They say you never really know someone until you live with them. I would like to one up that and say that you don't really get to know someone until you go on a trip with them. My girls and I all have this crazy real addiction to traveling and trying new things. Life can sometimes become so mundane that without vacations and day trips and a little spice of spontaneity we would all go crazy. But as, um...someone once said, "We travel not to escape life, but for life not to escape us." There is so much out there to be seen and experienced, it seems ludicrous that anyone would be content preserving the status quo. So what happens when four young ladies get the understanding deep in the core of their beings that they can't just settle for the rations given out by life? You get, well, us. :).
Before I continue with our chronicles, I'll take the time to get you up to speed with the players :).
I met Jazsmine in a "bridge" program the summer before freshman year. We were so cool by the time freshman year started that everyone thought we were friends from high school. And due to a random nearly identical schedule, we quickly started getting the "Where is Jaz?" or "Where is Felicia?" when we were apart. That got old quick. But our friendship didn't, we remained roommates for our entire time there. Jaz is a very passionate person. Probably due to the red hair. I'm not good at describing people's characteristics because people are so multifaceted there is no way to fully frame beings into words so I'll just list a few more main traits: eclectic, introverted yet wild, sarcastic but funny, hopeless romantic. To say the least. My first college road trip was with her and two other friends to Houston, which was so much fun and I think got us in the mindset that college was the best time to start traveling. No real bills, no pressing responsibilities, there was no reason not to get out of the city from time to time. After that we started taking small trips to nearby cities, like when the malls didn't have the dress I wanted for Lauren's coronation.....but we won't get into that one ;).
Lauren was in freshman orientation class with me and Jaz. We had a lot of class discussions and two major debates with another class. She is very opinionated, and you will definitely hear her opinions. In spite of this class I didn't get to know her too well (although she still got my vote for queen) until we had a critical thinking class together the spring semester of our second year. Then we just clicked and started hanging out more. I really can't decide if we are more alike or different, I guess it's split. She is into fashion and is great with make up, which I'm definitely not. But, she has a clear sense of right and wrong and holds those around her to a high standard, which I can appreciate. Hmm..words to describe Lauren...I guess I'd say direct, funny, cheap, LOUD, and she never cries. Ever. Lol. And cheap is not a bad thing, we are all pretty frugal. Except Kenyetta. She likes a good value but I don't think she is quite on our level of cheapness...Speaking of...
Kenyetta, I met in a calculus class (Jaz was in that class too) that I had freshman year that met M-F at 7 a.m. SEVEN a.m. Every weekday. Needless to say we didn't get to know each other that well as all communication came in the form of grunts and/or tears. Jazsmine, however, had various classes with her since they were both biology majors. From my understanding they hated each other for awhile then with all the time they spent together and the necessary bonding of students against crazy professors in that department they became good friends. But, idk the specifics. I could've just made that whole thing up. But it's five a.m. right now so I'm sure they would not appreciate a phone call about validating the facts. Anywho, Yetta is the most outgoing of the bunch. She's the one that has friends. Lol. The rest of us just have books and our travels, lol jk. She became the official hair dresser of the group (well Jaz and me). She and Lauren had the best shoes that I could never borrow because they just didn't fit. True tragedy. She's very spontaneous, genuine, and can be very silly. Then point out our ridiculousness.
And then there's me. Think perfect, and that's me. Lol. I don't know how others would describe me. I can be very sarcastic, but I've mellowed out over the years. I have a good sense of humor in person, which doesn't always translate into text. Mostly, I'm an introvert, but I'm very aware. I like to know and see what's going on around me. Every now and then I'll let something that I notice slip out. And I have been dubbed the bubble burster. Which is NOT true at all. I merely think that if I noticed it other people did too. I just beat them to the punch ;). While I love to travel, I'm probably least adventurous when it comes to trying specific things. They have to do some pulling to get me out of my comfort zone. But, it's all good.
Some how we ended up with rooms near each other during my junior year. Lauren and Kenyetta were roommates and quickly became like sisters bickering and borrowing accessories, the whole nine. So since Lauren and I were good friends and so were Kenyetta and Jaz we instantly became a pack, the CGs (you will never know what it stands for), constantly running in each others rooms, dragging each other to events. Climbing out of the window (first floor) because the construction made it a ridiculously long path to get to the parking lot from the front door of the building. Going to get the half price appetizers after ten twice a week like addicts. Smh craziness. I don't remember how it came about but somehow we ended up taking a long weekend trip to Dallas. To sum that up I'd say Hotel, Grapevine Mills, great burgers, perfect night life, getting lost, Grapevine Mills, and about a hundred trips to the gas station to fuel Lauren's car and our mutual decision to never use her car again. I think this trip solidified our CG status. Once we knew we all loved to travel and could do things like split $$ for hotel and gas. We could argue and laugh it off; we could share a tight space like a car for hours and not just not kill each other, but actually have a lot of fun in that cramped space, even after a speeding ticket. That's how I knew I had made some lifetime friends. After that, in the same school year, we took a day trip to Memphis, and a night trip to Memphis, and a trip to New Orleans. Fun Stuff.
And this post is getting incredibly long so I will speed through our partial CG trips after junior year:
Yetta/Lauren road trip home. Lauren moved to Georgia. Lauren and I go to the Bahamas. Jaz and I visit Lauren at law school in Georgia. I moved to San Antonio. Lauren visits Jaz and Yetta at homecoming. Jaz visits me in San Antonio. Yetta and Lauren meet in Houston. I visit Jaz and Yetta at homecoming.
I think I missed some but you get the picture, we can't sit still. Unfortunately, since we are all recent graduates trying to navigate this ridiculously unpredictable ride into adulthood and live in different cities, we don't always have the funds to experience new places at the same time anymore. Until now.
For the first time since 2010 we will all be in the same place at the same time. In London. Crazy it's been that long yet we still get along like we see each other every day. This blog is to chronicle our good times for ourselves if for nobody else. We have too much fun when we go places for them just to be reduced to mere lists (like above). Even if no one else reads this, I'm sure the ladies would like to have something to look back on and have a good laugh.
But we shall see what happens next...trip is in less than a month!!!
