Filed under: random info
White donut boxes adorned with red Polish eagles piled high in the bakery isle of grocery stores – it must be that time of year. Well, actually, that day has passed but I was too busy to write last Tuesday. “Paczki” the boxes say. Doesn’t sound terribly appetizing . . . that is if you are even able to sound it out. The first time I saw one of those boxes and was served the corresponding boring donut from it, I was skeptical. This is NOT what it is supposed to be. “Poonchky” is the way we said it and after googling just that, I have discovered that isn’t just some bizarre word I picked up from childhood – that really is the way Paczki is pronounced. But it sure as sun isn’t the way they are supposed to taste. You see, if it was just supposed to be a donut, you would be able to get them year round. But this is no donut. You can only eat them just before lent because if you ate them more than once a year, 5 year olds would be having heart attacks in Poland regularly. So how can you tell if you were served a donut or an authentic poonchky? Oh, well just picking one up should be an indicator. It ought to weigh about 3 lbs yet be the same size as the typical filled donut. After eating one, if you haven’t yet decided what to give up for lent, you will be tempted to say “food, I just give up food in general!”
I really have nowhere to go with this conversation . . . I haven’t had a poonchky in years and short of traveling to Hamtramck, I don’t know where I would be able to find a real one. If I ever end up in MI right before lent, I know what I will be doing!
For now. . . I am busy working on school crap. I am uber sleepy at the moment though and ready to call it a day.
Night ya’ll.
Yesterday I got my mail and finally the letter I have been waiting for arrived; the State Board of Law Examiners sent me my certification. Basically this letter says I can represent clients in court under the supervision of another attorney – I essentially can act as any attorney. As excited as I was to finally get this letter, the first thing I saw when I opened it was the official seal on the letterhead.
If you have any clue wtf this is, feel free to let me know.
Yea, I don’t know either.
In other news, yesterday’s trip to the Supreme Court was nice. We met with one of the Justices before the argument and we also met with an appellate court judge that our supervisor was a clerk for. They were both very nice and had some interesting stuff to share with us.
The argument itself was interesting; the Defendant in the original trial had been charged with an “A” felony of attempted molest of a child 13 years or younger. At the last minute (and past the time they can actually file new charges) the prosecutor added a second charge of attempted sexual misconduct with a minor between the ages of 14 and 16, a “B” felony.
During the trial, the only real evidence presented was that the young lady was 13 years old at the time this happened (only one specific event so there was an actual date and time in this case), but the jury only found him guilty of the B felony. So the question now is can this guy be charged with a crime that he couldn’t have possibly have committed because the girl wasn’t the age defined in the statutory language? And the “real” question is what do you do about the fact that he did commit a crime!? The Justices didn’t look too prepared to let him go scott free…
Tonight, Brian and I go to see Hulk! Woohoo! And this weekend I will be in all weekend cleaning – my place desperately needs a spring rub down. Oh and of course there will be some city chicken being made Sunday most likely!!!
Filed under: random info
Ok, here it is:
Mondays and Wednesdays:
-
10:05 – 11:30 Federal Jurisdiction
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12:45 – 2:10 Juvenile Law
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2:20 – 3:45 Criminal Procedure
Tuesdays and Thursdays:
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8:30 – 9:25 Legal Writing
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10:40 – 11:35 Animal Law
Saturdays:
-
9:30 – 12:30 Trial Practice
That’s that!
The Best Christmas I ever had? The year I got my Heart to Heart Bear. He still lives at my dad’s and his heart still beats.
Heart to Heart Bear
I know I just finished writing but I couldn’t help myself. I have CNN on in the background. They are discussing baseball or some shit (I don’t “do” sports). Anyhow, a man being interviewed mentioned that he had spoken to someone named “Dick Pound”….
Come again?
I don’t know why that struck me as so funny but I decided to google “Dick Pound name”. I was pleasantly surprised to find this website – a list of the 9 manliest names. (Dick Pound is #2).
I have to say that Dr. Duncan Steel impressed me the most. The name isn’t all that exciting, although, being called “Dr. Steel” probably rocks. But it is what this guy has done in his lifetime! He even has the job that Bruce Willis had in Armageddon!! You better be made of steel (or at least a distinctive manly part of you) in order to handle that kind of position!
Or maybe not….
I have recently noticed a resurgence of the “miracle vinegar” gurus. At my make-up chat forum, at a green webiste, and on a variety of other forums and blogs.
Here is my take, and it might be worth 2 cents since I have been actually drinking vinegar, almost daily, since I was a toddler.
White, red wine, apple cider (the gurus favorite pick for some reason), malt, champagne, rice, etc. I will tackle them all. I started with white, sipping out of shot glasses. I began dunking salt and vinegar chips into white vinegar at a very young age (and somehow turned my best friends and mother on to this). I moved on next to apple cider vinegar (otherwise known as ACV) and I have found myself stomping out the calories of the chips by adding a little salt to the vinegar and it cures the bizarre cravings I get.
So… what are the health benefits of all of this vinegar consumption?
Hmm…
*jeopardy music*
Um… I once had to go to an emergency clinic in the middle of the night because I drank too much ACV that was about the same age as me and caused my tongue and throat to swell up so much I couldn’t breathe.
Hmm.. I guess that isn’t a benefit. That is a bizarre side effect to over-consumption – you can become allergic. In fact, for the majority of my life, after drinking vinegar my tongue would swell to bizarre sizes and actually look… well, SPLIT. It was hideous and it ached. And I have no clue why I insisted on continuing to do that to myself.
I cut back after that little episode (which occurred when I was about 17 or 18). By the time I was 20ish I was back on the horse. The subsequent lip/tongue/throat swelling isn’t an issue anymore – no clue why that went away or what “cured” the problem.
The point – I simply cannot put my stamp of approval on vinegar. I think it tastes fabulous. I love it… but I don’t look like I’m 12, I am not superwoman, my skin is NOT perfect, I get colds and the flu… sometimes if I drink too much I get a tummy ache… lol, oh and it doesn’t cure cancer or anything insane like that – I happened to have pre-cancerous cells on my cervix more than once…
OH but vinegar WAS USED to find those pre-cancer cells! (They swab white vinegar over the cervix, shine a bright light on it, and the bad cells show up opaque against the cervix _ I can’t say more about that… I didn’t see it myself).
Oh and I had an allergic reaction when they did that! Imagine that! lol… OK, DON’T imagine that.
So there you go. Drink it if you like (I certainly do), but don’t expect miracles.
Filed under: random info
Today on MSNBC.com, a Newsweek article caught my eye – “Searching for the Best Engine“. The article mainly discussed how search engine giant Google may not necessarily be on top of the food chain for long. While Yahoo and Microsoft clamor to keep up with Google, a whole slew of search engines are popping up and after a particularly frustrating search, I decided to do some comparison shopping.
The search: Swifts tin. Essentially what I am looking for are tins made by the Swift’s company from the 1940’s – 60’s used to store meat products. I have a collection of them going and I am curious as to what other meat products this company has made. So far, Google has been of NO help whatsoever. Part of the problem is that the Swift’s company made LOTS of stuff and a great many of their items came in tins and pails including meats, peanut butter, lard, soap, etc.
So first off is Googleitself – it starts me off with matches from Ebay (all of which I am familiar with already because I watch Ebay like a hawk). After that…. a mess of everything with the word “swift” and “tin” anywhere in it.
Next is Ask.com: the top three results are slightly shaded in blue indicating that they are “sponsored results” and because I am looking for vintage/antique, non-repo items, a result sponsored by any company today is going to be worthless to me (and indeed, they are)…
On the side of the page are two options to either expand or to narrow my search. The suggestions for narrowing my search mainly deal with chimneys and sparrows…. Not helpful.
However, the actual search results for webpages and blogs appears slightly more on track than Google was. Not much more helpful though and the sponsored results and expand/narrow options are so off track that it is just annoying.
Next up, Quintura: I’ve never heard of Quintura before but I am glad I did. First thing I noticed was that Quintura isn’t as straight forward as Google – then again, what is!?! Google doesn’t give you anything else on the page to even CLICK ON let alone get lost in! Quintura had instructions on the main page which could either be helpful or intimidating… I ignored the instructions and plowed forward.
The screen is split – one side with results from your search and the other side with random words and phrases in a fun, cloud like pattern - when you place your mouse over one of these words/phrases, other options begin to appear and arrange themselves on the page narrowing down the search visually but NOT COMMITTING TO IT, UNTIL you actually click on the word in question – once you click on that word, it is auto added into your search and the results automatically update.
For example – I searched for swifts tin – about 18 random words appeared at the edge of the screen, one of the words is ADVERTISING. I held my mouse over the word and the remaining 17 words disappeared and a new set of words showed up including: collectibles, cream, soap, sign, vintage, and ebay. Well, that certainly helps with the problem of “chimneys” and “sparrows”! From that point I was able to click on “vintage” which gave me a new set of options, one of which was “pork”. This is clearly on the right track. So what about the actual search results….
Well, there is still a mixed bag of results, BUT there are way fewer to sift through. Results that would have shown up on pages 20-45 with Google are on pages 2 and 3 with Quintura and because all of the results at Quintura are more relevant, I am not skimming the pages as quickly as I did with Google where I ended up missing the few relevant results that there were.
My end thoughts? Being a good “googler” is an art – and while I feel that I am pretty far ahead of the game, some searches require a little more help than others. It seems that the search engine industry is at least on the right track to making this a much more tolerable process than it has been in the past!
Filed under: random info
So this morning on the radio I hear something about the Lions… it was a quick snippit that I missed the majority of but it sounded like the Lions had won their last game.
Heck, I didn’t even know who they had played against.
WIN? Win doesn’t even begin to describe it! That would have been a game to see… at least in the 4th quarter that is.
Anyhow, I am kinda busy but I thought I would add my 2cents for the day. Hope everyone is doing well.
Ciao.
What a feeling – I am here at school early like I have intended and I am already done studying for my only class today and have very little reading left to do for tomorrows class and I have two and a half hours of study time left! This is going to be fabulous once I need to begin working on moot court.
So I wanted to discuss a question that lawyers are often asked of by non-lawyers. It is a question I myself was asked on Saturday in my professional responsibility class by the professor. The professor first asked the class generally who wanted to be a criminal defense attorney. I was one of three who raised a hand. The professor looked directly at me and asked “what do you tell family and friends when they ask ‘how could you defend someone you know is guilty’”?
I answered in a somewhat “classical” fashion; that I believe the system works and in order for it to work in the way intended, everyone deserves and must have their day in court. Today it is someone guilty but tomorrow it may not be. If the standards are lowered for one, they can be lowered for all.
My criminal procedure book and my professional responsibility book call the people who ask this morally entrenched question “lay persons”. I think this is a condescending way of looking at it. Not only do non-lawyers often ask this question, but academics have pondered it for centuries. There must be something more to this question of morality. Is the question “how can I help someone guilty to not be punished” or is the question “do I condone the actions of the party”?
While these questions may be legitimate, I don’t think they represent the real question within all of us. The majority of the population wants no association to these people at all, none the less a seemingly sympathetic one! I think the real question has to do with our own feelings of not wanting to appear apart from the crowd, not wanting to be labeled, not wanting to be cast out from society.
Today on my way to school I passed a woman walking who was trying to cross the street. She appeared to be in her fifties and I say that she was “trying” to cross the road because it appeared to be a serious undertaking for her. She was clearly being tortured and tormented by something that was in her mind and her mind alone. She looked terrified as she sped up, slowed down, and swatted at the air. She turned quickly to face her “tormentor” and then tried to race away from “it”. The rush hour traffic sped by and so did I, leaving her in the middle of a street in one of the worst parts of town. We don’t want to see her, just like we don’t want to see the criminals. Maybe one day she will become a “criminal” – attacking a real person rather than just the air. Is there anyone out there who disagrees with me that she deserves someone by her side should she ever face the possibility of criminal charges? I doubt it. But they will say she is an exception, she is “sick”. She needs medical care and she certainly shouldn’t be placed in the same kind of place as rapists and murderers. But who is going to point that out? Police would be doing their job arresting someone for assault, the prosecutor is busy cracking down on crime, the judge is seeing how many cases today? While all of these people have a responsibility to watch out for the exceptions to the rule, if it were you, wouldn’t you want someone exclusively on your side?
No, the system doesn’t always work just like every system on the planet. That is why we need people who want to see it work take part.
Filed under: random info
Well it has been a busy week. I have been busy working on eating healthy – heart healthy cereals and more veggies and protein – and working out. Brian and I have been going to the gym more regularly and I feel a lot better already.
Otherwise not a lot to report. I have started a lot of random projects just recently so I’m busy fiddling with that. 
Hope everyone else is doing well!!
So it has been a long day already and it isn’t even 1pm!
I had a doctors appt this morning – I just wanted to establish myself with a physician in the area and check my heart out and discuss the last year and the stress effects on my body.
Well, there was a hitch – my blood pressure is sky-rocketed. Most likely a side effect of the adderall. He decreased my dose and put me on an anti-depressant (Lexapro). I am always apprehensive of anti-depressants – they notoriously cause have numerous side effects including sexual side-effects and weight gain (gee doc, I have been taking the medication but now that I am 40 lbs heavier than I was and have no interest in the oppositte sex at all, I can’t figure out WHY I am still depressed!?!?!).
However, I figure 30-60 days on this stuff shouldn’t kill me and I fully intend to do what no one else does on these medications – I am going to keep sickenly accurrate records of what I eat, drink, and how much I work out during this time. I can’t afford to even gain 5lbs at this point. I’m happy to try it out and hopefully I’ll feel better.
Otherwise, working out just went from a high priority to top priority – it should help lower my heart rate (also insane) and also stave off depression. I’ll be going to the gym even more now.
(this also means no more pop w/ caffeine)…
Otherwise, today I am doing some followup with volunteer places and tomorrow I am going back out to look for a part-time job – I have a new plan in place and although it really irritates me to have to do/say what I am going to on my job apps, I am going to go for it – I need the money.
Alright… blah, that is enough for now!!! Boy when life starts to change, it goes mad all at once!!
Filed under: random info
So just to catch ya’ll up – the other day when I got my sunburn, I was reading Ann Coulter’s book, Godless. I picked it up at the library figuring that you can’t continually call someone a nut job when you haven’t given them an honest chance.
I have since changed my opinion of Ms. Coulter – she is not a nut job, she is a crazy mofo. (That’s just my opinion though – ya, right).
Anyhow, here is a complimentary look at a rather funny AIM conversation I had regarding the whole incident tonight:
[18:54] RC: wtf did you do?
[18:54] *** Auto-response sent to RC: the burning has reduced but now comes the dreaded swelling… on my stomach… yea, I see myself getting LOTS of double takes in the next few days… sigh
[18:56] XxBLxX: ugg… I got vanity stricken… I wanted my white stomach to match the rest of me… I got caught up reading Ann Coulter (cause she IS a demon) and I got burnt
[18:56] RC: lollllll
[18:56] RC: fucking coulter did it again!
Yea… just some evening entertainment but it was something to laugh about as the irritating tingles begin
Night ya’ll.
Filed under: random info
Sorry for the recent lack of updates… I was back in Michigan visiting my family for the last week and a half. While I was there I spent time with mom, Ron, dad, my cousin Tonia and her family, family friends of ours, and a couple friends from high school. It was nice, somewhat relaxing, and a nice way to get away from the job stress I was experiencing down here. I made the five hour ride back yesterday, dumped off some of my loot and then headed to Brians for a couple of hours.
For the first time I didn’t feel like I was going home, I felt like I was visiting my family. Coming back here really felt like coming home and I know that part of that is b.c. of Brian. He really has helped to make this more than just “the place I am living so I can go to school.” During the school year I was too busy to notice that I really had settled into a lifestyle here all my own and I feel much more grown up than I did a year ago. Brian and I went to Red Lobster last night and spent some time just cuddling. I came home early hoping to get a good nights sleep but ended up just tossing and turning all night b.c. my back was irked from riding in the car so long. I’ll probably end up napping here soon
So what now? Well, I am continuing to look for work and a volunteer position in the legal field. Brian and I will be working out (I have put on about 10 lbs in the last month or so), and today I am rearranging my room again due to some items I brought back with me (rebounder and shelving unit).
I’ve finally decided to continue living in my current residence. My lease is good for just over a year and I can’t see leaving now since I will likely look for a condo next. The price here is likely cheaper than anything else I would come across and I don’t know if I am totally ready right now to be looking for a more permanent place. Next summer I can focus on where in the city I would like to get a place for a more considerable period of time.
For now, ciao.
No, no, no…I’m not talking about a gassy tummy. I’m talking about the painful gas prices! Today the average cost of gas in the Midwest is $3.44 – the highest average in the country! So is there any way to avoid going over your budget this summer on your vacation?
There is help out there and here are some links to get your started! (All links open in new windows)
There can be as much as a 20% difference in gas prices from station to station in any given area so it is important to find the cheapest places to buy your gas.
www.gasbuddy.com and www.gaspricewatch.com can help you find cheap gas in your area and along your entire travel route!
If you are wondering how much your trip is going to cost you in fuel, check out http://www.fuelcostcalculator.com - a site from AAA that allows you to enter the make and model of your car and your start and end points for a fuel cost estimate. (Doesn’t work for vehicles older than 1998).
If it turns out that gas is going to comprise most of your budget (which it probably will at this point in time), you can cut down on your food costs to help mitigate. Try out www.roadfood.comto find local food in the area you will be in. It will help you to avoid tourist traps and generic boring meals while you are on the road. And remember, you can always pack a nice picnic. That is always a great idea for long road trips and vacations to theme parks where the cost of food is asinine!
I hope everyone enjoys their memorial day. I am continuing on the job hunt!!
