Tuesday, January 24, 2006

Ping Pong Pool



We went to Bailey's to read our property/contracts, grab a sandwich, and glance at the first half of the Lady Vols v. Duke game...

An hour, tops...

That was at 7:00...

At 11:30, after 7 games of pool, 6 games of ping pong, and 6 games of darts, I insisted that we leave...

For what its worth, I think I owned AJK pretty much across the board...and table...

Stay Tuned...

Monday, January 23, 2006

Griz add Gritty Veteran




Chucky Atkins...

The Pride of South Florida...

Undrafted out of USF...

4 teams in 6 years...

Newest addition to the Memphis Grizzlies.

And it was a coup! We almost traded for him, but the contract he was playing under would have cost Memphis $6 Million, including a $3 Million dollar luxury tax. Then the Wizards bought out his contract, and he can now come play for the Grizzlies on the league minimum for veterans, which is just under $1 Million. This will not cost the grizzlies any luxury tax money.

A coup...

The Chucky Doll comes to Memphis...

Well...Miami, then Memphis...

Stay Tuned...

Legal Writing Excercise #1...Client Letter

Dear Mrs. Shapiro,

Please Die.

Yours,
J. Louis May
Associate #107

Stay Tuned...

People you meet in law school #1: The Coward



Now wait, I don't want you to get the wrong idea. The concept of "People you meet in Law School" comes directly from a website. barelylegalblog.blogspot.com to be precise. You see what I did there. I found something creative, and I liked it, and I wanted to use it in my writing, or to make a point, and I credited the creators.

This is not something "The Coward" is capable of. Its a coincidence perhaps, that The Coward got his material off the same website that I did.

Anyone remember the delightfully creative, witty, and rude "Hypo-Man" letter we all received last semester? It was one of those things that left you saying "Well, whomever wrote this and didn't sign this is a coward, and an asshole, but at least they are creative, 'cause this language is fantastic." Well, it turns out that he was in fact only an asshole and a coward.

Good start to law school for someone, call out a peer, do so anonymously so as to protect your pretty hair, and show yourself to be a plagiarist by claiming someone else's intellectual property. This guy is on a fast track to success. I think he'd be good at the "Wizard of Oz" job. Where he can hide behind a curtain and dictate from a high-throne of anonymity.

We're off to see the Wizard, the Wonderful Wizard of Oz...Maybe this wizard could give HIMSELF some courage.

Russ & Mike (of barelylegalblog.blogspot.com) are hilarious. They wrote a series about the people you meet in law school. #1 Desperate Girl, #6 the Feminist, #3 The philosopher, #4 the fratboy, etc. #2 the old guy. Its very funny, and I recommend you take the time to read them. Can you pick the old guy out of our class? What about the desperate girl? I am not going to name names here. There is also a good bit about which is better Law School v. Med School, Law School v. High School, and Law School v. Barber School. We didn't fare well...

Hey Coward, watch this...this is courage...

--JONATHAN

Stay Tuned...

Sunday, January 22, 2006

Karaoke and the Headache from Hell



Mr. Miyagi sing's "Ice Ice Baby"

Karaoke was an awful idea. I don't mean to say that it was a bad idea to go to the karaoke bar (though it probably was), I mean that whomever first said "Hey, what if I got the words to all these songs, and while people were drinking, and trying to enjoy the company of their friends, we could let people butcher the art that these musicians have created for us," should be shot. If they are already dead, perhaps they should pulled from their grave and killed again. It sounds harsh, I know, but come on, Karaoke?

The again, someone did think it was a good idea to squeeze the nipple of a cow and taste what came out, so, I guess you just thank the man for is innovation and walk away cursing under your breath.

Thank you Mr. Karaoke inventor, as a direct consequence of your brilliance, we got to hear a stirring rendition of "Baby Got Back" sung by two white-girls, a breathtaking version of "Dixieland Delight" (twice) sung by what appeared to be a mechanic (at least his name was on his shirt), and most impressively, I got to witness a painful cover of "Folsom Prison" sung by a guy we all know and love, "some drunk fratboy" who will be appearing at a bar near you every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday until 2:40am! Don't forget to tip your bartenders, they are working hard for you tonight.

"Well I shot a man in Knoxville, just to watch him die..." and because he was destroying a song I had come to know and love...

If it weren't for Greg Fuller, I wouldn't have survived. Greg is one of those people that makes you wonder if maybe Mr. Karaoke inventor only hung out with people who can actually sing. If Mr. Karaoke inventor knew Greg, and created Karaoke with Greg in mind, I'd still shoot him, but if he were already dead, I'd leave him be. Greg, Kurt, and Lance-One treated the group to Bohemian Rhapsody, and Sweet Caroline. Both were outstanding. Both left the crowd begging for more. Both made the next off-key asshole even harder to handle.

Thanks for the memories Mr. Karaoke!

Happy Birthday Holly and Dub' Mo!

Stay Tuned...

This is my BOOM stick...



AR-15...9mm Browning...Oh my!

That's right, your favorite gun advocate and mine...Me...Shot some serious guns yesterday...

The only shooting I've done in my life (though many times) was with a bolt-action .22 caliber long rifle, and 12 or 20 gauge shotgun. Shooting semi-automatic assault rifles was an eye opening experience. And not just because of the guns.

When you go to a place that people shoot guns, like a place designed specifically for shooting, you will always meet someone you don't want owning a gun (or 10). My guy was named Robert. He was a "safety" meaning he was a gun club member, who volunteered to staff the range and make sure that everyone was safe with their guns. Good idea, right? Certainly, however, there is something creepy about this breed of individual.

Robert was a Marine. I don't know much about the military, but I was under the impression that the Marines were the guys stupid enough to go in first. I also know they are damn proud of it.

JFH, who took AJK and I to the range was in the Army. When he mentioned to Robert that he was just out of the service, they immediately hit it off. It was like a huge brotherhood, and they were both members. While Robert was probably 55, and JFH was in his late twenties, it didn't make one bit of difference. Until Robert realized that JFH was not a marine. Then it became kind of a 'shit-talking' adventure. This culminated in Robert picking a shell of the ground, handing it to JFH and saying "do you know what this is from?" When JFH couldn't identify it, Robert threw his head back and laughed the laugh of a deranged man. "You see, this is what's wrong with you 'new-fangled military boys." he laughed "They don't teach you shit!"

That explanation was too long already so I'll move on.

The guns were big, and they put off a shock-wave like I've never felt. I was standing 4 feet to the left of JFH when he first shot the AR-15, and I was literally shaken by the blast.

Also, I'd like to mention that shooting handguns is HARD. I was shooting the 9mm at 17 yards, and I could barely hit the paper. In the movies, they just squeeze off shot after shot, hitting people in the head, legs, etc. like it was no big deal. I'll just say that the little black circle I was shooting at, survived with only minor flesh wounds. I'll get it next time.

An interesting story via JFH, I hope I don't butcher it.
- This range was "semi-public" in that it is owned by the State of Tennessee, and anyone can shoot there for a fee, however you can also sign up for an annual membership. This is a lot like "semi-public" golf courses. JFH had some friends who liked to shoot at a FULLY PUBLIC range out in South Carolina. This range was having problems because they had some "trouble-makers" who had been coming to the range, waiting for someone to shoot all their ammo, and then pulling guns on that person and taking their stuff. They call it "rolling" the person.

- Well JFH had some buddies who were Army Rangers that were shooting at this very range one day. These guys, the trouble-makers, waited until the Rangers finished shooting all their weapons, and were packing it in. The pulled their guns, and tried to roll the rangers (not knowing they were rangers of course). Well, being a good military man, the ranger had a gun on his ankle, which he promptly pulled out, and "flex-cuffed" the trouble-maker until the police could arrive.

- Just goes to show you, don't fuck with people on gun ranges, even if you think they are unarmed.

Stay Tuned...

Thursday, January 19, 2006

Things to do in East TN when you're dead...

So between my 8:10 a.m. Contracts class and my 2:15 p.m. Torts class I have nothing. NOTHING!

We kid, we say, "what are we to do with 5+ hours to kill?"

Today we came up with the answer...R-O-A-D-T-R-I-P!!!!

Gatlinburg, TN...




We left Knoxville at 10:15, and arrived in Gatlinburg at 11:15. We figured we needed to be back at campus by 1:45 for our 2:15 class. So we needed to be back on the road by 12:30, just in case.

11:15 - Aaron and I are in awe. I've never seen anything quite like this before. "It looks like a little Las Vegas" says AJK. "Except its for children?" I reply. Its nothing but mini-golf, dinner theater, museums of the bizarre, and gift shops. Its like nothing I've ever seen...

11:30 - We enter the Mecca of breakfast foods. The PANCAKE PANTRY. Let me say, if you like IHOP, you're living in a fantasy world that doesn't even include good pancakes. When you open the menu, there are over 25 types of pancakes for your eating pleasure. But wait, there is something even better. The "Morning Star", a.k.a. SATAN! It is two mounds of hashbrowns, each topped with cheese, a sunny-side-up egg, and a mixture of sauteed onion, mushroom, ham, pimento, and green pepper. Served with a stack of 3 delicious pancakes. It was a surreal experience. It is not often that I leave food on a plate, but I couldn't even make a dent in this beast. It was delicious. While we are eating, Holly goes to the gift shop next door and purchased a disposable camera. Priceless pictures will be added to this blog soon.

12:10 - Depart the Pantry, and spend the last 20 minutes taking pictures in front of things and with people on the strip in Gatlinburg. Most importantly, a stop at the CANDY KITCHEN. Taffy, chocolate, rock candy, candy apples, oh my! I got my first taste of "Clove" flavored taffy, which interestingly taste just like you'd expect the smokeable clove to taste if you ate it. We got a candy apple for Abe, who has been talking about them for 6 months, and we got a box of taffy to bring back and pass around class as a trophy of our accomplishment. We snap a few more great pictures, and head back to Knoxville.

12:45 - So between Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg, there is a 5-mile stretch of the National Forest that you have to travel through to get from one to the other. Running through this road is a beautiful river/creek (I'm not sure what size it becomes a river) and you're surrounded by the mountains. Truly breath-taking. We had 7 pictures left, so we decided to stop and take some pictures by the water. The pictures were good, but I was wearing some slick-soled shoes, and tried to venture down a pretty steep hill. The result is a bloody palm. But as Aaron said "its not a good trip without blood."

1:30 - Back at the law school, snapped the last few pictures in class to prove we made it back in time, and share the stories of our adventure with our classmates.

Now I've shared them with you. I hope you enjoyed it.

Our goal, to have lunch in: Kentucky, Virginia, North Carolina, Alabama, Georgia, and of course TN. We believe we can reach all of them in our 5.5 hours. I'll keep you posted!


Stay Tuned...