the Seattle-Tacoma airport, sitting next to a giant wall of windows with rocking chairs in the front row, waiting for my connection to San Diego. The spot looks familiar to me; either I happened to pass by the last time I was in Seattle (which was in middle school), or this is the location of that classic scene from Up In the Air.

I'm grateful for the time I had in China. I'd like to think that my Chinese speaking ability and overall life maturity has benefited decently in these 11 weeks. I'd like to think I have an increased comfort level with doing things on my own, including traveling to new places, which I had never done before. And yet, I will miss the company of my grandmother, who stuffed me with food whenever possible and gave me umbrellas even when it wasn't raining. I will miss looking at a price and dividing it by 6.3 and feeling better about the purchase, but I won't miss looking at Mao's face on every single bill.

But oh my goodness it is nice to be able to type on a computer without accidentally switching on the Chinese pinyin mode. Thank you guys (all seven of you) for reading along during my time here. I look forward to seeing all of your faces very soon.

Week 10: Closing Time

With just a few days left in Beijing, I'll just come out and say it. I'm ready to go home. It's been a good experience on the whole, but I feel like I'm ready to move on with my life. Through my time here I've learned that while I could live in China permanently and survive just fine, the United States are most definitely home for me, and as they say, home is where the heart is.

A few quick hits from the previous week...

1. All the signs had pointed to my internship being unpaid, to the point where I had just accepted my uncompensated status without directly asking if I was getting paid for my time here. So you can imagine my delight when they informed me that I still had to go get my paycheck from the month of May with about four days left in June. All in all, I made a cool 4,000RMB during my time here, which amounts to a grand total of $632.91 in American dollars haha. Although this turns out to roughly $2.63/hour, I was still pretty pleased to be getting anything at all. On the bright side, this sum pays for all of my living expenses while in China plus some, so I guess it's all about perspective and expectations. As Mr. Chi City would say... get money, get paid.
2. I had donkey meat for the first time this past week. Apparently it's a trendy meat these days--the restaurant I went to specialized only in donkey dishes. Aside from a slightly weird red hue, it didn't really taste much different than beef.
3. While finally making it out to the Bird's Nest and Water Cubic (which you can swim in yourself for only 50RMB, or about $8), I noticed a little food stand selling weird fried insects. Of course, there were the expected beetles, grasshoppers, and scorpions that everyone always talks about, but I was quite shocked/disgusted to see these giant fried tarantulas also skewered on a stick. I mean, these babies were as big as my hand probably. The vendor got mad when I tried to take a picture, but my cousin was able to snap a blurry photo while running away.
4. Excited to make my second ever trip to the Great Wall tomorrow. Different portion than the tourist-heavy part I went to in 2004, and I'm going at it solo this time around. I think it's one of the places in the world where I've come closest to reaching the sublime (thank you, E100... the gift that keeps on giving.), so it should represent a nice final image of China and last hurrah to my time in Beijing.