Law & Ordering

This was the first Saturday in a really long time that I have not had to go to school. There is nothing better than sleeping in on a weekend and watching Law & Order in your pajamas.

As I was watching, I realized how much more that I understand with a few years of law school under my belt. And unlike some lawyers who cannot stand seeing some errors in the show (especially regarding ethical issues), I still enjoy it as much as when I did in high school.

The interesting part about shows like Law & Order and ER (when people actually watched it), is that they make legal and medical issues accessible to people who do not have any background in it.

I wonder how many people were inspired, like me, to become a lawyer after watching Jack McCoy give those closing statements. Or to become a doctor after watching Doctor Carter save a life. I know it made a huge difference for me because coming from a family with a science-oriented background, I had very limited knowledge of the kind of work any lawyer did. Now, less than a decade later, I am in a courtroom representing clients with McCoy zeal. Behold the power of television.

Bruins (Re)united

Tonight I went for dinner with Alex and two friends from UCLA, one of whom goes to Michigan medical school and is in town for a conference. The four of us were half of the slate of candidates who ran for student government, also known as the "Dream Team." It was almost surreal being all together outside of Kerckhoff Hall and in DC. Instead of handing out tacos and otters pops on the campaign trail, we feasted on delicious Mediterranean mezze (like tapas) at Zaytinya.

I do not miss being in student government for a second, but I do miss many of the people I served with. I might be biased, but I think our term had some of the most dynamic leaders from all corners of campus. It was a humbling experience to be surrounded by people with such impressive backgrounds, even the members who were part of the other party who I did not agree with.

After we dispersed on the metro, Alex said our dining companions were good people and we need to do a better job keeping in touch with them. It helps being in DC, the mecca for student government or politically inclined folks, even if they are not here for politics. It's actually funny how I see more UCLA people in DC than in California. But we won't be here forever.

Family Lawyering, Gone International

One of the best parts about being in the clinical program is hearing what other cases people are working on. Once we week, we have a class called "rounds," where we go around and say what we are working on and bounce ideas off of one another.

I wish I was allowed to talk about these cases, because they are just as crazy, if not crazier, than the story lines you see on Law & Order, the Practice, Ally McBeal, etc.

One interesting thing was that half the cases in our general practice clinic seem to be family law cases with an international dimension. We have clients who have immigrated from almost every continent, only to find legal problems and little support here in the United States. The stories are so emotionally charged that today's rounds almost felt like a therapy session.

Bravo

While most of my friends were tuned into the debate, my roommate and I had two of our friends over to watch the Project Runway finale. Priorities, people.

The reality is that these debates are not going to change my mind about anything, especially since it is the third debate. Moreover, all of the news networks will repeat or show clips with tremendous amounts of commentary for the rest of the week.

More importantly though, our Bravo reality-show finale parties have become a tradition during my law school experience. For every Project Runway and Top Chef finale over the past two years, my friends and I have put aside all of the work that we have, masterfully prepared party food (fondue parties, dip challenges, Chicago-themed), and formed allegiances (Team Hung v. Team Casey, Team Leanne v. Team Korto).

The Season 3 Project Runway finale was actually one of the first times I hung out with people who are now my best friends in law school. How could we not get together to watch what could be the last season of Project Runway before graduation and we all disperse. Like I said, priorities.

I [Will Have] Voted

If I were in any position of authority, I would make a law that said that absentee ballots include "I Voted" stickers. Besides supporting your candidate, those stickers are the best part about voting. I think I might have to steal a sticker when I do poll monitoring on election day.

My mom sent me my absentee ballot today, which I will probably mail back in by the end of the week. You know, have to give John McCain one last chance tomorrow to change my mind :)

Church and State

Yesterday my mom called me all riled up to tell me how one of the priests gave a politically charged homily--telling parishioners how important this election was for abortion because the next President will appoint Supreme Court justices, and that one candidate will allow legislatures to promote favorable abortion laws and one candidate will not. And for good measure, he also told parishioners to vote for Proposition 8, which would ban gay marriage.

Yesterday the chain on the cross that I wear daily broke. Coincidence?

While I have come to accept that not all of my beliefs align perfectly with the Catholic church's, I was still saddened by this explicit politicization and dumbfounded how this newly ordained priest could jeopardize the tax-exempt status of the church. I know I should not be completely surprised because this church is in Orange County and Catholics have pretty clear stances on abortion and gay marriage. But this is the first time I ever felt a church that I go to blurred the legal lines of what it is allowed to say and do politically. I have always lived in conservative hometowns and they have never implicitly directed people to vote for one candidate or proposition.

My mom reported that some people applauded at the end of this homily, while some people (like my dad) sat their shaking their heads. I do not know what I would have done if I had been there. I guess we only have three more weeks, three more Sundays . . .

Commercial Jingles

Last night at dinner, we were talking about commercials that we loved and hate. I realized that what makes or breaks most of them for me is the music that goes along with them. People love Target and iPod commercials because they pair catchy music with vivid imagery.

Below are some the commercials that evoke strong emotions out of my roommate and I. They can make us smile or yell at the tv. Before you think we are crazy, I found this blog written by an Ad School student who agreed on point with the commercials we loathe. I felt so validated. There were also many people who agreed on CommercialsIHate.com.

Thumbs Up

Winner: Mastercard's "We Want the Funk." Cute kids + dancing + fun song = gold.



Runner Up: Swiffer's "Baby Come Back." If you do a cheesy commercial, you have to commit. Although the original Swiffer commercial was great, we like this mariachi band version even more.



Thumbs Down

My least favorite: Zyrtec's "Time in a Bottle." It is never good to start your commercial with a question that most people cannot answer. Remember that song "Time in a Bottle"? No, I do not!



My Roommate's least favorite: Secret's "Get 'em Up." Though the song is not horrible, you cannot have annoying actresses doing obnoxious things to sell a product.

(could not find a youtube clip, sorry)