I got back about an hour ago from a night out with some old friends - Nathan, Christine, and Janis. I worked with them two summers ago as an extern in Judge Otero's chambers. Nathan & Christine were his clerks; and Janis was a fellow extern. We've kept in touch, more or less, but only infrequently.

I have very fond memories of my 1L summer, which was the first law-related job I ever had. Up until that point, law school for me had been a dry, abstract proposition. I didn't understand what litigation was like in practice. It didn't make sense, in a human, practical sort of way. So it really opened my eyes, to see how cases move along, how judges approach cases, and to be exposed to the ways in which lawyers manipulate the legal system. I sat in on four trials and got my real introduction to intensive legal writing (that contrived class they teach to all first year law students doesn't really count). It gave me a perspective on the law that I drew on for the rest of law school - a foundation that I could build on.

I also had a lot of fun. In fact, I look back on it as one of the best times in my life - not bad for an unpaid position. My co-externs were a dynamic and varied group. And Judge Otero's two clerks, Nathan and Christine, were a fun-loving, mischevious and raunchy (!) duo who got along very well with each other, and with us. Our two-hour lunches were the stuff of legend (after we left, the Judge apparently instituted a rule that lunches could not be quite so drawn out). The good old days, as it were.

Nathan & Christine were my role models during that time and taught me a great deal. The bar that they set motivated my own decision to clerk after law school. They were efficient and well-oiled clerking machines (and eight months into my own clerkship, I don't quite feel that I am at nearly that level) - yet managed to keep a great work-life balance. They were the gold standard of clerking, so to speak. I'll always be grateful to them for that.

So nearly three years later, some things haven't changed. We still laugh and joke about The G's sketchy behavior (which she always denies). And it's just relaxing and enjoyable to hang out with them again. Both of them are at private law firms now, and one thing that scares me is that they are both working so incredibly hard, and they're a little frustrated as a result. (Janis, who has also started working for a firm, is having a similar experience.) So that's probably what lies in store for me, as well.

I'll admit there was too much bitching about work for my taste. But hey, for the three of them, work is what consumes their existence, so it is not surprising. Once we got that out of the way, though, it was good times.

I recommend Dong Il Jang on 8th Street just east of Western, by the way, in Koreatown. Their kalbi and bulgogi are delicious.

My new favorite ramen restaurant in the Bay Area is Ramen Halu in Saratoga, displacing Ryowa Ramen on Castro Street in Mountain View. While both are pretty authentic, Halu has a few things going for it that put it over the top. A school of brightly painted fish covers the ceiling, and surfer paraphenelia (the restaurant owner is a surfer) adorns the walls. And the signature Halu ramen is frickin' awesome. Excellent side dishes like the chilled eggplant with salted fish and the spring rolls, as well as Ramune soda pop, round out the deal. All in all a great time..

Other interesting Bay Area restaurants I've visited recently:

• The Kitchen off of El Camino near Millbrae Ave. Went here for a late dinner last night -- conveniently, they stay open until 1:30 am. A little pricey, with most standard dishes clocking in at $10 or $15, but selections are well-prepared and creative. I had the Hong-Kong style tomato sauce fried rice, fish maw soup, and sauteed "pigeon fillet" with a variety of mushrooms. I'm definitely coming back here.


• Ohana on Castro St. in Mountain View. Decent, but heart-stoppingly greasy, chicken and beef katsu. To tell the truth it was a bit too rich for me. Still, if you're hungry and not on a diet..


• Pho Vi Hoa on El Camino in Mountain View, diagonally across the street from San Antonio Center. Above average pho place, with some adventurous possibilities on the menu.

Last night I went with Joel, Eddie and Eddie's former roommate Huy to La Casita Chilanga, a little Mexican food place in Redwood City. (Apparently a "Chilanga/o" is a Mexican from Mexico City, so the kind of food they serve there is city food.) The dining is great, and pretty unique as Mexican food goes. I had a Torta Milanesa -- a sandwich with toasted bread and a whole lot of beef. Wei ordered a Torta Cubana and was waving the white flag before he had finished half of that meat-packed concoction.

So I've been there once before, and the problem that time was that the menu was all in Spanish. This time however, I opened up the menu and found that it was in English! Better yet, they had still given out some Spanish-language menus, but only to Eddie and Joel. Wei got one in English too. Apparently, the waittress just saw two Mexican guys and two Asian guys walk in, and just handed out menus accordingly. Racial profiling, or smart customer demographic targeting? (By the way of comparison, Joel is a 5th generation Mexican American who isn't entirely fluent in Spanish, while Eddie is a naturalized citizen who was born in Mexico.)