The art of advocacy is not an art I understand.
written: 9:21 p.m. on Saturday, Jul. 18, 2009

...Was an utter disaster. I "prepared" my thing from 12.30 to 1.30 this morningm, when I was already half-dead, and the absolute worst one was definitely the application to discharge the injunction. I honestly didn't know that my stupid submission was so short! I wrote it all out on my notebook (too lazy to print; it would've involved me using my mom's printer which is in her room which is too troublesome) and it filled up two and a half pages, deluding me into thinking it was quite long. But before I knew it, I'd already finished reading it!

It was really quite terrible. The cross-examination was quite shit too, because I didn't know that I could cross-examine the witness on the medical report. I don't know why I didn't know this; I should've known, but I clearly wasn't thinking, and it was a last-minute change after we were told that we couldn't refer to the statements in the file (my last question quoted from the statement). I don't change anything I prepare because I don't play well with last-minute; my brain freezes and becomes complete ass, and it just doesn't work for me. At all. So the last bit of the cross-x was tragic, though for once in my life, I attempted to drum up something on the spot.

This is the thing with me: I'm a terrible speaker. I cannot speak off the cuff, and whenever I have to make a presentation or speak in front of a sizeable audience, I'd need to prepare whatever I want to say - word for word. And I mean, word for word. Giving speeches such as the JC one (what the fuck was it called? That valedictorian thing) still allows me to get away with my stage fright and utter uselessness in front of an audience, as I'm not expected to answer questions in an eloquent manner, and neither will I be interrupted. I am sometimes able to make reading not look like reading - but this is only possible if I have every single word I want to say typed out and in front of me.

That simply doesn't happen in advocacy. In any case, it certainly didn't happen today. The examination-in-chief was particularly crap because my witness (Mr. B0az Ch@n) didn't understand what I was asking, and I myself didn't really know what I wanted to do. I was interrupted by the judge a few times and I swear, I honestly had NO CLUE what he said to me. I just kind of made it up and smoked my way through, which, well, inevitably ended in disaster.

And um, this is really, really egregious and unforgivable, but if I'm being really honest...I completely forgot I had to come up with a case theory. What the fuck, right? I know. I should quit PLC right now. What kind of half-fucked law student/whatever forgets the most basic of advocacy, the case theory?

Apparently, I do. Um, oops. No wonder I finished my crap in an hour. Everything was just awful. I shall strive to do better for the next session...I think. I hope I don't get lazy in the end.

Okay, enough about that. It was quite an awful day for me because I was really tired and was literally falling asleep the entire day. The last lecture in the Bar Room had me sitting in a corner seat right at the back of the room, and I couldn't help but rest my head against the wall. The air-con wasn't working and it was quite stuffy and it did nothing to alleviate the headache I already had. Not very pleasant, to say the least.

I am super tired right now but I shall plough on with this entry in which I'm slowly losing interest, but nevermind.

Random Things

1. I played Puzzle Fighter on my brother's PS 3 with my dad this evening, for about 40 minutes. I have no idea how many rounds we played, but it was pretty much non-stop for 40 minutes. I won all but two rounds. I'm kind of miffed I didn't win them all.

1(a). I played one round with my mom and I finished her off in 59 seconds. It's a fucking record. I'm miffed it wasn't 30 seconds.

1(b). My brother should come home from wherever he is with his girlfriend NOW so that I can play with someone who can actually play.

1(b)(i). MY BROTHER IS HOME!

1(b)(ii). But my parents are hogging the game. Sadness.

1(c). I told Tong to come over and play Puzzle Fighter with me and he went, "If that ever happened, it'd mean that I'd have permission to marry you." HAHAHAHA. He's so full of shit. (He was completely exaggerating my parents' over-protectiveness. Completely. And I repeat: Completely!)

2. Speaking of Tong, last night while talking to him about I can't remember what, I suddenly said, "Are you serious or joking?" We were both taken aback. Because he says that ALL the time.

2(a). The other day after tennis/squash we got a lift from his friend to the hawker centre opposite their beloved ACS (or rather, Tong's beloved ACS. I don't know if his friend shares his rabid love for the school too. Maybe all ACS boys feel that way about their school). I sat at the back and stared out of the window, stoned as hell, while Tong and his friend talked. I kept hearing his friend say, "Are you serious or joking?" And in the exact manner Tong says it. I was muchly amused.

2(b). There were more Tongisms actually but I don't remember what they were. The one that stuck immediately in my mind was "are you serious or joking".

2(c). Actually, the other day when I was with Mag at the Mandarin Oriental or whatever hotel it was called, she told me that she likes lizards. Like, house lizards. Whenever I see a house lizard my first instinct is to run away. They look so chalky and pale and soft that they TOTALLY freak me out. So when Mag told me she liked them, I said, and I quote, "Are you okay or not?"

2(c)(i). Immediately after I said that, in my head I was all, "OMG WHAT DID I JUST SAY." Because Tong says it all the time.

2(c)(ii). I'm very amused by the phrases that he uses, and if/when I start sounding like him, I'd be even more amused.

2(c)(iii). It really wouldn't be surprising because I tend to pick up the things that my friends say. Like Rui's girly-cutesy "I don't know", Mag's "Are you serious", and a bunch of other things that Rui says a lot (been spending too much time with her at The Firm. Then again, I can never spend too much time with her). So it's not surprising that I'm one step into sounding like Tong.

2(d). I forgot what my point was. Yep.

3. I realised today I get away with a lot of things because I'm a girl. And I must say that I'm not complaining about that. At all. Yay.

4. I wanna play Puzzle Fighter again. HAHA! Shall try to annihilate my poor mother in 40 seconds (give her some chance lah).

4(a). My favourite character is Sakura.

4(b). I will stop talking about Puzzle Fighter before I lose ALL my street cred. Assuming I had any to begin with, that is.

before sunrise // before sunset

Previously:
- - Tuesday, Aug. 29, 2017
I'm moving. - Sunday, Jul. 11, 2010
In all honesty - Tuesday, Jul. 06, 2010
What I want for my birthday... - Sunday, Jul. 04, 2010
On Roger's behalf. - Friday, Jul. 02, 2010