It's Honeymoon Time!

The lovely wife and I are headed to an island tomorrow to finally take that honeymoon we had to postpone because of the bar exam. As a consequence, I will be off the air for about a week and a half. Sorry, but I won't be bringing the computer or posting from the trip. This is purely husband and wife time without distractions.

When I return I am going to start reading up on Maryland football for the upcoming college football season at the ACC Basketblog (we're more than just hoops!). See you again in a bit, and thanks again for your patience.

El Nido, Philippines. April 14, 2004.

Summer at Long Last

Last night I finally made it to that first ballgame of the year. O's versus White Sox at Camden Yards in Baltimore. It didn't turn out so great for the O's as they last on 7-2, killed by a 3-run dinger by my arch nemesis Paul Konerko (long story).

It was nice to see the Yard sold out again. The last game I went to there last summer had an attendence around 18,000, the lowest in the history of the stadium to that point. Last night had 45,267 fans.

For me, it is finally officially summer. Too bad I only get two more months of it!

First View of Summer. Orioles Park at Camden Yards, Baltimore, MD. July 29, 2005.

Shameless Plug

In my opinion, the best way to unwind after the bar exam: BBQ and Guinness.

On tomorrow's agenda: Fishing and the Orioles/White Sox game at Camden Yards. I could get used to this.

Done

At last, the bar exam is over! Finished up yesterday evening and popped open some bubbly. Now is the part where I reclaim my life.

Here's a little bar exam related anecdote for you. After the exam ended yesterday, I drove straight home. As I parked my car in the neighborhood, I reflected on the last couple of weeks and realized that the prophecy I received when I took the exam in Chicago, "What can go wrong the week before the bar exam, will go wrong," didn't come true this time around. No disasters of any sort befell me. Strange.

In Chicago, the crystal ball did not lie. My car battery kicked the bucket a few days before the exam (and as a consequence I got a parking ticket for "street cleaning" because I couldn't move my car). I also walked out of the Northwestern University law library one afternoon a couple days before the test to find five kids trying to steal my bike, or at least parts of it since they had basically taken it apart piece by piece. The bike ride back to Wrigleyville was, consequently, an adventure as loose pieces wobbled and shed themselves every couple hundred yards.

But nothing this time. Weird.

I pulled into a street parking spot last night that was two car lengths long. For some reason, I decided to back the car up to the area closer to my house. As I sat in the car preparing to get out, I thought, Nothing has happened yet...bet a tree falls on my car tonight.

After getting home and having a celebratory margarita with my wife, we decided to go out and get some Mexican food. With the bar exam, the little things get more special. Like being able to go out to dinner with my wife for once. At last! As we walked out the door, we noticed the sky was black. A big storm was on the way.

We raced to the Mexican restaurant as the sky got blacker and blacker. No sooner had we sat down then it started to pour. Lightning, thunder, wind. Pure misery. But we were inside, drinking some tasty drinks, chowing down, and best of all, NOT STUDYING!

By the time we finished eating, the storm was over. We drove back home. As we pulled into our neighborhood, I noticed a police car blocking the next block down, and some utility equipment in the road. I turned to my wife and said, "Bet a tree fell on my car. I had a premonition earlier this evening." Sure enough, a tree had fallen on my car!! Luckily, the car in front of me (owned by another guy who had just finished taking the bar exam, naturally) took the brunt of the blow. He was parked in the same spot that for some reason I had decided to back out of earlier. My car just had leaves and branches sticking out of it in all directions. No damage...whew!

A little late, but I finally received my bar exam disaster. I think that's a good sign.

Next week, I am off to the islands for some much needed R&R. Sadly, after being married for two months, we are finally getting the chance to take our honeymoon. Don't expect to see anything here between the 1st and 9th of August. I'm taking a break!

Can't wait...

I've been dreaming of this for two months. Cocoa Beach, FL. January 2003.

Scary

Yikes! The bar exam is only two days away.

Mantis. Wilmington, DE. July 22, 2005.

Staring at the Ceiling

Saw this reflection on the ceiling this morning.

Blinky 1224. Wilmington, DE. July21, 2005.

The Kittyiot

My wife and I have always been convinced that our cat is mentally challenged. She gets her kicks by attacking shadows, rolling around on the floor chirping, and sprinting back and forth and up and down the stairs.

Turns out, as this picture shows, she's just possessed. That explains everything. We were worried that we just had a retarded pet. Whew...what a relief!

Cool off!

It's too darned hot outside these days. Hopefully this cools you off a little bit. I took this photo after getting caught in a surprise snowstorm while hiking in the mountains of Southen France on October 24, 2003. At the time, I had on little more than a raincoat, a t-shirt, and a pair of jeans. It'd give anything to be that cold right now!

The ski town that marked the start of this hike, Cauteret, is not too far from where today's Tour De France stage ended (Pau, France). It's such a steam bath in Wilmington this week, that I can't currently fathom what the temperatures represented in this picture felt like.

OK...back to studying!

Something to Tide You Over

Today, I spent most of the day in the library. This picture obviously wasn't taken at any point during that time.

Blue. Elkton, MD. July 2005.

Almost There

Sorry again about the lack of posts. On the afternoon of July 27, I can reclaim my life at the conclusion of the Delaware bar exam. (But don't expect any posts that afternoon...I will probably letting off some steam, if you know what I mean!) I may post some more pictures as time permits between now and then. Thanks for your patience!

Today's Guest Blogger: That Bug

Hey, there! Remember me? The author of this website wrote some not-so-nice remarks about me not too long ago. He'll be taking the bar exam in a week and a half, so I am filling in for today. Since Mike's head is planted firmly in the law books, he should probably know what L-I-B-E-L means. You have a suit coming your way, buddy, for defaming me in your earlier posts. I'm here to set the record straight. Really, I'm just a hardworking little bug looking for something to eat.

Well, it turns out there are quite a few of us in the wilds of Elkton. We typically hang out, oh just about everywhere on the property: trees, bushes, marsh grass, and even the back deck. Since the author of this site hasn't figured out what we are, I figured I'd just show ya. Scroll down to get a little taste of my life. 

As you may have been able to tell from an earlier post, I tend to get hungry. I like to hide myself in the bushes and tall grass and wait for an unsuspecting meal...I mean bug, to come along. After which I stab it and eat it. What's wrong with that?

Wanna know how I do it? Read on...

I can be a sneaky SOB ("son-of-a-bug"). Here I am in an ingenius hiding place, just waiting for some unfortunate bee or butterfly to get a hankerin' for some nectar. That'll be the biggest mistake since the time the author of this website got a hankerin' for a Slurpee and ended up with "Severe Tire Damage" after going the wrong way into a 7-11 parking lot! What an idiot!

Here I am in my hunting position. It looks like I am about to give you a big bear hug! But watch out for my knife-like beak, 'cause a hug from me also includes a nice stabbing in the neck. Painful for you, tasty for me. Just like Dracula. Sometimes I like to assume this position while standing on just one of my back legs...I call it my "Daniel-san Position."

Once I have caught my prey, I can pretty much eat him wherever I want. Here, I have stabbed a Japanese beetle with my beak, and I am sucking the life out of him while suspended upside down. Pretty cool, huh?! 

So long, and thanks for stopping by! This should clear up any misconceptions you have about me.

As I waive goodbye, I hope you don't mind if I continue to suck on this bug leg while you quickly click away from this page for the last time. See ya!

Study Break: The Bugs of Elkton

On a break from studying in Elkton today, I took my camera around to see if I could get some good pictures of some of the seemingly infinite varieties of bugs on the property. Below is a sampling of what I found while taking just a few minutes' worth of photos.

The Japanese beetles are out in force this year. My own backyard plants in Wilmington have suffered immensely from their voracious appetites. This guy is doing his best impression of a monkey. 

A large praying mantis on the prowl. 

There are a variety of wasps in Elkton colored similarly to this bug. I wonder whether his coloring is intended to mimic the wasps', or whether he's just an Orioles fan? I know. Lame. 

A grasshopper likely taking a break after chowing on some leaves. 

Another grasshopper. 

The next couple of pictures are good examples of the way bugs use camoflauge as predatory cover, or to hide themselves to forestall becoming a victim. This praying mantis is well hid.  

Ghosthopper. In real life, it looked more like an apparition, than an insect.