rehnquist and the gang

last night, my husband-to-be pointed out the fact that one of the supreme court justices might be resigning and also pointed out the fact that, as a future attorney, i really should be more aware of issues like this. hmmm, he does have a point.

so i decided to do some research on the supreme court justices and compile this info for anyone else who might be starting law school, and like me, has absolutely no legal or politcal background (or is otherwise interested).

caveat #1: all of this info is compiled from various sources on the internet and my own interpretations and i hold no guarantees as to its accuracy.

caveat #2: this entry may be extermely boring to some of you reading, skip if neccesary.

first off, here's a picture of the lovely and powerful bunch, all in their cool judge robe gear. clockwise from the upper left, we have: Ruth Bader Ginsburg, David Souter, Clarence Thomas, Stephen Anthony Kennedy, Sandra Day O'Connor, Chief Justice William Rehnquist, John Paul Stevens, and Antonin Scalia. don't they just look spectacular?

some "interesting" factoids about them:

• Chief Justice Rehnquist was appointed the longest time ago, in 1971 by President Nixon. Stevens comes in second, with a 1975 appointment by President Ford. I'm not sure if Rehnquist is the chief just because he was appointed the earliest or if he's just more of a "leader" type... anyone?
• O'Connor, Scalia and Kennedy were all appointed by President Reagan; Souter and Thomas were both appointed by President Bush (the older one); Ginsburg and Breyer were both appointed by President Clinton.
• Rehnquist, Scalia, and Thomas are generally considered to be the conservative ones (think brigham young). Souter, Breyer, Ginsburg, and Stevens are generally considered to the liberal ones (think berkeley). Kennedy and O'Connor are typically seen as moderates, which means their opinions go a long way in cases where it is a close call (another reason it is good to be a moderate!)
• supreme court justices rule only on cases that have to do with the constitution -- such as the recent highly publicized case on the display of Ten Commandements in courthouses (sorry, Bible Belt).
• once confirmed by the Senate, supreme court justices hold their jobs for life - until death or retirement intervenes.
• Rehnquist was rumored to be retiring, as he is suffering from thyroid cancer, poor guy. he was expected by some to announce his retirement today, the last day of the supreme court's term, but did not, which means he will return again in october when the new term begins. if he were to retire, President Bush (the younger one) would need to nominate a new justice.

and that is all i have to say about that today.

EDIT: 3 days after i wrote this blog, Sandra Day O'Connor, first woman on the Supreme Court, announced her retirement! bummer. she was my favorite justice based on my, albeit brief, research.

why i love my pug...

1. because when i take a shower, she cries and cries because i won't let her into the tub with me (i used to but the water gets in her nose and she gets these horrible coughs), so i have to open the curtains a little bit and she sits on the ledge of the tub until i am done

2. because when i talk to her, all she hears is "waungh waungh, waungh, waungh, NO, waungh waungh, SIT, waungh waungh waungh, TREAT, waungh waugh..." and she cocks her head from side to side

3. because when a dog is on tv, she runs up to the screen barking at it so that it will come out and play with her

4. because when the tv isn't on, she stares at it, crying softly until i turn it on

5. because when she wants to take a nap, she puts her paws up on my knees until i pick her up and then she curls up in my lap and sleeps

6. because she looks so cute when she sleeps in her "superman" position (on her tummy, face between her paws which are straight out in flying mode)

things i hate (part one)...

1. when a wedding gift bag "worth $200" actually contains two pieces of chocolate, mini-lipstick and a coupon for $200 with a purchase of $2500

2. when i see the train doors closing as i'm swiping my metrocard and know i have to wait at least another 10 minutes in the subway station in 120 degrees of heat

3. when stores that aren't restaurants, like banks or clothing stores, don't allow pets inside so i can't my pug with me on a walk and run errands at the same time (side note: something that i love are speakeasys like chumley's that allow you to take you dog inside and sit on your lap while you eat a yummy brunch!)

4. when i get 10 emails a day advertising free digital cameras, ipods and laptops and i know they are all just scams put on by sketchy internet companies but i'm still kind of tempted to try them

things i love (part one)...

1. when head chefs from really nice restaurants (like ono in the hotel gansevoort) have free cooking demonstrations at williams-sonoma and i get to eat foie gras with mango chutney and black miso shrimp dumplings for free

2. when a potential wedding dj is willing to meet me at 10pm on a tuesday night at the LAX airport because he wants our business

3. when my puppy runs to the door with a wagging tail to greet me after a hot day outside

4. when my husband-to-be suddenly has a stroke of generosity and buys me 2 skirts, sandals and a top in one day

the spainards have a sense of humor

our friend M. let us know this past weekend that, apparently, the word esposas means both wives and handcuffs in spanish.

coincidence? or not? i'll let you decide.

my new favorite song:

"fix you" - by coldplay on their new album X&Y.

so freaking beautiful. although a large part of why i love this song so much might have to do with the fact that they played it on the O.C., one of my favorite TV shows of all time.

does anyone have coldplay tickets for MSG that they are willing to trade for a really, really, really nice blog entry about their wonderful, generous, giving nature?

*big smile, batting eyelashes*

10 uses for the black's law dictionary

ok, so i don't *yet* have 10 uses for my new black's law dictionary that i won at my future law school's pre-orientation program last night. but nerd that i am, i actually used it today!

long story to explain why i even did this, but i looked up the word "easement" - an interest in land owned by another person, consisting in the right to use or control the land, or an area above or below it, for a specific limited purpose (in case you were wondering) - and found ONE AND A HALF pages of definitions - in size 10 font.

oh, boy. no wonder people say it takes 2 hours to read 25 pages of case material. with con law, contracts, torts, civ pro, property courses plus legal writing and elements of law next semester, it looks like i'll be spending a lot of time at the library, head deep in my case books and a very worn-out black's law dictionary.

darn, i wish i won the leather-bound version.

what my dog is crazy for...

i decided to write a blog for my dog, since she is currently undergoing her spay surgery and i feel guilty about it (even though it is the socially responsible thing to do). or perhaps i am just still a little drunk from my restaurant week prix fixe lunch plus wine pairing at Aquavit (which i may write about later when i am less full and can think about food again) and feel like writing something, anything.

poor thing was so excited to go to the vet office this morning, not knowing that she was about to be sedated for an hour while they [warning: gross] take out her ovaries.

anyways, as i walked back into my building, my doorman handed me a package full of Greenies - these awesome dog treats that my puppy goes NUTS over. if you have a dog, or better yet, a pug, you HAVE to get them some. under normal circumstances, my puppy is the most social being you will ever meet -- if you ever come to my place, you will most certainly be greeted by excessive licking and tail wagging.

but give this dog a Greenie and she becomes rainman. i can see her speech bubble now: "greenie, greenie, my greenie, more greenies, more greenies..." if you try to go near her while she has a Greenie in her mouth, she will run away, for fear that you will take it away from her. god forbid you actually stretch out your hand, she will then swallow whatever is left of it (keep in mind these things are 5 inches long), and then throw it back up the next morning.

you can get free samples here: http://www.treatforall.com

ps. if you ever need a spay/neuter for your dog, this site has great discounted certificates: http://www.friendsofanimals.org

measles, mumps and rubella, oh my!

i am so in awe of my undergraduate health services dept. i called them yesterday and left a message to get my measles, mumps and rubella immunization records, because i need to prove to my soon-to-be law school that i won't spread disease throughout my first year section.

i figured one of two things would happen: a) they would never call me back or b) they would call me back and tell me they don't keep records of students who graduated 5 years ago (yes, i realize that i will be a very old first-year law student), and then i would need to get another MMR vaccine and risk the possibility of brain inflamation, ruining my chances of any successful law career.

but lo and behold, i get a call ONE day later from E. of health services, who says he's already found my MMR records and then he faxes it to me 30 seconds later.

i will never complain about my undergraduate administration again.

hot dog days of summer

every morning, i check weather.com to see what the new york city summer has in store for us. in the last few weeks, it has almost always read 85 degrees or above with a humidity of 50% and a high chance of thunderstorms.

as much as i'd like to hole up in my air-conditioned apartment all day, my pug puppy needs her walks. so i pack her water bottle (and a few plastic bags) and we go on our way. unfortunately, she still hasn't learned the art of pacing in hot weather, so on our way home from the dog park, she runs for the first 3 blocks and then comes to a halt, panting and looking up at me with her big brown eyes, begging to be carried.

of course i give in. by the time we get home, i've walked 10 blocks carrying a 15-pound ball of fur, and am covered in sweat and dirt. the two of us paddle over the to a/c and stick our heads in the cold breeze until our teeth are chattering. she then sprawls out flat on the hardwood floor and takes a nice long nap, as i pollute the internet with more of my random thoughts.

when i moved back to new york from california, most people warned me about the cold horrible winters. i, for one, will remember to warn new california transplants of the hot dog days of summer.

what she looks like, except she'd be on the sidewalk

$4625 out-of-pocket

so i've just charged $4625 to my american express. and this was only for the deposit. seems like a lot of money for a girl who is unemployed and about to start law school to spend, isn't it? well, it's all in the name of love. this girl is about to be married, and apparently spending upwards of $35k for your wedding is the norm these days.

money-spending aside, i'm actually getting pretty excited about this whole wedding business. i've honestly never been the type of girl who's imagined her dream wedding since she was 10. in fact, the proposal from my boyfriend of 5 years was a complete surprise to me. i mean, i'm 26 years old, but i still feel like i'm 16. but all of a sudden, all i have is wedding on the brain. all i can think about is:

• wedding dresses (yes, i found mine!)
• DJs
• string quartets
• videographers
• officiants
• photographers (done)
• wedding favors
• bridemaids dresses (got them, from Thread)
• bouquets
• centerpieces
• invitations (bridemaid's professional designer boyfriend is doing these, am i lucky or what?)

when i hear a song, i wonder, "should we play this at our reception?"

when i see a floral arrangement i think, "hmm, that would look great as our centerpiece..."

if someone else were telling me that they thought about things like that, i would snicker behind their backs and call them pathetic. but now i understand.