Way Back When...

2004. It was simpler times. The economy was good, I was in college, my parents paid my rent...ah, I had the life. Everyone told me to cherish these days, that college didn't last forever, but I didn't listen. I remember a Tom Petty quote on everyone's Facebook...something about college, papers, and beer. I made fun of it then but PETTY HAD IT RIGHT! Damn that genius. He was right about college and he was damn right about "Free Falling".

Those were the days I thought it was acceptable to drink wine from a box, use "n" instead of and, and freely admit that I almost voted for Bush! We drank malt liquor, got bad tattoos (not me!), and ran between subway cars! We smoked American Spirits, wore fedoras (see picture to the left. I'm no Samantha Ronson. Thank God.), ate easy Mac for breakfast, and changed our sheets once a semester. Those were truly the days.

Back in college, the only restaurant we ever went to was a place on the Upper West Side we affectionately called "China Wine". We named it so because your lo mein came with carafes of free, flowing white zinfandel. We thought that "China wine" was really great vino, even though we had to cut it with Sprite and sip it with a straw. Sideways, we were not.

I also liked horrible music, like Dashboard Confessional. I thought he really "got me". I used to listen to his CD over and over when I was homesick for NJ (a mere forty miles away).

2004-2005 was also the year I gained 20 pounds from eating Chinese food. My mom even staged an intervention over Mother's Day brunch. ("Kelly...you're fat. And your room is a mess.)

It was a wake up call that summer, going home and realizing Rachel had shed twenty pounds while I was busy piling them on. Damn lo mein!

(Although judging from my diet of late, I guess things really haven't changed.)

Rummaging through photos of the past reminded me of how I thought I'd have it all figured out at 23. Twenty three seemed so old. I realize now that 23 is just another age that I'll look back on fondly, remembering my youthful indiscretions. As much as I would like to think we have all changed and matured, we continue to drink too much, sleep too late, and make horrible, awful decisions resulting in loss of blood, friends and significant others. The only difference is that we now drink on the weekends, pay taxes, and have money to buy new sheets when we haven't done our laundry in awhile.

Oh well. As I always say....we've only got ONE LIFE! to make the most of...

And I'm certain we'll all figure it out very soon.