Bus Stop Lessons

Jessie stood outside at the bus stop that would take her from school back home, just as she had done for the past two years. She fiddled with her phone and thought about what she would make for dinner once she got home. Another student approached her asking which bus she was waiting for. Jessie answered. The student moved on and asked another person further down the block. An older woman approached and asked her how long she had been waiting for the bus. Jessie was surprised by how unusually inquisitive people were today and answered "7 minutes" as she kept her gaze toward the intersection where the bus usually rounded the corner. Hearing no response from the older woman, she turned her gaze toward where the woman had been, but the older woman was already gone. 

The bus was taking longer than usual. The same student who had asked about which bus Jessie was waiting for earlier approached her once again. Had he gone in a circle to approach her again from the same direction? Again she answered and again he went down the block asking other people the same question. Jessie had just finished pondering how strange this student was (some sort of compulsive disorder maybe?) when the older woman approached her once again. Confronted with the same question, Jessie was flabbergasted. Her upbringing didn't allow her to ignore the woman, so she answered truthfully, “14 minutes.”

In an instant she was back in her professor's office, where she was just before she left the building to wait at the bus stop. Something odd was afoot. Her laptop was in her hand as she was putting it away in her backpack. Her professor was looking at her expectantly and Jessie remembered she had been asked a question right before she left--what was it? Ah yes, yes, she answered, she did enjoy her vacation and was ready to go back to lab. The professor seemed relieved—maybe Jessie wasn’t a completely vacant graduate student after all. 

Indeed, at the moment she was the opposite of vacant as all her gears churned. She had just, most likely, gone back in time, but she had to make sure. To test her hypothesis, Jessie quickly excused herself from the professor’s office and made her way down the school steps to the bus stop where she waited as patiently as possible for the next 10 minutes. The same student walked down the same path and asked the same question. Unwilling to break the chain of events that had led to her time-skip, she answered. Then, the old woman approached. “How long have you been waiting for the bus?” she asked, without a hint in her voice that this was the third iteration. Jessie took a deep breath and answered, “24 hours.”

She was at dinner with her other graduate school friends, bemoaning their last day of freedom. She listened carefully to the conversation. It was, without mistake, the same one they had the day before. Barely believing what was happening, she took out her phone and checked the time and date. It was 6pm the day before the school year officially started. Reeling from her discovery, she excused herself from dinner early and went home. The possibilities of what she could do with this time-skip ability, or circumstance, or whatever it could be called, was tremendous. What if, what if she could go back two years and choose a different life for herself coming out of college. So long as she made it back to that bus stop on that date at that time she would be able to try anything she wanted without fear of failure. She had thought about a career in music or theater—now she could try that for two years without repercussions. Or maybe spend a year making money and then another year traveling the world. Or she could even try to invent products that she knew became successful within that two-year period and go into business. The best part was that she could try all of those options and choose whichever one she liked best. She slept fitfully that night and decided not to go to class the next day—there was no time for that when planning the rest of her life was at stake. She got the bus stop thirty minutes early and awaited her future.

When the student came around the corner she could hardly contain her excitement as she quickly answered his question. The older woman approached her once again. “How long have you been waiting for the bus?” Jessie tried to still the quaver in her voice as she took the first step toward the best years of her life, “Two years” she answered, and waited for the time-skip.

 “That’s a long time,” the older woman said, looking at Jessie with sad eyes, “maybe you should stop waiting" and walked away. 

Thankful for...

After almost a week and a half in India, and my first experience of culture-shock in a long time, I realized that I have much to be thankful for. So in the spirit of (post) Thanksgiving & relating a bit about my trip, I am thankful for...

- The ability to rinse my mouth with/drink tap water again
- The fact that Americans actually drive inside lanes and (usually) use turn signals
- The existence of a US welfare system
- My education (seeing so many children on the streets, weaving between cars while performing acrobatics for spare change on a school day made me sad)
- My continued (goodish) health and the ability to travel
- The delicious vegetarian Indian food that was served at the wedding--who knew vegetarian could taste so good?
- The gorgeous and still relatively preserved sites around India (Agra fort, Taj Mahal, Red Fort, Amber Fort... lots of forts)
- The variety of food in the US (I could only eat naan and curry for so long...)
- Good roommates (unrelated to the trip, but thankful none-the-less)
- The liberal and, what I would deem, progressive nature of Berkeley
- The ability to wear shorts/dresses that go above the knees
- Technology that captures and memorializes every moment of an eventful trip
- Having the sense to put the technology away every once in a while and just fully enjoy the moment

Now it's 2 weeks of finals where I need to crank out three exams and one 25-page paper. See you on the other side. 

The Worst Kind of Fan

The worst kind of fan is one who wields their season pass status as an indication that they are better than you. The worst kind of fan is one who talks disparagingly about their own home team the whole game saying things like "they've got no killer instinct--they suck" or "oh come on, I've got more balls than they do!" or "they're going to lose right here--I guarantee it" over and over and over. The worst kind of fan is one who would rather have an unobstructed view of the game for the two seconds it takes you to get to your seat right as the game starts than to exercise some human decency. The worst kind of fan sat behind me and my friends at the Sharks game today.

But we managed to have fun (and even sometimes lean forward in our seats juuusttt the slightest bit without getting yelled at) regardless. 

Lost in the South Bay

Scene 1: wandering around a dark cul-de-sac with MB in Palo Alto while carrying a big cake. MB is asking shadowy figures that materialize from the darkness where to find 18 Brooks Place (not real location, obv). K tries calling W, J, L, and KS. Finally, MB picks up.

K: Hello? Hey where are you guys?
MZ: Third apartment on the left when you turn in.
K: What... [looks around at the very nice houses]
MZ: Hold on, I'll run out and look for you guys..... okay I don't see you.
K: It's 18 Brooks place... Palo Alto right?
MZ: No, it's Menlo Park.
K: Oh, we're in Palo Alto

Scene 2: MB and K get back into MB's car and start driving over to Menlo Park meanwhile joking that at least they didn't end up in East Palo Alto or somewhere potentially sketchier than the upscale neighborhood that was Brooks pl., PA. Halfway there K gets a call from W.

W: Hey, sorry I didn't pick up, I was driving.
K: No problem, we were just lost but we figured it out already
W: Oh okay good, yeah we're a bit far we're walking around 300something Brooks Street. What's the address again?
K: It's 18 Brooks Place. We actually accidentally thought it was Palo Alto.
W: Oh that's funny
K: No one told us it was actually in Menlo Park!
W: ...... Wait. We're in Mountain View.

Eventually we all arrived an hour after we were supposed to. But it was a fun night sans getting lost. Happy Bday L!

Berkeley Wanderings pt. 3

On Wednesday I had no class and decided to spend my afternoon taking a leisurely walk to Solano Ave. My sun-starved eyes were in shock from the brightness outside but I managed to discover a few interesting things regardless.

There were a lot of toy/game stores along the way. It took all my restraint not to wander into each of them.

Maybe I can ride one of these tricycles to burning man

I found the sister cellar to the North Berkeley wine shop that I frequent. Took a look around the shop, definitely more expensive than the North Berkeley one.

There was a wine bar in there that I passed up for the time being...

Eventually I found my way to a middle eastern deli. Everything looked delicious but I settled on buying a bottle of tahini (for my babaganoush) and four falafel balls (that quickly became three) for dinner.

Tasty little corner shop

Nice hot falafel ball? Yes please. 

On the walk back I gave in and decided to try a flight at Solano cellars. The red flight of the week was themed on "must" weight--a concept that was new to me. The higher the must weight, the higher the alcohol content.

The Melville was really good. Didn't get much reading done on my novel though.

There was a wine rep present who was trying to sell wines to the cellar.
They got to try at least 5 pours of wines and spit all of them out and then poured out the dregs.
Nooo! I'll be the wine receptacle. 

The shop owners were quite nice and the female one definitely warmed up to me after I bought a bottle. The concept of different weekly wine flights is fun though and although it is a 30 minute walk from my place it is only a 5 minute bus ride. Maybe I'll bring some friends next time and share the discoveries of my wandering.

In other news--I've settled on a summer job for 2015! I'm staying in the bay, and days like yesterday only served to reaffirm this decision.  

OCI -- aka. only Berkeley students could make this process this relatively painless

I like interviews because I like talking to people. I always prefer interviews to cover letters or written exams or anything of that sort. Never in my life, however, have I had to do 13 interviews in 3 days (15 total, luckily Thursday and Friday are light). And that number, I've heard, is on the lower side. During WorldMUN I interviewed upwards of 60 people, but it's always different when you're on the interviewing side of the table. Trying to not look bored when your 5th interviewer of the day is going on about a very niche part of the law is tough.

I've had some great interviews and some not-so-great interviews, as is to be expected. Since I'm spending my downtime in a room of 7 other people going through the interview process I get to hear their stories as well.

Some of my own not-so-great experiences:
- The interviewer plays with a pile of staples during the interview and then proceeds to openly yawn while I talk about my time during the World Cup in Cape Town (okay, if that's not interesting to you, I don't know what is). He also describes his firm's culture as "a bunch of really intelligent and high strung people who don't really know how to get out of each other's way." Great, great sell.
- One interviewer who is clearly confused by the narrative I'm trying to tell and asks "wait, so you wanted to write a thesis ... about dancing?" No, well sort of yes, but no. Where is the ctrl+z to this interview?

Some stories I've heard from others:
- An interviewer who is almost verbally abusive to an interviewee because he just hates her prior employer (and it's an employer who everyone usually loves, yikes)
- Limp fish handshakes (this must be a pet peeve)
- Interviewers who just stare at transcripts at the beginning of the interview and then decide based on that whether or not you are hirable

All in all nothing too crazy, but I guess the "not-so-great" interview stories just go to show how amicable the interviewers are. I've had great conversations that range from lessons from Japan to "North American Mega Cap Funds." One woman loved my breakdancing experiences and another female attorney confided that women were going to take over the universe.

I come home every day pretty exhausted, but it's been a unique and definitely informative experience. Who a firm sends to be the "embodiment" of their culture/practice speaks volumes more than I could find on any website. Two more interviews this week and then it's on to callbacks... wish me luck.

The Ocean and Me

This weekend I am going to Monterey to complete my dive certification. I am both excited and a bit anxious.
 
I have always lived near the ocean and considered it a calming force in my life. In high school, I spent a week in a rural area of Mexico, along the cost. Every day we lounged around the beach or snorkeled in the clear waters, and every night we would get on small fishing boats in 3 hour intervals (midnight, 3 am, 6 am) to check if we caught any sea turtles in our net (to treat any wounds they might have, measure them, and tag them for research—I got to name one of the turtles “Kattachu”). At first, during the boat rides I would hang on desperately to the seat of the boat and feel each wave as the impact of my butt hitting metal. But by the end of the trip I felt as though I could predict the crests and troughs of each wave and thoroughly enjoyed my time in and on the water.

In Boston, I hardly ever saw the ocean but knowing it was nearby was enough. One of my favorite spots was at the ICA museum in a hallway bereft of art but graced instead with ceiling to floor windows that overlooked the ocean. I saw it once in the rain, with the trails of water running down the windows and the drops gently dissipating into the sea and the image stays with me still.

When I spent a year in Japan and felt lost or overwhelmed I would walk a few minutes to the breakwater and look out over the ocean. The smell of the salt water and the cool breeze would always center me—yet I was looking out over the same ocean that devastated the lives of thousands of people in the community I was helping to rebuild. Their relationship with the ocean was even more complex since they made their livelihood fishing and farming in it. The sea was at once a provider and destroyer.

Yet after just two pool sessions in scuba diving I had begun to develop another side to my relationship with the sea. Sitting at the bottom of a 12 foot pool for the first time and looking up at how far the surface was induced a mild panic attack that made me want to swim to the surface as fast as possible and take in huge breaths (not gulps, which is mouth breathing, but nostril breaths because breathing through the nose is a luxury on the surface) of fresh air.

I suppose I’ll have more thoughts on this after I actually do my open ocean dives this weekend, but whatever happens it’ll surely deepen the relationship I have with this vastly complex body of water.

Upon the Fields of Justice

Dear Diary,

It has been a few weeks since I have arrived on the fields of justice. I have undergone several changes in roles, but I think I am settling into my current role as an archer. My friends are all in higher ranks and so the enemies are tough. Often I am lost and unsure of what to do, but it is in those times that can turn to my friends who give me sage advice like "just stay there" or "just try not to die." I am lucky to have such caring friends.

Every battle is a struggle, some ending in the elation of victory, but most ending in the sting of defeat. Through it all I continue to learn life lessons, such as:

• Pick your battles: unless you know you can win them, don't engage
• Running away is always safe, but sometimes you need to pay attention and help your homies
• There's safety in numbers: when in doubt, run with the pack
• Don't forget to refer to the map, it's important
• Always follow whatever A.C. says 
• Don't let the haters get you down

In Justice we Trust,

Sherwood Ashe

Talk on purpose and self actualization vis-a-vis law

You come from a good college, go to a good law school, and enter a prestigious firm. You try and become the best first year associate you can be, then the best second year, then third year, then you try to make partner. Years down the line you're partner at a prestigious firm, you're in your mid 40s, and you realize you have finally crossed the finish line of chasing after the next best thing.

But what if that next best thing was never the next best thing for you? You finished the race, but it was the wrong race.

Write-on schmite-on

First year of law school is over, but there's no rest for the weary. After three days of freedom where I spent more hours in bed than on my feet, it's already time to get back to the grind.

In the next 5 days I will perform a spectacular feat where I, the grammatically challenged Kat, will edit a 9 page paper full of legalese, footnotes, and errors. But that's not all. I will also simultaneously read 912 pages of legal opinions and scholarship and condense that into a 16 page paper of original scholarship. And this is all without much prior training or practice at all! Will I be able to pull it off? Is this madness or magic? Only time will tell.

The joys of our profession

After a grueling 8 hour long contracts exam...

K: I feel like a shell of a human being
G: Well, you are a lawyer
K: .....
But I'm not even a lawyer yet
G: Oh, you'll lose that shell soon enough

On a happy note--one exam down, two more to go!

Brief Springbreak recap

After an awe-inspiring and relaxing four days in Guatemala over spring break, where I thought I had hay fever, it turns out I was developing a cold. After 9 months of dressing overly warm (a real feat for me), popping vitamin C pills regularly, and keeping my distance from anyone who sneezed, I have finally succumb to sickness. Bummer.

But onto a more positive note, traveling with S was a real joy as we split our time in Guatemala between serene Lake Atitlan and colorful Antigua. I could feel my pace of life slowing down immediately once we arrived on the lake as I spent time lounging at our lush eco-friendly hostel--a true reprieve from the demands of law school. In Antigua, Spanish style architecture and engaging locals kept S and I wandering around and taking photos (and being photographed! Not many asian tourists in Guatemala apparently) from dusk to dawn.

Less than one month to finals, then write-on, then one day to breath before summer job begins (with my birthday jumbled in there somewhere). Gotta fight through the sickness then fight through the pain of trying to catch up with all the work I haven't been doing these last few weeks. Can I do it!? Only time will tell...

& finally,
Happy b-bday Jmei.

Berkeley Wandering Pt. 2

Today I decided to walk to Monterey Market, a produce grocery store only .6 miles away. It was a gorgeous Sunday afternoon and walking outside reminded why the west coast is truly the best coast (also the bus wasn't coming for another 56 minutes and I was getting tired of waiting).

Monterey Market itself was amazing--full aisles dedicated to different types of produce. A whole aisle for root vegetables, and aisle for mushrooms (my favorite!), an aisle for avocados and tomatoes, you name it. Each aisle contained at least one item that I had never heard of or never seen anywhere else--pretty excited to find some recipes for these odd whatchamacallits. There was also a fresh juice machine in the front and I was very tempted to buy some fresh apple juice and make spiced/mulled hard apple cider (is that a thing? It should be a thing).

Working the juicer. If only I wasn't allergic to fruits...

How do you eat this??

Mushroom aisle. I die.

Creepily taking photos of other people shopping. Check out all the weird root veggies. 

There's something soothing about exploring aisles in a grocery store. Or maybe that's the procrastinating-law-school-work side of me talking.

After Monterey Market I got sucked into two more shops on the walk back--a butcher shop and a coffee cheese store. The people running the cheese shop were extremely nice and gave me all sorts of free cheese samples. While they told me what to pair with my cheese and I nibbled on sample after sample I couldn't help but think that this was what a neighborhood should feel like. The lady who came after me was greeted by name and received a free chunk of cheese that the guy behind the counter had been "saving for her." I need to go back.

And they had cute Japanese cups in their window display!

On the walk back I saw an old couple side by side on their canes walking in my direction. They stopped to confer about something and the overhang of a blossoming tree between them and I framed them perfectly. Unfortunately there was a guy walking behind me and I was too embarrassed to look like a creep taking photos of an old adorable couple--such a shame.

Instead I got a picture of the side of this weird toy shop

And a doll house! That framed emboss up top, wow.

All in all a successful afternoon of wandering around Berkeley. The residential areas are very nice, especially as it seems spring is around the corner. Which also means allergy season is coming up soon. Next time, Berkeley Wandering on Allergy Medication. Promises to be interesting.

Gonna make some harvest roast chicken with grapes, olives, and rosemary tonight.

Weekend with T

This past weekend T came to visit from Japan.

I rushed through the airport almost teared up as I caught sight of her sitting at the airport door--with her snapback hat, big suitcase and oversized red backpack looking for all the world like it was totally normal for her to be in California. In America!

Throughout the weekend we brought up old inside jokes and created some new ones. We also spent a lot of time with my family during a car ride to Napa where we played family feud with some pretty funny results.

K: name something people get chased by in movies
Mom: boyfriend! 

K: other than a bull what big animal would you not want in your china shop
T: panda

K: Name something people buy to show they are successful
F: money
A: children

K: Summer sport using a ball
T: beach balley
K: beach ballet?
T: yes K: ballet?
T: yes (mimes serving a ball)
K: volley! Beach volleyball!

 K: when someone's waiting for you after you go to the bathroom what do you say when you come out and see them waiting?
T: the flush is broken
K: ....

T reminds me that it's important to stay connected to those who I care about and who care about me. I hope we will meet again soon and that when we do...she'll finally want to build a snowman.

Do you have any personal experience with lateral support?

8am shenanigans

M: ah gotcha. yeah wheat’s the weather like?
K: grainy


J: are those cheetos
K: no, they're a japanese snack I grabbed out of my cabinet
they're called "curls" or as this bag says"karl"

J: I can smell them, karls
K: want one?
J: kinda. what is japanese cheese like?
K: haha, I'll pass you one after doremus stops looking this way
J: hahaha
....
J: omg, shut up I want a karl
K: hahahahahhaha

S: lateral support?
K: yeah when the professor calls on people
she asks stuff like
"have you ever lost something?"
"have you ever misplaced something?"
but when she called on me she was like "do you have any personal experience with lateral support?"
and I was like...uh.... no
S: hahahah, i have no idea what that is
K: it's when there's a land on top of a hill and another land beneath that hill
and then someone like carves out a piece of the hill
S: like a hobbit den
K: then the land on top of the hill kind of landslides/crumbles down
yeah, and then gandalfs land falls down the hill because there's no lateral support
S: then gandalfs all like
you shall not pass bitch

J: I'll start coughing really loud to cover up the noise of opening that bag
K: hahahahaha
or she should make a joke
and everyone should laugh
so I can open this bag
J: no one's listening, no one will hear the joke