Ahead of schedule? That's unprecedented.

It's true. My legal writing final is actually done* early. Not early by a few hours, but a whole day. Unfortunately this isn't so much the result of me being studious and industrious, but rather because I thought it was due today. How did this happen, and how did I realize my mistake?

*"Done" is, of course a relative term. More on this below.

I'm not sure when I first got it in my head that the final was due today. My guess is that the last assignment we turned in was on a Monday and I had calculated that there was about two weeks between that assignment and the final. Because the final is something of a large assignment -- 3 different papers totaling close to 30 pages -- I actually got an early start on it. Heck, I even worked on it during Thanksgiving "break." I read through the fact pattern, the statutes, the cases... I took copious notes in yellow legal pads (anyone who knows me from my undergrad mock trial days knows what this means)... I outlined each paper. Then things got really busy this week. Bar/Bri held review sessions for each of our core classes (CivPro, Torts, Crim, and Contracts). This consisted of watching hours of videotaped lectures and taking notes as they essentially attempted to outline the semester's material. This took a good 3-4 hour chunk out of four days. While I found the sessions helpful (for the most part), every hour spent there was one fewer hour I could devote to legal writing.

Ok, so the weekend comes around. I get some serious work done. Then as I'm reading my papers, I spot some gaps that need to be filled. Only now the structure doesn't work. So I scrap it all and start from scratch. (Well not entirely from scratch. I completely overhauled the organization of my papers, though.)

At long last, I get my final to a state such that it's fit to be turned in. Not perfect. Like most works of art, legal writing papers are never truly finished; they're merely abandoned. After a final proofreading, it's time to print it out. I planned to print it a few hours earlier before it's actually due, since I'm expecting a run on the printers in the last hour or so. I submit the print order, then around lunchtime make my way up to the law library... only to find that the printers are down.

I still think that my final is due in 3 hours, and I have no way to get a copy into my hands. My mind rushes through possible alternatives. Print from another computer lab on campus. No good, the system is down throughout most of the university. Hook my laptop up directly to the printer. No, my laptop doesn't have a serial port or an infrared port, and the printer doesn't support USB cables. Email my professor. Nope, their computers are down too. Run home and print off my printer... might work, but I have class in half an hour. Maybe my prof's in her office... probably not, since she's rarely there. Well, maybe there'll be someone else to talk to.

So I rush downstairs to the legwri profs' offices. After confirming that my prof isn't there (typical), I talk to one of the profs from another section. It's then that I learn that the final isn't due until tomorrow. I'm sure a wave of different expressions washed over my face: surprise, confusion, skepticism... She pulled out the syllabus and shows me. Sure enough, "DUE: Tuesday, Dec. 7" right there on the page. Clear as day.

I felt a bit like Phinneas Fogg at the end of Around the World in Eighty Days. If you've read the book, you'll probably get that. If not, go read it and come back. Unless you're currently in law school, in which case wait until after finals. (Or if you're lazy and don't mind me spoiling the ending, email me and I'll explain. If you really care.)

So now I have time to polish my legwri final a bit more before abandon- er, I mean turning it in tomorrow. Then it'll be 1L finalmania. Let the good times roll.