Today was a beautiful, sunny day, which made Professional responsibility extra awkward.
Our professor brought in the head of the Minnesota chapter of Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers.
She gave us the “1 in 4 of you is going to be messed up so please get help” lecture that we got about five times last year.
Our PR class is in a smaller room with tiered seating. The window is in the back of the room.
Lawyer: “Lawyers are twice as likely to have a drinking problem as the general population – that’s 18% of you guys…”
Suddenly, we hear a super-loud crackle of lightening.
Lawyer: “Oh dear, it’s certainly coming down.”
Everyone turns around and looks at the Miami-style downpour. It was going to be a fun lecture…
…five minutes later.
Lawyer: “And prescription drug use is on the rise too! Law students are using Adderall to help them study, and it is basically speed –”
Another super-loud thunder roll which causes everyone to exchange the “oh my goodness” look usually reserved for sneezes-too-loud boy.
…ten minutes later.
Lawyer: “And lawyers are 3.6 times as likely to suffer from depression!”
(Super loud thunder, Zeus is speaking)
Lawyer: “Let me tell you some more attempted suicide-by-train stories!”
When I hobbled out of the law school it was sunny again… as if the law school figured out how to control the weather to underscore lectures.
If I was a prosecutor I’d want a thunderstorm to underscore the doom-and-gloom of my closing argument. “He’s going to kill again!” (crackle boom!)
4 Comments
David Schraub
July 23, 2009 at 10:42 pmI was at a summer debate institute (I know), and one of the lecturers was a Jesuit priest who happened to be an expert in, well, everything. He was giving a lecture on the structure of international relations, and had some line like “the world is changing. The old order is crumbling.” Right as he finishes saying it, *BOOM*, crack of thunder. Best timing ever. And he topped it — as everyone else is giggling nervously, he glances outside and up and just says “I guess I’m not the only one who thinks so.”
Jansen
July 23, 2009 at 11:20 pmHaha, I love it.
Amanda
July 25, 2009 at 11:54 amMy favorite part about all those “YOU WILL BECOME AN ALCOHOLIC AND COMMIT SUICIDE” lectures is that the next day, the law school shoves free booze at you while career services tells you your chances of being gainfully employed are ridiculous.
Jansen
July 25, 2009 at 4:32 pmWell said.