As the bar exam draws nearer, the tension sharpens: tempers are on edge, and wits are at their end. The tiniest little thing could turn you into a weeping baby, or incite you to laugh for hours. Depending on how you are wired, you seek refuge in a variety of external stimulants; for some that's alcohol or fast food, for me, it's coffee and sugar. This test has been looming over you since the day you started law school. It is the culmination of everything you are supposed to know, and although not representative of the practice of law (in the fact that while practicing, you should absolutely turn to your colleagues and treaties, encyclopedias, etc. before making any significant legal analysis), many jobs ride on the fact of whether or not you pass. Everything else stops while you are preparing. Yes, the bar exam is a time in your life unlike any other, and one that is absolutely impossible to understand unless you've been there.
Based on that introduction, you probably think I'm crazy for attempting another exam in about a week, but truthfully, having passed one, it's MUCH less stressful the second time around. I only have to take half of the exam, I know what to expect, my job does not depend on me passing. Plus, the state of Kansas already confirmed that I somewhat know what I'm talking about-- confidence is half the battle.
A friend of my once pointed out to me that I am an organized mess: I can tell you whatever you need to know, but it whens come down to my living spaces, they are never well kept. They aren't dirty...just cluttered. And that situation is exaggerated and spreads to other places when busy times like these roll around. The picture above is a snapshot of the items that have been filling my days the past few weeks, and will do so for the next four days. Here is a list of those items...and the little quirks that go along with them.
Flashcards: This is one of the ways I learn best. When preparing for the Kansas bar, I made flashcards for every single subject we studied. Take 16 subjects multiplied by at least 3 hours of lecture on the topic (often more), and you will have a guesstimate of how many flashcards I made. The cards in this picture are for evidence. And if you're wondering what Rule 403 is, it says that "evidence that is relevant may be excluded when it's probative value is substantially outweighed by its prejudicial effect." (That's paraphrased, but it's close enough.) Sweet, huh?
Highlighter: If this picture were from the summer study months, that would probably be highlighter 4 or 5, the predecessors whom I completely exhausted. This time, it's still 4 or 5, but only because I keep misplacing the ones that I have.
Glasses: When you study so much law for so many days on end, even things that are clear to normal people become fuzzy. Some sort of corrective lens is imperative.
Notebook (on the right): The other way I learn a lot is just to write and write and write things down. Colorful notebooks and pens keep things interesting.
Green Book: This book is the small review book for the class nearly all of us took last summer. I kept it so that I could review for other bars. During the summer, this book, and it's 5 companion books, were attached to my hip. Since many of those specifically discussed Kansas law, I am no longer attached to them.
Blue Binder: I am, however, attached to that blue binder which contains outlines for all the subjects on the final provided by the Iowa equivalent of BarBri. They were passed on (borrowed from) to me by a friend who took the bar last July, and have been VERY helpful.
and finally...
Ear Plugs: (under the glasses) whether studying in a coffee shop, or at the actual test, the use of ear plugs helps to drown out the auxiliary noise that always seems to cause my mind to drift elsewhere. On Monday, they were a nice barricade to the discussion of the pack of sorority girls that were sitting by me.
Tomorrow I resume my Lawrence coffee shop tour. Until then!
