Out of Africa:

After spending winter/summer . . . the month of January in South Africa and Namibia, it has been good to be back in the States. Mainly because of my constant access to Internet. Precious, precious Internet. Sure, I miss the warm weather, the beaches, the delicious meat, and the fine (yet inexpensive) wine, but in Boston there's . . . damn.

So, now that I'm back, here are the highlights of my adventures (Reader's Digest version)

After traveling for approximately 22 hours, we arrived in Cape Town. The next day, we took our rental car (Mercedes Benz, aka "Elegance") on our road trip to Namibia -- the land of contrast! And it certainly did live up to its name. Sure, some people know it for where Angelina popped a squat to shoot out a baby, but it's a vibrant, beautiful land. Maybe I'll get a beach house there. I saw quite a bit of undeveloped property. We also got to go on safari -- again taking Elegance -- where we saw 3 of the Big Five (we saw elephants, rhinos, and lions, but not buffalo or leopards). In addition, we saw other wonderfully African animals: giraffe, zebra, ostrich, kudu, springbok, impala, jackal, hyena, warthog, wildebeest. After our magical African Safari, we came back to Cape Town. We arrived in our apartment in Green Point (aka "don't go out at night"), just off of Tranny Hooker Alley. While my roommates worked at the Judicial Inspectorate of Prisons (or something like that), I worked at the National Prosecuting Authority. Yay, prosecutors! It was especially interesting because there has been a lot of political and legal drama in South Africa, mainly surrounding corruption charges against the President-elect and the Police Commissioner. I sure hope that all gets sorted out. Beyond the job, there was lots of free time and wonderful things to do! I got to see the penguins, at Boulders Beach; we hiked up Table Mountain (due to a late breakfast of bad eggs and the midday sun, I lost my lunch about halfway up); we toured the Winelands (which unfortunately, I did not get to participate in as fully as I would have like to because of my recovery from malaria -- while my diagnosis was not "confirmed" by a "doctor" I had a fever of 38º, nausea, and dizziness: all symptoms of malaria. I am a survivor.); and we spent many an afternoon to evening at the beach, enjoying the weather and our "sundowners" (drinks at sundown). Perhaps the best part of the trip was the food and wine. South African wine is excellent (especially the pinotage, a South African grape varietal that's a little different) and damned inexpensive. And the food is out of this world, especially if you like meat. Here it is, ranked in order of tastiness:

• Wildebeest
• Ostrich
• Springbok
• Kudu
• Warthog
• Oryx/Gemsbok

And they're damn cute, too! So if you like eating animals, drinking cheap wine (not Franzia or Sutter Home), wonderful weather, and political corruption, then South Africa is the place for you!

Out with the Old:

I can't believe it's the last day of 2007. I also can't believe that I'm departing for South Africa in a matter of hours! After a "short" flight from Boston to Amsterdam to Capetown, I will be ringing in 2008 in style: on safari in Namibia! I've had my shots (ow!) and I have my malaria medicine (eek!). Hopefully I will survive, so that I can go on to work for 3 weeks for the National Prosecuting Authority. In addition to getting some great comparative experience with another criminal justice system, I will be extremely warm for the month of January. Take that, Boston!

In addition, one of my new year's resolutions will be to keep my blog updated more. I know I have been pretty lax. It has been a lethal combination of my usual sloth, job interviews up the wazoo, and the fact that I don't have that interesting of a life. All that is going to change, though! Well, at least the job interview part.

I hate Travel

Don't get me wrong. I like being in other places. Especially when those other places are not "school." It's just the getting there that bothers me. Where are my promised flying cars or teleportation? This is the 21st century! The aughts, G-dammit! As an illustration:

First, we wanted to leave Boston for Mississippi. But, we were traveling with Spencer (world's cutest puggle for those not in the know), which meant that we couldn't travel if it was below 20º outside. At 8AM on Day 1, it was 18º -- so we had to wait for a later flight . . . which ended up being canceled. Day 2. Back to Logan airport. Very little hitches, so we made it to Mississippi in time to see people getting hitched. All is well. But, when leaving Mississippi, my first flight was canceled; thank you, weather. Luckily, I was able to be rebooked on another flight -- the following day at 6AM. So, upon waking at 4:30 AM, unable to find my pea coat (a necessity in Wisconsin and winter fashion circles), I get to the airport. Where I found out that my flight was delayed two hours. Leaving me only a half hour layover in Dallas. I asked the ticket agent whether I could rebook, but she was not helpful -- par for the course on my winter travel plans. Apparently, I could theoretically make it to my flight on time, so they would not reschedule me. So, I get on my plane, and it departs (somewhat late), but we get to Dallas 25 minutes before my next flight. Well, I can totally make it to another terminal in that time. What's that? There's another plane in our gate so we have to wait on the runway? Well, there goes that plan. After rushing to catch my 10:15 plane and arriving at the gate at 10:17, I am informed by another helpful agent that I have been confirmed on the next flight: at 5:15 PM. I ain't spending 7 hours in Dallas. Luckily, I have a very loving and possibly foolish mother, and when I called her, she offered to pick me up in Chicago. So, I book a 10:55 flight for Chicago. It leaves pretty much on time. Sure, I'm in the back, but I'm paired with a nice young woman from Texas who offers me extra Kleenex (did I mention that I have a cold to top it off?). My mom and sister are waiting at baggage claim, and our Christmas Eve is saved!

Except for the part where they lost my luggage, which had all of my clothes and product, not to mention Christmas presents, and it didn't arrive until the night of the 26th. Thanks a lot, American Eagle.

Mrs. Ippy

So, on my first full day in Mississippi, I spent my morning researching a colonel in the Confederate army. I believe this is the custom upon visiting The Hospitality State. Well, that and removing all traces of literacy. I'm kidding* -- but the state has been very hospitable so far. From the model train village of "Possum Ridge" to . . . hmmmm, I guess that was all. Well, they were very nice.


*No I'm not.

Halfway There!

I am now halfway through law school! After finishing three finals (including a corps exam that was the worst birthday present ever -- even worse than the time I got a hammer) I can now relax! It's 12 days of Mississippi and Wisconsin, then off to South Africa for January where I can learn about comparative criminal law and asset forfeiture while enjoying the beauties of the southern hemisphere. And snag a penguin.

Musings from the Library:

Since finals are rapidly approaching, I've been spending quite a bit of time in the library. Which started me thinking, which is always dangerous -- especially when I'm trying to learn. What good are libraries qua libraries these days?

With online research, we hardly use the library any more. If we moved all of our books to the Harvard Depository, we could just request them and have them shipped to us. Just look online, and in a few clicks, your book will be delivered. What good is the library any more? It appears to be a large study hall: it provides you with large tables for group study if you so desire, or individual carrels for some privacy. You can make copies. You can print from a computer! So let's just get rid of these books and free up more space for carrels or long tables.

As I see it, this mind set is precisely the problem with libraries. The conversion into a study hall has diminished if not killed the respect for these hallowed halls. People don't have their cell phones on "silent" -- some even answer them! People put their feet up on the desks. Some stand in the stairwell, talking. Talking! What happened to hushed tones? What happened to the fear of the spinster librarian? Or, better yet, the Hot Librarian?* So maybe the library as bastion of research is obsolete. But it needs to retain the trappings in order to command the respect that it deserves (and thus promote efficient studying by its denizens). Maybe that's the only way to get people to shut up, stop eating, and start brushing their teeth at home.

*"Nice stacks"

Final Countdown

Returning from Thanksgiving, finals are not that far away. I am now beginning to realize how little I know, and how screwed I am. To illustrate, this is what I found in my corporations notes:

corporations = spoon. Discuss.

WTF?

Andrew's Travel Tips:

After traveling to Des Moines for Thanksgiving, I realized that people are not the savvy travelers they could be. So, with my goal of bettering the world, I have compiled the following travel tips, neatly subdivided by categories.

Travel for . . .

• Old People: don't. Stay home. You're excruciatingly slow and you smell weird. Your time is limited, so why spend it pissing me off?
• Fatties: don't. You're excruciatingly slow (cf. supra "Old People") and you take up too much room on the airplane. Go to the gym. Stick to a reasonable diet, and pass me the gravy.
• Families: don't. Is it really worth it to pack the 30 metric tons of crap you need to bring for the baby and other children, just so your parents and cousins can see your ugly little brats? No, no it is not. If you must travel, please do it in groups. Split up the family, and travel separately. Be considerate to the people around you. If for someone reason, you insist on traveling together, pay attention to the following: Parents, if you are traveling with children, and you must take up multiple rows of the airplane, you must sit with your awful, annoying, brats. You do not get to sit by yourselves and leave the little bastards to fend for themselves. You do not get a vacation. You are parents. There is no time off. If you think there is, just look at Brit.
  

In conclusion, I want a private jet for Christmas.

Quick Recap:

So, I haven't been good about updating this blog. Contrary to popular opinion, it's not my lack of a life. Rather, it's the fact that my life has been so busy. School? Career? No, drama society. Producing and playing a lead role took it out of me. But we had a great run this past weekend and I'm done! Now I can get back to the important things. School? Career? No, TV!

What? The writers are on strike? Christ on a bike . . .

Putting the "Fly" in Fly-Out Week 2007:

Highlights:
Great food
Spending the weekend on the beach
Watching Snakes on a Plane

Low-lights:
Getting sick on Tuesday
Long flights
Watching Snakes on a Plane
Long days of interviewing that all run together.

"Putting the 'back' in Callback"

Ok, so I've been a tad busy. Between OCI and the Fall Show, things have been crazy. So, to recap:

Fall Show:
Putting the drama back in the Drama Society, now things are well under way. After fly out week, it will be a short two and a half weeks (certainly not a long two and a half weeks) until opening night. In addition to my various producing duties, I also have to learn my own part: acting, singing, and dancing? I can barely remember what day of the week it is, let alone a leading part! But hey, that's what all those lonely nights in hotels are for, right? So if you see or hear some weirdo singing "Dressing Them Up" in the elevator, that would be me.

Career Search:
Well, after finally settling on deciding between LA and DC, I finished OCI. Between the 90 degree weather in a wool suit and running back and forth between home, class, Inn at Harvard, and the Charles Hotel, I am done. I have some good callbacks, especially in LA. I'm pretty excited, and I hope that once I visit, I'll find the right fit for me. I'm definitely excited to see LA for the first time (and in style!) and then jetting off to DC. Yeah, I'm sort of a big deal.

Busy as a Bee:

Well, I've hit the fall semester with my feet running! With the start of classes, the Fall Show, and OCI, it's been quite busy and will be for some time.

It's Official:

I'm old. I have found another grey hair. Up from 4, it's now 5. So this is why Adam dyes his.

Summer Movie List:

Well, it's been a productive summer, but it officially ends tomorrow with the first day of class for my 2L year. So, here is what I have accomplished this summer, and my thoughts:

Movies:

• Superbad: If you like vulgar, raunchy, sophomoric humor and penis jokes (and who doesn't?), this is the best movie ever.
• Stardust: Perhaps I can't be objective since the book is one of my favorites. I recommend reading the book then seeing the movie.
  
• The Simpsons Movie: It really was like watching a good, long episode of "The Simpsons."
  
• The Invasion: Rental.
• Hairspray: High energy, very entertaining, even if it cut one of my favorite songs.
• Waitress: Good movie, but the doctor was lame. I did love Matlock, though.
  
• Sicko: Good conversation-starter, does make you think about our health care system, but it does misrepresent aspects of other "better" health care systems.
• Spiderman 3: Better than what I was expecting.
• Pirates 3: Way more complicated than necessary, but I do love me some pirates.
• Paris je t'aime: Great directors, fantastic actors, range of emotions; I loved it. Although I don't think I'll ever understand the hairdresser sequence.
  
• Music and lyrics: I want an hour and a half of my life back.
• The Good Shepherd: I want three hours of my life back.

In Mass. en masse

It's September, and everyone is coming to Cambridge. Whether it's the wide-eyed 1Ls, my fellow excited 2Ls, or the graduation-ready 3Ls, it's about time for classes to start. But before that, it's been a lot of wandering around the city, running errands, and seeing the eclectic mix of 02138: New England bluebloods and wannabes, townies, hipsters or anyone else sporting an oh-so-clever graphic tee and a smug sense of conformist rebellion, students from Harvard to Lesley, and old friends. It's good to be back.

Best Day of my Life:

Deary Diary:
So, we went to the Original Pancake House for breakfast today. I ordered the bacon and eggs (two eggs, four strips of hearty bacon, and three buttermilk pancakes). When the waiter gave us our food, I discovered that I had 5 strips of bacon! I can now die a happy man.

Good-Bye Workforce; Hello Laziness

Yesterday was my last day at work. I was busy working on briefs all the way until 5:00, and it was exciting up until the end. It's always weird and hard for me to say good-bye. Even though I spent a short 10 weeks at the office, I really did love it, and I'm going to miss the attorneys and some of my fellow interns. No longer shall I see my 8:30 bus regulars. The little old man with the portfolio, the stout woman with the windbreaker, or the man that I always wanted to ask where he got his black pants because they were just perfect. I am no longer a part of the work force. I have left the legions of men heading downtown in their business casual attire. Sure, I wasn't wearing the requisite double-pleated khakis and blue shirt every day, but they were still my brothers. My sartorially-impaired brothers.

Now what's left? Another trip to Des Moines with Adam, Liz, and Mother to see the aunts and Grandmom. Then a week of being a giant bum, heading back to Cambridge and being a giant bum for another week, then school starts. Where I shall continue to be said giant bum.

Health Update


Little Spencer's kidneys are back to their normal levels! Yay! He was released from the veterinarian's today, and was just as happy and sweet as ever. Not to mention crazy. So thanks to everyone who had been keeping him in your thoughts and prayers.

Dear Diary,

OMG! It's official now that it's on facebook!

So That's What's Under Those Judicial Robes . . .

Recently, I discovered that one of the elderly gentlemen that goes to the same gym that I do is actually a federal district judge. Apparently, for the past several weeks, I've been working out next to him, and I didn't even know that worked in my building, let alone that he could have been ruling on my work. Not to mention I've seen him several times in the locker room. Infer at will.