Yogurt

1. YoPlus is totally better than Activia (even the one with fibre)

2. When yogurt goes bad, doesn't it just become, like, yogurt?

VC

Freaky Coincidence

I was just looking back at my blog from when I got back from Istanbul to see if I said anything about meeting Murat (having just posted the long Murat post, below). I typically keep anything that even resembles romance off the blog, and of course when I met my last bf I stopped blogging completely, so I was not surprised that nothing about it was there.

What DID surprise me was the post I made about my dream, just after getting back, in which I describe being engaged in a complicated game with a love interest named Robert and my mother remarrying...kind of weird that both are coming true (although my mother is, unfortunately, NOT in Dubai lol).

VC

Murat

[Originally an email that I composed to a few friends, today, at Starbucks in Istanbul and ended up not sending, kind of going back on what I say in paragraph two about soliciting advice!]

I wanted to send a mini update from Istanbul and just let everyone know that I have learned that I won't be able to legally go to Kurdish Iraq in the time that I have on this trip (I could get in with the blessings of the KRG, but it's not the same thing, especially for people staying more than 10 days). Disappointing, but I knew that this trip wouldn't be as seamless as most of my exceptionally well-planned (if break-neck pace) travels, since I did ZERO planing this summer while preparing for the bar. I am going to expand my travels in Southeastern Anatolia to see more of Kurdish Turkey, although I don't really know what this means for the paper I need to submit at the beginning of November on Kurdish identity for the Morocco conference in January.

I was also originally emailing you guys ("you guys" being just a few people, actually, for reasons of this paragraph), because I am totally conflicted about something here in Istanbul and, trying out something new for me, I'm actually soliciting advice! As some of you may know, although I've been to Istanbul five times, now, my very first trip was a trip I made off the cuff to get out of Cairo during my 24th birthday back in February 2006. I had an amazing trip and totally fell in love with Istanbul. The city was cold and almost empty, so I was literally alone, at times, in Aya Sofia and some of the other places I visited, and I also met someone really special who I spent my birthday with.

There was a guy, Murat, who was a lawyer out in a town called Izmit who I met and who, to this day, is one of the few perfect memories I have (along with sleeping on a rainy rooftop in Byblos, Lebanon, eating berries picked by the river in the Hindu Kush in Afghanistan, etc.) -- like, it's a "happy place" I go back to to remind myself that I can be content, trusting etc. (even if I seem to only be capable on vacation, which is another story). Three months after meeting Murat, with whom I had been in touch online through the website where we met and, after that, by text after deleting that online profile, I went to India, left my phone at a party in Delhi, and totally lost Murat. Because I left Cairo right after getting back from India (and because Vodafone Egypt is a MESS), I couldn't get my old phone records from my Egyptian SIM card to get his number, and had long since forgotten his online profile name since we weren't communicating that way anymore. Now, this will sound a little crazy, but every 3 or 4 months since then (3.5 years now!), I go back online and look through all the profiles in Izmit on all the big dating websites and try to find Murat...I have even asked other people if THEY know a Murat, and I've always failed. I think no one knew that lol, so now you know :)

Long story not any shorter: Yesterday I found Murat. Actually, he found me :) And now I'm terrified! I totally don't think he's the love of my life or anything, because I know we don't know each other well, and I also think there are multiple loves we all have, so I'm not viewing this through a "now or never" lense, but I have wanted, for so long, to find him again, and now that I have I'm like...feeling like I don't want to destroy that memory. A lot of this is tied to sense of self-rot a lot of us experience in law school and the feeling like "everything right now is sucky and ruined," which is just kind of a funk I'm in (not depression, but let's say pessimistic and a little negative), in part because of some family drama in California that some of you know about. Part of it is also the fact that there are so few (SO FEW lol) examples I can think of of guys who I've met and just thought were amazing, kind, wonderful people, and who I didn't know long enough to have that impression destroyed by the inevitable flaws we all have. I kind of want to tell him that I'm really busy leaving for Diyarbakir and will try to see him when I'm back (knowing that I won't), but otherwise may have to wait until the Fall when I can make a short trip from London. I'm telling myself that, in that time, I will continue to recuperate from law school and can get a slammin' bod before I come back lol (although he met me post-Afghanistan sedentary hi-security summer/Cairo emotional eating), and also just work on getting back to the positive, shiny person that probably attracted him in the first place. I'm just not at my best now.

[Just decided to not send this email and turn it into a blog entry, so we'll see what happens!]

Ending One Year, Beginning Another

La noche es hermosa

Y estoy tan sola

Mi deseo no es morir

Es mejor cantar, bailar, reir

Como voy a morir,

Morir sin saber que es amar

Vivir solo por amar

Amar mas que el mismo amor

Dar sin a cambio esperar

Libre, de vivir mi vida

Sin un anatema

Sin pedir perdon

Libre, sin pais, ni Dios

Basta que la lluvia el de su bendicion

Vivir solo por amar

Amar mas que el mismo amor

Dar sin a cambio esperar

Los dos mundos que nos alejan

Tal vez un dia se uniran

Porque yo creo de verdad

Hasta mi vida puedo dar

Si al final la historia cambiara

Vivir solo por amar

Amar mas que el mismo amor

Dar sin a cambio esperar

Amar como la noche ama el sol

Amar y morir de tanto amor

Y morir de tanto amor

Vows

Dear Husband,

I vow that (so long as you want it) I will always come with you to the doctor, even if you are just getting some antibiotic for a cold. No one should have to be at the doctor's office alone.

Yours,

VC

Putting Business in Perspective

I thought I had been pretty busy, recently (although I ran 16 miles this week, so I can't be THAT busy, right?), but check out this note I just got from a friend I worked with this summer (REALLY like her -- she's a 3L at Columbia):

in the past 8 days I: argued my first case in district court, got a decision from the bench, wrote a moot court brief, did 6 hours of phone banking for election protection, went to a crazy election party, got a job interview with staff clerks office at the seventh circuit (which will happen next week), left like 3 voicemails for nicole, got an infection in my eye because i wore my contacts for too many days in a row, took the MPRE, and went to a bday party.

Guess I really was NOT that busy!

VC

Rocky Day

I am blogging just briefly to say that I had the WEIRDEST experience last night/this morning. I had a super vivid dream (like the kind where you wake up and think it was real) that today was daylight savings time and I had an extra hour to sleep. When my alarm went off and I reset it for an hour later, thinking that the time was wrong, I then slept for an extra three hours and totally threw off my work schedule for the morning before Persian class (although I did manage to get my homework for Persian done and email one of the other students the 30 sentences we had to translate from English to Persian, since she couldn't pick up the assignment yesterday).

Now I'm working on grading some papers, but am freezing, which is the second thing I'm writing about: I can't say how many days I am cold from 9:25am to 6pm. It makes me MISERABLE. I hate it that the A/C is still blasting everywhere here (not just at Yale) even though it's cold, now. I'm wearing a sweatshirt and eve just having my hands exposed makes me cold :(

Ok that's enough whining for today. Oh! I also left my phone at home, so I can't wish Desi a safe trip to Madison, schedule my dinner with Nicole, or schedule my trip to Home Depot to get a light bulb for my torch lamp (not the crappy Ikea one in the photo from two posts ago, but the super energy efficient and bright one that I really need work that I posted about a year ago when I ordered it, but that I promptly put out of use when I knocked it over and the super special energy efficient bulb broke, which I thought I would have to reorder from the website where I bought the lamp, but which I just realized, yesterday (after a year) can probably be purchased from Home Depot).

Trivial trivial.

--VC

My Midterm

I just drafted this for the class I'm TAing :)

You should spend about 15 minutes reading the following fact pattern and about 60 crafting your reply.

FACT PATTERN

The Democratic Republic of Golestan is a tiny island republic situated in the Arabian Sea between Oman and Pakistan. Golestan has roughly 120,000 inhabitants and covers an area of about 248 sq miles (this makes it about twenty times the size of Wasilla, Alaska, but just smaller, population-wise, than New Haven). Most of Golestan’s adult population engages in subsistence farming, although a significant portion of the country’s north coast is used for flower growing, which has proved extremely lucrative for Golestan and has allowed it to survive without significant foreign assistance. Golestan prides itself on being an economically independent flower economy, and sees its independence from its powerful South Asian and Gulf neighbors as tied to its status as the region’s leading flower exporter.

Golestan is party to the ICCPR, including the First Optional Protocol, the ICESCR, CAT, CEDAW, the CRC, and the Rome Statute of the ICC. In ratifying each of these treaties, the Golestan legislature issued the following declaration:

“The Government of the Democratic Republic of Golestan will comply with the provisions of the treaty, except those that the Government may consider contradictory to its ability to ensure the economic stability and autonomy of sovereign Golestan.”

On 1 September 2008, an unexpected tropical storm decimated the north coast of Golestan and all of the flower farms located there. On 2 September, Hamid Kasif, the president of Golestan, implored Golestan’s legislature to declare a state of emergency and activate the broad police powers of the executive. The legislature passed the Golestan Emergency Law (“GEL”), which declared that:

“In order to guarantee the economic stability and autonomy of sovereign Golestan in a crisis that threatens the survival of the Republic, all citizens of Golestan are immediately required to convert their crops into flower farms and join in collective flower growing. All persons who fail to comply with this law shall be executed or forced to work on government farms, and their property shall be seized.”

The month of September marked unparallel violence in Golestan, with soldiers from the Ministry of Agriculture engaging in neighborhood raids, either killing entire families on the spot if their land had not been converted to flower farms or forcing the strongest family members to work in chain gangs on government flower farms. Many of those slain or forced into labor camps hold dual nationality, including some with the United States and Belgium.

Last week, Columbia University invited President Kasif to be a guest speaker, and in introducing the President of Golestan, Columbia University President Lee Bollinger said that Kasif was “starting to exhibit all the signs of a petty and cruel dictator.” In response, Kasif made the following statement:

“The actions we have undertaken in Golestan are in conformity with the understanding our legislature has consistently expressed of our international treaty obligations, as modified by our Emergency Law. In addition, nothing we have done to protect the economic integrity of Golestan violates customary international law. The people of Golestan cannot enjoy their civil and political liberties in a state of poverty or enslavement to the World Bank and multinational corporations. The measures taken to ensure Golestan’s economic independence are well within the margins of acceptable state action to preserve public order, and are consistent with the strongly-held values of this great people.”

QUESTION

You are an associate researcher with a New York-based international NGO, Lawyers Heart Human Rights (“Heart”). You have been asked to draft a memo that Heart can use to brief reporters about Kasif’s claims concerning Golestan’s treaty obligations and customary international law, as well as the justifications he provided for the state’s repressive actions. Your memo should also present what you consider to be the best option for brining someone kind of claim against the state of Golestan or its leaders.

Has Anyone Seen My Missing Pile?

Saturday spent reviewing documents for my human rights clinic.

I Think I Am Back

Only time will tell, I suppose.

**********************************

I used to rule the world
Seas would rise when I gave the word
Now in the morning I sleep alone
Sweep the streets I used to own

I used to roll the dice
Feel the fear in my enemies eyes
Listen as the crowd would sing:
"Now the old king is dead! Long live the king!"

One minute I held the key
Next the walls were closed on me
And I discovered that my castles stand
Upon pillars of salt, and pillars of sand

I hear Jerusalem bells are ringing
Roman Cavalry choirs are singing
Be my mirror my sword and shield
My missionaries in a foreign field
For some reason I can not explain
Once you know there was never, never an honest word
That was when I ruled the world

It was the wicked and wild wind
Blew down the doors to let me in.
Shattered windows and the sound of drums
People could not believe what I'd become

Revolutionaries wait
For my head on a silver plate
Just a puppet on a lonely string
Oh who would ever want to be king?

I hear Jerusalem bells are ringing
Roman Cavalry choirs are singing
Be my mirror my sword and shield
My missionaries in a foreign field

For some reason I can not explain
I know Saint Peter won't call my name
Never an honest word
But that was when I ruled the world

(Coldplay, Viva la vida)

Reagan on Bush

Historical Quote of the Day (AP)

"A moment I've been dreading. George (Bush Sr.) brought his
ne're-do-well son around this morning and asked me to find the
kid a job. Not the political one who lives in Florida . The one who
hangs around here all the time looking shiftless.

This so-called kid is already almost 40 and has never had a real
job. Maybe I'll call Kinsley over at The New Republic and see if
they'll hire him as a contributing editor or something. That
looks like easy work."

-- Ronald Reagan in his recently published diaries, written
May 17, 1986.

Shi'a Iraq Cheat Sheet

If you can't remember anything else, remember this:

1. Party
Islamic Supreme Council in Iraq
Leader
Abdulaziz al-Hakim
Militia
Badr

2. Party
Sadrists (informal)
Leader
Moqtada al-Sadr
Militia
Medhi Army

For the conflict, what is important to know is that the US has backed al-Hakim and the form Shi'i party as both part of its debaathification processes and as part of its fight against Moqtada al-Sadr and the threat if perceives from the Medhi Army.

A recent report by International Crisis Group questions the wisdom al-Hakim's alignment with the US. Read it...it's pretty interesting.

The al-Hakim family is a powerful shi'a line from Najaf and looks towards Grand Ayatollah al-Sistani as its Supreme Religious Leader (the place Sistani occupies in Iraq is comparable to that of Khamanei in Iran, except they have different opinions about the relationship between the Supreme Religious Leader and the government, which is why in Iran everything has to be approved by Khamanei, and in Iraq not everything goes through Sistani...this difference relates to their views of the leadership or guardianship of the jurist, velayat al-fakih).

VC

Defragmenting

I think there's something paradoxical about defragmenting my computer, which I'm doing now because I got a notice that my computer is running "1.11 times slower" than it should: If you add up ALL the extra wait time I encounter as a result of this 1.11 times slower slowness, I think it's still less than the EXTREMELY LONG TIME it's taking my computer to defragment itself (like more than an hour).

VC

Why Europe is Better than the US

The women's season ending championships are in Madrid, one of my favourite cities, and I'm cracking up because the ball boys, who are actually hot men (sometimes they have adults do it), rather than wearing the usually-frumpy uniforms, are wearing tight, sleeveless Hugo Boss tank tops lol.

Good bless Europe!

VC

Pierre Krähenbühl

HOT HOT HOT lol

Go to the ICRC page now.

You can also see him in the article on Burma.

VC

Catching Up: La Vie, Spiegelworld

Curie is asleep on my couch, taking a nap after having seen the law school. We're going to what is supposedly the best Indian restaurant in the area, tonight, in Branford (her and two other transfers who I should nickname and will explain later: Nichole and Ellen).

Since I've been catching up with Curie, today, I thought I should also catch up with some of the stuff I've done and photos I've taken.

The first thing I want to post are some images I took while at the South Street Seaport for the final performance of La Vie, by Spiegelworld.

The show was fantastic, and it was really nice getting to see a friend I met through Curie who (we joke) is my Chinese half-sister. She's really a sweet person, and some of her friends were great.

As I said, the show was fantastic. You can check out the website for an idea of what it's all about. I think the best parts were the dance scenes between the MC and a woman (who, in the show, is a Russian femme fatale). You know the man is probably gay, and that they are just performers in a cabaret under a circus tent in Manhattan and are not really tormented lovers, and yet when they danced it was so passionate and so believable. I think the entire audience was impressed with the others (contortionists, ropeworkers, etc.) but we were just blown away by the dancing. IT WAS HOT lol

Most of my photos are of the ships and the actual seaport itself. I really like the effect of the cell phone photos sometimes.

VC

Wall Street

Like I've been saying, there's NOTHING about Manhattan that says that Wall Street has to be there. If we were smart we'd move to Shanghai, or Dubai, or Paris.

VC

The Bravery, "The Ocean" (song lyrics)

I climbed up a mountain, and looked off the edge
At all of the lives that I never have led
There's one where I stayed with you, across the sea
I wonder do you still think of me

I carry your image always in my head
Folded and yellowed and torn at the edge
And I've looked upon it for so many years
Slowly I'm loosing your face

Oh the ocean rows us away, away, away
The ocean rows us away

Sixes and sevens we live on jet planes
So many faces I don't know the names
So many friends now and none of them mine
Forgotten as soon as we meet

All of these moments are lost in time
But you're caught in my head like a thorn on a vine
Took forever to mend me and I wonder why
Do I wish I've never known you at all

Oh the ocean rows us away, away, away
The ocean rows us away

The sun and the moon
An ocean of air
So many voices
And nothing is there
But the ghost of you asking me why
Why did I leave

Oh the ocean rows us away, away, away
The ocean rows us away

And I loose your hand through the waves

Taking Chances

I guess it should be announced that I'm officially in a relationship now. A lot of my friends at Yale have met him, but I'm excited for my NYC friends and family to meet him, too.

Really worth the wait. That's all I can say :)

More Celine. I love the chorus.

VC

PS: The woman sang more than 500 shows in Vegas (I think it was maybe closer to 900) in just a few years and her voice has not suffered at all. Now THAT'S healthy technique!

Things that Make VC Happy: Celine Dion's Air Guitar

I sent this clip to my mom a few weeks ago, but I was just watching it again and wanted to post it. The talking part is boring, but watch for 2:20-2:30 when she vocally mimics a guitar. This woman can SERIOUSLY sing. It's also cute when she's banging on the hallway walls talking about what good acoustics they have lol.

VC

VC Now Immunizer from EVERYTHING

I just had SEVEN vaccinations lol

Tetnus
Yellow Fever
Flu
Hep-A
Typhoid
Menengitis
Polio

I'm going to go drink swamp water now...JUST BECAUSE I CAN!

VC

Kenya Itinerary

DEPARTING FLIGHT

Saturday, October 20, 2007
Emirates # 204
New York John F Kennedy Intl (JFK) to Dubai (DXB)
Departure (JFK): October 20, 11:20 AM EDT (morning)
Arrival (DXB): October 21, 8:10 AM GST (morning)

Sunday, October 21, 2007
Emirates # 721
Dubai (DXB) to Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta Intl (NBO)
Departure (DXB): October 21, 3:05 PM GST (afternoon)
Arrival (NBO): October 21, 7:05 PM EAT (evening)


RETURN FLIGHT

Saturday, October 27, 2007
Emirates # 720
Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta Intl (NBO) to Dubai (DXB)
Departure (NBO): October 27, 5:15 PM EAT (evening)
Arrival (DXB): October 27, 11:15 PM GST (evening)

Sunday, October 28, 2007
Emirates # 203
Dubai (DXB) to New York John F Kennedy Intl (JFK)
Departure (DXB): October 28, 2:00 AM GST (morning)
Arrival (JFK): October 28, 7:50 AM EDT (morning)

VC is Going to Geneva

Things are finally working out with the Swiss office of McKinsey and "they'll see me in November" (that's all the details I have so far).

:)

VC

New Haven

To the Members of the Yale Community:

Consistent with federal reporting requirements and in order to increase awareness of personal safety, I write to let you that a graduate student was the victim of a robbery at the corner of Church and Center Streets at 5:30 AM on Saturday, September 29. He was approached from behind by three males wearing black hooded sweatshirts who demanded money. Fortunately, the student was not hurt during the incident.

Also on September 29, in the evening, there was an aggressive panhandling incident that occurred at approximately 9:00 PM. A graduate student was at the corner of College and Wall Streets when she was approached by a woman asking for money. When the student took money from her wallet, the woman held her wrist and grabbed the money from her hand. The woman who took the money is approximately 5'2" tall, has dark acne marks on face, and was wearing loose pants or skirt and a red turban. Fortunately, there were no injuries reported.

In addition, later that evening, two undergraduates were walking on Howard Ave. and Spring Street at approximately 11:15 PM when they were surrounded by a group of four or five males, approximately 13-15 years of age, all 5'5" tall or shorter, one wearing a white long sleeve shirt. The group assaulted the students with plastic milk crates while demanding their wallets. The students were treated for lacerations resulting from the assault.

Anyone having information about these incidents should call the Yale Police. I reiterate my request that you use the University escort service or transportation system and not walk alone, or even in pairs during late night hours. If you should witness suspicious activity, please report it immediately to the police at 432-4400. Timely reports help tremendously in solving cases and deterring crime.

Sincerely,

Chief James A. Perrotti

Goldman Interview Feedback

I find this very interesting (I emailed basically just asking if there was any feedback I could have going forward since I am serious about banking). Looks like it was a bad sign that I dropped that finance course at the School of Management, but it also looks like maybe something internal at Goldman made them decide not to take anyone from YLS their first time recruiting here, especially since he didn't say "you should try to take accounting and finance to get a job at another bank," but rather "you should try to get a job at another bank, and taking accounting and finance would help you when you reapply next year." :

Chunk - I would try to get a summer job at another investment bank -
that would help strengthen your resume for next fall. Also, taking
accounting courses and doing well at them would be very helpful.

Crazy Swiss

Check out the requirements for getting a drivers license there. I think it's hilarious that they make you get trained in first aid AND undergo a mental assessment by a psychologist before you can drive lol


Learning to drive in Switzerland

You must be 18 years of age to learn how to drive in Switzerland. The process begins with a 10-hour first aid course in which you learn how to give assistance to traffic accident victims. Then, you must follow eight hours of obligatory theory (traffic-awareness course).

Once you begin to drive, you must be accompanied by a person over 24 years of age who has had his or her license for at least three years. You must also attach a sticker (a white L on a blue background) to the windshield of your car to show that you are a "learner" driver.

You are not required to take driving lessons with a professional instructor to obtain your license, although it is recommended since the instructors know exactly what the examiners expect... It's at your own risk. Bear in mind that it will cost you approximately 75 Swiss francs an hour. There are extremely well-organized guilds of driving school instructors, who are applying increasingly restrictive measures to limit access to their profession and maintain their rates. Moreover, constant pressure is placed on the government to raise driver training standards for young drivers, in the name of road safety and to the great benefit of driving school instructors. Some see in this a pathetic example of corporate racketing, based on the "public good", as a means to capture its own profitable market. So grin and bear it, but don't let them walk all over you.
The temporary license allocation fee, the practical and theoretical exams and the highway code manual cost approximately 250 Swiss francs (although this varies by canton).

A book listing the 600 possible questions on the theory exam can be purchased for 10 francs from your canton's Automobile Service.

The Swiss driving test includes a written exam (that can be taken in English or in other foreign languages) and a practical test.

The practical test can be taken only three times. If you fail it three times, you are required to consult a psychologist who will decide if you are mentally fit to drive and who can offer you a fourth and final attempt... But you would have to demonstrate a real inaptitude for driving to get to that point.

Rejected at Goldman

Dear Chunk:

Thank you for taking the time to interview with the Investment Banking Division at Goldman Sachs. Unfortunately we’ve had to make some tough decisions, and we will not be pursuing your candidacy any further. We regret that we cannot accommodate everyone, but we wish you the best of luck in the recruiting process!

Regards,

The Investment Banking Recruiting Team

***

Feels weird because I thought the interview went really well. I guess I feel a little upset to get a rejection, but I don't feel devastated, either. I'm not sure if I should try for more banks, or just go with McKinsey and consulting firms. I don't mean to sound cheesy, but this really could be a blessing in disguise, because if I do consulting (or even the one law firm I interviewed with, which, incidentally, I have not heart back from even though another friend has) then I can split the summer with a human rights organization.

Off to the gym! :)

VC

PS: I *just* realized that they probably never took my candidacy seriously in the first place, which is why we just spent the 30 minutes talking and having a good time. They can't screen the candidates that bid on them, so they might as well make the best of their time with someone they feel certain isn't a fit. Too bad!

Underwear Kicking

Something funny I just realized I do (and have done for years without ever even thinking about how odd it is):

When I change my clothes, get in the shower, etc. and have to take my underwear off, I slide them off like any other person would, but then when they're around my ankles on the floor I step out with my right leg (still normal, I think) and then I kick them with my left foot up in the air (not high, just up to my arm height) and catch them with my right hand lol.

What's even more silly is that it's not like I'm catching them so I can put them in the dirty clothes or whatever, since usually I immediately drop them back on the floor until I actually pick up all the clothes I just took off.

How weird is that?

VC

Interview Update

I think my interviews went really well. They didn't ask me ANYTHING about finance or ANYTHING about Goldman Sachs! lol Good thing, since my "breakthrough" that I wrote about last night about valuation techniques was totally off. I guess I really didn't need to work until after 5am preparing lol Maybe I really am made for banking?

VC

Investopedia

This site rules.

Goldman Prep Under Way

I'm working away! I think I'll stop doing finance stuff soon and start doing the "What's happening in the markets, what do I think affects the market, what stocks do I like, what are Goldman's values, what are its major recent deals, and what is its structure and performance record?"

I think I just had a breakthrough, though, as seen in an email I sent to a friend who worked in banking this past summer at Bank of America, met with me a little over a month ago in NYC to talk about it over Japanese desert, and who helped me on the phone earlier for almost an hour. The question/breakthrough is all about calculating NPV (net present value) using a DCF (discounted cash flows) model that incorporates WACC (weighted average cost of capital) and CAPM (capital asset price model) calculations:

Hey I'd call but it's 1am and I know it sucks to be like "hey I know I never call you except to eat Japanese desert and talk about finance, but I have a question" lol.

I just wanted to make sure that I have it right when to use CAPM and when to use WACC.

From what I can tell, when you want to decide whether or not to invest in a security, like a stock, then you would use NPV calculated on a DCF model that has a discount rate calculated by CAPM. If you want to decide whether or not a project is worth it, and we're talking about, like, purchasing a company or something and not just a security, then you'd use NPV calculated on one of the three models we spoke about, and if you elect to use DCF then your discount rate would be calculated using WACC (you couldn't really use WACC for a security because there is not issue about how capital is structured like with a corporation), and in that WACC calculation you could still, if you wanted to, bring back CAPM, but it would only be used to calculate the cost of equity component of the WACC sum?

Basically it looks like using CAPM for the discount rate in a DCF calculation is only a "complete" calculation if it's for a security, but if it's for a firm valuation or something then you need WACC, which can use CAPM or not depending on your preference/available info for how you'll calculate the cost of equity (either as CAPM or as dividends per share divided by share price added to growth in price).

Does that sound right?

Thanks!

VC

Insane Week

This week is one of the craziest I've had in a long time.

In addition to my classes, which I've done no work for, I have three job interviews (which will require a LOT of prep), journal and reading group meetings, student paper drafts to review (for the undergrad Computers and the Law course that a friend got me a position TAing -- this is also going to be intense prep because students are emailing me to set up appointments and I am not even going to get the course materials, lecture notes, and required readings from the prof until tomorrow morning!), law school events, etc. Oh, and the icing on the cake is that on Friday my preliminary findings for my Kenya research are due. The pre-icing icing is that the same day I have my Goldman interviews and my first meeting with a Computers and the Law student I *also* have an Arabic quiz lol.

I have decided to reconceptualize the week, though, as not one of stress but of opportunity lol. I mean after this week a lot of things that were formerly just plans will now be real activites in my life: Outlaws is having its first official meeting, the Middle East Legal Forum reading group is having its first meeting, I will have my first meeting with the Journal of Human Rights and Development, I'll have met with my students for the first time and read their papers (and read the class materials for the first time as well), I'll have held my first co-taught TA review session, I'll have interviewed for positions in investment banking, investment management, and transactional corporate law, have mastered the direct and indirect objects that come from each of the ten Arabic verb forms, have presented my preliminary findings on Kenya, and will have had a special meeting with some of the judges from the world's highest courts (and will have gotten tickets for a later lecture with one of the US Supreme Court justices).

Don't expect me to blog much between now and Friday (then again you never know!).

Oh, and just to brag lol: Since coming to Yale I've never exercised less than three times in a week :)

VC

FIP (Fall Interview Program)

I got all three things I bid on for Fall interviews (note that I only bid on one law firm because they're the only one hiring for Paris lol). My #1 goal this summer is Goldman investment banking, and if I don't get that then I suspect I'll want to go to McKinsey (and in that case split my summer between consulting and human rights, which you can't do in banking). The other stuff is just in case I don't get any other private sector offers.

Interview Date	Employer	Locations Interviewing For	Interview Time	Interview Location	Interview Room
Sep 25, 2007	Goldman Sachs & Company-Investment Banking (New York NY)	New York NY-Investment Banking	2:00 pm - 2:30 pm		TBA
Sep 25, 2007	Goldman Sachs & Company-Investment Management (New York NY)	New York NY-Investment Management	2:30 pm - 3:00 pm		TBA
Sep 27, 2007	Sullivan & Cromwell LLP (London)	London;European and Asian offices	4:30 pm - 5:00 pm		TBA

Weirdest Thing Ever

Check it.

CNN Stupid Quote of the Day

"And now let's turn back to Afghanistan, still a country of beggars and burkas."

!

VC Going to Kenya

I was given my project for the human rights clinic, today, and I was given my second choice project, which was one relating to the rights of Nubian children in Kenya (I can't, like, totally talk about it until I have permission from our partner organization). My top choice was a women's rights/access to justice project in Bangladesh, but I'm still happy that I got on this one which was surely in high demand. I'm a bit sad, because Swissy was planning a trip to NYC for my October break, but now it looks like I'll be in Nairobi (mostly) from 20-28 October (although with human rights people you NEVER know if these trips will happen).

I still haven't contacted the ICTJ about ongoing work that they wanted me to do, but I think I will just do stuff for them as they need it and not make it a clinical project, since that seems easier (not only because clinical projects have team hierarchies, but also because Yale has to approve everything we do BEFORE it goes to the partner organization, which I think would actually be sort of a step back for me as far as how much autonomy I have in my work with the ICTJ).

It will be my first trip to sub-Saharan Africa, so that's pretty cool. The project is also one that I think will be interesting to research from a legal standpoint (of course the fieldwork will be interesting).

VC