What my blog post means...

So while talking to my mom today it occurred to me that many of you might not get what the big deal of writing for the Social Media Law Student blog. So let me put it to you this way...

The Social Media Law Student blog has received accolades from the Wall Street Journal, The American Bar Association Tech Show, was featured in an issue of the American Bar Association's magazine as a Law Firm Website that Worked, was also featured in Alltop and has won several awards. The number of people who subscribe to the blog's feed is 4,227. (Grandma, think of it like 4,227 people read this blog like a newspaper each day with their morning coffee.) Additionally, the website has over 71,000 followers on Twitter - that means 71,000 people are waiting to see what the contributors of the blog will write on a daily basis. Sounds pretty crazy, right? This blog post has increased the number of twitter followers I have by nearly 40% - which is amazing. That means for every new follower I have, I have more options for networking, meeting new people in my field of work and making new friends. It's a win, win situation. Don't you think?

Now maybe that will put into perspective why I am so ecstatic about my post on their blog. I hope you all will read it!!! Thank you for reading!

My Take on Creative Commons

Here's the link to my article on the Creative Commons on Social Media Law Student. (It's the lead article!) I hope you will comment and tell me what you all think!

Thanks for reading!

Fingers Crossed

I've been the worst student on the face of the planet this weekend. Literally my Evidence book has been giving me the evil eye all weekend and I've been slow to read anything. But besides being a horrible student, I've managed to submit my first post for review at www.socialmedialawstudent.com - it should be posted tomorrow hopefully. *Fingers Crossed*

On that note, I think I should do some Copyright and Trademark reading before I really regret not cracking my books sooner. It's nearly 11 pm and I'm still only finished reading for one class out of three for tomorrow. (This is the point where I'll curl up in bed and read - no more proscratinating!)

Growing Through Blogging

Now that law school is back in full fledged I have to admit I feel a lot more prepared for what's ahead of me as a 2L than a 1L. I have even found time to do some pleasure reading and some independent research on Copyrights and Privacy. I met with my friend and mentor, John Merritt, on Friday to discuss the law and social media. We talked for four hours in Caribou Coffee and I realized how he's a lot like my muse. He helps me organize my thoughts on law so that it's not boring or overly stuffy. He's helping me get ideas for my next blog posts on Social Media Law Student and relate the law back to the everyday business person, twitter follower, stay-at-home mom, etc.

The first and foremost thing when writing any blog post is to know your audience. It's one thing to do tons of research only to realize your audience can't relate and doesn't want to read your blog posts. For example, I began writing this blog to keep my friends and family informed on my daily life while in college. Now, I'm 22 and in law school and my focus of this blog has somewhat shifted. Instead of writing about friends I made and football games, I want to write about topics that make me think. This is both good and bad because my audience expects me to write about my daily happenings (funny people I met in line at the grocery store, riding around on the El and getting lost but finding my way), when I want to write about law, social media, people influencing the world and theories that shape my mind. So I think I am going to re-gear this blog towards both. A little bit of my daily life in Chicago and a little bit of my rants, raves, theories on life, law, social media, and the world we live in.

I have to admit, I love how this blog has evolved. I was looking back at some of my posts from my freshmen year of college and my senior year of high school and I realized how much I have grown, matured, and become a different person. I really love that I kept track of so much of my personal life on the pages of this blog because it reminds me of where I came from, who I am and what my goals are in life. If anyone doubts or wonders the kind my upbringing, who I am or where I come from - this is an open record of my life - the good, the bad and the hilarious.

I was reading back through my blog and groaned at some of the things I wrote about. I wondered if maybe I should delete those posts or make them private so nobody could read them again - or rather, nobody had to read them again. But then I realized deleting those posts would counteract my personal purpose for writing this blog - to learn from my mistakes, laugh at my trivial worries, and be proud of my triumphs. I'm not perfect and I don't claim to be, but I can, will and do learn from my mishaps, my encounters, the people who surround me and the life I lead.

[caption id="attachment_655" align="aligncenter" width="225" caption="Having fun at Plymouth Bar and Grill after the first week of 2L year"][/caption]

A Bit of News...

I am now a writer for Rex Gradeless's Social Media Law Student blog - my first topic is on....(drum roll please) Creative Commons. Currently I have a few people reviewing my material and I'm super excited to write a short, but sweet and information filled article about Creative Commons and the law. :)

My friend, Huma Rashid, has also signed up to be a writer! Yay! I can't wait to read what she writes about especially because I love reading her personal blog!

Library Dwelling Rules for 1L's

Because I practically live in the library during the school year, I often eat lunch in the library. As a result, I have found that it's far less rude to crumple up your paper bag that once held your lunch quickly and loudly rather than slowly, painfully and with great annoyance by those around you.

I've also found that it's customary to sit at least one seat away from the person sitting next to you at a library table.

You should whisper quietly and take all phone conversations into the hallway. If you're listening to music, make sure YOU are the only one listening. (blaring your Britney Spears Greatest Hits Album for everyone to hear is rude.)

Clear out cubicles and carrols when you are done using them. There is nothing worse than someone who sets up shop in one and refuses to share.

If you decide to sleep on one of the 6th floor sofas, try not to snore, wipe up any drool when you're done and the rest of is will promise not to wake you unless it's for class or something super urgent.

And last but not least, if you're a loud typist, don't get upset when we make up nicknames for you and say them to your face. You don't have to bang on your keyboard to write.

2L Day 2

Embarked on my second day of law school today and to my surprise it all went pretty smoothly. I was able to sleep in and enjoy the comforts of 2L life without any hiccups. Made it to class, avoided getting called on and then headed to Borders for a copy of Lawrence Lessig's Free Culture and Remix (both of which are available for free to download on his website). Lawrence Lessig is the creator of Creative Commons and an interesting read for any student of Copyright and Trademark law. He makes some interesting arguments surrounding the life of a copyright, free access vs. creator rights argument.

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You're probably wondering why I am switching blog sites again. Well, to be honest, I really was getting annoyed with some of the features of Blogger and couldn't stand that I couldn't update my blog from anywhere with iWeb - so I am going to try out WordPress - which doesn't mean I won't just switch back in a few months. Don't hate me. I try to be consistent, but curiosity often gets the best of me.

On that note, I love blogging and I want to be able to do it from anywhere (my iPhone, the library, a friend's computer, etc.) The idea of having to wait until I am sitting at my Macbook just frustrates me and the idea of posting on Blogger frustrates me even more. Don't misunderstand me, I love many of the features of Blogger, but I have the photo posting formatting. I'm a stickler for formatting - as you'd know if you've ever borrowed notes from me or seen me mapping out a flow chart.

Did I ever mention I was a flow chart addict? I think flow charts are a great way to visualize the big pictures without having to know all the details. My greatest recommendation to any incoming law student is to know what your strengths are and to stick with them. My greatest strength is "big picture" flow charts. I'll post some of my favorite charts that I learned the most from later.

Additionally, I also find the CALI lessons extremely helpful for broad knowledge, not so much in depth knowledge. I like to take the CALI quizzes after outlining a section to see what I've learned from outlining. By the way, an outline is exactly that - an outline of the entire course that law students make before finals to study all the rules, cases, etc. of a subject. Ok, at this point I'm realizing this post lacks a lot of focus. It's a little bit too late to be writing. I'll focus my thoughts and save them for another post. Needless to say, I had a great day 2 of my 2L career!