Passing the California Bar Exam

The Thing About Bar Exam Tutors ...

noreply@blogger.com (The Grand Poobah) — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 15:18:00 +0000

... is that they are all teaching the same thing. What differentiates them are the quality of their study material, how they present the subject matter, and how they motivate you to prepare.

The thing is, by the time we graduate from law school we all have a pretty good grasp of the limited body of knowledge required to pass the bar exam. Because of this universal fact, the value offered by the various bar exam preparation programs comes down to how we relate to the personality and style of the person doing the tutoring. Sometimes the tutor is the person whose name is on the front door; other times the person doing the tutoring (read, motivating) is a hired gun who can present the material in a more interesting or thorough fashion.

In large part (ihmo), the degree to which you will benefit from a particular bar prep program depends on whether, and how much, you like the person doing the tutoring. It's very similar to the times in school when you really liked a particular Professor and didn't like another. You usually performed better for the Prof you liked than for the one you didn't. Sure, sometimes you were just more interested in the subject (e.g., Crim Law v. Property). But usually, your desire and ability to do well was influenced more by the medium than by the message.

Bar Prep programs are the same. Assuming all other things are equal (our grasp of the material, our desire to pass the bar exam, our ability to retain the information, lack of other disruptions/distractions in our personal lives) the key is the relationship, if you will, between the tutor and the pupil.

So, if you're looking for a tutor, you should find someone you can relate to and who can relate to you. It's a buyer's market out there. Don't commit to a particular program just because the person on the other end of the phone insists that there are a limited number of seats in their program and, hey, you're in luck because they just had a cancellation. Take some time and make a calm rational decision. Talk with the person you'll be interacting with. If something doesn't feel right, move along.

There are lots (and lots) of people in the Bar Prep business. Some of them rely only on your determination to pass the exam so you can get your license and start working. They know that you're going to pass no matter who takes your money. All they have to do is stand in front of the room and read an outline. In one program I sat through, the guest lecturer said "No questions please, I've only got 90 minutes to get through all of Civil Procedure, and that includes a 15 minute break." Unfortunately for us, the 90 minutes also included correcting the errors in the material issued to us by the author of the program 30 days prior. These people tend to inflate their image and often brag about very high, and unverifiable, pass rates.

Other tutors care about your plight and know that their future income depends on your success. They're excited, energetic, and genuinely interested in you and in your progress. Take the time to find these people. Make a few phone calls or go sit with them and talk about their program. If you do that, you'll be much more likely to have a positive Bar Prep experience, and you'll greatly increase your chances of receiving good new in November (or May).

Keyser Söze. Keyser Söze!

noreply@blogger.com (The Grand Poobah) — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 02:15:00 +0000

The Usual Suspects is on. Great flick. Haven't seen it in years. I think if I was going to be any character in that motley crew I'd be Keyser Söze. Of course, he never really appears in the movie. He's a big influence, but he never makes it onto the screen.

That's me all over.

More model answers here:Questions 1-3.

In the spirit of ...

noreply@blogger.com (The Grand Poobah) — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 06:01:00 +0000

... what's the word ... sharing?

When anyone finds a link to other tutors' sample answers to the July '09 questions, send it to me or leave it in the comments. I'll post it here so everyone can peruse and evaluate on their own.

Fair enough? I think so. If you disagree ... well ... leave it in the comments.

Cheers!

What's One Man's Opinion Worth?

noreply@blogger.com (The Grand Poobah) — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 23:38:00 +0000

The answer to that query depends on the man. In this case the man is Steve Liosi. Steve runs a bar exam prep service called Bar Perfect.

What's his opinion, you ask? Well, as all good California Bar Exam tutors are inclined to do, Steve has put together sample/model/demonstration answers to the July 2009 questions. You can read them here.

Steve's answers are at the link above but you'll have to get the questions from the California State Bar site.

Correct, you are.

noreply@blogger.com (The Grand Poobah) — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 21:57:00 +0000

I'm referring to both Legis and Anon 12:40 in the comments to my last post.

Anon is right when he says that I can't take the exam in another state. Yet. Because I went to a non-ABA school. But when I do pass, I'll be able to sit for the exam in a limited number of states. Then, after I've practiced in California for five years, the number of states in which I can take the exam increases yet again. I don't know the exact numbers in either category because I really don't want to move out of state. I was born in L.A, and grew up in SoCal. I like it here.

Legis is right because, well, because everything in that comment is something I've said before in one way or another. No one's giving up. We're going to pass this thing.

Ack... 80 days!

noreply@blogger.com (The Grand Poobah) — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 14:24:00 +0000

But then, I guess that's better than the 110+ it was right after the exam. Pretty soon it will be 1 day, then zero.

Then it will be 100 or so days until the February 2010 bar exam. Then 75+ until the results are released for that exam.

Then it will be ...

Blah.

I've ceased trying to be optimistic about the day results are released. My attitude now is more like a guy on death-row who's appeal gets granted by some higher authority, thereby postponing the execution date one more time. Realistically, all I am looking forward to on November 20th is having enough room left on a credit card to charge the admission fee one more time. And no comments or suggestions, please, on skipping an exam. While that might work for some folks, it's not an option for me. But thanks for the consideration.

Someone posted a comment that the questions for the last exam have been released by the Bar. You can see them here.

I apologize for not posting a breakdown this time about the issues I found on the essays. For some reason, it just didn't seem as important as it has in the past. I don't know if that's because I'm so tired of the whole process, or because I felt a greater need to simply get on with my life. Probably a bit of both.

Here's a bit of bizarre wisdom for you, "All things change." It's 'wisdom' because it's one of those philosophical truisms that we mutter when we discover we have no control over something we wish we had control over. And it's 'bizarre' because it doesn't seem to apply to my situation with the bar exam.

In my case, it's more like, "The more things change, the more they stay the same." The things that change are the dates on the covers of the exams I open every February and July. The things that stay the same are the results I get every May and November.

Blah.

But I think the main reason I haven't posted a complete re-cap of my July '09 effort is because I feel a compulsion to get on with my life. The words, "As soon as I pass the bar exam" have been part of my vocabulary for ... ever, it seems. It's become very painfully obvious that I could easily get stuck in this holding pattern for so long that every other part of my life could fall down around me while I remain focused exclusively, and to the detriment of everyone and everything else, on the singular goal of passing the flippin' bar exam.

No longer, however. You will all be happy to know (and especially my wife) that I have decided to donate the nose hair, toe nail clipping, and belly-button lint collections I've accumulated in the intervals between exams, to science. I was going to sell them on e-bay, but in the interest of public safety, the anonymous donation route seemed much more sensible. Besides, if I donate them to science, I can grossly inflate their value on my tax return!

(;-)>

Just kidding ... Don't you have to have income before you can deduct anything on your taxes?

(;-)>

Just kidding, again ... I do have some income. I just can't report it. After all, who would believe that I, a law school graduate, made $5k a month in cash sitting on a freeway exit with a sign that says, "Will work for a score of 1441"? "What's that?", you say? "That can't be true?" Well, my friends, it certainly can be true. You see, most people haven't a clue about the bar exam, so when they see that I'm willing to work for a score of 1441, they think I'm trying to get my credit score up to 1441. And because they all know that's impossible, they think I'm insane! And because they feel sorry for crazy disheveled people by the side of the road, and, believe me, I do look disheveled, notwithstanding my picture on this blog, they eagerly press $10 and $20 bills into my grubby hands. They're especially anxious to hand over the cash when they get close enough to read my hand-scrawled sign and discover that my name is M'Naghten. Yep, that pretty much seals the deal.

Yeah, that's the ticket! Sure it is!

Tuesday's Essay Subjects were ...

noreply@blogger.com (The Grand Poobah) — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 03:02:00 +0000

... Professional Responsibility with a misbehaving prosecutor, they asked for ABA and CA rules; Torts with malicious prosecution and probably a PR tail regarding the attorney; and Evidence with California rules only. I'm going to have to sit down and gather my thoughts on the actual fact patterns because I've put them so far out of my mind by now it's going to take a little focused concentration to recall everything.

Regarding the question in the comments on my previous post regarding how to start a solo practice, the ABA has a solo practitioner listserv that has a wealth of information on going it alone. It's populated primarily by sole practitioners who are happy and willing to give advice and share tips. And it's free. http://www.abanet.org/soloseznet/index.html. I think the LACBA has something similar.

For what it's worth ...

noreply@blogger.com (The Grand Poobah) — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 20:07:00 +0000

... and for whoever's interested (besides me), I'll post something about Tuesday's essays before the weekend's out.

What Happened Thursday (redux)?

noreply@blogger.com (The Grand Poobah) — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 19:34:00 +0000

Good question, that.

As a disclaimer, it's possible I may misstate some of the following stuff. If so, feel free to re-educate me.

As another disclaimer, when I re-posted this I took the liberty of editing the original text here and there to reflect more of what I actually remember seeing and writing. It's still not a 100% complete reflection of my answers because I can't recall everything I wrote under the stress and strain of the situation. And even if I thought it was, I've always been surprised when I see my actual answers when the Bar sends them back to me.

Essay One was Constitutional Law. It started out smelling like a Commerce Clause essay that quickly became one about delegation powers. Congress recognized some sort of danger to public health inherent in the national transportation system so they delegated power to the Secretary of Transportation to make laws that were either necessary and proper, or for the general welfare, of the country; I forget the actual language.

The delegation language looked funny so I thought about it and decided to write something about how Congress can properly delegate legislative functions to the Executive branch, but also that the delegated powers must come with some sort of minimal guidelines. This delegation was wide open so I said it was invalid. Then I went on to answer the question.

I wrote about individual and association standing for the first two groups. Now that I think about it, they probably wanted third-party standing too. Then I wrote about Substantive Due Process. I didn't have time to include Procedural DP, or Equal Protection but I thought they were less applicable. And Privileges and Immunities didn't apply. As for the State Highway Department, I think I talked about how the 10th Amendment prohibits the feds from making the states act as an arm of the federal government, but I also mentioned Kansas v. Dole and said it was proper for the feds to withhold funding to get a state to implement some important federal interest. Or something to that effect.

Essay Two was a Torts Remedies/Civil Procedure/Professional Responsibility crossover. I wrote down "riparian rights" when I saw the stream then erased it when I saw they told us not to talk about riparian or property rights (whew!)

The one lady owned a large property and dammed up the stream to create a pond so she could have disadvantaged kids up for summer programs. The downstream property owners sued for an injunction in a California state court based on "nuisance" for the deprivation of water for irrigation and wells. When the court dismissed it for failure to state a claim (I think), one of the parties refiled in Federal court and she asserted Res Judicata as a defense. The disgruntled federal filer then made a threat to his lawyer that he was going to make the lady landowner pay and that he was going to blow up the dam. The lawyer called 911 and tipped off the authorities and the question was whether she was subject to discipline under either the ABA or California Rules of Professional Conduct.

I went through the private nuisance analysis and injunction analysis, then spent one line on why public nuisance wouldn't work. On exams past I would have gone into more detail about why a public nuisance claim would fail, but I kept it short and sweet this time. One line and out. I also added some about defenses, Laches and Unclean Hands. I talked a bit more about Laches because of the six month delay but the Unclean Hands analysis was another one-liner.

EDIT: I now recall that the question asked about a 'takings' issue and how I spent a few lines on why it wasn't a taking because there wasn't state action. And I also recall that despite the fact that the question said not to talk about property rights, I wrote about nuisance and takings. So, given that those were the only things to talk about (unless I completely brain-farted) what else was there?

I think I did a good Res Judicata analysis, and I resisted the urge to talk about Collateral Estoppel. I concluded that RJ wouldn't work because the first suit wasn't prosecuted to a full final judgment on the merits. On the PR issue, I said that under ABA rules, she was good, but under CA rules, she was bad. Unless, of course, he included facts about blowing up the kids too, but again, that last was a one-liner.

Essay Three was Criminal Procedure. The guy's speeding and weaving through traffic so the cop pulls him over. There's probable cause for the stop, but not reasonable suspicion for the illegal search and seizure of the cocaine under the front seat. The guys are arrested, taken to the station, and charged with some variety of illegal possession. The guys are properly Mirandized, the driver asserts his right to silence and the passenger waives his right and says a bunch of stuff that may be incriminating to the driver. They're charged and each hires a private attorney. Their going to be tried together and the driver wants to either suppress the passenger's statements or get a separate trial. Then, a week before trial, the driver wants to fire his attorney and thinks maybe that he might want to get another attorney. Again, this is one week before trial.

Anyway, the stop was legal but the search was not because the passenger's action was not sufficient for probable cause. Especially because the cop hadn't yet run the driver's license or registration. I wrote about a couple of exceptions, Search Incident to a Lawful Arrest and Vehicle Search, but I didn't go into Inevitable Discovery because I didn't have time and it wasn't clear that they would inevitably discovered the drugs because the search and arrest were illegal.

The confession was proper because the guy waived his rights. The requested substitution of attorney was iffy because of the proximity of the the trial and because he didn't have a replacement ready. The driver couldn't suppress the passenger's statement because he can't assert the Constitutional rights of another, besides, the statement could be used against the driver if his information was redacted, regardless of whether they got joint or separate trials. Then I wrote that he was going to have a hard time getting a separate trial unless he could show prejudice or a conflict.

I was stuck right there for a few minutes but I felt there must be something I was missing. Then, when the proctor called "5 Minutes!" it hit me, Exclusionary Rule, fruit of the poisonous tree! So I quickly added that because the seizure was illegal, and no exceptions applied, the cocaine was inadmissible, the arrests were improper, the confession-thing was inadmissible, there would be no trial, and the whole thing was moot. Or something to that effect.

And that, for now, is that.

Oh, and Lamar Odom re-signed with the Lakers. Woo Hoo!

Well ...

noreply@blogger.com (The Grand Poobah) — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 08:27:00 +0000

... I thought everybody who was getting accommodations had already taken the last day's essays. If that's not the case, then I apologize. To myself and to everyone else.

I saved the text so I can re-post it later. But the last thing I want to do is to give some unscrupulous candidate an unfair opportunity to bump me, or anyone else, down below the pass line.

I was afraid I had done that back in July of '07, so I waited until Friday to do this recap. I guess I'll never learn.

On one hand, anyone who cheats to get his license is likely going to crash and burn pretty quickly in his law career. On the other hand, I don't want to still be taking the darn thing when he does it.

Again, my apologies.

Arghhhh!

noreply@blogger.com (The Grand Poobah) — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 03:20:00 +0000

I sure hope I was just getting warmed up today because I sure felt slow out of the gate. The issues on the essays seemed familiar, but they also seemed odd. Why is it that they always try to push us off balance? Oh yeah, I remember now ...

I made an effort to keep my wild-issue analysis to a minimum, but, as a result, I feel like I gave everything short shrift. I don't know if that's a good thing or not. On bar exams past, I've usually felt like I covered all the possible bases, but then I got low scores. This time, I kept my wanderlust in check and stayed on what I perceived to be the beaten path. At least, I did until I got to that Evidence essay. Crimony, that was a racehorse.

Was it just me, or were there not so many California distinctions on today's essays? I know the PR essay asked to answer according to California rules (didn't it?) but I didn't see many differences in the way the issues played out. And on the Evidence essay, same thing. I saw few differences between the results if the federal or California rules applied. Or, maybe it was just that I didn't think federal because they asked California.

Blah ...

And that PT was ... tough for me to wrap my brain around.

Usually as time starts to pass you hear people getting up to speed on their keyboards as they build their outline and start to flesh out their answer. This usually starts at about the 30-minute mark and by the time the first hour is gone everyone is pecking away furiously. Not today.

I forgot to put my earplugs in at the start and I didn't think about it until almost 60 minutes had gone by. I remember thinking to myself, "Geez, it's awfully quiet in here." Then at 90 minutes, same thing. Shortly after that was when it started to get noisy. Funny thing was, I wasn't typing either. I had such a difficult time trying to figure out what it was they wanted. I finally got a grip with about 75 minutes left and spent the rest of the time typing furiously.

I think I built a complete answer, but it was thin in parts. Especially towards the end.

But I got my conclusion in there. (;-)>

At least I can relax a bit tomorrow. Me and the MBEs, we're good friends.

I feel like ...

noreply@blogger.com (The Grand Poobah) — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 13:53:00 +0000

... Charlie Brown.

I've repaired my kite (for the umpteenth time) and I'm going to take it outside and try to fly it again.

I've picked a nice open clearing, but I just know that darn kite-eating tree is out there, waiting to thwart my plans, and eat my kite.

(sigh)

Alrighty then ....

noreply@blogger.com (The Grand Poobah) — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 06:24:00 +0000

... I've jettisoned the baggage because I'm a guy and I pack light. I think the reason it bugs me so much is that I'm basically a creature of logic and I'm unused to having all these emotions bouncing around inside my head. But as long as I stay busy and don't think about anything other than the task ahead, I'm fine.

On my writing, I almost finished a PT today - and it actually looked like a regular answer. Okay, well, even if it didn't look like a real regular released answer it at least looked better than anything I've produced before. And that, my friends, is progress.

I'm memorizing now, and I'm trying to send a couple of essays per day to bargraders.com. My plan is to keep writing essays until next Saturday. MBEs are on the back burner and probably won't be moved to the front again until Tuesday night.

Rambling, I am. Don't have much to say. Best of luck to all.

My biggest challenge right now, is ...

noreply@blogger.com (The Grand Poobah) — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 05:13:00 +0000

... dealing with the emotional baggage that comes with failing this thing four times in a row. If you've seen "Joe Versus the Volcano" with Tom Hanks, you know what kind of baggage problem I'm dealing with ...

...

Luggage Salesman: Have you thought much about luggage, Mr. Poobah?
Grand Poobah: No.
Luggage Salesman: It's the central preoccupation of my life.
Grand Poobah: Mine too. Lately.

...

Luggage Salesman: This is our premier steamer trunk, it's all handmade, only the finest materials. It's even watertight, tight as a drum. If I had the need, and the wherewithal, Mr. Poobah, this would be my trunk of choice.
Grand Poobah: I'll take at least four California Bar Exam's worth of them.
Luggage Salesman: May you live to take a thousand Bar Exams, sir.

...

Grand Poobah: And then I'll be waiting 3 1/2 months for results and I don't know if I'll be living in a hut, or what.
Luggage Salesman: Very exciting... as an emotional baggage problem!

...

These days, if I didn't have my sense of humor I'd have nothing.

And lately, my sense of humor is scant, scant, support.

Went to Steven Emanuel's Orange County MBE Refresher Today

noreply@blogger.com (The Grand Poobah) — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 03:11:00 +0000

It was the first day of his three-day brush-up before the actual exam. Today was the simulated MBE - 100 questions in the morning and 100 questions in the afternoon. I was unsure of how much I would get out of this because I do pretty well on the MBE part of the bar exam, but I've only done a couple hundred practice questions since last February so I figured I needed to see where I stood.

As it turns out, I'm not doing too bad. I got 150 of the 200 correct, and I only saw about 20 questions that were familiar. The next two days are lectures and review of the questions. This is going to be interesting because I know there's a bunch of MBE trivia that I forgot over the last 5 months.

These last couple of weeks before the exam are going to be crammed with essay writing, issue spotting, rule memorization, PT writing/review, and a fair amount of MBE practice. I know what you're thinking, that the time for all the intensive work has passed, but what works for most normal people doesn't work for me. Or, at least, it hasn't in the past. What's the definition of insanity again ...?

On the positive side, I think I've figured out what's wrong with my writing. But I won't talk too much about that until November when I find out whether I actually did figure it out, or whether I just found another color of lipstick to stick on this decrepit old pig.

So, there ya' go.

Back at it, I am now.

By the way ...

noreply@blogger.com (The Grand Poobah) — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 05:44:00 +0000

... I seem to carry over a few valuable tidbits from one exam to the next. That's why I know that I'll pass this thing sooner or later. And I do believe it's going to be sooner rather than later. And when I finally do pass I plan to post an evaluation here of each and every one of the bar prep resources I've used, from books to seminars to tutors. I've taken something positive from everyone I've gone to for help, except for one, and I'll not talk about that one, and I don't think I've mentioned that one yet so you can't start guessing who (oops, did I say who?) that was. (;-)>

Anywho ... I bring forward the essence of each tutor from one exam to the next, and my bookshelf holds a little bit of each of them; a one-sheet here, a supplement there, a cluster here, a checklist there. But, frankly, (and don't call me Frankly (or was that Shirley?)), at this point, I don't know if that's a curse or a blessing - for them or for me. Regardless, each of them has taught me something that I wasn't taught at my school. Or, more likely, it was taught but I was too preoccupied with personal BS to notice it when it came across my desk.

Anywhen ... this time, I'm reaching out for feedback in a way that I wouldn't have had the courage to before. There's something about failing repeatedly that makes us (well, me, anyway), acutely aware (and whatever comes after acutely (Mega-Acutely?)) of the fact that I've been seriously screwing this thing up and that I'm going to continue to do so until get equally serious about passing.

Anywhat ... one of the reasons I haven't been more chatty this time is that I'm tired of damning with faint praise (very faint) those who have helped me before. I've decided not to subject these new good people (yet) to whatever little extra scrutiny they may receive as a result of my having written about them here until I actually pass the damn exam. That way I don't have to go to bed at night feeling even more guilty about even more good people I've demeaned by linking their good names to my heretofore miserable one.

Anyhow ... as I was saying, one of the most useful things I've picked up along the way is the PowerDreams audio stuff. Right about now in this process I start having trouble relaxing during the day and going to sleep at night, and their ... stuff, for lack of a better word, is great for that. I've only unequivocally recommended a couple of programs here - Steven Emanuel's MBE program and Dava and Martina's PowerDreams audio ... stuff. Everything else comes with caveats - good for some people, not good for others. But these two programs are worth every penny they charge, and them some.

And ... I've already done what I said I wouldn't do - spend more time here. But, it's only this once, and no one can complain unless I do it again soon. And I won't be doing that. Soon. Or something. It's after midnight now, and I'm tired.

G'night Gracie.

Hmmm... Let's see ... What is up ....?

noreply@blogger.com (The Grand Poobah) — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 17:32:00 +0000

First, the horrible tropical itchy-scratchy thing I was afflicted with has thankfully run its course. After two days of complete and utter hell, it faded away as quickly as a lick-em/stick'em tattoo from a Cracker Jack box. The doc's don't know what caused it, and as long as it doesn't reappear, they don't care.

As far as my bar prep is concerned, I pulled out all the stops in my effort to find out where my writing is going south and how I can get it headed back in the right direction. What I've determined so far is that when I review an essay prior to writing it I see 90% of the issues that appear in the released answers. But, for some reason, the answers I end up writing doesn't look much like the released answers. Somewhere in my writing process there's a break in the issue-chain-of-custody as I try to bring the issues I've spotted to the answer I write. A big part of that problem can be traced back to my inability to construct a comprehensive outline in a short amount of time, which would then leave me enough time to write a complete answer.

I know, that's the same challenge I talked about last time. I think this problem is unique to me, and is a result of my programming background. The way I solved problems then is not the best way to solve them now. At least, not in this venue.

So, that's what's up.

This blog, obviously, has been consuming relatively little of what's left of my free time after I've closed the books for the day. But I'll make an effort to pop in a bit more frequently between now and the exam. But just a bit.

Cheers, all. Good luck with the studies.

Alrighty then ...

noreply@blogger.com (The Grand Poobah) — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 17:13:00 +0000

... I have some good news and I have some good news. But first, ... Hey, is that Rod Serling slinking off the stage? Yep, it surely is. And he looks a bit embarrassed, too. Good Riddance, Rod! And don't let me catch you back here again!

All right, here's the situation. At first, what I had looked like the dreaded shingles. Happily, it's not. Less happily, no one knows exactly what it is, or more to the point, what it was. That's right, "What it was." Yay!

I spent the entire day yesterday bouncing from doctor's office to pharmacy to dermatologist's office. I got three different medications to treat the symptomis horribilis associated with this yet to be named tropical disease. All they are willing to call it is "contact dermatitis". But I suppose that's good news too because they aren't calling it "the dreaded shingleitis!" Thank God! I was seriously contemplating abandoning this quest if the symptoms didn't go away soon because I couldn't sit for 30 minutes without scratching furiously, and I mean furiously, at some part of my body. Gads, it was hell.

But today, whether it's the meds or the natural progression of whatever it was that inflicted me, I'm better. Not 100%, but close, real close. So. Yay. For that I will be eternally grateful. Or, if not for eternity, at least until July 31st.

Thanks to all for the good wishes. Now I've got to get back to catching up on what I was doing before this thing started, which was catching up on my schedule.

(;-)>

Coincidence? I think not!

noreply@blogger.com (The Grand Poobah) — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 22:05:00 +0000

Or maybe I've entered into some sadistic version of the Twilight Zone.

We woke up this morning to the sounds of a roofing company taking the roof off my neighbor's house. The demolition part is not the bad part because they aren't yet pounding nails or using the electric saws on the new sheathing that goes under the new shingles. That noisy stuff comes later after they've woken everyone in the neighborhood.

What could that possible be coincidental too, to ask? Well, yesterday I woke up in the nascent stages of what is looking to be a bad case of the Shingles. Get it? Yeah, me too, unfortunately.

Holy crap but this stuff is annoying, and itchy. And I understand that the painful part is going to begin over the next few days, and it could last for weeks. So, unfortunately, unlike the annoyance caused by my neighbor's roof job, which should be completed today, if my research is correct my Shingles are going to be with me for the next few weeks. Just what I need.

I haven't ever had this before but I did have the Chicken Pox when I was a kid. Apparently this virus lays dormant in the nerve roots for the rest of your life. It can become active again when the immune system is weakened, in times of stress, yada, yada. Perfect. I can just hear Rod Serling's voice in the background, 'He doesn't know it yet, but the Grand Poobah has just entered ... The Twilight Zone." Or maybe for me the proper term is re-entered.

Blah.

Okay, Fine, There You Go.

noreply@blogger.com (The Grand Poobah) — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 19:21:00 +0000

That took about 30 minutes, so I don't want to hear no complainin' outta' youse guys.

Time for a New Timer?

noreply@blogger.com (The Grand Poobah) — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 01:47:00 +0000

It looks like the website behind my old timer went bust. I downloaded the code from a site that provided free flash modules to paste into your blog, but the code had to link back to their site to work properly. That didn't seem to be problematic, so I let it do its thing. Now, though, the site, flashmysite.com, has disappeared.

I'm probably not going to track down another one because I'm kind of burying myself in my preparations for this exam. I've gotten serious about changing what's wrong with my writing and, with everything else I've got to do, I'm not inclined to take the time to find a new timer.

I reserve the right, however, to change my mind about that.

Well, I can't take time off ...

noreply@blogger.com (The Grand Poobah) — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 06:44:00 +0000

... so my only choice is to continue to travel the road I'm on. The path to my future passes directly through the bar exam.

Thanks for all the suggestions, I understand what you're saying, I just can't take a break.

I've just got to take it one day at a time.

Studying for my fifth shot at the bar exam is ...

noreply@blogger.com (The Grand Poobah) — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 19:38:00 +0000

... without a doubt, the toughest thing I've ever had to do in my entire life. The motivational challenge is overwhelming. It's negatively affecting every other aspect of my day-to-day existence. My family, my friends, my work, they're all suffering because I have screwed this thing up so badly. The implications of another failure loom so large over everything that it's hard to focus on anything else, let alone get motivated to start studying again. I completely blew my first scheduled day of organized study, which was supposed to be yesterday. Now I have to make that up today along with everything else I have to get done.

I'm usually a "Don't worry! Be happy!" kind of guy. But, lately, not so much.

Alrighty then ...

noreply@blogger.com (The Grand Poobah) — Mon, 18 May 2009 20:01:00 +0000

... The raw numbers:

Essays: 60, 50, 55, 60, 60, 55

PTs: 50, 60

MBEs: 145

It's time to back my way out of this rabbit hole and re-evaluate my writing.

noreply@blogger.com (The Grand Poobah) — Sun, 17 May 2009 06:10:00 +0000

Anon 8:35: LOL! Crack me up, you do! I know that your sentiment applies to all of us here, not just me. None of us are going to let the freakin' Committee of Bar Examiners tell us that we can't practice law in California.

This weekend is going to be difficult for a lot of good people who are eventually going to be very good lawyers. The State Bar lets us take the exam until we pass for a good reason. They recognize that the essence of a good lawyer is not measured solely by how many time it takes us to pass the bar exam.

I'll bet that the statistics would show, if anyone has compiled them, that first time passers are disbarred at a greater rate than multiple takers. By that statement I don't mean to cast doubt on the integrity of first-time passers; many of my closest friends are first-time passers. (;-)> In fact, if I ever pass this thing, I'm going to join up with my buddy Paul to form our own little law firm and he was a first-time passer (the bastard!) I'm also going to work with Jonathan Kramer who was a multiple taker like myself. Jonathan persevered and won out over the odds, as will we.

We can't give these little setbacks more control over our lives than they deserve. There is nothing wrong with our exam-taking skills. We should not attempt to adjust our program. We control our analysis. If we wish to make it more broadly applicable, we will explain how the issue and the rule apply to the facts. If we wish to make it more specific, we will cite the appropriate precedent. We will control the horizontal. We will control the vertical. We can roll the answer, make it flutter. We can change the focus to a soft blur or sharpen it to crystal clarity. For the three hour session, we will sit quietly and control all that we see and hear. We repeat: there is nothing wrong with our exam-taking skills. We are participating in a great adventure. We are experiencing the awe and mystery which reaches from the inner mind to... Passage of the California Bar Exam!

Okay, so I plagiarized the Outer Limits opening commentary just a bit there. That doesn't make it any less applicable. The only limits to what we can accomplish are those which we place upon ourselves.

Seriously. The sky is the limit. Push hard. Now.