Mind the puddles.

It is 7:30. See that yellowish stuff in the 50's? That's here right now. See that purple stuff in the 10's? That'll be us in a few hours. At the rate it all appears to be moving, that blue line of scrimmage looks like it will cross us within the next two hours. Here's to driving home at 10:30 after rehearsal!

Forecast for the Day After Tomorrow

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN NORTHERN INDIANA HAS ISSUED A WINTER STORM WARNING...WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM 7 PM EST /6 PM CST/ TUESDAY TO 10 AM EST /9 AM CST/ WEDNESDAY.

A STRONG WINTER STORM WAS DEVELOPING OVER THE CENTRAL PLAINS LATE MONDAY EVENING. AN ARCTIC COLD FRONT ASSOCIATED WITH THIS STORM WILL RACE RAPIDLY EASTWARD INTO NORTHWEST INDIANA AND SOUTHWEST MICHIGAN BY TUESDAY EVENING. AHEAD OF THIS FRONT... RAIN SHOWERS AND EVEN SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TUESDAY AFTERNOON. AS THE FRONT SWEEPS ACROSS THE REGION...WINDS WILL RAPIDLY STRENGTHEN TO 25 TO 35 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 50 MPH. THEN TEMPERATURES WILL CRASH...QUICKLY CHANGING THE RAIN TO SNOW. ANY RESIDUAL PONDING OF WATER AND SLUSHY SNOW WILL FREEZE IN PLACE... CREATING TREACHEROUS DRIVING CONDITIONS. THE STRONG WINDS COMBINED WITH A PERIOD OF MODERATE TO HEAVY SNOWFALL WILL CAUSE OCCASIONAL WHITEOUT CONDITIONS AT TIMES... PARTICULARLY FROM MID TUESDAY EVENING TO EARLY MORNING WEDNESDAY. THE HEAVIEST SNOWFALL IS EXPECTED ALONG AND NORTHWEST OF A LINE FROM LOGANSPORT TO WARSAW TO COLDWATER WITH 2 TO 4 INCHES OF ACCUMULATION POSSIBLE.

Do you ever think the National Weather Service just gets bored and takes out its frustrated novelist tendencies on the national broadcast system?

Samson

by Regina Spektor. This song is beautiful, but I've been a little puzzled at what exactly it means. I think I'm finally starting to understand it. Or maybe I'm just starting to develop what it means to me.

When the Saints

Lord I have a heavy burden of all I've seen and know
It's more than I can handle
But your word is burning like a fire shut up in my bones
and I cannot let it go

And when I'm weary and overwrought
with so many battles left unfought

I think of Paul and Silas in the prison yard
I hear their song of freedom rising to the stars
And when the Saints go marching in
I want to be one of them

Lord it's all that I can't carry and cannot leave behind
it often overwhelms me
but when I think of all who've gone before and lived the faithful life
their courage compells me
And when I'm weary and overwrought
with so many battles left unfought

I think of Paul and Silas in the prison yard
I hear their song of freedom rising to the stars

I see the shepherd Moses in the Pharohs court
I hear his call for freedom for the people of the Lord

And when the Saints go marching in
I want to be one of them
And when the Saints go marching in
I want to be one of them

I see the long quiet walk along the Underground Railroad
I see the slave awakening to the value of her soul

I see the young missionary and the angry spear
I see his family returning with no trace of fear

I see the long hard shadows of Calcutta nights
I see the sisters standing by the dying man's side

I see the young girl huddled on the brothel floor
I see the man with a passion come and kicking down the door

I see the man of sorrows and his long troubled road
I see the world on his shoulders and my easy load

And when the Saints go marching in
I want to be one of them
and when the Saints go marching in
I want to be one of them

--Sara Groves

Brilliant Idea of the Month

I graduate from law school in May. This means I will possess a juris doctor degree and all of the debt that goes with it. It does not mean I will be authorized to practice law. To practice law, I have to take (and pass) the bar exam in July. This situation, common to almost all law grads (exception to those who graduate and practice in Wisconsin—an odd arrangement to be sure), inspires most of us to devote the summer following graduation solely to study and preparation for the exam.

Common way to tackle this task:

• Enroll in BarBri course ($2200)*
• Food and incidentals for 8 weeks ($150 x 8 = $1200)
• Rent and utilities for 3 months ($550 x 3 = $1650)
• Take the bar exam ($1200)

Total cost: $6250
Pros: fairly fool-proof, structured way to get the information needed to pass the test.
Cons: boring as all-get-out, spend all summer in a sterile classroom under commercial fluorescent lighting. I don’t have that much money.

Consider an alternative:

• Buy bar study books ($200)
• Find 2 to 4 friends with similar study plans to come with me (provide safety, study companions, and split up carrying books)
• Plan short distances between shelters to maximize study time during daylight hours.
• Buy hiking supplies: subtotal $910
• Sleeping bag rated 0 degrees or lower ($200)
• Sleeping pad ($100)
• camp chair ($30)
• Hiking boots ($140)
• Backpack ($200)**
• Platypus ($30)
• Water filter ($50)
• Rain gear ($70)
• Appalachian Trail guide ($50)
• Pepper spray (for bear protection) ($40)
• Plan weekends (trips into town): subtotal: $1220
• 8 Saturday nights in a hotel (sharing rooms) ($35 x 8 = $320)
• 8 Saturday dinners out ($15 x 8 = $120)
• 8 loads of coin laundry ($2.50 x 8 = $20)
• 8 trips to the grocery store for restocking ($100 x 8 = $800)
• Local church Sunday morning (free)
• Taking the test: subtotal: $1750
• Rent/utilities for 1 month ($550)
• Take the bar exam ($1200)

Total cost: $4050
Pros: WAY more fun and memorable. You only get to do this once, and it may be your last chance to structure your own time for a long while. Also, you get to bite your thumb in Barbri’s general direction by refusing to participate in its unfair competition practices. And you save money.
Cons: More risky. Have to have friends who will enforce accountability for studying.

So, um… Anybody game?

*Figures are based on the cost of taking the North Carolina bar. Other states may vary.
**I already have a backpack that may be fine.

Evidence thoughts

From United States v. James, 169 F.3d 1210 (9th Cir. 1999) (Kleinfeld, dissenting):

The victim was a bad man. Some people would say, in private and out of court, that "he deserved it," or "he needed killing." But no one says such things in a courtroom, because the law does not permit murder, even of very bad people.