Thursday, April 13, 2006

Where Have You Been?

Yes, I know... I've been a bit delinquent with my blog. But I'm here to tell you, there IS hope of seeing me again! In just a few short weeks, I'll have a year of law school under my belt, and be working a 9 to 5 job, while pretending to have rejoined the human race. Where will YOU be?

In random news:

Spring is here and gardening is on its way. For anyone who doesn't know, gardening is my retreat from the cruelness of the world. While it doesn't always produce the fruit you want, it surely does more often than in "real" life. This coming Saturday, my family is coming to my new apartment to have a new garden fiesta with me. We're getting a rototiller, putting up a fence, and wrecking havoc on what used to be a 20 foot section of thorn bushes in the back yard. And don't worry -- it's all with the permission of the landlord (who was not aware that the last 20 feet of the yard existed until I single-handedly ripped out the tangles of thorns that had retaken the land with a vengeance).

Thanks to my next door neighbor, my plants will have the advantage of growing to the encouragement of music. He must have known that I don't have a c.d. player, because he's been kind of enough to counter any dearth of music, by playing rap loud enough for the whole neighborhood to hear. I don't even have to open my doors to hear it. (Colleagues, does that fall under nuisance law? It seems like a nuisance.)

In other news, I miss all those normal relationships I used to have with all my friends and family before law school. Feel free to send updates. While the next few weeks should be crazy trying to prep for finals, I should soon have time to breath, and would love to catch up.

I'll try to update with more frequency in the future...

2 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

excuses, excuses, excuses...

11:51 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Being a fellow law student, I'm sure you can appreciate my propensity to play "the Devil's Advocate." >:-D

Reading about your planned adventures in gardening immediately caused a couple of questions to crop up.

Does a "term of years" agreement to a leasehold estate allow the present possessor to improve the value to the property? Is the relationship between the leasehold tenant and landlord analogous to the relationship between a life tenant and remaindermen?

On the face of it, they seem to be similar. It seems to me that in the same way that a life tenant has the right to use and enjoy the premises for the duration of his life, with a future interest held by either the grantor or remaindermen, the present possessor of a leasehold estate has a right to quiet enjoyment of the premises, with a remainder held by the landlord at the conclusion of the "term of years." Of course the life tenant has the right to alienate the property which the leasehold tenant does not, so they are definitely not identical. Despite that, there seems to be some overlap between the two.

If they are in fact parallel in this regard, wouldn't it follow that the restriction on a life tenant regarding ameliorative waste and its positive impact to the value of the property regarding remaindermen would similarly inhibit a leasehold tenant from ameliorative waste due to its positive impact on the landlord?

And, well, far be it from me to question your gardening savvy, the extent of my skills being limited to spotting a dirty hoe, what if the garden plan turns awry and creates damage to the property? The parade of horribles is dancing through my mind.

Also, what will happen when you choose to part ways with the land (and the landlord)? If I am not mistaken, improvements made to the leasehold estate are considered attachments. I don't know if you would actually perform a plant transplant when you leave your present digs, but won't you lose the financial value of the garden as it will become the property of the landlord?

I hate to be the one to rain on your...um...garden, but these are the concerns I have about your project. I only voice these concerns because I care.

That said, have a great time with the family, I hope the garden will be a stunning success, and best of luck in your summer endeavors!

6:17 PM  

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