"The message Hollywood needs to send out is 'Smoking Is Cool!'"

Alternate Title: "We don't sell Tic Tacs, we sell cigarettes. And they're cool, available, and *addictive*. The job is almost done for us."

Alternate-Alternate Title: "These days, when someone smokes in the movies, they're either a psychopath... or a European."
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There are various BarBri locations throughout the state. Only one of which is a live presentation. I chose to attend a locale with a video feed; since, well, it's way closer and I have to deal with fewer neurotic freaks I went to law school with (sadly I just deal with neurotic freaks other people went to law school with).

One girl gets the tapes fed-ex'ed to her nightly and she starts the tape (which has 10 minute breaks built in every 50-55 minutes). I've ran into her at the coffee shop nearly every morning, and recently she told me BarBri is paying her $1000 to start the tapes (in 2 rooms), her tone clearly conveyed that she realized it was a ridiculous amount of money for roughly 3 minutes of work all summer. The 2nd room is a basement room for the people who get there late.

Today she suggested to the class that we start fast forwarding the tape and only take 5 minute breaks. She then asked for input (at which point I objected) and then put the issue to vote (before 1/2 the class was there, read: all the smokers were still outside). Admittedly my objection was based on the fact that I like to smoke and pee during the breaks. I am an anomaly, in that I drink my 8 glasses of water a day (and then some-12 to be exact). Ergo, peeing is necessary. As for the smoking, I picked it back up a few weeks days into PMBR, I don't smoke for the rest of the day-but it's something which breaks up the hell that is BarBri lecture.

Predictably, the class didn't care that I like to smoke on the break and that I have to pee unless I'm going to start wearing depends to class, and therefore voted to start doing 5 minute breaks. (Note: I am not the only person who felt this way and smokes/pees on breaks, I was just the only person who was there when the vote was held).

So, after being late back into the room at the first break I decided I'd have to figure out some other way to handle the situation. My answer was to call BarBri and complain. In my complaint I acknowledged that I am a neurotic law student studying for the bar and that I realized there were more important things to complain about, but that I didn't think it was right to change the structure. The other room fast forwards, if people are truly rushed they can choose to sit in the crappy basement room. Luckily for me, the BarBri representative for my locale is a smoker. She assured me she would be speaking to the girl in charge of the tape that we are to stick to the 10 minute breaks.

In a world filled with anti-smoking discrimination it feels good to win once and awhile.