on a day spent studying

Cram before bed,

Cram once you rise --

Makes a girl's head hurt

And crosses her eyes.

(with apologies to Poor Richard the Almanac Guy)

About 48 hours after commencing serious study, I have survived my back-to-back Political Science 100 and History 175 midterms and have now only to rest my writer's-cramped hand and reflect on what I've learned (and get ready for my English test and my grandma's birthday party tomorrow -- oh, and I guess it might be good to practice the music for Sunday services).

Aside from the obvious, about L. Godkin, the Eugenists, and Wilson's 14 Points, and polls and sociological voting patterns and how the YMCA is like the Salvation Army but not like Hull House, I learned . . . not very much, I guess.

Hm.

One thing about this week is that I kept running into Bar paraphernalia that reminded me that it really should be possible for me to survive community college exams, even without oodles of study.

Looking for a folder to turn in my Spanish homework, I came across the memo from the State Bar to all Feburary 2004 applicants, telling us what we could/couldn't bring to the exam. This included my favorite allowed item:

ear plugs or plastic material normally associated with the sport of swimming

and my favorite list of prohibited items:

cameras, weapons of any kind, knives of any kind, gum, candy, food, water or other drinks, books, notes and outlines, post-it notes, correction fluid, correction pens or correction tape, tobacco products including cigars, pipes, cigarettes, head phones, back packs, briefcases and purses.

Betcha didn't know they could make all that stuff with tobacco.

Then, last night, looking for 3x5" index cards on which to pour out my mind's supply of poli sci and history facts, I found my archives of index cards from law school -- several pound's worth. At one time I actually had memorized everything on those stacks and stacks of cards -- things like "In a minority of state jurisdictions, a complaint must set forth in ordinary and concise language the ultimate facts constituting a cause of action, or "The owner of a fee simple subject to executory limitation may be liable for "equitable waste" to the owner of the executory interest."

(Scarily enough, I actually remember what these mean.)

So, yeah, I can survive community college.

Then again, we won't know for sure until the grades come back . . .