There Are No Guarantees

I used to really, really enjoy reading The Attractive Nuisance then, at some point, she mysteriously became unfunny. Now it’s a train-wreck, which is sad. I’m not one to judge, of course, because it’s a personal blog and she writes about personal things and that’s totally allowed, so I’ve resisted the urge to comment here until now¹. I decided to post, though, because we all need a little reminder every now and then that things don’t always turn out as we’d expect.

TAN’s most recent post is a letter that she send to the four corners of the earth, demonstrating two things. First and foremost, the petulant whining of someone who thinks that the world owes them something². Second, though, would be the point that going to law school does not, in and of itself, ensure that you won’t have financial problems down the line.

Those of us encumbering ourselves with tens of thousands of dollars worth of debt every year to attend our respective schools of law should come to the realization, sooner than later, that we may have to choose between living somewhere expensive and living a nice life and working in a public service capacity.

It’s possible that the cost of living where she is may be too high for her to both work as a clerk and still pay her loans. Just going to a top five law school does not entitle you to do any job you want anywhere you want. It’s also possible that she’s just living beyond her means. If it happens that she was living high on the hog for seven years at NYU, it’s possible — even likely — that she’d be nonplussed with having to step down her standard of living now that she’s out in the “real world”, but would be all the more necessary because between tuition and cost-of-living in Manhattan, she probably racked up a few hundred thousand dollars in debt which now needs to be paid off.

Anyway, the point I’m trying to make here is not one about TAN who has her own problems to deal with, but that life is about choices and we don’t always get exactly what we want. LRAP is nice, but it’s not going to pony up unlimited quantities of money just so you can have a new car and a pony while you’re doing your clerkship. So, I guess, learn from TAN.

Human beings, who are almost unique in having the ability to learn from the experience of others, are also remarkable for their apparent disinclination to do so. ~Douglas Adams

¹ - The reason I feel that it’s okay for me to comment now is because TAN broke the sphere of “personal online diary” when she decided to try to get publicity for her letter. That brought it, in my estimation, into the sphere of public comment.

² - It would be difficult for you to comprehend the amount of self-restraint this post is requiring, because that letter of hers elicited strong feelings, and I have a lot to say about it, but I’m choosing not to in the interest of not muddying the larger point with a lot of ranting.