Example of a really bad lawyer

I know it's been a really long time since my last post, so let's just take this as my first post as a 1L, 2/3 through the first semester. It's a wild ride, but the things that keep me sane are support from friends and family, Diet Coke and home-brewed hefeweizen. Also, things that are in the legal field that are just too hilarious to pass up. Like this actual rehearing petition (this is real, people). If anything, this is why I want to be a competent, sane lawyer at the end of my three years:

It has been well over a week since my last post ... will update within the next 24 hours!

Glitter and Gaga: The funny part is these two nouns aren't related in my Korean weekend

On Friday, I went to Derrick's hogwan (supplemental school) to oversee some teaching methods and help out a bit. It's really funny how Korean children get so bashful around caucasian women. While the boys get a little more open with you after you've helped teach a few of their classes, the girls are often still too shy to tell me much more than their names or how old they are. What was really interesting was that one little girl told Derrick that I looked like Lady Gaga. While I don't particularly see the resemblance these days (her brunette days strike a small resemblance), I did have a Gaga-themed 22nd birthday party and I love Gaga, so I'll run with it.

Next, came the glitter. Saturday was "Children's Play Land" day, where students from schools all around Ulsan come to learn English in different sections. The theme for this weekend was "May Day" (a few days late, I know, but no big deal). I was put in charge of four consecutive classes on the same subject, and I had an "agema" (old Korean woman) to help me in translating words the children were unfamiliar with. I taught the children about the cultural traditions of May Day, including costumes and being adorned with flowers. After that, Aubrey (my helper) and I painted flowers and hearts on all the children's hands or faces. Despite my effort to be careful not to make a mess in a collared shirt and skirt, I managed to get paint on my shirt, skirt, hands, arms and hair. There was also glitter. I have heard in the past that "glitter is the herpes of arts supplies," and this experience more than confirmed that statement. Even though I refuse to watch or read anything "Twilight," I felt like those damn vampires, who apparently "glitter" when they go in the sun.

But despite the "STD-esque" crafts and hyperactive children involved on Saturday, it was a pretty decent way to spend two hours during an afternoon.

Bubble, Bubble, Boil and Ogle: The Korean Sauna

Yesterday, I went to a Korean sauna that is close to our apartment. Korean saunas are very interesting to say the least. You pay your 5,000 won (~$5 U.S) and get two small towels. The sauna is separated into male and female saunas, each on a different floor. You walk in the door, and a shoe room clues you in to take off whatever your feet walked in with and proceed into the "locker room" area.

Then, you discover the naked truth about Korean saunas. Very soon you realize that you also will need to take off whatever else you walked in with. Yes, saunas are nude. This is especially awkward for Americans ("waygooks") because white people are gawked at everywhere. We are a small commodity in Asia, and so you always find yourself as one of the centers of attention at any public place. Thus, the Korean women, ranging in age from teen to ancient, glue their eyes to you the entire time you're there. As a person who changed into her swimsuit in a bathroom stall rather than in the locker room at public pools, this is a little unnerving. Especially since Koreans are much tinier and boy-shaped, as well as less "groomed," you know you stand out if you are more than 100 pounds, have larger than an A-sized chest and perform standard American grooming. But, when in Rome (or Korea) ...

Overall, the sauna experience is an enjoyable one, once you get past the lingering eyes and overhearing Korean gossip that you know is partially about you. The hot baths and steam rooms, as well as scrubbing and exfoliating to the point of baby butt skin, make the sauna worth it. No wonder Koreans have very clear, well-kept skin.

The Zero Hour: 0L Summer

My previous blog was seemingly "abandoned" about five months ago, so this new blog serves as the starting point for a new part of my life: law school. The grueling 20-hour days await. However, until then, I will spend my post-undergraduate 0L summer in Ulsan, South Korea, where I am volunteering to teach ESL to Korean schoolchildren.

So far, I have been in Korea for three and a half days, and I am definitely enjoying the absence of daunting mountains of stress and coursework. My hard work paid off the last four years, with me graduating summa cum laude with departmental and university honors from Drake University, but this summer serves as a "de-stressor" in preparation for law school at St. Louis University this fall.

For the next eight weeks, I am living with my boyfriend, Derrick, who is currently in his ninth month of a year-long contract to teach ESL in Ulsan. With some fun weekend holidays planned, I am prepared to enjoy my summer for the first time since I was 10.