Sometimes, It Just Doesn’t All Fit

Pardon my ending of our recent hiatus with a bit of whining…

Sometimes the accumulated fatigue of working full-time and going to law school part-time catches up with you and you need a day off. This normal mental health breather is to be expected.

Other times school and work stand in direct conflict. Even when you are eager to do both, your commitment to one must override the demands of the other. I ran smack into such a time yesterday – or rather, learned yesterday that next week such a collision was going to happen.

For my day job, I’ll be in California next week for some market research we’re doing for a client. It’s a good project and the research will yield good results. I travel Tuesday evening through Friday morning with my flight on Friday getting back to DC around 4:30 p.m. Next week is our Spring Break so I thought it would be a good time to take my turn traveling since my co-workers often pick up the slack when my school schedule keeps me from traveling or attending evening events. No problem, right?

Enter the clinic.

Yesterday, I received a call from the professor who serves as Managing Attorney of the clinic I’m working in. It seems that the Judge in a case I’m managing would like to hold a hearing on a request we filed in November 2009. The hearing is set for next week. On Friday morning.  Of the 15 weeks I’m working in clinic and the three months this request has been pending, the hearing is scheduled on one of the three days I’m traveling this entire semester. One of the three days I just can’t be there.

Ugh.

I’ll be out of town, but I know my partner in the clinic is spoiling to get into court so I gladly point out to our supervisor that I’m sure he could do it.

Later that night I begin to wonder whether I can rearrange my flights and meetings in California to get back.

The airline I’m flying offers either a 2:55 p.m. flight on Thursday or the Friday morning flight that I’m already booked on. The Thursday flight won’t work as it’s right in the middle of our work in CA.

Okay, what about other airlines? The cheapest one-way ticket I can find is more than $350. Since I’d be paying this one myself that’s just not doable right now. I could drive an hour or (during rush hour) two to get to another airport but even the Thursday night redeyes I can afford don’t get me back to DC until late morning.

Ugh.

Work and school have collided in the past. But it’s never really bothered me in the past. It’s just how it is.

This one bugs me.

The important thing is that our client is in good and capable hands in court next week. I just wish they could be mine.