Seattle

Sam and I came to the Pacific Northwest for winter break. We were down in Salem for Christmas and my mom's birthday, but now we are in Seattle until the 6th of January. We're staying at Sam's grandma's house in Seattle's Phinney Ridge neighborhood. Here's a picture.

Sam got me a digital camera for Christmas, so I've been taking pictures a bit excessively. I think he's almost wishing he hadn't gotten it for me.

The weather has been typical for Seattle since we got here: grey and overcast everyday. I'm enjoying it though. It's more mild than New York and far more green. Before I head back I hope to get in a little hiking somewhere, even if it's just in Discovery Park.

We've been trying to find something to do for New Years Eve, but we haven't been very successful. We're probably just going to go out to a club, and I think my friend Courtney is going to come meet us.

It hasn't been much of a vacation yet. I keep waiting for some time to relax, but there is always someone else to see. I have enjoyed seeing everyone and know I would regret it when I get back to New York if I hadn't tried to do so, but it isn't very relaxing. That said, it remains far more enjoyable than law school. Oh well, I'm sure I'll get a break one of these days.

Beginnings

I thought it was time for me to break this blog in. I've had it for a few weeks and kept meaning to start posting, but with finals and the holidays, I had been putting it off. I intend for this blog to be mostly about my trip abroad and time studying in Belgium. I don't leave until January 27th and probably won't post too much in the interim. But before I leave off, let me fill you in a little bit about where I am at in my life.

I just finished my third of six semesters at NYU School of Law. It's good to be halfway done, and I can't wait until I've completed it entirely. For those readers who haven't been to law school, let me explain that it is the amount of work rather than the work itself that makes law school so tedious. Studying the rules of the game is thought provoking, but the quantity of work means that I spend all day, every day doing nothing but studying. Now, I'm all for hard work, but I need variety to feel like I'm really living, not just trudging through, my life.

I hope the European system of education will be more to my liking. I'll be studying law at the Catholic University of Leuven in Leuven, Belgium next semester. Leuven is about 20 km (12.5 miles) east of Brussels. I hope to do a lot of traveling while I'm there. Luckily, Belgium is conveniently located in the center of a number of amazing countries.

My boyfriend of almost four years, Sam, will be staying in New York. Understandably, he's not too happy I'm leaving, but he says if I send him Belgian chocolates every month he'll let it slide. He's a much more dedicated blogger than I am, so, if you're interested, I'm sure you will be able to find whether I sent them each month by reading his blog. He's going to come visit over Spring break in March and, hopefully, we'll do a bit of traveling then.

Next summer, when I get back from Belgium, I plan on working at a big New York law firm as a summer associate. To protect myself and my future careers options, this firm will be known simply as The Firm in this blog. For those not in the know, the summer associate program is like a summer long interview for both the student and the firm. The students try to pretend they are non-stop billing machines who love to work as many hours as they can, taking breaks only to schmooze partners on the hiring committee. The firm tries to hide the fact that their lawyers' lives are consumed entirely by their billable hour requirements by lavishing the summer associates with perks and requiring them to work only a small fraction of the hours they have to work once hired. At any rate, it should be an interesting summer.

I guess that's all you really need to know for now. Please feel free to leave comments and send me emails.