Law School Semester 1: Complete.

Finally back in Windsor and welcomed to 30 cm of snow! Oh, and cancelled classes which never happened at a commuter school like U of T but happens all the time when everyone is walking distance to the school! Explain that to me. And to our next door neighbour and longtime Windsorite, Jerry, and our friend Adamo, thanks for telling us that it doesn't snow in Windsor.....

The first semester of law school was a blur. Since my last blog post written on my return from the Drizzy Drake concert nothing eventful has happened yet I feel like it has been an eternity. I'm fast forwarding the month of November because, quite frankly, a blog about my study habits would be super boring. School intensified and the exam's began to approach. At first, it seemed like a running joke as everyone seemingly tried to brush off the fact that these very meaningful exams were approaching. But then the paranoia started, and its impossible to avoid it. Law school is built up to be this huge hype machine. After speaking to one of my mentors over the Christmas break, I was a little relieved to learn that nothing had changed since he had attended law school. Pressure is at an all-time high during exam season and its even more intense considering that the importance of marks is ingrained into our heads from before we enter law school. Regardless, I think that almost all of my classmates handled the period with class though I don't think any of us will ever forget how we felt leaving our first ever law school exam (Contracts, of all courses was first for us). The marks will come and go, the experience is what counts and I learned A LOT about myself in that short exam period. The Christmas break couldn't come fast enough.

I've been told that the bombardment of questions begins as soon as you go home after your first semester of law school and that was completely true. Friends and family ask for advice and the one thing that I've learned is that there is definitely still a market for legal services so I think I've chosen teh right path. I've also found myself analyzing the smallest things, not even important enough for me to mention here. Law school has definitely already altered my thought process.

The second semester of law school looks to be more eventful (and more blog worthy) than the latter half of the first semester ended up being. The Olympics will also be an appreciated escape from the hysteria that will soon begin. In addition, we will be participating in two moot competitions and there should be many interesting conferences and speaker events at our school.

Over the break I was lucky to attend the 2014 Winter Classic along with 104,999 other people. The experience was amazing. Though I'm still trying to get the feeling back in my toes, I wouldn't have changed a thing. The snowy conditions and the fact that the Leafs came out with the W made it all worth it. Definitely something I will never forget.

In the mean time, I'd like to let everyone know about the 2014 UTSB Sports Industry Conference. If you've read even 10 percent of my blog, you would know that this experience shaped me. If you get a chance to check it out, please do so. Below is something I posted last year on Facebook (and that I would like to remember on somewhere other than Facebook) after the 2013 Sports Industry Conference. Enjoy and I'll be back when I have some better stories for 2014 :)

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It took me a while to sit down and put this together, but thank you's are in order. 

Last week we held one of the best sports industry conferences in North America - run entirely by students. None of this would have been possible without the help of everybody along the way.

1. - Shoutout to Natan Levi for thinking only about UTSB. He was passionate about this from the day he came out of the womb and, as much as I chirp him, his hustle is why the event was such a huge success. 
2. Shoutout to Fran Turco for putting up with myself and Natan. I don't think I've ever attended or been part of an event that ran flawlessly. This is a testament to how much of Fran stepped up and made sure everyone was on the ball! 
3. Shoutout to Filip Pandovski for doing pro-bono work and designing some beautiful graphics for us along the way. - Thank you to the UTSB council. We worked on this since April of 2012 and it definitely paid off!!!! 
4. To next year's council, we've left this organization in amazing shape. Continue the success and ensure U of T (and the world!) continues to take notice!
5. Thank you to my girlfriend Harriet Renshaw for putting up with me and Natan - mainly Natan ;)
6. Thanks to all of our speakers, none of which I have on facebook. 
7. Thanks to all of my friends who came out of their way to check it out - even if you weren't interested in it. Thanks for the support!!!
8. Thanks to my Mom for coming. 
9. Thanks to the Serbian newspaper for putting me on the front page. 
10. Thanks to the ROM for pinching every possible dollar out of us but still somehow making it worth it!
11. Obv thanks to our sponsors - MIR, MBNA, Blue Jays, CMA, Sportsnet Magazine, Biosteel, and all the career fair attendees. 

 Hope you enjoyed it. University isn't about school. It's not about impressing your professor at office hours, or annoying the class by asking questions during the whole class in order to prove you did the readings. It's about connecting with people on a real and human level. This can't be faked, and its not something you get extra credit for. It is one hundred percent for yourself and your personal development. 

  

U of T Academics does a very good job at penalizing its students for the simple fact that they chose to go to the "best university in Canada". Though many of us question that decision when we get a B for a paper that could probably win a NobeL Peace prize, it is because of clubs and events like this one that make all this worth it. 

  

Best of the luck in the future for the University of Toronto Sports and Business Association at the University of Toronto.