I NEED FOLLOWERS! COME TO ALLFINSATTACHED!

All!

I am in need of blog followers for allfinsattached.blogspot.com. As my devoted readers here I hope that you will all migrate over and see what we are trying to do. I will be bringing this effort back into Canada with me, and any criticism or support would be welcomed!

Pow!

SORRY FOR THE ABSENCE! THINGS ARE CRAZY!

Everybody!

I am so sorry for the extended absence... lets just say that this semester has been a wee bit hectic.

A quick update:

1) I will be starting my S.J.D. (Ph.D.) next year in law through UVA. I will be completing this by correspondence from Edmonton;
2) In the winter term of next year I will be teaching International Environmental Law at the U of A!
3) The wedding is only 5 months away!!! WAHOOOOO
4) Finals start in 2 weeks;
5) A 90 page paper is due in 3 days;
6) I HAVE STARTED A CAMPAIGN TO INTRODUCE LEGISLATION IN VIRGINIA TO BAN SHARK FIN POSSESSION... I NEED FOLLOWERS FOR MY NEW BLOG...

www.allfinsattached.blogspot.com

AND SIGNATURES FOR MY PETITION, AND IF ANYONE IS INTERESTED IN HELPING ME START A SIMILAR INITIATIVE IN CANADA, LET ME KNOW!

Cam!

Wedding Planner / Random Jammer

I know. I know. Sometimes I even surprise myself. TWO blogs in TWO days after a month long hiatus. Wow.

When I was back in Edmonton over the Christmas break, Meg and I got full on into wedding plan (correction, I should say that I jumped into wedding planning that was already moving full steam ahead). Firstly, I should say that Meg and supporting cast has done an AMAZING job of planning in my absence, and I am so grateful for all of their efforts! Plannin' ain't easy, man.

If you wanna read all about it, check out:

www.adventuresofanedmontonbride.blogspot.com

Now that I am back in Cville, I can say without reservation that I miss the planning! Weird? Nah! I mean what could be better than planning the start of your life with your girl? Not much. Table linens. No problem. Wedding ceremony. Check. Center pieces. Done and done. There is still tons to do, and I feel a bit bad leaving it with the lovely ladies back in Edmonton, but hey, it's all in more than capable hands.

In many ways it feels like I am right back in Cville where it left off. The reading is back in full drive already and the essay planning has begun. Right back at 'er. I am really excited about my classes this semester though. They look great. Ocean's law is right up my alley, Public Interest Law and Advocacy seems like it will be a nice surprise, doing an independent research project on the Oil Sands is topical and useful, and Environmental Law looks great.

I am going to keep this post short since being back at school has the unfortunate side effect of being a wee bit draining and I have to get up early to complete my readings for tomorrow's adventure.

See you again soon. I promise.

State of the Union Address

I know, I know, I'm not the President. But hey, it seemed like the right title to kick off the second semester!

I apologize for the long delay, but I hope you most cherished and beloved devoted readers can understand that I was trying to make the most of my time with Meg, the family, friends and catching up with Edmonton life. It was an excellent break! I hope that I successfully picked up where I left off and was able to help Meg out on the wedding front (aside: it is less than 8 months from now, and I probably have never been more excited for anything in my entire life), get acclimated to the snow and the blustering winds, and most importantly catch up on the goings-on of my favorite (Habs) and second favorite (Oilers) hockey teams.

This break was also an excellent time to stop. consider. ponder. reflect. and ask myself the following---what shall I be doing when I return from Virginia.

Let me tell you, there is no easy answer.

I think that being a traditional lawyer has its upside. I think it also most definitely has its downside. But I think the question that I have to ask myself at the end of the day is what is right for me? Without hesitation I can state that researching, writing, learning, and teaching is what my heart desires. I wish that I could fight for the environment in court on a daily basis, fighting what I perceive to be the good fight, challenging the callous and speaking for the voiceless. I would lend my life to this, if only it was as easy as it sounds. The reality is that I think I can do as much good with my pen or this keyboard. At least I hope I can.

In other news, Charlottesville seems to have progressed along nicely without us foreigners running around. My roommate and two of my awesome classmates came out to pick my ass up at the airport last night at 11:30 which was excellent. Today we started classes again, and this semester looks like a lot of fun! 

I promise to keep on top of this blogging thing since it is a great way to keep y'all updated and in the know. 

For those of you who wanna read some more awesomeness in the blogosphere, I suggest you check out this fellow. I can say without a doubt that we share a same viewpoint when it comes to all things enviro:

http://hopethoughts.wordpress.com/

Check back tomorrow for another installment, this blogging thing is kinda fun!

The semester that was.

Well, I am here in Philadelphia waiting for my plane up to Canada with some time to kill, so I figured this would be a good opportunity to update ye olde blog. Exams and papers finished up earlier this week, which was pretty good, and then it was time to stop and catch our breath before everyone scatters for the holidays.

I think the semester went pretty well, all told. I mean, it wasn't exactly what I expected it would be, but then again I'm not completely sure that I knew what to expect. American law school is pretty fundamentally similar to Canadian law school, and school is better than work, sooooooooo I guess that means all is good in the world.

And now... it is time to switch gears and enjoy the Christmas season. It snowed most of yesterday in Charlottesville, which was a nice primer for what awaits me back in Edmonton where I hear they have been getting pounded by snow and cold weather recently. I guess it is also time to start looking forward to the things that we have planned for next semester, namely:

1) A trip to the Big Apple at the end of January
2) A trip to Nashville for a Fulbright conference mid-February
3) A Washington Capitals Montreal Canadiens game in February
4) A Josh Ritter concert March 3rd
5) Spring Break
6) More exams (???)
7) More papers (!!!!)
8) Convocation
9) And some good times with new friends...

Hope to see you all soon, and in case we don't talk in person Merry Christmas!

Post Script

Just about forgot. How about the Large Hadron Collider. Am I the only one who is afraid of this thing? I mean, come on people, they claim to have just produced a precursor to the stuff that started the universe...ya the big bang material. And they are doing this all underground in a huge circular tube with accelerated particles moving at speeds just slightly under the speed of light. OMG.

Here is a link to a description of it:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Large_Hadron_Collider

And here is a link to a rap about it (seriously):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j50ZssEojtM

Shark Fins etc.

Good evening!

I decided to turn in early tonight, and predictably that means I cannot sleep. Consequently, here I am blogging!

I realize my blog has kinda sucked for most of November, but then again I'm not too sure anyone is reading it, and so this could be like one of those "if a tree falls in a forest and no one is there, does it make a sound" sorta problems. Hopefully not!

This month has been quite exciting on the whole school front, and not because I have been going to great classes or stuffing my brain with law knowledge. It has been awesome because I have been working on my  shark finning paper. I bet most of my readers are aware of this issue, but in case you are not here is the skinny:

1) 73-100 million sharks are killed annually for their fins
2) Shark meat is only occasionally consumed, but fins are quite the commodity for their use in shark fin soup
3) Shark fin soup has been consumed as a traditional Chinese banquet dish since the Ming Dynasty, c. 1360
4) It is still a status symbol today
5) International regulation has failed... and Hawaii just released innovative legislation that essentially makes fins contraband.

Cool, right? It sure is if you are a bit of an eco-nerd like me. In addition to the paper on this very set of facts that I am writing for my animal law class, I also applied for an Eco-leadership award through Fulbright to hopefully take my show on the road and deliver a talk on this issue to my LLM classmates and local Cville high school students at eh Virginia Aquarium and Marine Sciences Centre next semester. Fingers crossed!

Other than that time is really flying right along here in Cville. Classes end this Wednesday and my two exams are tentatively set for the 12th and 14th of December, and then I fly on home on the 17th! Just over three weeks away!

Also, I highly recommend Harry Potter. I might have seen it twice ;)

Have a great night, and excellent week, and I look forward to seeing you all soon!