current state
of mind: excited
It's not as
easy as it seems
The world is
big; the sea is deep
There is no
rope; there is no line
We're specks
of dust up in the sky
There is no
space; there is no time
There's only
you and what we leave behind.
~ “Show Me”
by Garbage
There I was,
sitting on my bed, watching the pilot episode of “Breaking Bad”, which is kind
of funny because it could have been called “Breaking Bed”, since at the precise
moment that Walter White crashed his mobile meth lab, my bed collapsed. Not
cool man. Not cool. And as
I had clearly explained when I predicted that the next time the bed broke, it is indeed irreparably broken. So,
until I get a new bed frame, my box spring and mattress are on the floor. Lame!
Luckily,
that was not the best thing that happened to me Tuesday. Let me tell you about the Torts Final Exam!
In fact, I am still rather confused by the entire thing – primarily because I
have NO IDEA what these people could have written as their Final Exam Essay
responses. Once again, we had a Torts
Exam which allowed us a full week of preparation time. Five questions were
provided; we could write or print on the back of the paper any notes we felt would
be relevant to the essay exam and bring them to class. At precisely 6:00pm, Torts Prof gave us this
introduction: “There are 6 playing cards here; 1-5 and a joker. If you draw a
number card, the corresponding number will be the applicable essay question you
have to answer. If you draw the Joker, you can write an essay on your favourite
beer and why. Good luck.” My ears perked
up. I could totally write an “on-the-fly” essay on why I like Sam Adams Boston
Lager.
Then my
bestie (GB) in the class was told to draw a card. He drew #2. Everyone in the
class groaned and made complaining comments because GB didn’t draw the Joker. It
was a little ridiculous to the extent they were carrying on. No matter - they
groaned after the cards were drawn during the last two exams as well; though
this is the first time that a beer essay was offered. Amidst the groaning, Torts
Prof explains he will be right back and leaves the room. Then all but 4 the
test takers start talking about the question; but not in an academic way. They
pretty much just kept complaining, with one woman leading the way with the
loudest complaints. Here is where my confusion started . . . These were her
words, “I cannot believe you drew #2. That is the worst question. I mean, look
at it. Obviously the Plaintiff has no rights and is an idiot for thinking he
does. I guess I’ll just write that.” She then wrote for less than five minutes,
turned in her test, and left. I looked around, curious to see if anyone else
thought this was strange – but within five more minutes, over half the class
had turned in their test booklets and left.
I glanced
from the exam question to my exam booklet. I had only written two paragraphs. Knowing
that I hadn’t even examined the actual fact pattern yet, I had no idea how
anyone could be finished. I wrote for another 30 minutes, filling 4 sheets of
my Blue Book. When I was satisfied that I had at least touched on all the issues,
I wrote my conclusion and turned in my test booklet. There were three of us
left in the room. Now, I cannot say without a doubt that I covered everything
or that I wrote in the most concise manner I could. On the other hand, I can
say, with 100% confidence that the Plaintiff did indeed have rights to sue. In
addition, I can categorically say that had he actually had no rights or grounds
to sue, the concept of a Final Exam essay dictates that you would still be
expected to explain WHY, even if the question didn’t actually ask “why?”
I comprehend
that there are people who don’t care whether they excel in a class – but if you
are paying for it, wouldn’t you care enough that you’d not want to FAIL? It has left me flabbergasted. Therefore, I dearly
want to get my hands on that first essay. I need this curiosity satisfied.
Unfortunately, I have referred to that woman as “dumb girl” in my head all
term, so I don’t know her given name. Any ideas?
PUBLIC NOTICE: Okay, so Torts Prof told us the funniest
TRUE Torts Law story. I am not going to write it out – but if you get a spare 5
minutes between now and when I forget the story – contact me and I will attempt
to tell you without breaking into hysterical laughter. It is truly one of the funniest stories I
have ever heard.
PERSONAL NOTE: Cannot wait to see you
this weekend! Woot! Woot!
CONFIDENTIAL NOTE: It was so nice
spending time with you after class. Yay!
