So it's been a while. I know. I gave the bar all I had, even my "blog time." I went at it all work-o-holic style, the stereotypical hermit's lifestyle for the duration of that ultimate leg of every law student's academic career. Worth it? So far I think so. I felt prepared so I was able to relax a bit as the big week approached. Whether it helped my performance remains to be seen.
Note to law students and potential law students: The bar exam is 17000 parts hype and 3 parts stuff you actually need to worry about. Believe me when I say this because I am an expert at being a worrier. Those worry-worthy things are a) make sure you get there on time, like for all SIX sessions, b) concentrate on what you need to do to eat and hydrate and sleep well during the three days so that you will maintain consciousness ('cause by the end of July you're running on fumes and going cross-eyed even before the exam starts - 18 hrs of consciousness is not as easy as it sounds), like make a meal plan that doesn't take much extra time on your part during the exam (example 1: I'll get room service because I can afford $18 meals + tip three times a day, OR example 2: pack like you're going on a three day backpacking trip....on Everest) and c) if you're taking it at the Sac convention center - good choice, but don't be a hero. Be a slacker and sign up late so you'll be closer to the water and bathrooms. I had to walk about a quarter of a mile if I needed hydration which put me in the unenviable position akin to that of someone stranded in the middle of a desert - do I go for water and risk collapsing before I find it? And if I collapse do I risk 'them' (the seemingly kind and unassuming little old people who are tasked with securing the premises and take their job about as seriously as they do bingo-calling) calling an ambulance and eventually finding out that I've hidden forbidden nutrients in the form of PowerBar 'Gel' packets stuffed inconspicuously in my bra? Or do I stay put to conserve energy and avoid a rule 12 violation on the Gel?
Seriously, it's all in the logistics. I've heard reports of people fainting and staying unconscious for 45 minutes, I've heard all kinds of vomit stories, like that the girls bathroom on the first day sounds like sunday morning in the dorms. Don't pretend like you don't know what I'm talking about. And I've also heard of people falling asleep, particularly on the multistate. It's a bizarre exercise.
The material is vast, overwhelming even. But just keep studying. It's like a language. You won't ever be called upon to get your head around all of it at once, you just need to know how to respond or at least how to fake it convincingly (seriously, this skill is rewarded) when they throw you that triple crossover. The only way to do it is total immersion. I think.
So it's over for now. Results don't come out for a very very long time. At which point I will unveil part 2.
Let me also give a shout out to barbri who has likely never been so embarrased in the duration of its existance. Not only did they not at all correctly predict what would be on the exam....they made predictions about what would 'surely not' be on the exam that turned out to be brutal and absolute mistakes - like more than one. So the diligent among us were scrutinizing our civ pro, trusts, crim pro, and california distinctions (several new california law topics were added to the bar starting with the july sitting), letting our property, con law, and crim law outlines collect dust when really, the opposite would have been wise. We listened when Barbri said we would see anywhere from two to four MBE subjects tested on the essays (all six appeared. ALL six, with contracts tested
twice). We listened when they told us there would surely be a crim
pro question, but in any case no crim
law. And when they mused about how con law would not be on the exam, and if it was, it would defintely
not be on first amendment. So you can imagine our delight when we turned the page to essay 4, thinking surely there MUST be some cal-law questions coming up, only to find an in-your-face-bar-bri crim law/1st amendment crossover.
I never thought I'd say this, but for me, and for this particular sitting, fully 90% of the points I manage to accumulate will come from studying PMBR materials. Which brings me to my PMBR review. Get the materials on ebay or amazon or wherever. Don't pay for the course. Materials are money, but they run kind of a sketchy operation. Which is overpriced but that goes without saying in bar-review land which, by all accounts seems to be immune to anti-trust law. Although I should reserve judgment on PMBR- they were just bought by Kaplan which should reduce the sketchiness (at the same time reinforcing my suspicion about the anti-trust immunity).
Also don't believe bar bri when they say the wait for the results is the 'hardest leg' of the bar exam journey. I'm finding that it's actually not that bad so far. I mean you know, it's a
little hard to sleep in ALL the way 'till 11. And I couldn't tell you where my watch is and sometimes when I have to write the date on something, I'm at a loss and feel kind of blond. That's a problem. Also, I don't think it's good for me to be spending so much guilt-free time watching TV and reading novels and magazines. I've returned to that pesky old habit of showering daily. I've received a lot of exposure to the sun lately. I'm losing touch with my old, safe defaults 'can't,' and 'not today, maybe next week,' which have been increasingly replaced with words such as 'yes,' and 'ok' and potentially 'Hi, I'd like to buy a ticket to Hawaii.' But please don't worry, I think I will pull through, despite my inexperience.
And DON'T listen to your dean of students when she responds to your comment that 'bar review isn't
THAT bad' by assuring you that "oh, it'll get worse." Jealousmuch of us finally getting to feel excited that our career is just beginning, full of opportunity and paid-off loans? It's a fleeting moment Ms. O, please just let us have it.
That's it, there's really not much more to it. I'm happy to have survived. I'll be happier to survive results. Tune in this fall.
