Going to France with your High School Girlfriend

Just to be clear, the last time I had a high school girlfriend, I was also in high school. At least that is the only high school girlfriend that I will be writing about on this blog. Ok, let's start the post...

Several weeks ago I started chatting online with my old high-school girlfriend. Imagine, we pretty much stopped talking about 8 years ago. Anyway, we were really close back then, so I have had a lot of fun catching up with her a little bit over the past few weeks. She is a newscaster now, which seems like a cool job. She also seems to be sort of a local celebrity in the city where she "does the news". I'll bet it won't be long before she moves on to a bigger market.

A few weeks ago we were talking about how we broke things off back when we were 18, and I was sort of musing at how things had ended up working out. I think it is a pretty cool story. You see, when we graduated from high school, we took the money that people sent us for graduation and went to France for a 1-month study abroad program. It sounds like a really cool experience, except that on the second day of the month-long-trip we broke up. Here is a valuable lesson: You probably shouldn't go with your good-looking, 18-year-old high-school girlfriend to France for a month. There is always the risk that she might realize that she is 18-years old, good-looking, and in France with her high-school boyfriend. If she does, in fact, realize this then things are probably not going to work out between the two of you. Of course there was a lot more too it than that, but

With a Little Help from Florencia

Yesterday I had coffee with this girl named Florencia from my International Private Law class. She is from La Pampa province of Argentina, she is about 24 years old, and she is extremely good looking. I sat next to her on the first day of our class, precisely because she is so attractive. I do my best not to hit on her, though, because she has helped me out a good bit in the class we have together. I'll explain my reasoning - if I were to hit on a her and it were to go badly, then she might feel less comfortable helping me out with the class material, helping me find where to find the reading assignments, navigate the UBA infrastructure, etc. This actually isn't so much of a problem here in Latin America as it is in the United States, as there is an assumption among many Latin women that guys may hit on them and, you know, generally act like guys. Of course, there is always the possibility that I hit on a classmate and it goes really well - but then the whole thing could go sour a week or a month later. Either way, I'd end up without an ally... So I try to be smart and not blatantly hit on Florencia. Anyway, she is a cool chick and seems smart and interesting, so I'd like to have her as my friend (see?? I am not a complete ass!).

As an exchange student, I think it can be a good idea to try to sit next to the best looking girl on the first day of every class. As a counter example, in my Arbitration class I just walked in on the first day and sat down without much thought as to whether I was sitting next to an Argentine hot-body. As it has turned out, I have a very difficult time understanding the professor. She talks extremely fast and does not really stop to ask questions or initiate discussion with the students. The worst part is that there is a horrible echo in the classroom. As I do not have a hot girl interested in making sure I understand the material and do well in the class, I have resorted to making audio recordings of each class and then trying to listen to them later in my apartment. The problem has not been quite so severe in my Maritime Law class; however that professor also speaks very quickly. I may end up needing help from a nice girl to survive in that class as well :-)

The point is, if you don't sit next to a great looking girl on the first day, you will be on your own. The path will still be walkable, but you risk stumbling as you will be alone when you encounter obstacles along the way. Furthermore, there are indirect benefits. When a gringo sits next to an attractive girl, he does his best to exude confidence. That cockiness can be a virtue if it helps the gringo to confront the inevitable challenges to be encountered in a law school class taught in a foreign country and in a foreign language. Just to be safe, sit next to a beautiful girl like Florencia and do your best not to hit on her...

UPDATE: As the semester has progressed, I have met good looking girls in both my Arbitration class as well as my Maritime Law class. That makes me feel a little better about things - it looks like they'll be willing to help me survive these classes. The lesson here is that sometimes you can go back and fix past mistakes and omissions. A 2nd lesson is that there are an abundance of great looking women in Argentina who have good handwriting.