shmandrea

she's leaving.

her husband got his stupid phd and now they're moving to california for a very cool job.

and i feel like i might die when she's gone.
i met andrea my first day of college--the saturday before classes started. a little one-year-old came walking into my dorm room and hid in my closet. and i thought, "holy cow, my neighbor has a kid!" turns out it was andrea's little sister. we started hanging out right away. i think she despised me at first, 'cause i'm not sure byu was her first-choice school (her boyfriend at the time was at stanford) and i was so pro-byu i probably got a little on her nerves (not to mention i was the cheerleader-type and she was the swimmer-type). then her roommate went and got married after a few weeks of being there,
and i think she was sort of second-guessing her decision to come to this crazy school. but somehow, i think she ended up liking it, and i really ended up loving her.
she's funny, and so smart, and crazy fun, and boys just went nuts for her.
we had so much fun together.

now she has two very sweet little girls,
and i have two very rambunctious boys.
life sure is different from those days.

okay, so i've only seen andrea 5 times since college.
but she was the last of my freshman byu girlfriends here in utah,
which are some of the best friends i've ever had.
and having her here--
even if we didn't see each other--
was comforting.
like she is one of the very few people who knows the non-mom side of me.
the single side of me.
the college-side of me
(and still likes me...i think).

• the stay up 'til 3 am at the bell tower listening to brian sing his crazy high school musical to us side...
• the drive to seattle on a whim on friday afternoon at 5 to see the byu-uw football game the next day, then drive back on sunday side...
• the no-date third, fifth, seventh, or ninth wheel side...
  
• the cowboy hat-wearin' stupid person singing into a microphone side....
  
• the drive-in movie theater in the back of a big truck side...
• the karaoke in the wilk with brian and kelly side...
• the getting kicked in the crotch at a uvsc dance side...
• the no homecoming dance homecoming date at the haunted house side...
• the tin-foil and saran wrap halloween costume side...
• the den of iniquity side...(that one's for jarom!)
• the hypnotized at johnny-b's side...

andrea, you have no idea how much i will miss you when you're gone.
i know that california holds great things for you and your family
and this is such an exciting new stage in your life...
but shmandrea, you will be missed.
good luck with everything!
and don't forget the little people in good ol' utah.