100 Days Later
(Okay, 102 days later. But that just doesn't sound as good.)

December was rough. I took no days off and worked on Christmas morning on a pro bono deal with many, many side-splitting moments, like when the the senior lender's counsel said in a conference call (from her hotel room in the Caribbean): "This is in PLAIN. ENGLISH. We are DONE negotiating. We are DONE. DONE. DONE. That's in PLAIN. ENGLISH," and a few minutes later said to me: "You're, like, a first year, hk. Where's [Partner]? Where's [Senior Associate]?"

I replied, "They're out of the office." (And on vacation, I silently added, leaving me to close the deal by myself.)

January slowed down considerably. For everyone. Except the bankruptcy lawyers, I guess. Banks are hurting, ergo, the bankers' bitches (that would be moi) hurt too. A firm or two laid off lawyers in the same field I'm currently rotating through.

February was also pretty slow. As a junior associate, I got put on some corporate support deals as a "specialist," which means that the corporate people don't tell me what's going on and then all of a sudden demand comments and reports by, like, yesterday. Okay, I'm exaggerating a little. The way people complain in my group sometimes, you'd think we were being asked to move a mountain with a teaspoon. Sometimes the corporate peeps are pushy and demanding, but sometimes the clients are too. Hey. That's why they pay us the big bucks, yo.

Overall, life at my firm ain't so bad. It's stressful when the partner reviews your shit and says you need to do this and you need to that. But as long as he doesn't hold it against me, I don't hold it against him -- I need to learn and he needs to teach me. It's stressful when you don't know what the hell you're doing and you're the last one in the office and there's no one to ask. But I'm a baby lawyer, and I can't be expected to do things perfectly. I just do the best I can with the resources I have.

It's strange knowing that I have started my legal career in a market downturn. Mathgirl tells me of associates at her firm who were coming in at 11 and leaving at 3 in the fall, because there wasn't any work to do. I wonder about job security. So far, my firm has chosen to move people to different offices rather than let anyone go. Having offices and clients that are not exclusive to the U.S. is an advantage.

Today, I'm working at home (the first weekend in three that I've worked at all), in my pajamas, trying to keep hydrated (head cold). Back to work, then.
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