“If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.”
–Cicero
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Why I Write Pieces I’ll Never Publish
The writing I do falls into three broad categories: (1) blog posts; (2) pieces that might someday be published (personal essays, poems, fiction); and (3) things I write only for myself (and I suppose the writing I do for work is a fourth category, but that’s a whole different animal). Today, I’d like to talk about the third category. What’s the point of writing things that no one else will ever read?
The Bar Exam: Perspective and Self-Care
Across the United States, recent law school graduates have begun studying for the bar exam, a two-day (sometimes three-day) test offered during the last week of July and also in February). Each state gives its own version of the exam, which usually includes a day of tricky multiple choice questions and a day consisting of some combination of essay questions, short answer questions, and a closed-universe performance test. Intensive test-prep courses usually begin in late May, and many test-takers study full-time and then some.
Quote of the Week
“To create is to live twice.”
-Albert Camus
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Learning a New Language: Why You Should Do It, and How to Get Started
As I mentioned last weekend, I recently began studying the Greek language. My husband and his family (who hail from Athens) had previously taught me a few basic words, but until a couple of weeks ago, I hadn’t tried to learn the language in any disciplined way. The main reason is that my husband and his mother, sister, and brother-in-law all speak English, so I can communicate with them just fine in my own native language.
Still, that felt a bit lazy on my part. And now that we are planning a trip to Greece, I want to be able to read street signs, say hello to any non-English speakers I encounter, and ask the kinds of questions one often needs to ask when traveling. My husband will be there to translate for me, but there’s a certain satisfaction that comes from being able to speak and read at least some of the local language when traveling.