OLD SCHOOL (must be 30 and over ITT) Forum

[er doctor]

I wanted to let my fellow thirty-somethings know that I just got accepted to UT today... Super excited... I may be older, but I'm still in the game

Congrats Leira!

[Leira7905]

I wanted to let my fellow thirty-somethings know that I just got accepted to UT today... Super excited... I may be older, but I'm still in the game

Congrats Leira!

Thanks. I have to say that I think I appreciate the acceptance all that much more because of my age... And because I'm a single mom. I don't think I would have been this excited at 22.

[uci2013]

So I get -2 on RC since I'm not 30 BUT I've been lurking here and this seems to be the thread for house advice as well since most elsewhere are coming straight out of undergrad.
I own my house in VT, heat with wood - anyone ever rent a house with wood heat? If so did the owner supply/stack the wood, just hand you the guy they had used phone number and how many cords they usually ordered, or let you figure it out on your own? Also are you going thru a rental agency or using classified and craigslist to rent?

Once upon a time I rented a small cottage with only a wood stove for heat. I was left to figure it out for myself - and I did. But I would have loved it if the owner handled it instead. In general I've found most places I've lived in either through Craigslist or through scouting the neighborhood.

[uci2013]

I wanted to let my fellow thirty-somethings know that I just got accepted to UT today... Super excited... I may be older, but I'm still in the game

Awesome!

[oldhippie]

I wanted to let my fellow thirty-somethings know that I just got accepted to UT today... Super excited... I may be older, but I'm still in the game

congrats!!! feels good to still be acceptance-worthy, even as an old folk, doesn't it?

[firemed]

I have to say that my kids were a pretty strong part of my inspiration to go to LS, and it's been fun going over the details of the application process with my six year old.

Anybody else researching government assistance for when you'll be down a salary? I've always taken pride in being self sufficient - is it awful to put my kids on government health care once I'm in school? What other government assistance is available for people who make roughly half of what it takes for a family of four?

I just did it with a 3 year old, LOL.

And it appears we will qualify for government assistance once my 2nd year of LS starts. I see no reason not to take it. First, Medicaid is better insurance than the student insurance (which they want $700 a month for my whole family for), and equivalent to the insurance offered by my wife's employer ($500/month). Secondly the fact is that I have worked since I was 15, I have paid my taxes to cover Medicaid year after year after year. It is supposed to be there for people who cannot afford healthcare for whatever reason. That will be me. I see no shame in that really. Hell, I'll even take foodstamps and such if they offer them to me. I plan to pay taxes again the moment I get a job, and then both of us should qualify for some sort of healthcare.

I mean, if you paid and will pay taxes for a program, why not take it when it is available to you?

[firemed]

I wanted to let my fellow thirty-somethings know that I just got accepted to UT today... Super excited... I may be older, but I'm still in the game

CONGRATS!!!

[firemed]

Okay I know this is 3 in a row, but..... I figure you guys will understand better than anyone else:


Oh gawd.... I got into L&C with a scholly that makes the tuition only about $20K a year.


Okay:

I know it will be a total bitch to sell my house.

I have heard the legal market in Oregon is overloaded.

I know that I have contacts and help here that make it worth staying here.

I know that it will be hard for my wife to get a job there.

I know that rent will be much higher than my current mortgage.

I know it will be cheaper (much cheaper) to stay in NM.

BUT I WANT TO GO THERE!!!!!!!!

I have wanted my whole life to live in Oregon. I am tired of NM for so many reasons. And I think I could get them to up the scholly for me.


FFFFFFFFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUuuuuu!!!!!!!!!!!

[emhellmer]

31 yr. old father of two checking in... Also studied mostly after work and bedtime... My wife gave me Thursday nights and/or Sunday mornings for full tests... If I was an X-Man, I'd be the one with the supernaturally resilient bladder, so that was no problem, though I did go just before and during the break to be safe.

I was lucky enough to pull a great score on my retake, so I'd ordinarily be safe, but my age related issues are finances during school - I'll be lucky if savings can cover a second car to commute and a school laptop, and after that it's loans loans loans. Also, I don't have much flexibility - if I can't get a really good scholarship from a T14 in my area, I'll have to go on hold for ANOTHER year, and I've been diligently burning all my bridges at work, so I'd need to think about a temporary job, too.

I have to say that my kids were a pretty strong part of my inspiration to go to LS, and it's been fun going over the details of the application process with my six year old.

Anybody else researching government assistance for when you'll be down a salary? I've always taken pride in being self sufficient - is it awful to put my kids on government health care once I'm in school? What other government assistance is available for people who make roughly half of what it takes for a family of four?

Food stamps (think $500 a month in some states for groceries) are also available. DO NOT FEEL BADLY ABOUT GOVERNMENT ASSISTANCE; THAT IS MIDDLE CLASS NONSENSE. Just look at how much you have paid in taxes during your working life, and think about how much you are going to be paying in taxes once you graduate. Here's a chance to get a return on that investment. There is nothing bad about it. Also, Medicaid can be pretty decent, just make sure your children's current pediatrician takes it.

[LilMonsterAnnie]

Joining the club, I am so glad someone started this thread

35+ female w/ husband
T20 undergrad
MBA in Technology
6 yrs in the company trenches
I traveled for most of my '20s screwing around not wanting to grow up and enjoyed being single
Always knew I wanted to go to law school though.
I have not received one acceptance YET...either dings or WL

We are also dreading putting the house up for sale in this market, although, we won't take a huge hit like some, we have lived there since 2004

[firemed]

We are also dreading putting the house up for sale in this market, although, we won't take a huge hit like some, we have lived there since 2004

This is the main reason the wife and I are probably staying here, despite my post above extolling my love for Oregon.

On another note: WELCOME! Good luck with your cycle this year!

[oldhippie]

yep, the house thing is a killer. i'm meeting with a property manager tomorrow after a very sobering meeting with a realtor last weekend. getting used to the idea of being a landlady for a while....

[LilMonsterAnnie]

We are also dreading putting the house up for sale in this market, although, we won't take a huge hit like some, we have lived there since 2004

This is the main reason the wife and I are probably staying here, despite my post above extolling my love for Oregon.

On another note: WELCOME! Good luck with your cycle this year!

Thank you. I also have children, but want to leave the 'innocent' out of it.
I could use the luck...FOR SURE! so thank you, it is welcomed
We still have equity in the house, but not as much as we once did. We also plan on selling most everything (couches, bookcases, etc). I would rather have new than spend 3K+ moving it!

[rinkrat19]

yep, the house thing is a killer. i'm meeting with a property manager tomorrow after a very sobering meeting with a realtor last weekend. getting used to the idea of being a landlady for a while....

Luckily for me, my dad lives less than 2 miles away from my condo, so he'll be available to do landlord-y things when I'm 2000 miles away from Oregon in Chicago. I would take a big hit if I sold, having (stupidly) bought the thing at peak value.

I plan to put most of my furniture in storage at home and buy new Ikea stuff suitable for a much smaller place. I probably shouldn't admit how excited I am to have a loft bed. I never got to have a bunk bed as a kid, so I plan to take advantage of the opportunity before returning to queen-bed adulthood after law school!

[ArghItsBlarg]

Also, Medicaid can be pretty decent, just make sure your children's current pediatrician takes it.

This is a real concern and should be checked out. When my wife was laid off in '09, we put our son on the Illinois version of Medicaid. Our pediatrician's office was very gracious about keeping him on, but the biller warned us that they don't accept new patients with that insurance (Illinois just doesn't ever pay, don't know why the doctor would have a problem with that). Not all pediatricians are necessarily as willing to take that kind of hit.

[BLin98]

31 year old soon to be 1L, married, homeowner, father of one currently working as an insurance adjuster. Sorry for the length of the post but I have spent the past few days reading through the thread in my spare time.

Still trying to decide on the logistics of my two choices…I can commute about an hour and a half a day or get some small place in town to stay at during the week to attend a T2 school with in-state tuition and then drive back on weekends or during the week to visit the SO and child. The other option is to go to a TTT in town and pay higher tuition but save on living expenses. The TTT JD is much less portable than the T2 school.

Just not sure which would be better... a twice daily hour long drive or spending 3-4 nights in a bare bones apartment vs. a JD that essentially limits me to one legal job market.

Just to weigh in on the WE, age and other contacts and how that affects you at OCI. ALL of the young associates that I have talked with from the firms that I work with went into their firms (small firms of 5-20 attorneys) with no prior WE. They all thought that having WE would be a big plus in addition the contacts that I have already made. Still when you consider that all of them were hired with no WE that does taint the argument.

Perhaps it is just a grass is greener situations. The younger folks with no WE think having experience and contacts is the better option and the older folks think being young, portable and open to exploitation is what everyone is looking for. One of the partners made a comment at lunch, while we were discussing the recent engagement of an associate, that his firm prefers their associates young and with massive amounts of debt.

I have also been working on networking with the attorneys that I regularly work with currently or perhaps used to work with at some point in the past. Setting up a Google doc with names, emails, phone numbers, and personal tidbits to mention so that I can better keep in touch while at law school. So and so is rebuilding a boat by hand, this other one has a son who is a sophomore in college who wants to practice law etc…

Lately I have been actively seeking to meet and greet the parade of attorneys that circulate through my office every few weeks. A few questions about a case I am working on or maybe just make up a hypothetical, then get the business card and a follow up email a week or two later thanking them for the advice. Lunch? Sure I am free on Thursday.

Ending up at a “lifestyle” firm is fine with me. There is only so much money my wife can spend anyway…at least that is the theory.

[LilMonsterAnnie]

i hate the idea of having to pay to store things, but i know we'll be downsizing significantly and my SO is also unusually attached to his "stuff." i'm hoping after the first year he'll realize we don't need it and we can have a big old garage sale!!

i'm glad this thread exists

Getting rid of "stuff" is one of the oddest reasons I want to move - to force us to cull our hording tendencies. Two humans and four dogs in 3800 square feet shouldn't have as much stuff as we do, but crimeny. I expect A&E producers to be knocking on the door any day.

I have been diligently going through things since after Christmas. Two huge hefty bags of clothing mostly mine I am ashamed to say (I kept saying I would eventually wear it again). Next the furniture is on the chopping block. I have to say that it is very cathartic and cleansing to get rid of shit (and use it as a bitchin' tax write off)

[LilMonsterAnnie]

Thankfully, I can just tell employers my current job sucked so bad that I would be happy to work in the basement for the people under the stairs rather than go back.

+1

[LilMonsterAnnie]

I will graduate law school when I'm 28 and I feel that is too old!

i have shoes older than you.

I just laughed out loud...repeatedly

[firemed]

31 year old soon to be 1L, married, homeowner, father of one currently working as an insurance adjuster. Sorry for the length of the post but I have spent the past few days reading through the thread in my spare time.

Still trying to decide on the logistics of my two choices…I can commute about an hour and a half a day or get some small place in town to stay at during the week to attend a T2 school with in-state tuition and then drive back on weekends or during the week to visit the SO and child. The other option is to go to a TTT in town and pay higher tuition but save on living expenses. The TTT JD is much less portable than the T2 school.

Just not sure which would be better... a twice daily hour long drive or spending 3-4 nights in a bare bones apartment vs. a JD that essentially limits me to one legal job market.

You didn't mention it, so I have to ask:

The SO and child cannot move with you? Because in your position I would take the T2 with lower tuition. I understand not wanting to spend time away... which is why I ask why they cannot come with.

[DocHawkeye]

31 year old soon to be 1L, married, homeowner, father of one currently working as an insurance adjuster. Sorry for the length of the post but I have spent the past few days reading through the thread in my spare time.

Still trying to decide on the logistics of my two choices…I can commute about an hour and a half a day or get some small place in town to stay at during the week to attend a T2 school with in-state tuition and then drive back on weekends or during the week to visit the SO and child. The other option is to go to a TTT in town and pay higher tuition but save on living expenses. The TTT JD is much less portable than the T2 school.

Just not sure which would be better... a twice daily hour long drive or spending 3-4 nights in a bare bones apartment vs. a JD that essentially limits me to one legal job market.

You didn't mention it, so I have to ask:

The SO and child cannot move with you? Because in your position I would take the T2 with lower tuition. I understand not wanting to spend time away... which is why I ask why they cannot come with.

Do you have a SO and/or children? If you did, you'd understand...

[firemed]

You didn't mention it, so I have to ask:

The SO and child cannot move with you? Because in your position I would take the T2 with lower tuition. I understand not wanting to spend time away... which is why I ask why they cannot come with.

Do you have a SO and/or children? If you did, you'd understand...

Um yes, I have a wife and child. The question is still can they move?

Don't throw out some straw man.

ETA: actually a red herring as well...
--ImageRemoved--

[LilMonsterAnnie]

I wanted to let my fellow thirty-somethings know that I just got accepted to UT today... Super excited... I may be older, but I'm still in the game

Congrats Leira!

Thanks. I have to say that I think I appreciate the acceptance all that much more because of my age... And because I'm a single mom. I don't think I would have been this excited at 22.

Congratulations. I think for us with kids/work/other outside forces getting an acceptance is a sweet, sweet thing. It gives me goosebumps

[DocHawkeye]

You didn't mention it, so I have to ask:

The SO and child cannot move with you? Because in your position I would take the T2 with lower tuition. I understand not wanting to spend time away... which is why I ask why they cannot come with.

Do you have a SO and/or children? If you did, you'd understand...

Um yes, I have a wife and child. The question is still can they move?

Don't throw out some straw man.

Of course I'm kidding about leaving the family behind. This is a real concern of mine. I am looking at schools all over the Midwest, from Iowa to Pennsylvania (is that the Midwest...?). The question is if she can find a job as good as the one she has right now. We're counting on her salary paying most of the living expenses while I'm back in school, reducing the amount of debt we have to take on (especially since I'm almost maxed out on my federal student loan eligibility). So the question is, does it pay for her to come with me?

[firemed]

[
Of course I'm kidding about leaving the family behind. This is a real concern of mine. I am looking at schools all over the Midwest, from Iowa to Pennsylvania (is that the Midwest...?). The question is if she can find a job as good as the one she has right now. We're counting on her salary paying most of the living expenses while I'm back in school, reducing the amount of debt we have to take on (especially since I'm almost maxed out on my federal student loan eligibility). So the question is, does it pay for her to come with me?

Ah, I now see you were making a joke. Stupid internets.... I missed the sarcasm.

On another note, I take it you have already gone to grad school which is why you are almost out of loan eligibility. Does this effect the grad PLUS ? Also, I seem to remember that any principle you have repaid is subtracted from the loans you have already taken when determining eligibility for more.

ETA: I guess the answer to your last question would really depend on your relationship.... I don't think the wife and I could go more than a year or two apart before things really started to go downhill. But everyone's situation is different (for example, most people are less co-dependent than the wife and I).