As I was driving home today I heard the best program on the radio. The host was counting down the top 30 country hits from this week in 2004. He made it sound like that was ages ago, and then it hit me- it was quite a while ago. They were playing the songs I listened to as I graduated high school and started college… this same week in 2004!

I graduated high school on Friday night, and started college 700 miles away on Monday morning. I loved every minute of that first semester of college.

I loved the freedom of being away from home and starting my “real” life.

Everything was fun and new.

We ate cereal for dinner, went out with friends at 10pm, lived in grubby t-shirts and jeans, spent hours talking about the boys in the building next door, listened to Dashboard Confessional LOUD in the middle of the night, bought our own groceries, cooked our own meals, and generally lived a fairly carefree existence.

This first semester marked the beginning of my transition to adulthood, began my love for Provo, and taught me that some rules are meant to be broken.

Such a fun summer! When I think back on that summer it seems both like a lifetime ago and like it happened just yesterday. When did I get so old?