Willamette's 3 + 3 or BA/JD Programs

What I would have given for this opportunity when I started my journey of going back to school.  Shaving off a full year of schooling and the cost associated with that would have been phenomenal!!!!

Willamette's College of Law has partnered with both the undergraduate programs at Willamette and with Oregon State to offer a program where you complete your needed undergraduate credits by the end of your junior year and then enter into the College of Law.  Once you complete your first year of law school, you get your BA from your undergraduate school and you are on your way to a law degree as well.

Admission into either of these programs does NOT guarantee admission to the law school.  An applicant still must apply to the law school, take the LSAT, and have a applicable GPA.  But it's doable, and it is less time to complete... which is something that helps when we think of managing our time, how much time we are out of the work force and so on.  I would have gratefully leaped at the program.  I was not too keen on the whole get a liberal arts major.  I took a lot of classes that were time fillers (mostly electives).  This program would cut some of these out.

Finally!!!!

I have stayed pretty quiet on the blog front for so many reasons.... but one critical one was studying for the bar and then trying not to freak out.  This is a multiple time I have taken it.

But my dear readers --- today I found out I PASSED THE BAR!  That's right.  I am Lisa Wright, esq.  That feels so incredible to be able to type and announce here.

So how did I do it?  I focused almost exclusively on MBE stuff.  I used Kaplan (AWESOME, BTW) and I used Benchprep..... both programs have 1000's of questions and they tear the answers apart.  I also bought a book "Starting your campaign for the MBE" written by a law professor and bar grader...... best book ever.  I found some of the mistakes I was making.  I learned to find the red herrings very, very fast.

So October 4th is the big day!  As I embark this next journey, I am going to try so hard to chronicle what is going on.

For now, I am working in the admissions office of the College of Law at Willamette.  I am going to write some things about some of the AWESOME programs they have started there that I think are great for single parents.  And I will write about job hunting, possibly setting up a practice, and the mentoring process in Oregon.  There's a lot to talk about.... ALOT.

Federal Bases Are Alien Planets....

Some observations for spending a few days with my sister at Fort Carson.  The most staggering is how by entering the base, you basically check the Bill of Rights, I kid you not.  The thought that by virtue of coming on base, I shuck so much of my rights scares the poo out of me.  And realizing that that suspension of rights dates back to a court case during world war II, when we were under attack, startles me.

Did you know that an MP can search you without probable cause?  Oh yes, yes they can.  In fact, when you enter the gates it gives you a list of all the searches that you are subject to.

On the converse side of that, you could basically hide on base from state authorities.  So a few years ago, a state issued search and arrest warrants for a soldier who lived in the barracks of a base.  He was suspected of molesting a child.  The authorities believed that part of the crime was perpetrated in the car owned by the soldier and the state wanted to conduct DNA testing and a forensic search.  The base would not allow the state onto the base to collect the vehicle or to interrogate the soldier.  The state had to go through a long, complicated process to get a special warrant from the federal government that forced the bases hand.

When the soldier later pled guilty to the charges against him in state court and was sentenced, the base would not accept the guilty plea.  The powers that be on the base allowed for a court martialing practice that cleared the soldiers name of any and all charges as far as the military was concerned.  He was allowed an honorable discharge and when his time was served, he was later allowed to re-enlist at a lower rank, but still received credit for the previous time he had served.

So while a child's life was ruined, he got a short time out and when he was out a few short 14 months later, he was able to resume his life...... Including being transferred overseas where there are no sex offender reporting laws.

So while we civilians risk giving up our liberties, those soldiers are far better protected --- even when they shouldn't be.

Royalty vs the Common Child

A friend of mine the other day made a great observation.  On Friday of last week, a magazine published topless photos of Kate Middleton, or as we have come to know her, Prince William's fashion forward and lovely wife.  These pictures were obtained due to a security lapse while the royal couple were vacationing in the south of France.  Fast forward to Tuesday, a mere 4 days later, when a French court ruled that the publisher must take down all photos, must return all digital photos, prints, stills or any other replica to the palace to protect her privacy.  A daily fine of 10,000 euros accrues for every day that the publisher refuses to turn the photos over.

Why is it that we protect and treasure the image of a princess to such a degree?  Society and governments were concerned about privacy and the upset.  And yes, it is sad that the privacy of this couple was breached.  However, let's remember she was an adult who chose to get one with nature, knowing full well what risk she took by doing this.

My friend, the one who made the observation, asked why we can't do that for exploited children?  Why is it that the pornographer's "rights" and "privacy" is more important than the innocence, safety and well-being of a child who has been exploited?  Why did it take only 4 days to stop the further publication of tasteless pictures of a princess, but prosecution or the succession of child pornography is ongoing?  I realize that the fact that there are ways to hide on the internet a poster's identity.  I realize it is hard to identify the child at times.  Yet I think as a society and with evolving technology it should be easier to find these predators.  Yet in the US, privacy issues overrule the child's right to not be exploited.  And that is sad.

So is this a question of money?  Is the fact that Princess Kate has money and prestige why the French courts moved so fast?  Is the fact that these children are usually victims of poverty that we shrug and turn away?

Getting Healthy

One of the things that is universal about college, and ESPECIALLY law school is this:  You pack on pounds.  Seriously.  I put on 20 pounds during my three years at law school and noticed that quite a few of my peers did the same.

Why did we do this?  Simple.... We are so busy that making a plan on what to eat, or planning ahead, becomes impossible.  The law school has vending machines, a cafe, and a coffee shop --- what more do you need?  On top of that, many of us crave sugar and fatty foods when we are under a tremendous amount of stress.

Two weeks ago I said enough.  I immediately thought about the foods I was eating and realized that I was going to kill myself if I did not make some changes.  I eliminated processed sugar and flour from my diet.  As soon as I did this, miraculous things started to happen.  Endless energy, no more headaches, and the 7 years of insomnia?  Gone. 

Strangely enough, eFoods.com contacted me during this time with a link to their website.  In the coming days, I am going to review a few of their products.   Check out their website for special offers.

I just got my package from them yesterday.  I was concerned because their were not ingredient listings on the website, but I am happy to report that there is no processed flour in the ingredients and sugar is far down on the list as well.... so now I just need to make some and review!

McDonald's Coffee: The truth about the infamous lawsuit

The other day I pulled through McDonald's for their $1.00 soda and a $1.00 McChicken (I know, horrible for me, but I needed quick and very cheap).  "Welcome to McDonald's.  Would you like to order a free coffee today?"  I sat there dumbfounded.  Free coffee?  Really?  Apparently from March 12th through the 23rd, you could get a free coffee at McDonalds.

Why was I dumbfounded?  The idiocy of a corporation and the belief that all people would not know the FULL FACTS of the Coffee lawsuit if the 90's.  In fact, amongst my non- law school friends, this remains the most misunderstood award in tort law history due to a political smear campaign.

So, let me make you aware of the facts as they were:
1.  Normal coffee that you brew at your house is approx 135 degrees.
2.  Corporate McDonald's policy was to brew at 185 degrees, +/- 5 degrees.
3.  McDonalds was aware that this degree of heat would, in fact, burn a customers lips, throat, and mouth.
4.  McDonalds had been warned several times that the heat was too high for safety.  There had been other burns, from other customers.  McDonalds refuse to lower heat, stating their customers were often driving and wanted their coffee to still be hot when the reached their destination.  McDonalds had documented a long history of the severity of this problem.
5.  At 185f, the heat would cause SEVERE burns within 2 to 7 seconds.
6.  The plaintiff was a grandmother and 79 years of age.  She purchased her drink as a passanger in a car.  She was dressed in sweatpants.
7.  She took the top off to add cream and sugar.  The car was parked.  As she took the top off, the cup, the entire contents tipped in her lap.
8.  Her sweatpants absorbed the hot coffee, holding it to her skin, and she suffered 3rd degree burns over 6% of her body.

The jury awarded the grandmother, who had to have several painful skingrafts, what amount to 2 days coffee purchases (2.7 million), but the judge reduced the award of punitive damages to 480,000.  She also received money to pay for her medical bills and pain in suffering in the amount of 160,000.  After the trial, McDonald's dropped it's corporate policy and coffee was brewed at 155 degrees, which allows for the coffee to cool and avoids serious burns.

A woman who suffered serious burns...... And if McDonalds can offer free coffee for 10 days, can you imagine?  For some reason I found this campaign ironic and absurd.  McDonald's fought tooth and nail against a serious injury when the facts pointed to that their policy was dangerous.  I find it turning my stomach, that 20 years almost to the anniversary of the severe burn, McDonald's can give their coffee away from free.  While the lawsuit changed their corporate policy, and gave them what results to a little pat, shrug, and poke of the elbow "don't do that again," the ones that lose out on this are really the plaintiffs.

Why did the Plaintiff lose out????  Simple. I am not talking about the grandmother.  I am talking about future plaintiffs.  The conservative right, has used this case erroneously as to why there should be tort reform.  This case is the "banner" case of the argument about frivolous lawsuits.  Yet, how often do we hear the truth?  We don't.

Perhaps I write this because I am clearly starting to see how mega corporations like McDonalds, lobby to great effect against the little guy.  And it is starting to make me feel sick.  Because they use this public sentiment to lie to us, to deceive us, into believing something that is only partially true.  In this case, the lady spilled her coffee and she must of known it was hot!  There is a warning on the top of the coffee cup after all...... what one does not expect is to have any more than a mild red spot and an ouch -- we don't expect to have 3rd degree burns.  But we the public do not remember the FACTs, we remember the SPIN.

Well I remembered.  And said NO, to that cup of coffee.

Health Condition

Again, I have not posted in so long.  I have been ill.  From the last post, until now, things have not been a picnic but rather a small, slow nightmare of learning what happens when people are unemployed and uninsured and have a health condition.

For the past several years, my doctor has been treating me for TMJ.  I would get extreme pain in my ear and jaw particularly during times of tremendous stress.  In October around the time of the last post that I made, I was convinced I needed an extraction of my back molars.  I figured they had cracked from all the clenching that I did with my jaw.  I was in tremendous pain.  Ultimately the pain faded a bit.  I had no health insurance and no income, so having teeth pulled was last on my list.  I figured I would baby myself along and deal with it.

In November I was standing in Blockbuster when it felt like someone hooked up jumper cables to my teeth on my right side, upper teeth and just cranked it up.  I actually felt giant jolts.  After an hour or so, it stopped.  A few days later, it happened again.  After an hour it stopped again.  This repeated a few more times until around the 10th when the jolts were followed by the feeling of someone hitting my face with a metal bat.  This lasted 5 hours.  5 hours of the worst pain in my life.  Worse than childbirth..... way worse.

On the 16th of November, it came again.  Worse.  6 hours of pain had me a screaming, crying mess.  I told my mom that she had to take me to the ER or I was likely to hurt myself to end the pain.  Crying actually hurt my face.  Tears made me feel like razor blades were slicing my face open.  The cold air outside hurt even more.  I had never felt anything like this in in my life.

I got to the ER and was admitted immediately -- no waiting in the waiting room for a room to open up.  My blood pressure was 185/79.  I actually almost passed out while they were taking my vitals.  I waited for 2 hours to see a doctor (when pain is not visible, you are last in line to be seen).  The ER doctor and a on call neurologist broke the news to me:  I was suffering from a chronic pain condition called Trigeminal Neurolgia.

Trigeminal Neurolgia, hereafter TN,  is a condition in which the largest nerve in your face misfires and sends pain signals to the nerve even from just the slightest touch.  This condition is the known in the medical community as the most painful condition known to medical science.  Those that suffer from it have coined it the "suicide disease" because many who suffer from TN actually take their life.  There is no known cure.  Actually, to make things better, doctors and experts do not know why it happens.  I was told I needed an MRI sooner rather than later to rule out a tumor or MS.  With no health insurance, I chose later.

The first line of treatment is anticonvulsant medications that you would treat epilepsy with.  Unfortunately, these medications have awful side effects and take a long time to build in your system.  My search began.  My primary doctor was not skilled in this area and recommended a trip to a neurologist.  Something I could scarse afford.  After much research I found that OHSU had an expert in the field on their  payroll.... AND a financial assistance program.  I applied and was accepted for financial assistance.

In late January I saw my neuro... who confirmed the diagnosis and referred me to an MRI.  He also made it clear I could not take the bar exam as scheduled in February.  It would be a few more months, by his calculation, before we had this condition under control. I was devastated, but determined to be treated.

The MRI came back clear of tumors and MS.  For that I am thankful.  But the pain was tremendous for a long time.   I am happy to say that the pain is for the most part controlled now and the side effects few.

This is a scary condition to have.  One that usually hits those in their 70s and 80s.  But I am glad that there are places like OHSU that give assistance to people like me, who are caught in the system.