Dear Kate

Dearest Katrina,

All I can say is WOW! Time has just slipped out from under me! It feels like yesterday I was entering into my sophomore year.

Moving in was long and tedious, but I'm all done and all settled in now.  My roommates are wonderful and we all get along so well.

I brought everything with me.  On my desk I have my "College Fund" piggy bank we both signed after graduation, my wood from the our old stage, my theatre books, and my favorite posters from my room.  My whole apartment is so nice!  The brand new building I'm in smells a little like fresh, but it's very spacious and very comfortable!  My favorite element is that we're the first ones ever to live here so we don't have to worry about decades of germs left over. Bleh!

Classes start on Monday so I still have the rest of the week to get all comfortable and ready to go for school.  It's weird that I don't really know anyone here! I keep thinking I'm just at some summer camp and I'm going home in a few days.  It especially feels like a camp with all of the freshman activities I've been going to.  We had a party last night and I just danced my feet off; the next three days is our crazy and fun orientation!  Aside from the crazy amount of activities we get a I'm sure once classes start it'll all hit me.

Speaking of classes... You're first day sounded crazy!!!  I bet that was a hard way to start college, but now it'll all seem easier as you go. I'm so excited to hear about you're classes as you get into them more and more!  You need to tell me all about it!

The weirdest thing about being here is being on my own!  I keep waiting for my mom to call me down for chores or to run an errand for her, but I just hear nothing!  It's a strange experience being by myself.  I'm in charge of my own schedule, my own chores, my own...everything!  But I can say my mom taught me very well if I can hear her voice in my head telling me to pick a towel off the floor and make my bed.  So thank you mom!

Your bestest friend,

Cosette

P.S. Here are just a few pictures of my new home!

Dear Cozie.

Dearest darlingest Cosette,

Today was one of the worst days of my life.

Don’t get me wrong, I love college and I think it’s going to be a really awesome experience! … Just not today.

I had Honors Writing first thing in the morning, and it was AMAZING. The teacher is really engaging and it seems like the class will be absolutely incredible! I was so excited for that class. Which I now have to drop. Because my next class was supposed to be my Acting for ATP class… but it wasn’t. There had been a misprint in the class catalog when I registered, so the class I tried to go to was actually Acting for MTP. The Acting for ATP class is only offered at the same time as my Honors Writing class, and the Honors Writing class is required for the Honors Housing, which I am living in. And there is absolutely no way to schedule all of my required classes now without there being a conflict. So basically I can either drop out of the ATP or move out of Honors Housing.

…At least, that’s what I thought at around noon today, when I was walking back to my dorm in tears, frantically calling advisors and trying to find the professors’ offices so I could try to find a way to fix my schedule. Of course, no one was in their offices, so I left three notes asking them to call me when they got back. Then, the wrong person called me back. Twice. Both times they asked me what the problem was, said they couldn’t help me, and told me they would have the Honors advisor call me when she got in. SHE WAS THE PERSON I LEFT THE NUMBER FOR IN THE FIRST PLACE. And she never called me. So tomorrow I have to go to the Honors Center at eight in the morning to try to figure this whole thing out.

Fortunately, I told one of my suitemates my dilemma. She is a bioengineering major and had the same problem with getting the Honors classes and the required classes for her major to both fit in her schedule. She said that she is only taking one of the Honors classes and they are still letting her live in the Honors dorms. So I’m not freaking out anymore. But it was almost five and a half hours of torture before I discovered this.

The good thing that came out of this crisis was that I got to know Kyrsten- the suitemate who’s a bioengineering major- a lot better. We talked for an hour and went and got dinner together. I like her and her roommate a lot! Also, I think instead of Honors Writing I can now take this class with the same teacher called Travel Writing, which sounds awesome and fulfills the Honors Writing requirement. Remember how I’ve always wanted to write articles for National Geographic? Yep, that class would be pretty much perfect for me. For the final project, the class gets to take a four-day-long river rafting trip! It doesn’t get much better than that.

Anyway, I still have to go talk to the Honors advisor and see if I can change my schedule around… so I’ll let you know how it all goes down! Tomorrow will be a much better day, I just know it.

I love you tons!! I’m excited to hear about your move-in tomorrow!!

Love,

Kate

Dear Cosette

So I have this best friend named Cosette. I met her three years ago, at the beginning of my sophomore year of high school. Since then, she has become one of the very best friends I have ever had the absolute joy of knowing. Okay, okay, fine- the best. We did everything together. Of the 600-odd photos of me on Facebook, 148 are with her. That’s just a little under 25%. In other words, in nearly a QUARTER of my pictures, she is with me. Another quarter of them are probably pictures she took. I think that’s a pretty good indication of how close we are.

This year, Cozie and I will be going to universities that are an hour and a half apart! I know, I know, it’s not that bad. But worse than the distance issue is the fact that they are RIVAL SCHOOLS! That’s right- I will be a Ute, while Cozie will be a Cougar.

Nope, not that kind of cougar.

Better.

Anyway, we will not be able to see each other every day anymore! So we decided to create this blog. By posting on the blog, we can send “postcards” to each other from our respective colleges and keep each other “posted” on what we are doing.

So, here goes:

Dearest darlingest Cosette,

Today I packed my whole life up into a bunch of boxes and crates, loaded it all into my mom’s old Subaru Forester, and drove it up to the University of Utah campus. I don’t really know how to explain what it felt like- you’ll know what I mean in a couple of days. It’s definitely not a bad feeling, but it’s strange and a little sad. Mostly, though, I’m just excited for this year and all the incredible things it has in store for the both of us!

My dorm is really nice and a lot roomier than I expected! I have already plastered it in dorky posters and covered my shelves with plays and novels. I think it will feel like home very soon. The only thing missing is my electric keyboard; my dad is going to help me move it on Saturday. I got my bed lofted, so I’m going to put it under my bed- it will not only be out of the way, but will also be near my computer, which will make it easier to compose!

Here's me with my roomie, Malynne:

The Wedding Singer records are on my wall! They remind me of you!

Besides all of the regular dorm supplies, I brought a few special things. On my bed, I have a little stuffed dog that looks like Chloe, who I will miss so much! The piece of the Hillcrest stage that we got at this year’s Productions Camp is sitting on my desk. And the copy of the Book of Mormon that you gave me for Christmas junior year- remember that?- it’s on my dresser next to my yearbooks. I know this sounds silly, but I had to sneak it in, because my mom was helping me move! I know she wouldn’t have been upset or anything, but she would probably have felt weird about it. Anyway, whenever things get rough, I know I can open it up and read the note you left me or one of the passages you marked, and I will feel better! It is definitely a comfort knowing that even when we are far apart, there are so many reminders of you all around me to help me through.

I know that all sounds a little cheesy, but in all seriousness, you are my best friend and the most amazing person I know. You are more talented than you even realize- you are a fantastic singer, and when you act you connect with people’s souls in a way that I can only dream of doing. More importantly, you are a compassionate and genuine human being. I am always happy when I am with you, and you guide me and inspire me every day! I am so incredibly grateful for your presence in my life and I know that you have changed my life for the better. You’ve covered our past adventures in your last post, so I will look to the future instead: I can’t wait to see all of the wonderful things you do this year, and to watch you learn and grow! College will be such an exciting and enlightening experience for both of us. I know that even when things get hard, if we face every challenge and do the best we can, everything will turn out alright. And I will be there to help you and cheer you on every step of the way!

So please- keep me posted!

I love ya, sister!

-Kate