Friday, January 08, 2016

communal circles: kumbaya carol

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I am excited to be participating in the Think Kit project again this year. Today's prompt: Communal Circles. What new circles have you formed? Any unexpected ones? Did you start a book club or hang out in a tea yurt? Maybe you re-upped with existing friends. Explore your kumbaya moment from 2015.

My kumbaya moment was when my college roommate came to visit this summer from California.

Carol and I lived in four different places in West Lafayette (above Harry's Chocolate shop and in two different houses on North Salsbury Street and an apartment one summer that I can't remember the address).

We worked at two different jobs together (Skate-Away and the Ground Round).

We hosted parties (everything from kiddie pool parties in the front yard to a Dow Jones and the Industrials band reunion in my parent's barn).

I visited her in NYC during her semester at the Fashion Institute of Technology and sneaked into a few of her classes and slept on her floor.

We were liberal with our use of sketchy IDs to get into bars to see music and visit friends.

We shared clothes and cars and food and there may have been a brief overlap of dating the same guy (but we don't talk about that).

It has been about 30 years since I rode cross-country with Carol in her Fiero car to L.A. Can you imagine moving that far in a tiny car? Luckily we were both small and I didn't need to take much more than a toothbrush and some clean undies.

After Carol moved I visited several times, but the visits got fewer and farther in between. She was busy with her family, raising two beautiful children, and career and I had my life goin' on.

When she called this summer to ask if she could spend a week with me and volunteer at Second Helpings I was thrilled! For that week it was like we were back in college - living a one bedroom space, visiting with college friends, borrowing tee shirts, driving to the same job and talking about boys and jobs - although with better wine and roomier cars.

I am so grateful that we have reconnected - cheers to Carol and long-time friendships!

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