Mingling with the Commoners

I have found a little nook in the main library cafe that is, surprisingly, quieter than the lawbrary and has a nice view of the quad. It amazes me that the undergrads seem to have at least a modicum more decorum than the self-absorbed law students.

However, out of the corner of my eye I keep catching the girl at the table next to me glaring at me. I'm not quite certain what I did to invite such an evil look, but I'll hazzard a guess that maybe she is jealous that, unlike her, I have the self-control not to stuff my face with a sandwich, chips and a coke at 9:30 in the morning.

It is sort of like being a fish out of water here, and despite the fact that I look about 16, the tell-tale stacks of brown and blue books next to me announce that I'm a law student. Which doesn't really affect me one way or the other.

The undergrads, however, try to be sneaky and pass themselves off for law students while they casually read on the benches outside the building. One look gives them away instantly. Not only do their books have colorful pictures and cute diagrams in them, but nary a one of them looks scared enough to be a 1L, tired enough to be a 2L or jaded enough to be a 3L. Fortunately for them, they are not quite stupid enough to try to sneak into the law school to study.

The law school is sort of like an elite little club that we protect fiercely from outside intrusion. We feel entitled, not only because we pay three times as much tuition, but also because we've paid our dues. We finished our undergrads, suffered through the LSAT and made it to law school. So if you want to sit next to the pretty picture window in the lawbrary and lounge on the benches next to the prettiest quad on campus and enjoy the perks of wireless internet in every room, then run the gauntlet and pay your dues. Until then, I'll sell you a pass to the hot tub we have on the roof.