Break's over

So the spring semester is officially up and running, and I'm doing everything I can just to keep up.

For most of the past week, I've been fighting hard to juggle whole lot of extracurricular business I was not at all geared up for. You see, there's a strong temptation around here to get really confident as you start to adjust to new classes and settle into a manageable study routine. Two or three weeks in, you find yourself on top of your readings, making good impressions with a few comments in class, and you might think, "No problem, I can handle this! This is going to be easy." But you'd be wrong (read: I was wrong), because this is the very moment when all your (read: my) other commitments and responsibilities for the semester decide to kick into high gear.

This Monday, for instance, I was at school until 9 P.M. having a meeting with my TAP client followed by the final meeting of my Law, Medicine, and Ethics reading group. Last night I wrote, and today I sent off, an application for yet another summer internship- something had really, really better pan out soon. Tonight, I'm back at TAP for a training session on criminal records, which is forcing me to miss a screening of Charlie Wilson's War for my Leadership in the Public Sector class (good thing I've already seen it, but I wish I could again.) And tomorrow I need to meet with my partner for the Ames Moot Court Competition, which dominates the second semester of Legal Research and Writing. We're already up against our first deadline- a rough outline of the arguments in our written brief is due next Monday. But I need to finish my part early, because I may have two more meetings (not to mention classes!) that same day.

Whew! For a few days there, I was uncertain I was going to make it. But if the similarities between this semester and last hold true, this won't last forever. There will be pockets where I'd give anything to get home before dark just once a week, but others will be much more comfortable. And little comforts or reprieves will tend to crop up each time things threaten to get too bad.

That has definitely happened this week, and today in particular. First off, it's 56 degrees outside, which officially qualifies as GORGEOUS weather in Cambridge this time of year. I just went outside to send some mail in just a dress and a sweater. Amazing! It's literally been months.

Second, both my classes for today wound up being cancelled! First our Property professor announced that we would only meet Monday and Tuesday of this week. We were happy enough about that when, this morning, our Criminal Law professor also sent out an e-mail excusing himself because he isn't feeling well. I hope he feels better, and I wouldn't have minded going to his class, which is always so entertaining (I recently heard someone compare him to Dr. House from TV, and I can't say it's inaccurate- he even walks with a cane.) But it's much better having a day mid-week to fall back and regroup.

And last, but definitely not least, our first semester GRADES were finally released last night! I don't think I'll post them verbatim- this doesn't really seem like the place. But if you ask me, I'll probably tell you, because I'm perfectly happy with them all (and even pleasantly shocked with one in particular. If you spoke with me at all during finals week, you may be able to guess which!)

So, as they say on The West Wing: "Break's over!" But between this extra free time and my newly buoyed attitude, what could have been an ugly couple of weeks should actually be quite manageable. I hope similar blessings are coming your way, and that you'll all take care and keep in touch until I write again!