I am hosting a Stella & Dot jewelry party this weekend.
It will be a nice break for me and my law school girlfriends as well as my other gal pals.
If you have never heard of Stella & Dot, their stuff is great. Most of it is reasonably priced and they have a gorgeous spring/summer line.
I wanted to offer all of you a chance to purchase some beautiful jewelry, since 90% of you don't live in Charleston. Because, I mean, if you all lived here and my house was big enough, all of you would be invited! My stylist has provided me with a link to her page.
In the upper, right hand side there is a link for hostess name, enter my name (Ashton). Select my party. Any purchases you make, I will get credit for it.
I thank you in advance if you purchase anything. I hope you see something you are dying to have. =)
Here are a few things I would love to have, definitely can't get them all!
On a dreary day like we are having here in Charleston, I must find my own "sunshine" in my life. Besides the weather, my over all life the past few days has been miserable.
Hours at the library/school since Friday:
58 hours
That is more than average of 10 hours a day at the lawbrary!
Here is the kicker...I still love law school.
I know there is something wrong with me.
Verified FACT!
Anywho...on to what I am lovin' this Wednesday.
I'm loving the Band Perry and their song "You lie." I have been listening to it non-stop recently. I am also loving the fact that I will see them in concert in less than a month as well as Luke Bryan and Tim McGraw. I am taking my sister and her friend Katie to see them in Savannah.
I'm loving my red velvet whoopie pies I made on Sunday...recipe to come soon.
I'm loving all of my wonderful follows and new friends that I have made through blogging. I never imagined that I would gain what I have come to consider true friends through blogging. I have plans to meet two of them in the next month or so, and I could not be more excited.
I'm loving the great impromptu lunch date I had with one of my professor's from last year. He was in the Barrister (our "lounge/snack bar") getting a sandwich at the same time I was. He asked me if I anything to do and if not to join him. I love that our professors want to have lunch with us and get to know us outside the classroom.
*I know I have a few other law students following...just wondering if this happens at your schools?
I'm loving this beautiful picture...take me there please!
I usually take my lunch to school. But, here recently with me spending so many hours at the lawbrary, I am packing a day's worth of meals, snacks, and numerous diet cokes.
I feel like I am packing for summer day camp. Or a second grader who has to stay for the after school program. My little lunch box bag is filled to the brim.
My dishwasher is nothing but tupperware. Since, I am not home to actually fix meals to even have leftovers, I am left with only a few options for lunch and dinner. Lean cuisines are a must. They get old quick. I love a PB&J and could eat them everyday. And so what if I brought an entire box of Cheez-It Snack Mix to the library.
Then, I have my standard salad - romaine lettuce, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, craisins, almond slices, turkey, and a variety of cheeses (velveeta crumbles and/or blue cheese). What about a dressing?...In comes my pickiness. I like ranch but not my salads. I love honey mustard on my salad, but have never found one in a bottle that I love. Thousand Island...goop! And basically any other bottled dressing. My solution...make my "own." Thanks to Good Seasons!
Good Seasons offers a variety of dry dressings that can be added to oil and vinegar to make a great vinaigrette dressing. They can be found in the dressing isle with the powder ranch packs. All you need is one of these...
Good Season Curet
This little guy has measurement marks for the appropriate vinegar, oil, and water to be added. Give it a little shack and you have a delicious dressing. I like the traditional Italian and Garlic & Herb. I use half the oil listed and add more water for a healthier alternative. It doesn't change the taste at all.
Check out their website, they have some great recipes that are easy to make.
I have received my third & fourth Stylish Blogger award. I feel so loved! Special thanks to ABE @ Sundresses and Smiles & Jenna @ Home Away from Home. I enjoy reading these ladies' blogs everyday. Jenna and I commiserate over our grad school lives. ABE is new to blogging but I love her blog already. She shares wonderful stories about her life.
Rules of Stylish Blogger:
Share 7 Fun Facts about yourself
&
Then pass along the award.
{one}
Pimento cheese and crackers is one of my favorite snacks. Every put pimento cheese on your burger? You should! Who has the best pimento cheese burger?...Rockaway's in Columbia, SC. This little dive of a place is located in a non-descript brick building with no sign outside. You have to know it is there to even know it was a restaurant. My family and I went there after my graduation from Carolina, and I have not been back since. I would kill for a Rockaway's pimento cheese burger and pimento cheese fries. I am particular about my pimento cheese. The only kind I purchase is Palmetto Cheese.
delisshhhh!!!
{two}
Nerd Alert! If it wasn't already obvious that I am a nerd, this will confirm it. I love the History Channel. Last summer when Comcast no longer provided the it in their regular cable package, I drop them like a hot potato and switched to DirecTv. This is no joke. Another reason was that DirecTv had a better deal, but the fact that they dropped the History Channel solidified my decision.
{three}
I own an absurd amount of t-shirts! They just cumulate and I never get rid of them. Between sorority shirts, Carolina shirts, law school shirts, and random event/location shirts, I own upward of 100.
Not my shirts...but mine would look something like this.
{four}
I am a Leo.
You are a born leader, and you know it. You are blessed with many talents, and a destiny for greatness. The sun is a star; you, then, are the star of the zodiac. Because of this, you are eternally optimistic and cheerful. If something gets in your way, you conquer it, the way a lion will defeat virtually any foe in the jungle. And like a lion, you do so with dignity.
Your charm and generosity are unending, and people love you for it. You have a big heart—in fact, Leo rules the heart in the zodiacal body— and for this reason, you love buying a round of drinks, sharing colorful stories over a meal, and generally being the life of the party. Your many friends can always count on you for livening up their day. And best of all, they love you even more because you never ask for anything in return— you were born with gifts, so there's no need. You just love sharing them.
Like a cat, you are a hunter. You spot your prey, take aim, and pounce on your target. In human terms, this means your ambition is highly focused.
You know you will reach the top; it's just a question of when. Along the way, you are highly organized, frank, and outspoken—all qualities which focus on your target of being the leader.
For those of you that actually read that, it describes me to a "T." Under the "new" system, I am suppose to be a Cancer. Sorry, I am not a crab, I am a lion.
{five}
I am absolutely terrified of shots. Like my skin crawls when I have to get one. To this day I can't even look at needles. You would like this is no big deal, because how often does a twenty-something need to get a shot. Well, I get one every month. I am B-12 deficient which is extremely rare for anyone under the age of 60. Basically, my body does not process B-12 from the food I eat, therefore taking a pill supplement would be just like me eating.
{six}
One of my life goals is to visit every state in the U.S. I am no where close to accomplishing this goal. But, here are the states I have been to and the one Canadian province...
{seven}
My most recent breakfast obsession is vanilla greek yogurt and blueberries.
Link up with Miss {av} to let everyone know what you are fancying this Friday. I know I have said that I love {av}'s blog before, but I truly look forward to reading it everyday. I found out this week that she is coming to Charleston for a wedding in the coming weeks. We are planning a blogger meet-up and I am excited to finally "meet" her.
As for all of you...I hope you have a fabulous weekend that will be more exciting than mine.
I really wish I had a place like this to do all my reading/researching/writing...
If you have been reading my blog for any amount of time, then you know my love of salt water...see here, here, & here. If you have read my Soul Within, then you know that I love the feel of salt on my skin and the smell of the marsh. Anytime I am feeling down, all I have to do is look at a picture of the beach or river and I am in a better mood.
The above quote could not be more true. Those three things can cure a multitude of ills. I know I have personally relied on them my entire life. I am not a cried, but when I do...It is a big deal! I feel my semesterly breakdown coming soon. Where will I head, to the beach to sit a spell. Or the Cooper River Bridge for a brisk walk/run.
I recently joined Pinterest, and I have noticed one thing about all my pins. Over half of them revolve around water and are nautically themed. My soul belongs near the ocean. Period.
"Salt air it ain't thin. It can stick right to your skin and make you feel fine." ~ Jimmy Buffet, Tin Cup Chalice
Basically, the beach or river is where I go to recharge and think about life. I can't think of a more perfect place to spend my day.
Happy Wednesday lovelies! It has felt like Thursday all day, and yesterday felt like Wednesday. Just how this week is going. Toooo much stuff going on! I must take the time to remember what is good in my life right now.
Sooo...
I'm loving being elected SBA Vice President!! I mentioned last week that I was running. The elections were held yesterday. I feel so honored that my peers have chosen me to lead our school next year. I am super excited to be working with our President elect, too. Liz is amazing!
I'm loving this blog, Tips For My Future Husband. This girl and I are on the same wavelengths. All except Tip #38, my husband and I will be spending our fall weekends at Williams-Brice in Columbia, SC. If he is not a Carolina fan and he attended an equal big football school, then we will split time equally between his school and mine. Some of my personal favorites are #9, #12, #17, #21, #23, #31, #32, & #33.
I'm loving my Nelly and Journey Pandora stations that help me focus will studying, researching, and writing.
I'm loving Charleston and its beautiful weather, beautiful streets, and beautiful waters. I feel blessed to drive over the connector every morning and be able to lookout over the marsh. I am not loving all the foreigners I mean yankees I mean tourists that drive slow around town...you are going to cause a wreck mister! Other than their driving abilities, I welcome tourists to our town...so please come down and stay a spell!
I bought a JPK Bucket about a month ago. I love it, but it is too big for me.
I am not a big purse person - in the sense that I don't like big purses and that I don't own a lot of them.
I have three Longchamps - two medium and one large - and a small cross-body. This is all I use.
Not one to swoon over Louis, Kate, Coach, or any of the sort. Just don't really care I guess.
Anyways, I would like to offer my JPK up for sale. I have seriously only had it for a month, so it is in near perfect condition.
I don't have an actual picture with me, because yes I am still at the library. But, I can send you one if you are interested. I am selling it for $85...half of retail.
Sol Blatt, Jr. Library - Charleston School of Law
aka: Lawbrary
Despite all the socializing I do, I am actually in law school. I just work hard and play hard. After being in the library all day, you can't blame me for wanting a drink or two. I usually blog from the library {as I am right now}. It is my little break for the day.
With exams coming up, I wanted to give y'all a pick into my daily life as a law student. I am currently taking Criminal Procedure {Crim Pro}, Business Associations {BA}, Constitutional Law {Con Law}, Higher Education Law, and Partnership Tax. First three classes will be the only classes I will actually be sitting for an exam. High Ed is a paper class and Tax is a take home exam that is due April 1st. BA is dreadful! I don't think I have a taken a class that I disliked as much as BA. I enjoy the rest of my classes and those exams won't be that bad. Preparing for exams is comparable to a month and half long marathon. The hours spent in the library are countless outlining and doing CALI lessons. Outlining is basically a process of taking all the notes from the semester and putting them into a five-ten page outline. CALI lessons are online tutorials.
From August to May, I will have read almost all 1,574 pages of this book...
As far as my paper goes, I am writing it on Title IX. My first draft is due April 1st, as well. I have not written one word. Might want to get started on that.
When writing a legal paper, brief, or memo, special citations and grammar punctuation have to be used. Citations must comply with the Bluebook and grammar follows the Texas Manual Style. Editing citations is commonly referred to as Bluebooking and regular editing is TMSing.
The people at Columbia, Harvard, Penn, and Yale put out this gem to torture the rest of us law students.
Most of day is spent reading case law and researching for either my paper or my professor who I work for as a research assistant. It is easy for me to have 50+ pages to read a day. Each case I read for class has to be "briefed" or condensed into manageable form so when called on in class I have somewhat of an answer to give. My case brief usually are outlined like this...
Facts: what happened that lead to suit or criminal trial
Case Holding: what the court really said
Decision: all the other stuff that makes the holding make sense
Sometimes I "book brief" which means I just write notes in the margin of my book. This is when I am really lazy or just don't have the time for details.
There are two different legal research sites...Lexis and Westlaw.
LexisNexis
Westlaw
The only upside to doing research is reward points. The more research you do the more points you get. What do these points get you? Oh you know...anything from an iTunes gift card to an iPad to a Kate Spade purse to a new blender. I am currently working on my Westlaw points to get a Wii Fit. Only have like 3,000 more points to go!
We have our own language and speak in legalese when you get more than two of together. We have our own jokes that the rest of society probably would not think is funny. We hate gunners...those people who come up with ridiculous hypotheticals and want to comment on everything the professor says.
I would not pick anywhere else to go to school. I have not doubted my decision to come to Charleston, once. The academic environment here is unlike any other law school. The faculty and administration have a complete open door policy. A few of our professor and deans will hang out with us outside of class {see here}. They take time out of their days just to see how you are doing and they truly care about us. The students foster a true sense of community and kindest towards one another. For most this should be commonplace, but believe me, you don't get that at every law school. And, who would not want to live in Charleston for three years.
When I get discouraged or frustrated with school, I think to myself it could be a lot worse. I am so happy that I am where I am and grateful for it everyday.
I want to leave you with this unique spin on a popular song and a taste of law school from a different perspective...
I feel sorry for all of that woke up to snow this morning. NO FUN! We have been enjoying 70 degree weather here in Charleston. The traffic on Folly Road Saturday was backed up for a good hour drive to the beach. I am very excited for Spring to be here...one more season closer to Summer! Really just one more month closer to summer. It will be in the 90s by May.
I have reached 100 followers! I am so honored to have each of you stop by everyday to my little corner of the world. Your wonderful comments make my day{s}! When I was thinking about starting blog, I wondered if I would have anything to share or if anyone would want to read. I find myself thinking of things to blog about all the time. It has become a great outlet for my stress of law school and the mundane reading I have everyday.
Barrister's Ball was a huge success. We had a great time.
The band was amazing and the dance floor was packed.
Rather than going to Trio afterwards, we went to Wild Wings to see Homemade Wine. (seen here) If you have not checked them out, you need to. They are a great group of guys and they sound great.
Eddie and Heather
The ladies
Elizabeth, Nate, and THE corsage
Nate and I
Don't remember what was so funny...but anyway...
The corsage has become boutonnieres.
Anthony and I
Luke and Anthony
After partayyy
Please note that pictures go from pre-party to after-party. I was too occupied dancing that I didn't realize that my camera was on video rather than camera. Fail! Also, my screen is broke so I can't see what pictures look like afterwards. Again, fail! I am happy for everyone to collect funds to help me purchase a new one. ;-)
I got nothing accomplished on Saturday other than watching Soap marathons of One Tree Hill and 90210. I did have to get up and go to a wedding shower that was an hour away. It took so much effort, but I love my sorority sisters so I went. She got some great things for her kitchen. I can't wait for her wedding, though it is smack dab in the middle of my exams. Again, I love my seesters!
I have spent the better part of today in the lawbrary. I will apologize, now, if my post are sporadic from here until May 5th. It is exam prep time and I will be setting up camp in the brary. By camp, I mean 12 hour days in the Sol Blatt. Care packages of caffeine supplements, chocolate, and other goodies are welcome. But mostly, happy thoughts and positive MOJO are appreciated.
Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend and is ready for another week!
Twenty-something southern girl. 3L (third-year law student). Gamecock. Lover of college football and baseball. Parrothead. Fluent in sarcasm. Livin' my dream.
