Am I crazy?

This last month has been a bit sane between law review, teaching my legal writing class, interviewing for summer positions -- oh yeah, and going to class as well. Life of a 2L isn't any calmer than the first year.

But, as interviews wind down I am looking forward to some free time. Although yesterday I got a call from Transitions Abroad and I've agreed to help them in their editorial shop. Yes, I'm loony. I'm not sure where I'm going to find the time, but the chance to keep a foot in the travel writing world was too tempting to pass up. I figure after hours of reading my Corporations text, a few fun travel articles will be just the cure for any law blues.

Imams on the Edge

The September issue of the Foreign Service Journal has an article I wrote on USAID's Islamic Outreach Program. For about a year and a half I traveled to some of the most remote parts of Central Asia for this program. In this article, I discuss one of those trips along the Afghan-Uzbek border.

It is amazing to think that earlier this year I was on the border of Afghanistan and now I am spending my days reading law texts in the beautiful new buildings at Georgetown Law, eating at my favorite restaurants in D.C. and millions of miles away from Central Asia. Two very different worlds. But I suppose that was part of the idea of the Islamic Outreach program - we wanted conservative village leaders to meet Americans and to see the kinds of work that we do in their communities: health programs, education, economic, etc and perhaps realize that we have more in common than they may have believed. That we both want healthy kids, an educated population. I don't have any illusions that the program will change relationships between Americans and the Muslim world - but perhaps it's a start.

Goodness Gadling!

Always nice to find good reviews of your work. My friend Max at GONOMAD alerted me to a nice review on Gadling.com of my Kashgar article.

You can find it here!

When it rains it pours...

A few months ago I was incredibly good at getting pen to paper and wrote a ton of stuff. Of course, in the world of publishing sometimes gratification takes awhile. And it seems everything is being published at the same time. GoNomad put up a story I did on Istanbul in May this week. It is a short little guide to my favorite spots, and you can find it here.

When I think about all of the trips we took over the past two years, Turkey still ranks right at the top. I'd sign up for a two year stint in Istanbul (hint, hint...)

Speaking of raining, it has been absolutely non-existent in DC this year. The weather has been almost cool, totally clear and just wonderful. I had almost forgotten how much I love this time of year. Smells of fall slowly starting to approach, football, (field hockey!) and back to school. And even the fresh smell of a new law book is somehow wonderful.

September Transitions Abroad

This month, Transitions Abroad has a ton of great stuff, and a bunch on the former Soviet Union. I have two articles in the magazine, one on tips for traveling in Central Asia and another on working for USAID abroad.

Losing my wedding rings in Altoona, PA

We're in Altoona this weekend for a friend's wedding -- the drive up here from DC was beautiful and reminded me why I love Pennsylvania so much -- the old farmhouses, the rolling green hills, the omnipotent road construction (gotta have a little of the bad to go along with so much good).

During the ceremony this afternoon I was thinking about our wedding two years ago. I looked down and my wedding rings and I felt the blood rush to my head when they weren't there. My mind started racing, trying to figure out if I had gone swimming in the last 24 hours or taken them off somewhere. I finally realized that I had taken them off while getting ready for the wedding -- but for those few minutes I was scared to death.

Of course, losing metal and stones shouldn't be such a big deal (hey, my mom did it twice) and really, when it comes down to it they are just symbols of what's really important. And that's a good thing to be reminded of every once in awhile. Especially when at a time like now in New Orleans when so many people have lost so much, being able to go back to the center of what is important: your family, your friends. It's what makes life worth living.

Student Lawyer Op-Ed

Check out this month's issue of Student Lawyer, published by the American Bar Association for - you guessed it - law students. I wrote an op-ed on the challenges of combining both family life and working in corporate law firms. There isn't a link to the article online, but you can order copies of the magazine from the site.

HerStory: What I Learned in My bathtub...

Okay, so I personally haven't experienced many epiphanies in my bathtub-- but that's the title of a new book coming out by Adams Press. And even more exciting: one of the stories contained within was written by me! The book is a collection of stories about, "life, love and other inconveniences."

My very first piece that was ever published was a short blurb about investing for a Motley Fool book. It was also the last time I wrote something for a book. As much as I love contributing to magazines and on-line sites, ther is something uniquely statisfying about seeing your work in a real, live book.

You can pre-order the book on Amazon -- the publication date is October 1.