Five Things I've Learned Post-Bar

I know it's been a while. I apologize for the delay, and any excuse I throw out will ring hollow, because while I am busily job searching right now, I'm also performing some heavy light reading, leisurely workouts, and more reading. Being free from any immediate deadlines and crunches certainly has its advantages, but there's also an eerie calm in my life, which in my experience usually precedes a whirlwind of action, stress, and goal-launching. Still, while I'm in the calm, here are five things I've learned after the Bar exam. 1. The Sun Never Sets on Law & Order Literally. Like the Royal British Empire, there is an episode of L&O showing somewhere, on some channel, in some iteration--you know, Original, SVU, and Criminal Intent. I swear, Dick Wolf's brainchild is omnipresent. If you crave procedural crime dramas that follow the same basic plotlines time after time after time, this is your comfort food. And its available like Twinkies at a Scout Camp. 2. College Football Makes me Happy ...especially when the home town teams are doing so bleedingly well. Utah? Yeah. Getting all kinds of love from no less than Sports Illustrated. Undefeated, Sugar Bowl victory. Even got their time to shine on the floor of the Senate. This year is their chance to prove it wasn't a fluke. BYU? Already being lauded for having one of the best recruiting classes in the Nation (for 2010...), the Cougars are looking to stir things up as well, and could with an experienced offense and a pretty deep defense. USU? Well... they have a new coach! And they can only go up from here... To me, Fall Saturdays are not just fun, they sometimes take on a less-holy, more violently religious Sabbath-day aspect. In short, Fall Saturdays are sacrosanct, my friends. It's just--Football!!! XD 3. United States: "Race? What do you Mean?! I'm Colorblind, Man!" I kinda thought (and at least hoped) that we'd moved past the ugly racism of the early- and mid-20th century. At least into a light race-tension where everybody tried to get along. No. This Henry Louis-Gate incident pretty much mucked it up for everybody. For the record, both sides were at fault. For the best analysis of the whole snafu, here's the Daily Show (Warning, there are some bleeped out swear words for the more sensitive among us):

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Henry Louis-Gate - Race Card
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Spinal Tap Performance

4. Politics is Messy Yeah, I know. Duh, right? Well, consider this latest a lasting impression. The lady's mom is running for Mayor of Kaysville, and while I won't reveal the intimate details, icky, Dickensian villains are appearing near the margins trying to weasel, backstab, and ooze their way into positions of power. In Kaysville. City of Distinction. Population: 20,351 (2000 Census). You know the world is going to Hell when people in our great small towns start stooping to dirty politics to win city council and mayoral positions. Or maybe it's just business as usual. If it is, [sighs and puts head in hands] consider me a little more jaded than usual. 5. My Childhood is the Most Lucrative Thing Hollywood Ever Encountered Consider this: Of late, the hugest (sp?) movies of the year have capitalized on my childhood. To wit:

• Transformers 2 has made about a gazillion dollars in a month.
• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince made as much and should move even more money overseas in the coming months.
• GI JOE is coming out next week and should make about a bazillion dollars on its name alone, regardless of whether it sucks

Of the highest grossing films of 2010, most were based on Comic Book or Saturday Serial characters (or their archetypes) of my childhood:

• The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
• Iron Man
• Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
• Hancock
• Kung Fu Panda
• Batman Dark Knight

Some of the most anticipated movies coming up are:

• TRON 2 (Remember the light cycles? I have a t-shirt somewhere in my old closet), the sequel to the computer graphics touchstone film TRON.

• AVATAR, a movie based on, you guessed it, living in another fantasy world while breathing and eating in our own.

• District 9, a movie based on Apartheid, race relations, South Africa, and really cool stuff that blows up or moves fast.

In short, my childhood has directly resulted in Hollywood making more money than it ever has before. And I wonder if it's a direct result of my generation finally being the driving force behind the entertainment industry, or if we were just blessed with really, really cool shows and ideas in the early to mid 80s. Knowing Hollywood, I'd bet it's more of the former. They're nothing if not observant and willing to use whatever leverage they can to make a buck. I feel very validated now, thank you.