So I guess, in not too much time, I’m going to be a real live “Blawger”[#for the record, “blawg” is the absolute worst term ever invented, I hate it with a passion) in just a few months, and that means that things are going to change around here in a little bit. For starters, I’m considering spawing a separate blog (or, rather, a division of this blog into two parts) which would cover my politics/policy/law related posts… but there’s a gray area, there… because I’d want to keep all of th estuff about law school here… the personal stuff, funny stories, etc… and I have a hard time believing that everything I’d write about will fit well in one of the two categories. I just have to decide. Eventually.
Anyway, a very astute person pointed out to me that Law School is a lot like High School… maybe even Junior High… and it seems like a lot of the other blawgers do a lot of writing about other people in their class. Matt doesn’t, but he’s a bit too policy-wonkish for that to be “his style.” Come to think of it, Charlsie doesn’t either. So I guess it’s just other people. Anwyay… I really find it amusing that some of the cool kids have nicknames for everyone.
This place wouldn’t be the same if I started using nicknames for everyone (and I’d have a LOT of editing to do) but I have a feeling that I’m going to be using nicknames soon. Enter: thefacebook.com. The IU-Bloomington School of Law’s Class of ‘08 is starting to do their online matriculation to TheFacebook.com… there are six of us, currently, listed as grad students graduating in ‘08 with a “law” concentration… and I’m already concocting some nicknames. Muahahaha. This could be fun. I’m also dying to share the ones with you I’ve come up with, but I think I ought to wait. At least a little while.
“but he’s a bit too policy-wonkish for that to be “his style.”"
Awesome…this is going on my resume! With that said, I’d say still be careful with nicknames. I was simply shocked my the number of people who knew about my blog by within the first month of school. I never had anybody personally ask me “are you Matt Schuh”, but I did walk by a few times in the library and see random computers with people reading it. I also have made comments to people in passing that people I barely know have said, “yeah, I know, you wrote that on your blog.” You’ve been doing this a lot longer than me, so this is probably unneccessary advice, but just know that even with nicknames, people will know who you’re talking about, and people will form opinions of you based on that.
Just don’t come up with a bunch of explanations of stereotypes in law school. I don’t ever want to see anything on your site that goes into a character sketch of the hand-raiser, or the stay-after-class-and-ask-a-question-guy, or the stupid-quesion-in-every-class-girl.
I don’t know why I don’t write about the people in my class. I bet it is because I am more interested in all the pressing issues of the world.
I agree with Matt. Nicknames conceal nothing in law school. If I can’t write about them using their real names, I just don’t write about them.
C’mon now, kids — when have I ever been one to conceal? Besides anonymizing is not so that they won’t know you’re talking about them, or so that people “in the loop” won’t know, but so that the world at large can’t google them from your information.
Oh, and also to be clever. No idea what I’ll actually end up doing, but I’m flirting with the idea of nicknames because I think it’s funny.
Law school is also like a bad relationship. You’re being abused, but you keep going back for more.
Having a blog is kinda like that, too.
High School is absolutely the way I would describe it, esp first year when you are ins ections and have ALL your classes w/ the same ppl. For me, it was almost like the other section didn’t even exist until second year then I met all these “new” ppl. Everyone got really uppity if you consorted with “the otehr section” first year, it was like crossing party lines or something.
we called in intersectional dating. But dating someone in your own section is even more dangerous. Actually, it probably all a bad idea, but who did that ever stop?
Ya know what’s a bad idea, hooking up w/ someone from your section all over the hallways, on the quad, etc. Then at the end of the semester bringing your LIVE IN GIRLFRIEND to meet and chat up your pals at school. Bad plan. Poor guy. I ALMOST felt bad for him.