Pre-paper, Post-paper

Before:

And after:

Unfortunately, I don't think these pictures do justice to the level of tidy serenity that existed before I started writing, and then, the level of chaos that existed once the paper was done. It was difficult to navigate the floor, the bed, the desk...

It was, however, incredibly satisfying to put every piece of research I had printed in a neat pile and haul it out of my room, into a temporary resting place on the bookshelf in the living room. I'll have to face it again though, because the topic is interesting enough that it should be paid attention to and polished up. It can, decidedly, wait until exams are done.

Post-Exam, Pre-Paper

Rest the night before an exam is never really satisfying, in spite of the fact that I actually went to bed at 11 p.m. last night. This is me, yawning uncontrollably, after my admin law exam:


Now, I sleep for a 1.5 hours. And then, I write.

Favourite Things, Part IV

It's exam time! How does one survive?

Coffee in the Bodem
(I love it. It's so low tech)

Consuming coffee and tea from my law school mugs

(I found these the first week of law school and I love them)

Strawberry Twizzlers. Yum!

Insight Into Political Events in Canada

My stunningly brilliant and beautiful colleague has repeatedly proven that she has an "amazing ability to see (and explain)" (as another brilliant and beautiful colleague put it) a wide variety of phenomena in this world. Here, her observations on current politics and our political leaders (reprinted with permission):

I like to view the current actions on Parliament Hill as a historical moment wherein Parliament altruistically sacrificed its dignity so that Canadians could work on their own personal issues and family relations problems.

Harper has taught us the age old lessons of natural consequences: "one must sleep in the "confidence vote" bed one makes" and "mean people suck". No one likes them and the friends they have are acquired through fear. Furthermore, all they can do is bad (ie. sending us into a constitutional and unity crisis).

Dion and Layton's actions reinforced the maxim that "one must act like an adult in order to be given adult responsibility". No amount of fist pounding, name calling, and yelling will ever get you what you want.

Bob Rae will soon teach us that the lesson of "never publicly set a limit that you are not willing to follow through on". This lesson will come when he burns down every bridge still open to the Liberal party by insisting on voting down what I think with be a drippingly generous stimulus package because he thinks Harper's an asshole.

Ignatiaf will teach us the well-known lesson of the "quiet child": the kid that makes the least amount of fuss for their parents get the biggest inheritance. His relative silence during this whole debacle will win him the Liberal leadership.

I have to say, I think she's pretty on point on all fronts. I think Harper's an asshole for proroguing. But the time for the coalition has passed, unless Harper is stupid enough to present a vindictive budget, a la economic update of last week, a second time around. Which he won't be. He's a stunningly calculating political tactician (I will give him that) and the only explanation for these events is hubris. And the fact that he's an asshole.

I hope the reason that the meeting between Harper and GG Jean took nearly three hours yesterday is because she was baking him a humble pie and spoonfeeding him every goddamned crumb of it.

TCO Supports a Coalition

You can have your political views. Be Liberal, be Conservative, be NDP, be Green, be BQ.

But don't lie. Harper lied about our Constitution. Not interpreted according to his politics (which are clearly divisive and oppressive, but that's my interpretation). He lied, flat out and bald-, bold-, and bare-faced (depending on which usage you prefer).

I get that pols spin. It's politics. I lie. It's life. But this is too much. Don't f*ck with my Constitution!!

Get thee out, spot!

And by "spot", I mean Harper.

Postcards from the Edge, Sixth in a Series

For a friend:

Handy Advice

"Your joy is your sorrow unmasked. And the selfsame well from which your laughter rises was oftentimes filled with your tears. And how else can it be? The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain."

Kahlil Gibran, "Joy and Sorrow", The Prophet.

I had bad and sad news this weekend, which has well and truly taken me off guard. I received instructions from a friend this morning to put on my palm to-do list today:


I'm trying, in only moderately successful ways, but I am grateful for those who are checking in. It makes it easier to laugh knowing that I am not alone.