Perception and Reality

June 29, 2007, 2:45 pm; posted by
Filed under Articles, Steve  | 2 Comments

I’m currently studying for the July NY bar exam, more or less as a full-time job. For most people in my position, this involves getting up early every day and sitting in a classroom every day, taking copious notes on hopelessly dull videotaped lectures. For me, it has involved getting up whenever I want and answering multiple-choice questions on my computer between flying across the country, updating this site, and keeping dangerously informed on strange current events.

We were advised in my law school’s bar prep class to spend something like ten hours a day, six days a week studying for the exam, and to take drastic steps immediately to warn our loved ones we would not be accessible this summer. The book actually gave us a cute little letter we could tear out and deliver to our spouse/children/roommates, impersonally informing them they would need to pick up the slack for the next few months, by doing all the chores, taking care of the kids and pets, and delivering home-cooked meals to our room at carefully planned intervals.

“If you’re planning a large life change for this summer, such as breaking up with a girlfriend or boyfriend, you should really do it now,” the book chirped. “You don’t want to have to deal with it while you’re [*gasp*] studying for the bar.”

Well, guess what? It’s not been that big a deal at all. There’s a lot of stuff to remember or learn, but you don’t have to know all of it, or even most of it, perfectly to pass the minimum competency exam. I’m actually limiting the time I study certain things in order to avoid complacency. And although I’m glad I don’t have any personal or social crises to deal with right now, my second semester of law school suggests that I might actually concentrate better if I did.

So all of that is to say two things:
1 — If we find out in November that I failed, you’re all going to quote this post and laugh at me for the rest of my life.
2 — I’m taking applications to create a specific significant problem in my life. Right now, I’m leaning toward you stealing my car…


Comments

2 Comments to “Perception and Reality”

  1. Tom on June 29th, 2007 4:04 pm

    I’m not THAT dangerous. My submission for personal crisis? Barely surviving attempted fratricide.

  2. dsweetgoober on June 30th, 2007 11:31 am

    I want a divorce.

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