Ten years ago, it was the year 2000, and I was 23 years old, and...
1. I had just survived the Y2K scare. The whole thing had me slightly panicked for months, but not enough to actually stash away any canned goods, flashlights, or sanitary napkins (arguably some of the most important emergency supplies to keep on hand).
2. I was making $10 an hour at my first "real" job out of college. After a couple of months of getting nowhere with traditional job-hunting routes, I called the entire list of publishing companies in the yellow pages. I came across a crazy, family-owned company that needed a hand. One day I'll share some hilarious tales from that loony bin. It was truly too weird to be true.
3. I sported the shortest haircut of my life thus far, which I
shamelessly copied from my friend Kimmi, whose hair was shamelessly copied from Gwyneth
Paltrow in Sliding Doors
Me on my 23rd birthday.
4. I was a big fan of the "strongly worded letter," and I wrote and delivered several that were just bursting with righteous indignation. I still cringe when I think of some of the letters I sent, in response to poor customer service, a $300 cell-phone bill, or a snobby and condescending job interviewer.
5. I thought 30 was "old" and somewhat terrifying. I naively thought everyone in their 30s was desperate to be my age again. I had no idea how little I knew.
6. I was one of those annoying people who was convinced that my one-and-only-niece was the most adorable child ever to be born of man. (With my 23-year-old hubris, I honestly told a colleague that, in comparison to my niece, her nephew wasn't "traditionally cute," but he had "loads of personality" that made up for it!) I still believe that every one of my nieces and nephews is remarkably and unusually attractive, but I now have the good sense not to admit this in polite company, especially in comparison with other people's children.
My adorable niece, Haylee.
7. I took a trip to Seattle and Victoria, Canada, with a bunch of girlfriends. In those single years, we also hit Vegas, Boston, Yellowstone, Jackson Hole, and several locations closer to home.
8. I experienced real grief for the first time. In late January of 2000, I returned from a snowmobiling adventure in Yellowstone to the news that my Grandpa Bob had passed away. I'd managed to reach the ripe old age of 23 without losing anyone who was close to me, which I think made it even harder to take.
9. I had just gotten my first cell phone, and I was becoming more and more dependent on it every day. And I'm surprised I didn't dislocate my shoulder from carrying the 10-pound brick around all day. It's the large one on the left, in this stunning array of cell phones my husband and I have used over the years.
10. I was still dreaming of meeting my prince charming, with the firm resolve not to panic unless he still hadn't turned up by the time I was 25. Incidentally, Travis didn't arrive on the scene until I was 27, and I can happily report that I survived the extra 2 years with my self-esteem entirely intact. (My 23-year-old self would never have believed this could be true.)
I think I need to turn this list into a layout or a mini-album (leaving out the part about the sanitary napkins, of course). Aren't you dying to do the same—but with your own memories, not mine? As much fun as it is to capture memories "in the moment," the passing of time gives you a perspective that you just can't replace.
What memories would make your list of ten tales from ten years ago?
