Saturday, September 24, 2011

Chronology

I recently found some time to upload all of my old digital photos from a long-dead computer onto the present computer, and was actually able to indulge and look through all of them.  ALL of them.  Some of those photos were from my first year of college, some from more recently, and all brought back a ton of memories.  I thought I would post a few, and the memories that go along with them.
 From my senior year ballroom dance performance.  I love dancing, and I love this guy.  He's getting married soon, and I'm so happy for him!

 At our college library, in the courtyard.  I just finished showing my mom the display I had made for the Slocum Award competition: a 2-case collection of Pirate books and objects.  It was pretty amazing, and afterwards my mom and I took silly pictures together.

 August 19, 2006.  I had my B'nei Mitzvah and became "fully Jewish" in the eyes of the Reform Jewish community.  I worked on it for about 6 months, which is about 1/4 of the time it normally takes. Granted, I was 23, not 13, but still.

 Sophomore year of college my girlfriends and I lived in a house together off campus.  We threw a Halloween/birthday party (3/4 of us had birthdays right around Halloween) and we dressed as Earth, Fire, Water and Air (from left-right).  It was an amazing night.

 My best friends from college.  We went to Disneyland a lot.  I was always the short one.  I miss them daily.

 My favorite shot from my trip to Israel.  We had just climbed to the top of Masada to watch the sun rise over the Dead Sea.  It was an amazing, unparalleled, unforgettable trip.

 My college girlfriends and I loved dressing up and would seek out occasions so that we could indulge. Sometimes we just made stuff up.  I don't remember what this was for, but I know we had a great time and looked fabulous.

 Our Senior Trip to Las Vegas.  Elyse made us all these avatars based on a comic Kaitie and I drew in Biology class, so I turned them into shirts.  I seriously miss those girls.

One year, for Halloween, we went as Barbies.  We had, from left-right, Wedding Day Barbie, Fairy Princess Barbie, Businesswoman Barbie, Rockstar Barbie, and Glamour Barbie.  I think we won the costume contest for group costume.

 At one of the many tea parties I've thrown over the years.  This must have been an early one, maybe 2002?  I've lost track...I've been doing it for 11 years now!

 During my study abroad in England, I joined the York Dancesport team.  I danced a Quickstep and got to dress like Belle.

 After study abroad, I went backpacking around Europe on my own.  I had a great time, but I would never let my daughter do this.  Venice was my favorite spot.

 Liz was studying in St Andrews when I was at York, so we did some traveling together.  I think we're in London on this one.

 One of my favorite things about being in Europe (besides the food), was the museums.  I went to every museum I could afford to get into.

 My pup, Zoe, up at my favorite place in all the world: our family home (the cabin) on Whidbey Island.

 I think this was the first tea party.

 We used to go out dancing/clubbing on a pretty regular basis.  This was in 2005 I think, for someone's birthday (June's maybe?).

We've been friends for a loooong time; longer than we've NOT been friends!  My grandma took us out to tea on the terrace of the Moana Surfrider in Waikiki.

I've never been good at putting pictures into albums, but it seems like such a waste for them to just sit on the computer.  I have thousands more, so many of which have stories that make me laugh and cry and miss and grateful.  There are some pictures that I probably wouldn't want my kids to see, but nothing I'd ever hide from them because the person I am today is a result of all of the events of those photos, and the person I am today is well loved.  The person I am today is the person I always hoped I would be.  I just didn't know it.