ZiaAries wrote:myron myron wrote:
You're in law school?
Take my advice: don't do it.
Lawyers, at least American lawyers, have among the highest rates of alcohol and substance abuse of all the professions.
And I'm one of the reasons the rates are so high.
You NUT! It's not because of the profession. It may have something to do with the income that affords you to those 10 martini lunches. In the 80's, the lawyer's always had the best drugs . . . even better than musicians.
Too much moola + too much free time + a playful personality equals = substance abuse no matter what.
I won't dispute that I'm a nut, but I disagree that income is the reason lawyers have the highest rate of alcohol and substance abuse of all the professions. Investment bankers and bond traders have higher incomes than lawyers, yet they have lower rates of alcohol and substance abuse. I believe the main reasons are constant pressure, long hours and monotony -- though not in my case.
I've been a litigator for 20 years now, specializing in commercial, admiralty and construction disputes. To be honest, litigation does make and keep one's mind sharp and one's speech precise. My specialties have also required that I become well-versed in fields unrelated to law (e.g., engineering, medicine, naval and civil architecture, hydrodynamics, building construction, metallurgy, chemistry) in order to cross-examine at trial expert witnesses in specific areas of those fields.
So I know a lot about a lot of fields, which is cool. But much of this knowledge is useless after the case ends. Unfortunately, the human brain is not like a computer. You can't delete selected files and folders that you no longer need. My brain is now cluttered with useless knowledge. This is a burden.
For example, about 15 years ago I tried an admiralty case involving damage to a massive shipment of avocados that the cargo vessel did not properly refrigerate during the ocean voyage. The key issues were whether discoloration of the avocado evidences spoilage (which it does not) and whether an unspoiled but discolored avocado is unmarketable for making guacamole. The other side retained an agricultural expert specializing in avocados. In order to cross-examine the expert at trial, I had to learn everything about the avocado. And I mean everything. This knowledge has been useless in the 15 years since that case ended. Yet I still know everything about the F****** avocado -- but I can't make guacamole.
The only methods I know of to delete useless "files and folders" stored in the human brain are drugs and alcohol. And the process is very enjoyable. But these methods are not selective. They delete some good files too.
