Tuesday, June 12, 2007

Sweaty Bitch in Barbri...

This morning, I was clicking around reading my morning blogs (Thank god I can multi-task like a champ because it is a wonder I get any work done in the mornings; this is why I work till all hours. But really, I am one of those peeps that would go into work at noon and work till 9 p.m. But I digress…..) and I came across a post on Law With Grace entitled Loud Barbri Eater. I almost fell off my chair laughing so hard. I HATE assholes in Barbi, or PMBR or any other torture session/bar review class in which I have been trapped, that act like the lecture is taking place in their kitchen, or living room or some other area where they feel they can act like their mother never taught them any manners. Let me tell you a little story about The Sweaty Bitch in my Barbri class…….

Once upon a time, in a crazy land far away, called Berkeley, I took Barbri. I attended the live lectures during the day. The auditorium was always totally crowded and you had to get there early to get any seat, let alone a good seat. I was carpooling with a friend of mine and we always sat in the same general area. Because I drink about a gallon of water a day in addition to about a gallon of Diet Coke, an aisle seat is imperative.

This being Berkeley, home of the environmentalist as well as home of the non-existent parking space, a lot of people rode their bike to class. Now, I am all about tree-hugging and eco-friendly makeup and hairspray, blah, blah, blah, but it was July and hella much hot outside and of course, there is no air conditioning at Boalt. So, the bike riders would come in ALL SWEATY AND DRIPPING THEIR DISGUSTING BODILY FLUIDS ALL OVER THE PLACE. (Note: for the record, I am slightly germophobic and even if I wasn’t, I have a fairly generous and clearly defined “personal space” that I like to maintain.) Evidently, people who anticipate sweating profusely on a daily basis do not wear a lot of clothing. This is 6 different kinds of wrong. Subsequently, those of us lucky enough to be seated near the Sweating Environmental Visionaries were subjected to the pungent aroma of the Morally Superior as well as their bodily fluids that were flung about willy-nilly on a daily basis.

One of these bike riders would always come into class 10 minutes late, and try to find a seat around me somewhere. Why she chose, EVERY SINGLE DAY FOR THREE DAYS, to find a seat near me, is frankly, just beyond reason. But she did. And every single day, WITHOUT FAIL, SHE WOULD TURN AROUND, GIVE ME DIRTY LOOKS, HOLD HER NOSE, AND BEGIN GESTICULATING WILDLY, INDICATING TO ALL THOSE NEARBY THAT I SMELLED BAD. (Note: It would take a person of average intelligence about 5.2 second to surmise upon meeting me that 1. I am not from Berkeley. 2. I shower on a daily basis.) Since, I knew beyond a reasonable doubt (law school education at work, my friends!) that I did not, in fact, smell bad, I could only conclude that she did not like my perfume.

Picture if you will, barely clothed, smelly, dripping, Sweaty Bitch, WITH HER BIKE HELMUT STILL ON HER FRICKIN’ HEAD, saying I smelled bad?!?!?! Oh. No. She. Di’int.

Every time she turned around, I looked her in the eye and said, “WHAT???” and “IF YOU DON’T LIKE MY PERFUME, SIT YOUR ASS SOMEWHERE ELSE!”

It took 3 days for that dumb bitch to get a clue and sit somewhere else. And that was only after I surreptitiously sprayed her backpack with my little purse sized perfume sprayer thingy that I got as a sample. Smell that, Bitch!!

18 comments:

Anonymous said...

you're not very nice, are you...?

Anonymous said...

Neither are you, apparently....

Blonde Blogger said...

Seriously?

1. SHE called ME smelly!!!

2. It's called satire.

3. I am sure there are other "nicer" blogs out there...

Anonymous said...

BB...I know you to be extremely nice. I can totally relate to the smelly part and others getting into your personal space. While in NY this past weekend I could not stand the crowds pushing you along the sidewalks and do not get me started on the smells everywhere you went...OMG. Did I mention I saw Legally Blonde?

Blawgin' said...

The months with Barbri were some of the most tense, emotionally fragile times of my life. If there had been a smelly, sweaty person anywhere in my vicinity, I may have lost it. As it is, I wanted to hurl my books at the guy next to me who TYPED TOO LOUD. You know that guy...

Ugh. He probably passed. I should type harder.

calbar blondie said...

My male Barbri seat neighbor was ALWAYS late and then huffed and puffed for about a half hour before he settled down to take notes. He was very arrogant about the whole thing, claiming that his law school had a "very high pass rate." Didn't see his name on the pass list, and I definitely saw him at the San Diego Concourse

calbar blondie said...

to sista d'sierra: The purses that Laura Bell Bundy(Legally Blonde Broadway star) uses in the show can be found at www.schmancypurses.com. I bought the Elle bag and am still waiting for it to arrive. I think this lady hand-makes every one,and they are limited edition. Very cute, especially for those of you who own a small dog; there is a darling dog carrier!

Emily said...

Anonymous - You have no business commenting with something like that on someone's blog who is venting in frustration from a ridiculously painful and traumatic process.

I, who was born and raised in Berkeley, was not offended in the least. BB was merely commenting on one of the many hypocrisies that plagues a section of the Berkeley populace. This was not an unwarranted verbal assault on someone, as you seem to insinuate.

Besides, the smell of patchouli makes bile rise to my throat. I only wish I would have the cajones to do the same thing in a similar situation.

Emily said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

To Calbar Blondie - Thanks for rhe information on the purses that LBB uses in the show. In fact I did see the show on Broadway while in NY and thought the purses were so cute. How did you know I love purses...good guess. We also went to Canal Street to check out the knock-off purses. I will check out the website. Thanks again!

Anonymous said...

I spent nearly seven years in Berkeley and I was not offended either. Apparently satire is lost on some people, just as the need for personal hygiene and simple courtesy are lost on others.

Anonymous said...

I would have made the same gestures and faces right back at her! Or at least said loudly "You're the one who stinks like a wildebeest!" among other unprintable things. I love that you sprayed your perfume all over her bag! Genius! I can't believe she kept her helmet on her head all through class. That's definitely strange.

I too am germophobic and wash my hands obsessively. I have to commute to work via subway and it sends my germophobia into overdrive! I HAVE to wash my hands and any part of my body that has had contact with any part of the subway when I get to work/get home from work!

Blawgin, at the February bar the person next to me had a laptop that RATTLED against the table while she typed on it. DROVE me insane. She passed the CO bar. I blame her for my non-passage. I should hunt her down...

Anonymous said...

anonymous 1 here:

For my taste that was too much of a mean-spirited personal attack. I've lived in berkeley for nearly a decade, don't ride bikes, and don't smell bad. But I still thought it just plain mean. When everyone is stressed out and just trying to get though something as terrible as the bar exam there are some people that get ultra-competitive and try to make themselves feel better by trashing everyone else. It seems like BB fits into that category. Of course, I'm not claiming to know her personally.

I know there are nicer bloggers around and, don't worry, I'll be going there. This will be my last commment. And, there's no use in responding to this comment because I won't be reading anymore. I'm sure no one will mind.

Emily said...

I guess some people try to make themselves feel better by taking a holier-than-thou approach. But whatever, anonymous 1, you won't be reading this anyway...

(Plus, I got you beat by living darned near most of my 33 years in Berkeley, so neener neener! :P)

~ last call at the bar (f/k/a E)who is also "not very nice" apparently

The Grand Poobah said...

Anonymous apparently thinks that we should just suffer whatever rude behavior anyone wants to impose upon us in silence.

No. Wait. I'm wrong. Apparently she thinks that you should suffer whatever rude behavior that the Berkley wannabe hippy wants to impose upon you, in silence.

God forbid that the Berkley wannabe hippy should have to suffer whatever reaction she gets from her rude behavior.

(No offense intended to any Berkley Wannabe Hippies in the studio audience) (;-)>

calbar blondie said...

Anonymous should go hang out on jdunderground. What a toxic site that is for anyone having to take or repeat the Bar exam!

Anonymous said...

Um, sorry but I think perfume can be just as bad as BO. Not everyone likes a particular scent, and it's pretty damn rude to subject everyone to it.

Anonymous said...

According to the last Anonymous, no one should ever wear perfume -- in fact to do so is "pretty damn rude" -- because someone out there may not "like" a "particular scent." Well, it's fair bet that NO ONE likes BO -- that's why we learn hygiene. If you don't like someone's perfume, move somewhere else, but don't ask everyone else to conform to your particular preferences. That's rude.