Let the Law School Search Begin

I know I haven't taken the LSAT yet. I know that I have no idea what schools might even be interested in accepting me but I have decided to investigate as many as possible regardless of what they might decide to do with my application in October. So, my investigation began yesterday with BYU's J. Reuben Clark Law School. Despite a desire to study outside of Utah for law school, my future desire to work in Utah forces me to highly consider the two law schools here in the state. BYU's law school was first to be visited and rightly so as it was my top choice out of the two based upon what I have read about the two Utah law schools. However, the University of Utah's S.J. Quinney College of Law might be interested to know that I was not thoroughly impressed with what I saw when I visited "the Lord's university."

Yesterday I was in Provo for the Stadium of Fire and we had arrived early for a dress rehearsal that my brother had to participate in due to him being part of the 260 Eagle Scout's that received their Eagle badge at the event. So, I decided to stroll over to the law school to check it out.

First off, I couldn't find an admissions office anywhere. I walked into the third floor and found no one around (I can't fault anyone for not being there on a Saturday of a holiday weekend and to their credit, they were still open), but the fact that I couldn't seem to find the admissions office was a little off. I did explore the law library and even cracked open a couple of volumes to see some random case studies. I was impressed with the size of the library and how open it was. There is a lot of study space available, great lighting, and plenty of books of course. Other than that, the facilities of the law school were a little lackluster. Old 70s style brick walls with older furniture that could use a little updating.

I know that the facilities really have nothing to do with the quality of the program, but a little sophistication and good facilities always creates a better and more inviting atmosphere. I certainly will do more research about the school and hopefully meet with an admissions dean but my first impression wasn't the greatest. Don't confuse yourselves though, my loyalty to BYU football is not connected to this review in any way and continues strong and deep.

In other news, I loved Stadium of Fire. It was incredible, even with the few minor technical issues that were bothersome. Every once in a while there was a little feedback coming through the speakers, even during Carrie Underwood's performance. Her performance was stunning though and she looked great too as always. She sang "Jesus, Take the Wheel" of course and at the end of the song, instead of concluding, she had added a key change and sang the chorus of "How Great Thou Art" which was fantastic. The crowd went nuts, my mom cried, and I was amazed. She certainly chose the right crowd to throw that in. She really is

one of those artists that truly has musical ability and isn't just a pop icon that has been thrown into the limelight without any real talent.

The other performers were great; Eric Dodge, an up and coming country star from St. George performed one number to start the event, the Five Browns performed a John Williams medley which was good, but Jenny Oaks Baker was the performance that took me by surprise. The violinist had four other violinists behind her and a pianist and it was awesome to watch and listen to. I am going to have to check her album out.

The fireworks were a hit as always, however they shot some fireworks off inside the stadium off the stage lights that were at 6 different spots on the field. One of the pylons that shot fireworks off fell over or something and shot two fireworks right into the crowd sitting beneath the pole! People started running and I saw a lady's dress catch on fire but was tackled a split second later by about 10 other people to smother the fire. That was a tense moment. Luckily, I don't think anyone was seriously injured and the show went on without stopping at all. Overall, a very enjoyable experience.

One more thing, I found another musician that has really impressed me named Oren Lavie. You may have seen his music video on youtube for "Her Morning Elegance." It's a series of photographs taken of a girl on a bed that is constantly changing positions with different pillows and bedspreads to make it appear that she is actually walking. I know, that's a horrible explanation but it's quite fascinating to watch. I really liked the music though and decided to check out his music. It's really good and his voice is quite otherworldly or soothing or some sort of adjective that I can't think of to truly describe it right now. Check it out. It's great. I also added the song and another one called "Locked in a Room" to my playlist which is becoming quite large but still enjoyable, at least for me. Check out that music video below.