Happy Birthday Tyler

Today's my baby brother's 18th birthday. Wow. I remember when he was a chubby toddler, eating everything in sight. I remember when he was an energetic child, giving my sister and me a run for our money. I remember when he was ten, trying to show everyone how smart he is. I remember when he was a teenager, awkwardly hiding in everyone else's shadow. And now he's officially an adult. And soon he'll be a Marine. Every time I talk to him I'm surprised at his maturity, and this milestone is a big part of that.

Gee, I sound old. At least I didn't post this mush on his MySpace page! :)

Practicing ... for real?

This semester I'm doing a clinical, which means I'm getting 3 credits for working 15 hours a week at a legal services center in Jamaica Plain. I'm really excited about it, because it's really world experience: I get to represent actual clients, and do stuff for them, helping them realize their dreams. But I'm also incredibly frightened about it, because it's real world experience, and I'm representing real people, who are handing me their dreams to make happen. It's so scary. Yesterday I had my first client meeting, and it felt a little bit like a law school exam (which I guess makes sense - they probably design the exams to be a bit like real-world practice?). My client came in and told me all of the things he wants to do, and I was supposed to get all the information I needed to be able to sort those issues out, prioritize them, and begin to make it happen. EEK! An hour and a half later, I was sitting in front of my computer with my jumbled notes trying to write an intake memo, not knowing where to start!

I know it will get better, though; I already feel better about my work so far. I called a client yesterday all by myself, and took some papers to her house for her to sign. Small as that was, it was empowering...

Well this is really just a ramble so I can avoid working on the paper that is due on Monday. I should get on that, actually. :) As usual, please ignore any misspelled words or garbled phrasing.

Tooth Fairy

Some of you know that Bryan still has two baby teeth (lower front). His dentist told him he doesn't have adult teeth, so there's nothing to take their place. Lately one has been loose. Last night it was getting to be too painful so he pulled it. It's weird to say Bryan lost a baby tooth, at 24. :) But he did! We thought about putting the tooth under the pillow, but then we figured it would just fall out and Nino would get it before the tooth fairy came to take it away. And then Nino would try to eat it, and it would be bad. So we threw it away. So no cash under the pillow last night. But it really took us both back to when we were eight years old! :)