Well, I apologize if you've been visiting wanting the update, but since I got back I've been doing this and that. I just got back from dinner and am ready to share.

The morning did not begin auspiciously. The Supreme Court sent us all numbers and instructions, but in the process of moving from House A to House B, number did not arrive for me. I called the Supreme Court last week and they said, no problem, just come in and get your number the day of the exam, and gave me a website address for the instructions. Cool beans.

So, this morning, I get to Vets' Memorial (oh, Columbus, how I love how thee has made it impossible to turn right ANYWHERE in downtown between 7 and 9 in the morning, because I'm sure no one would ever want to do that) and get parked (which wasn't the ordeal I thought it would be.) Walk in, show lady my ID, she rifles through papers, and says, "OK, your ID is 14something4." Cool. I ask where the restroom is, find out it's in the exam room on the other end. OK, walk all the way across this cavernous room; visit the restroom; walk out, and realize that 14something4 is more than just a state of mind, it's what I know my exam number to be. I literally couldn't recall whether I was at 1424 or 1434. I mean, I was standing there, trying to figure it out, and trying not to think about how this would bode for remembering what horizontal or vertical privity meant.

OK, so, I resign myself; I have to go back outside and embarass myself in front of the nice lady who just gave me my ID number and say, "Hi. I'm here to take the Bar Exam, one of the most difficult and strenuous academic endeavors known to man. You just gave me a combination of four numbers seven minutes ago, and unfortunately, the third number eludes me. Couldja give me that again?" I hoped she would only be so kind to lightly snicker while I stood in front of her, and save the guffaws until I was safely out of her sight.

Well, in a lucky break (hopefully, not my last!), Nice Lady had been replaced by Nice Guy, who I'd actually talked to on the phone before and knew me by name. Cool. 1424. All right. Life is good. Run into my friend Andi, who has found a job. Teaching English. In South Korea. Feel incredibly envious, since this makes this a much less do-or-die proposition.

Go in. Find my seat. See Lindsey from UT; meanwhile, Tom D. sits two tables over from me. Tablemate sits down. We barely speak. Works for me.

At about 8:40, Marcia Mengel, clerk of the Supreme Court, asks people to find their seats. Let me tell you, I've never seen a group of so many people get so quiet so quickly. I think it was pure nerves.

Instructions, instructions, instructions. My favorite one came when Mengel announced there was a "comfort station" up at the front of the room with all sorts of things for our convenience, and then enumerated them...Band-Aids (for those nasty paper cuts when you try to commit hari-kari on a particularly tricky ST problem); aspirin; extra strength Tylenol (for when you've spent too much time at the Bar); Tums; Immodium. If she'd have just had, y'know, something like, fresh wipes or something, that would have been comforting. Just not all products relating to impending physical doom.

All right, so, we get started. The first torts quesiton is on...survival of actions and damages, for crimeny sake. What, you bar examiners got sick of doing IIED and false inprisonment? C'mon...anywho, I think I did well on the first part, but it ate up the first half of the hour and it was time to move to the second question, leaving the second part of the first question still unfinished.

Second question was a property question that was questioning its orientation and wanted to be a contracts question. I think I did well on that. Finished it with about two minutes left to go, and got a short rule statement out for the second part of the first question, but left a LOT on the table I would have preferred not to there.

OK, second two questions were Secured Transactions and Agency. Secured Trans I think I did pretty well on, and, while I wouldn't say I owned agency, it was pretty darn close. Turned those in.

Next was contracts and the ever present widgets. (And flanges.) Did well on that, although the fourth part of that question was elusive to me. Had to do with employment contract, one of a kind.

The only one I think I bought the farm on was the civil procedure question. Joinder? Please, don't joind me in that one. I threw out quality BS -- OK, let's be frank, it was probably at best midgrade BS -- and turned that one in and headed off for lunch.

Ran into Andi again. We walked upstairs, carefully avoiding that sin of sins on the bar exam, to wit...Talking About The Questions. (Although, truth be told, I was interested to know what she'd seen, 'cause she's really smart.) Found a table with others from UT...Jeremy, Elaine, Robin and a guy who I think has never liked me for reasons I can't come up with...like, avoids speaking to me at all costs. We all sat around the table talking about Anything But The Questions. There would be awkward pauses where the conversation would lapse, and you knew we were thinking about the questions, but no one wanted to be the first one to bring it up.

Well, eventually, Robin and I were left, and Robin wanted to talk about the questions. I did, too, and as we compared notes, it sounded like we got the same answers. This may be a good thing...

OK, so, then the MPT. First question, I didn't finish. At all. Not happy about that. Second question, much better.

The other bizarre thing was realizing you were sitting there, surrounded by 1,500 fellow human beings, and no one was saying a word. Talk about strange...

I'm sure there were more notes on this experience, but for rightnow, I'm going to bed. Tomorrow is 200 multichoices. What

Eve...BREATHE.