Growing Older By the Minute

The start date of my new job is quickly approaching and more and more I find myself worrying what kind of person I will become because of it.  I'm not going to be able to stay up till 4am and wake up at noon anymore.  Will this change me?

When I consider this more seriously, it's silly that I worry that my personality depends upon the hours I keep.  I guess I like the way night owl hours can naturally isolate a person.  I do a lot of my favorite things late at night (reading, writing, ukulele playing, show-watching, etc.).  But I live in this world, and I'm going to have to play ball a little if I am to change the way the game is ultimately played, as I truly want to do. 

Sometimes when I walking around the city with my mental list of errands, I think about what child-me would think about myself at the sight of me now.  I grew up in rural suburbs, and with such different environments, I don't think I've ever gotten over the potential excitement of a big city.  In my odd, meta-cognitive thoughts I consider how much and how little I've grown. 

At times, nothing seems to have anything to do with everything else.      

Old Friends

Today marks the 24th birthday of an old friend of mine.  We were about 10-years-old when we first became friends.  We did tons of fun stuff together.  We bonded.  There were sleepovers and slumber parties.  Truth and Dare. Water fights and trips to the pool.  Snow days.  We played the game "Girl Talk".  We stayed up until 2am when it was a big deal.  I told her when I got my period.  Once, I accidentally got Silly Putty in her long, beautiful hair and we had to cut it out (not too many strands were sacrificed).  I was at her house when her family received the phone call that her grandfather had passed away.  I worried that she would never be happy again.

Then, when we were twelve, she and her family moved to Washington State.  We keep in contact, through phone and sometimes mail, and later the interwebs.  We saw each other once.  In 2003, I think.  It was on this trip my dad and my now, stepmom met.  In a blink, this will be ten years ago.

2003's Best Picture Winner.  Was that really that long ago?

Looking at her Facebook pictures, I get the feeling I always get from looking at pictures of old, distant friends.  We are all living such separate lives.  Sad, inevitable, but at a glance, Facebook leads us all to believe we are at least having fun.  We are all older.  I can't get over that fact no matter how much I ponder it.

A 2009 trip to Six Flags

A 2011 trip to Six Flags

We will never be able to be fully caught up with everyone.  I hope that my classmates are all as happy as I am and that someday, we'll meet again.*

"I never had any friends later on like the ones I had when I was twelve. Jesus, does anyone?" ~ Stand By Me

*I don't mean death.  I mean bumping into each other on a train or something.