The Killers

So I've been listening to The Killers' new album, Day & Age. I am blown away by it. All of it. I don't really understand the meaning of any of the lyrics--they are out there, but the music is awesome and Brandon Flowers sounds amazing as always. Buy it. Get it. Got it? Good. Play it over and over again for days on end.

This is what I usually do with my music. I find a few good songs that I fall in love with, and they play non stop for roughly 3 months. Is that obsessive or what? Though, I am discovering that more and more people do this. Is this an American problem? Is it an Asian problem? Is it a problem with societies across the globe?! Who knows?! But I'm not going to stop!

Resolutions

Wow, two blog posts in two days! That's a record!

I don't think I've ever written a list of resolutions before, so let's see how this goes. These are in no particular order.

-Get an affordable apartment, or at least my own room.

-Do $250k in Sales for Nova

-Go to FHE consistently

-Be better at paying tithing right away

-Win a kicboxing match at 130lbs

-Win MMA at 130lbs

-Put myself in a position to start dating long term

-Read through the Bible, Book of Mormon, and D&C from cover to cover

-Run 20 minutes every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday.

-Get 10 consistent ladies signed up for my Women's MMA class

-Be better at skimboarding

-Catch a wave on a surf board without falling off.

I think that's well rounded in work/social/physical/spiritual. Right? Let's see how this goes!

2008

So, I stink at this blogging thing. At some point, I may attempt to try to play 'catch up.' But let's not bank on it.

I feel that 2008 was an eventful year both for myself and the world. Here are my most memorable moments of 2008:

January-Moved back home after graduating from UW. I remember picking my stuff up in Seattle right after I got back from Christmas (2007) in Iowa. I also started my paralegal certificate at Skagit because I thought working in a law office would be easy.

February: I started working at Best Buy and a law office. And going to school at night. And I became public affairs of the paralegal club. And the activities coordinator at church.

March: I think I had some sort of a spring break or something. I met up with a few old friends.

April/May: long months! I was still busy doing all that stuff! I think I went on 2 dates as well. Lovelynn and Jason got married.

June: Walked in my UW graduation, finished working at Best Buy and the Law Office, finished the paralegal thing.

July: Moved to California.

August: Got a job at Nova.

September: Started kickboxing. Worked on Prop 8 stuff. Went to Vegas for the first time, broke even.

October: Joined the Fil-Am Republican Association of Los Angeles. Subscribed to a chiropractor.

November: Spoke at the Beverly Hills Country Club for Prop 8. Voted yes on Prop 8 and for McCain/Palin, but wasn't shocked when Obama won. Celebrated Savannah's 2nd birthday, got to see my parents and my brother in Arizona. Spent Thanksgiving in California.

December: Survived layoffs at work. Home for Christmas!

I'd have to look up the exact dates, but at some point, Elisha went on her mission to Spain, Megan went to Argentina, Sam came back from Siberia, and Carl returned from Norway.

I didn't blog in October?!

Man October was such a crazy month!

Work (as in my 8-5 job) is getting more comfortable, but also a little stressful because of the market and whatnot. However, it has also gotten 10x more fun.

I go to see my chiropractor Dr Bazil 3 times a week. I feel so much more healthy!

I'm fighting on December 6.

I'm making a commercial for Bend n Stretch. Pics coming soon!

I've decided to run for congress. Sometime.

I'm going to be a fight promoter.

We're going to win Prop 8.

I think McCain will win, too.

I still don't have an apartment.

I get to see my whole family this Friday!

I have a cold right now, but other than that, I love life.

Update! Random Thoughts

Ok, a lot has happened! And I apologize for the lack of proficient blogging, but a quick update will have to suffice. And these are in no sensible order:

-My job is still pretty fun. It's not everything I ever hoped for, but it keeps me busy (and not just busy work, but real work) and I find new ways to challenge myself everyday and contribute to the overall company in meaningful ways. I also have fun with my coworkers. A group of us have been eating lunch together every day for like 2 weeks now, and it's my favorite part of my working day.

-I started going to Elite MMA, and they have offered for me to join their fight team, get sponsored, and teach there. I also have some other opportunities with them that I will yet reveal until it's official. My coaches there are Steve Rodarte and Sonny Hughes.

-I'm still working on the Proposition 8 campaign, which has proved challenging, yet rewarding. It's interesting to see that while our country preaches freedom of religion, religions are prohibited from practicing politics. Even more interesting is that freedom -for- religions get stricken down by politicians, who suffer no recourse from religious institutions because of the 'tax exempt' rule.

-I suffered from a bout of Glory-day syndrome. For those of you that don't know...that's a term in the athletic/fighting world that pertains to fighters/athletes who used to be really good, and then somehow got out of their grove, lost it, and then try to make a comeback. I figured there was no point in reminiscing about the old days, or how things used to be, so I quickly got over it and am enjoying starting my new life down here. I think living in the past is extremely detrimental to your present and future.

-A quote from RS today, "You may have the faith to move mountains, but don't be surprised when God hands you the shovel."

-I watched Dr Horrible's Sing Along Blog. My favorite songs are A Man's Gotta Do, and On The Rise.

Best musical since Jesus Christ Superstar.

Employment! (but not fame...or a lot of wealth for that matter)

Finally, after 7 weeks, probably about 200 emails and random applications, and 8 interviews (2 of which were complete scams..) I got a job!

It's with a pretty cool company with a lot of room for growth. It's a high-end lamp company. They have offices internationally, but LA is their main office. Everyone is super friendly, and I found out I got it yesterday, which is the same day I interviewed as well. I'm just doing customer service and project management at first, but I have room to grow into sales and business development in a year too. It's a really nice office, but it happens to be in the 'almost' ghetto, bordering the Compton area. Basically, if I ever get lost on my way to work, I will be shot. But it's the trade-off I have accepted.

Now I'm on the search for an apartment to live in. Which will be tricky. With prices here, and what I'm making, after all my bills and whatever, I will have about $100 left over. So much for being filthy rich!

Grr blogging

Ok, I should blog more, I know. I also realize that not everyone likes to read about politics. So I might start a second blog only for my political rants, and export all of these political blogs over there, and I'll keep this blog for my fun stuff. Like my adventures with rattlesnakes. And being on the verge of death in Compton. Or my application process for the LA Sheriff's Dept. And what about getting hired as director of an MMA program at a super ritzy gym in souther Orange County.

Yeah. I'm in over my head.

But check out how cute my niece is!


(Don't judge--Kortney made me watch High School Musical, and I kind of like the music...)

McCain, Bush, Obama, Russia, Georgia

I made the following comment to this post:
Have you read Obama's speech? He probably does not even know where Georgia is on a map. McCain has been to Georgia. McCain also immediately knew to condemn Russia, and support Georgia, who has the 3rd largest presence in Iraq, with 2000 troops. Obama probably didn't know that, and condemned both Russia and Georgia because he doesn't know crap about foreign policy.

The US transported all Georgian forces in Iraq back to Georgia to fight in their own country. The US is now shifting troops in Iraq to account for all the work that the Georgians have been doing, which has mainly been confined to border security between Iraq and Iran.

Obama is a fascist liberal, who wants to control when you work, how you eat, what you drive, and how you heat your home. Obama is a weak, naive, and an elitist snob.

Obama portrayed himself in the race between His Holy Oneness and Hillary, as more liberal. Now he is against McCain, and he changes his website to be more centrist. He spoke all presidential when it came to Iraq before he even went there.

And don't complain that McCain is acting like he's already President, he didn't make himself a Presidential Seal like Obama did.

Also, don't complain about McCain being similar to Bush. McCain voted against Bush's oil energy plan. Obama voted for it.

Obama gets more money from employees of oil companies than McCain does. Look it up.

You're boy Obama is a liar.

GOP Leadership

Pelosi and her Democrat friends refused to address the energy crisis today, closing up shop early and refusing to vote on off-shore drilling. Off-shore drilling is a measurable and tangible solution to the energy crisis that we are experiencing. Funny thing is, Democrats probably complain most about high gas prices, but are doing the least to address it.

House Republicans decided they would not leave America "in the dark." The democrat's solution to the energy debate was merely turning off the lights on the Republicans, who refused to leave.

It should be noted that democrats were not only going home for the weekend, rather, they were leaving on a 5-week vacation.

The democrats left America's energy crisis for another 5 weeks. They did not even work a full day today--they adjourned the meeting at 11:30am. Republicans, who have more respect for taxpayer money, stayed with microphones off, lights out, and c-span cameras off until 5pm.

They held their one-sided debate, addressing the real need of alternative fuel sources for the entirety of the day, and at the end of the day, they banded together and sang God Bless America and cheered "USA!!"

This is a day to remember. As Conservatives, we all need to band together and question democrats. Why would they only work half a work-day before going on a 5-week vacation? Most Americans cannot even take a 5 week vacation. Most Americans, when taking a 4 DAY vacation, have to put in an obnoxious amount of overtime before departure from their workstations. Why would they leave in such a time of 'crisis.' Crisis, by the way, is a widely used democrat term.

Inevitably, this will be hailed by democrats as a political stunt, or a temper tantrum. No, this was GOP leadership, and they showed that they put America first.

In California

Got in last night at 1:16am.  Looong drive.  My computer is still broke.  Tori's sister Kortney is taking a cake baking class-- I am reaping the benefits.  Anyways, we'll upload the pictures and videos later. 

Peace.

Things That Make Me Puke

From bamainbetween.blogspot.com, I bring to all of you, the most disturbing quote of the week (and it's only Monday) :

"Jessica Simpson might have a right to wear what she wants, but she doesn't have a right to eat what she wants – eating meat is about suffering and death. Some people feel like they are standing up against a tide of political correctness when they make a statement like this – what she is really doing is standing up for the status quo." (Alistair Currie, PETA spokewoman)

Jessica Simpson was wearing a shirt that said "Real girls eat meat," by the way. It wasn't "real girls eat dead babies," or "real girls eat bald eagles." It was just straight up, grade-a meat. PETA

The UN climate change committee also decreased in intelligence, which I didn't think possible. They said that in order to combat global warming, everyone should go vegetarian.

I'm not sure what's worse, this, or presidential nominee Barack Obama saying that we can't drive SUVs, eat the food we want, or heat our homes when he's president.

Remember how America is suppose to be the land of the free?

Road Trip to the Future

So, I'm leaving on July 7 to go play in California. I am not completely sure what I'll end up doing down there, but my goal is to become rich and famous. Right now, reality tv shows are hot. My good friend Tori and I have decided to make a reality show out of our simple quest. I'm not saying we'll be on any cable networks in the next few months or anything, but we will certainly be taking over YouTube. Also, our funding is nil at the moment, and we are not opposed to including advertising in our adventures. If you are a large corporation, LP, LLC, LLP, or sole proprieter, please feel free to contact me at cmtrost@gmail.com to make a lucrative donation to our cause. You won't regret it.

Ugggh!

I'm having computer issues. This deeply saddens me, because I love my mac, yet I'm really flustered with it right now. Especially because I don't even know what's wrong with it.

So, no posting for me for a couple days.

Freedom vs. Equality

I’ve recently come to the real reason for hatred between conservatives and liberals. The arguments about big government, taxes, illegal immigration, affirmative action, healthcare, privatization, social programs, etc., all stem from internal beliefs regarding freedom and equality. Conservatives would rather have freedom, while liberals would rather have equality. Obviously, governments get in the way of freedom, but can be strong agents in trying to bring about equality.

Freedom hinges on: capitalism/free markets, democracy, innovation, peace, wealth, discrimination based on merits, inequality. Means: hard work. Ends: attainable.

How much does freedom create inequality?
Inequality has always existed. It will always exist. There have always been haves and have nots. Some people are smarter than others. Some are stronger than others. Some people are blind, and others are deaf. The government tries to fight these 'gross inequalities' by throwing money at problems that can't be solved.

Equality hinges on: socialism, communism, fascism, discrimination based on race and gender, and ideas. Means: infringe on freedom. Ends: unattainable. (Did I just give equality unequal treatment?)

How much does equality suffocate freedom?
Example: government-sponsored healthcare. Government says they will provide healthcare for all. Everyone gets equally crappy healthcare. Though the rich can afford to pay for better healthcare, they are not allowed to pursue such care because well, that would be unfair for the poor people if the rich could, you know, spend their money.

Why can’t we still work towards equality?
I’ll let John Adams do the talking here:
“Are the citizens to be all of the same age, sex, size, strength, stature, activity, courage, hardiness, industry, patience, ingenuity, wealth, knowledge, fame, wit, temperance, constancy, and wisdom? Was there, or will there ever be, a nation, whose individuals were all equal, in natural and acquired qualities, in virtues, talents, and riches? The answer of all mankind must be in the negative. It must then be acknowledged, that in every state...there are inequalities which God and nature have planted there, and which no human legislator ever can eradicate.”


And here’s a scary thought: What if we let our freedoms go, and the government really did achieve stable, financial freedom for all. What would they equalize next? Do you think they would really stop with money? What would they do to people who are stronger, or taller, or prettier? Am I going to far? Is this a slippery slope idea that would never happen? I’m not speculating or anything, but I remember there was one this guy named Adolf who came pretty close to killing everyone that wasn’t like him.


Is there a happy medium?
Yeah. The government needs to give everyone equal opportunity to succeed or fail. The government needs to intervene equally in everyone life. People own the government; the governments don’t own the people. The government’s job is to be an administrator of justice, and should apply punishment to those citizens whose freedom infringes upon another citizen’s freedom.

That was my sarcastic, albeit true, response. Here's something to chew on: Maybe freedom can actually promote equality. Maybe the rich would benefit from giving to charity, helping the poor, or even throw money at eradicating disease. No one told Bill Gates that he had to start up the Gates Foundation. Maybe if people had more money, they would spend more money. And maybe some of that spending would go towards creating a 'more equal' world without forcing the government to force the people to be less free. But that's just me assuming that people have good intentions and generally like to be happy.


But the Constitution says we are all equal!!!

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal…

John Adams, who helped to write the Constitution, says this:
That all men are born to equal rights is clear. Every being has a right to his own, as clear, as moral, as sacred, as any other being has. This is as indubitable as a moral government in the universe. But to teach that all men are born with equal powers and faculties, to equal influence in society, to equal property and advantages through life, is as gross a fraud, as glaring an imposition on the credulity of the people, as ever was practiced by monks, by Druids, by Brahmins, by priests of the immortal Lama, or by the self-styled philosophers of the French revolution. For honor's sake ... for truth and virtue's sake, let American philosophers and politicians despise it.

1. Freedom is more attainable than equality.
2. Freedom does more to promote equality than equality does to promote freedom.
3. Our nation is built on freedom and justice.
4. Pursue your happiness, don't wait for the government to give it to you.

Things That Matter

As you all may or may not know, things are changing for me. In the past 6 months, I've graduated from the UW, held dodwn 2 jobs and took 37 credits of post-bach paralegal courses. I've been to Iowa and back, gone on a lot of dates with a lot of awesome guys, and I temporarily moved back in with my parents. 2 of my friends have left on missions, and almost 2 are returning. I got my car broken into right before finals week, and I'm coordinating my move down to California on July 7.

I will admit, I have not been doing the things I know I should be doing consistently, and I have definitely engaged in activities that I know are never acceptable. However, that doesn't disqualify me from being able to think reasonably. Today, I was thinking about things in life that really, honestly, matter.

I don't think anyone will dispute that family matters. Family matters the most. The stability (such a vague term..) and happiness of your family should be everyone's number one concern. Hand in hand with this is religious beliefs. Whatever religion is yours, make sure that you practice it consistently, and that it 1- brings you closer to God, and 2-brings your family closer together.

Family is a given. I want to address everything else that matters. I used to think that only family and religion mattered. I have come to realize that families are enriched by experiences that happen both within the family and outside the family. Surely, people are not influenced by only their family and church. Some of these influences include friends and education. This is what I'd like to address.

Somewhere, at some point in time, someone or something made me think that friends were dispensible because they weren't completely dependable. Friends come and go, so why put a lot of effort into building friendships? Just have a couple good friends that you can count on--that's all I could expect out of them.

That is completely false life-doctrine! Friends rock! I have had so many awesome friends, I don't know why I ever thought that they didn't matter in life. As far as i am concerned, my happiness outside the family is contingent upon how many rich relationships I have with my friends. And I am so very thankful for every friend that I have, no matter what the relationship is.

Another thing that really matters in life is education. But I'm not talking degrees, or certificates, awards, honors, or academic prestige. I'm talking about real learning experiences. I think everyone should go to college. I don't care what college it is, pick one and go to it. It doesn't even matter too much if you get a degree, or what degree you get. Just have the experience of meeting new friends, doing things you can only do at a school, networking, et cetera. Have the experience of getting an A. Have the experience of getting an F. And if you do manage to graduate, realize that your degree basically means nothing. Having BA, BS, MA, MS, JD or PhD on your diploma will not get you a job. YOU will get yourself a job because of what you have chosen to do with your life, both inside and outside of school. Sure, these initials are important, but they are only important because a lot of people have gone out of their way to stand up and make it important. Go out of your way and prove that you are worth something, even without the intitials. School may not be for you, but education and experience is.

One last thing on my short list of things that matter is belief. I like politics because it categorizes everything that's wrong with the world. I am conservative because I believe freedom is greater than equality, unlike liberals who believe opposite. Both liberals and conservatives need to viciously defend what they believe in, or else good ideas will cease to exist. Going along with this, my friend Isaac sent me a quote by John Stuart Mill:

"The person who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself."

So whatever you believe regarding anything like politics, religion, pudding, food, tv shows...be passionate about it. Passion matters.


Recap: Things that matter-
Family, friends, education, passion.

An Open Letter

To the person who broke into my car:



1. I saw you, you were tall and dressed in black. Little do you know, my office is located directly above the parking lot and I have a clear view of my car.

2. You took my car charger and my ipod FM transmitter, but you failed to take my iPod. I just want to know if you were stopped by my picture of Jesus, staring at you; or, because you failed to check the center console.




3. I'm not worried about those things, or the fact that you shattered my window. I'm more curious as to why you decided to take my backpack, that was filled with boring paralegal text books like "Wills, Estate, and Probate", "Family Law" and "Legal Research and Writing." Is it really because you wanted to screw someone over during finals week? Really? No, seriously. Really?

4. I will give you two days to contact me and return my backpack and it's contents in it to me. Go through my file folder, you have my name, address and phone number. It's in the back pouch--I have my resume back there. Feel free to keep a copy.

5. I work for a defense attorney, and I'm all about justice and giving second chances. Two days, I think I'm being fair.

6. Also, the attending officer dusted my car for finger prints and we were able to track that down.

7. And really, out of all the days you had to break into my car in the last 5 months, you chose the day summer day that was the most windy and rainy. Do you not realize that I had to drive back to OAK HARBOR with torrential rain pouring down at a sideways angle into my broken window that was only covered with two trashbags and 3M duct tape? I don't think you meant to target me, but if you did, I applaud you. That was good.

8. They also installed cameras in the parking lot last week. The chances of you getting caught are extremely against your odds. Let's just be civil about this, I have a final exam on Thursday, and I'd like my bag back by then.

You were sitting right here at one point.


You know my name.

PS: This is what I do to people who piss me off:

Memorial Day - I Want to be a farmer

Apologies for the delay in the blog update. Finals, projects, work, and the like got in my way.

I had the best Memorial day this year. I wanted to write about it earlier, but I didn't have pictures to back up my story. However, Tom posted pictures and e-mailed me a few more. Now I can adequately blog.

Let me start off by doing a bit of a shout out from last year's Memorial day. Last year I went to Moses Lake with some friends: Tori, Chris, Emily, Jonny, Suzy, and Becky-May. It was the first time I really spent time in eastern Washington. I got some good insights into the farm life. Emily's dad taught us how to syphon water, we learned that water circles can send text messages, and Emily's grandpa gave us hand made wooden bowls. We also played a lot of card games and tormented Tori for some secret reason. Also, Emily's brother Marshall proved to us that he is the nicest 15-year old boy we will ever meet. I was impressed with my eastern Washington visit.

This year, eastern Washington proved to be even more impressive--which I didn't think was possible. Elisha invited us out to her farm in Royal City. Elisha is getting ready to go on a mission to Spain--she leaves in 3 days!!! Anyways, I was not able to get out there until Sunday night, but I had enough fun in 24 hours to last me a lifetime.

I arrived at about 10pm--I couldn't leave Oak Harbor until after church (we have the 1-4 block) because I had an activity I was in charge of--and it went well, no worries!

I made sure to bring with me my PS2 and my 3 SingStar karaoke games. I am a huge karaoke fan. Being Filipino, it's in my blood. I didn't know how everyone else would react to it, but it was receieved well. Tom, Stephen, Elisha, Elisha's dad, and her 2 younger brothers and her younger sister all joined in on the fun. We sang until roughly 2 a.m.


We then finished the night relaxing in the hottub, but the mosquitos were our downfall, and we got back in the house pretty quick.

The next morning, we went to an Allred traditional breakfast at her uncle's house. The following reasons have lead me to believe that farmers are rich:
1-they had the biggest house I've ever been in, and land beyond the eye's reach.
2-they had their own playground and basketball court
3-they had a 'beach' volleyball court
4-they had their own "pond"(it was actually a man made lake) with a zipline, a 3 platform rope swing, and a diving board. Here is Tom jumping off the ropeswing:



It was awesome.

We then went back to Elisha's, got on some four wheelers, and went to her potato storage warehouse. I have never seen so many potatoes in my whole life. If someone put a gun to my head and told me to accurately guess the number of potatoes that were in that warehouse without going over the actual amount, I would comfortably guess 1 million.

I also got to go shotgun shooting for the first time, and I felt pretty much awesome. I think this is a hobby I'd like to develop:



Next, we went 4-wheeling for about 4 hours. It was awesome. We went on the streets of Royal City, up to speeds of 50 mph, and we were on gravel roads, and eventually we went through the sagebrush and up Saddle Mountain. I was in the back most of the time because I had sunglasses to protect from the dirt. This explains why I am covered in dirt.

Here is a picture of us on top of Saddle Mountain, right before the rain hit us for our ride back:





So, I biffed it a couple times, but not enough to sustain any actual injuries. Last time I was at Elisha's, I drove that tractor in the background. More importantly, I rode the horse pictured here, and subsequently injured my foot. I don't know what the problem was, but it was bruised badly, and I fell off in June-ish, and it didn't stop hurting until November.




All in all, it was a WONDERFUL weekend. Thanks Elisha, for having us over to your amazing farm, and good luck on your mission!!

Since Democrats Gained Majority

I often contemplate on the state of our country. Ever since Nancy Pelosi and crew have taken over, things have generally gone to crap, namely the economy. Sure, things mayber were slowing down while the Republicans were in charge, but I'd say they had a pretty good handle on most problems. They were working to prevent the housing crisis, the economy, and taxes in general. Gas did it's yearly jump in the summer, but it was the usual course of business. But since the Democrats started messing with things...I mean, it's pretty self explanatory. I don't understand how people haven't picked up on it before. More to come!

Paralegals

Being a new paralegal is extremely frustrating. Being a paralegal in general has been refered to as "perpetual frustration" by lawyers who used to be paralegals. Right now, I'm working at a very small office. My attorney has a lot of patience for me, thank goodness. Right now, I'm writing an article for the SVC Paralegal newsletter that I'm in charge of. Writing this article has made me realize that while the trek may be difficult right now, it will eventually be extremely rewarding. Here's the article, in it's first draft--you'll have to get the newsletter to see the final product:

At this years Second Annual paralegal luncheon, Skagit Valley Paralegal Program students were privileged to hear from Stacy Unquist and her journey through the program and into her career as a paralegal.
Stacy emphasized that while the journey was never easy, it was always rewarding.

In small towns with small firms, it is not uncommon to have one paralegal for every two lawyers—some lawyers practice without a paralegal. Some lawyers only have one secretary to manage the phones, schedules, and bills. The small volume of clients that the firm deals with allows the attorney to be incredibly self-sufficient. Not only do they know the ins and outs of the law, but they also can have addresses, phone numbers, and even client birthdates memorized. A new paralegal working at such an office can expect to have to ‘prove’ not only their personal skills, but the value of having a paralegal as well.

The task is daunting. In larger offices, it may not be so bad—the attorney may have a wide array of support staff and has realized the benefits of having a paralegal. A new paralegal in a large office only has to prove his or her skills, and not skills of paralegals around the world. Within a large office, paralegals compete among each other for promotions, overtime, or autonomy in general. In a smaller office, the lonesome paralegal competes against his or her boss—the attorney—for that chance to shine.

Like any career, in order to be proficient in what you do, starting from the bottom and working up to the top has its value. In larger firms, like Perkins-Coie in Seattle, a brand new paralegal would likely start off in the records department taking care of file organization. In a smaller office, filing, answering the phones, and drafting plain and generic pleadings such as Notices of Appearance would be some of the main functions of a new paralegal—well before interviews, intakes, or declarations become part of the daily routine.



As simple as the ‘rookie’ tasks may seem, everyone is bound to make mistakes. The learning curve is long and difficult. However, the consensus from experienced paralegals seems to be that the more days go by, the easier learning becomes. After the initial learning curve has passed, law office efficiency and actual paralegal expertise increases exponentially. Getting past the learning curve is different and difficult for everyone, regardless of how many classes one has taken as a paralegal. However, the rate at which one excels as a paralegal after the learning curve is directly related to the knowledge and training one has received as a paralegal. In the Skagit Valley Paralegal Program, students skip the lessons that can only be learned at work. This is why everyone is required to do an internship—these lessons can only be learned on the job. However, after the learning curve is passed, students can more effectively apply what they’ve learned in class—interviewing, investigating, legal research, drafting briefs, etc. Taking ABA approved classes will help paralegals become professionals at a much higher rate.

Stacy was a waitress, and had been out of school for nine years before she decided to go back to Skagit Valley College and get her Paralegal degree. Now, she works for a successful local law firm and can be seen presenting orders ex parte in open court.

McCain slams Obama

So if it seems like I'm picking on Obama, I am.

John McCain is not as charismatic, young, or as conservative as I'd like, but he is smart. And he does kick butt. And he's not a panzy. I cannot wait for a debate between McCain and Obama.

My favorite part about this video is when McCain quotes Obama to embarress him. Oh, and also when he points out that Obama would more readily meet with Ahmedinejad than General Patraeus. But then again, I also loved when McCain pointed out that Obama is in charge of the sub-committee that is responsible for holding progress hearings on Afghanistan, but has not called for a single meeting thus far.