Personal Politics

Another politician, another affair. I know that this is hardly a new phenomenon, but it almost feels like it is becoming the norm. Democrat or Republican (ex: Bill Clinton & Newt Gingrich), there is adultery on both sides and at all levels of government. This seems especially true if you are the mayor of a big city (ex: Rudy Giuliani, Gavin Newsom, and now Antonio Villaraigosa).

As details about Mayor Villaraigosa's affair with a reporter sweep the national headlines daily (City Hall Saga Put Telenovelas to Shame is my favorite thus far), I think a lot of people are asking if it matters. Do what politicians do behind closed doors matter?

For the sake of full disclosure, I have never cared for the Mayor. I am one of the few people in Los Angeles who voted against him twice. I always got the sense that he was fake, selfish, and media-obsessed. While he charmed the masses of LA, people I know that had worked with him described him as one of the sleaziest politicians around. Now this affair pretty much affirms what I always thought about him, though it gives a whole new meaning to "media whore."

But does it matter? If the Mayor had actually been accomplishing good things for LA instead of just seeming to pop up at any event where there is a camera, I think people wouldn't care about this story as much. If the Mayor hadn't been having an affair with a reporter that raises serious questions about conflict of interest, then I think people wouldn't care as much.

And people didn't care so much about his previous extramarital affair when he was running for mayor. That's because they thought he had been doing good things in the State Assembly and didn't let his personal life interfere with his work. But that seems different now.

In the end, I know I shouldn't judge the Mayor as a person, even though I know I do. "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone."

However, as one of his former constituents, I can judge him as a politician. And if his character and things in his personal life (which by the way, he has made very public by holding several press conferences after he asked for privacy) confirm doubts about his leadership ability, then it does matter.

What Day is It?

It's hard to figure out what day of the week it is when...

• I take the week off of work
• Alex comes to visit from Sunday-Tuesday
• Fourth of July is smack dab in the middle of the week
• Top Chef, my usual midweek benchmark, is not on this week
• I am in the library from 10am-6pm on a Friday working on my comment
• The rest of my weekend will not feel like a weekend because I'll be doing more writing

Even though my comment has made me lose track of the days and even what season of the year it is, I am strangely not going to complain about spending my weekends/summer writing it. Although I am not writing as quickly as I hoped I would, researching No Child Left Behind has been a lot of fun. So much fun in fact, that I have probably killed several trees. That whole binder and the 600+ pages below it (which is how long the Act is) are what I have printed out for research.

Environmental lawyer = oxymoron.

Friends in High Places

Although my high school didn't have a five year reunion this year, Facebook has made it a lot easier to see what everyone is up to these days. Between seeing the career paths of both my high school and college friends, I am always amazed at the diversity of jobs that my friends ended up with. Whether these jobs/career paths are temporary or for the long haul, I find it all fascintating.

I feel like I have friends working on practically every major political campaign (except, oddly enough, the Obama campaign), a best friend who's going to grad school to become an archaeologist, a friend exchanging currency for rude Chinese businessmen, a friend who is a meteorologist, a friend testing Navy jets, a friend traveling around the world installing stadium/theater seating, friends pursuing their crazy business ideas, a friend who is a historian researching Dupont family guns, and even a brother testing implantable defibrillators.

Though I couldn't imagine being anything other than a lawyer (ok, maybe a chef or event planner) and I do love it, all of us becoming lawyers and doctors seem boring compared to what types of jobs other people took. I am not jealous though; I know that in the future I will be able to trade in some legal advice for a weather report or a medical device.

Happy Fourth of July

Although I pretty much love all holidays, the great part about summer ones is that they're usually so much more relaxed. Some friends, my roommate, and I had a great time reading, tanning, and napping by the pool. We had dinner nearby and went to the restaurant/bar's rooftop to see some of the fireworks. No big spectacles by the national mall, but I don't think anyone was sad about not competing with all the tourists for a spot out there.

I wish it could be the Fourth of July, or even just summer, all year long. But I'm sure that would take away some of the fun.

So Happy Fourth of July everyone. Hope everyone enjoyed the sun, the good food, the family and friends, and the good ole USA. Not a perfect place, but I would still argue its the best. It may seem trivial or silly, but the fact that China blocks facebook is one example that speaks volumes.

Ch-ch-changes

I'm not much of a library person. I never studied at any of UCLA's 13 libraries and when I came to law school, I had a natural aversion to its library as well. However, as a matter of necessity, I started studying in the library and actually found a spot that didn't feel so library-ish. On the second floor, near Lexis and Westlaw printers so I could always pick up my copies, far enough away from all foot traffic and distractions, by the big glass windows for good sunlight, close to the bathroom, and at the big long tables where I could spread out my stuff. It was perfect.

Needless to say when I came to the library today and saw that everything had been rearranged, I was distraught. My spot was gone. In order to install more study rooms, they sacrificed the big tables and openness (pictured above) with more rows of study carrels (like the ones pictured left). As though being stuck in the library didn't feel enough like prison.

They also changed the internet settings at the school, which took me about 1/2 hour to get working. And I found out that John Lim is no longer our Westlaw representative. Too many changes! Is this what I get for going to the library during the summer?

Surprise Visitor

The only thing better than seeing Alex is having him surprise me with a visit. I was all ready to spend today in the library working on my comment but instead I got to...

• Eat dim sum at Tony Cheng's in Chinatown. It was pretty good, but I'll be happy anywhere that serves me bbq pork filled bun baos.
• Watch Ratatouille, which I also highly recommend. I'm putting cooking lessons, preferably in France, on my life to-do list.
• Visited the National Museum of American Indians and Hirshorn Museum, two Smithsonian museums that Alex and I had never been to before. The American Indian one was pretty good, I especially liked their special exhibit on their clothing. The Hirshorn was a little too modern art (translate: weird). But the best part about DC museums is that you can spend tons of time in them or a little and not feel guilty. It's free.
  
• Grabbed a quick snack at California Tortilla. Mmm, queso.
  
• Created our own margarita Monday at my apartment with some tequila lime chicken and read by the pool.

I love having visitors. Seeing friends, family, or the boyfriend of course is the best part, but getting to be a tourist with them is pretty fun as well. It's easy to forget that you live in a really cool place with interesting (and often free) things to see.

(Senior) Citizen Kristina

After going to 9am mass this morning with the 60+ crowd, I walked down to Friendship Heights and picked up my first pair of reading glasses. Eye doctor's suggestion. I've always felt like an old soul, and now I have law school to age my eyes.

In other news, I have an update on the creep xtremlyaddictlng, who messaged me a few weeks ago pretending to be Alex. (full entry here and update here) Today this person instant messaged a guy I do not know who goes to UCLA and pretended to be that guy's girlfriend. UCLA guy found my blog entry mentioning the creep's screen name and contacted me.

Interesting revelation because xtremlyaddictlng usually messages girls pretending to be their boyfriends. Also, the UCLA guy who contacted me about the weird messages is only on the UCLA network, whereas the girl that xtremlyaddictlng messaged a year ago and I are on school and east coast regional networks. This seems to suggest that xtremlyaddictlng is on the UCLA network, and in turn, must be a UCLA student or faculty, but is also on Virginia/DC regional networks. I still think that this person is a guy but pretending to be a girlfriend is very odd.

[Update at 8pm: Someone with the screen name Sassoon117 instant messaged me twice today. Once pretending to be a friend I go to law school with, and two hours later pretending to be a UCLA student. Apparently this person harasses so many people that he/she cannot keep his/her identity straight. I'm thinking that this is the same person as xtremlyaddictlng because 1) my screen name is blocked on facebook now, 2) sassoon & xtremly use the same type of diction and syntax, 3) both screen names mentioned stories about macbooks. Another chapter in this mystery.]

Did I ever mention that I wanted to be a criminal psychologist when I was in high school? I think my dad was uncomfortable with the thought of me psychoanalyzing criminals all day long. So I'm becoming a lawyer instead...and psychoanalyzing weirdos on the side.