I went to college in August of 2007. I decided that I hated it two days later. I shouldn’t have been so culture shocked. I was an hour away from my hometown. I lived with family members. It definitely was not a big deal. Except it was. I had a feeling I wasn’t in Coalinga anymore.
For those of you not fortunate enough to know the details of my endearing little town, it is small. You start school at Cheaney Kindergarten. Then you go to Bishop for 1st, then Dawson for 2nd and 3rd, then Sunset for 4th and 5th, then Coalinga Middle School, then Coalinga High School. Students (usually) start together and finish together and learn everything about each other somewhere between.
I’m not here to publically blast Fresno, or even imply that nobody in Fresno (or other larger towns) have friends like mine, but in that first week of college I learned more than I’ve learned in the past 2 ½ years of college. I learned that my friends are special.
Don’t get me wrong, like all friends there have been comings and goings. There were times when I thought some friendships just weren’t going to last, and some times when they really didn’t. I don’t want to focus on that, though. I want to (and feel like I need to) focus on how remarkable the lasting are.
I know my best friends. I really really know them. I know that 5 seconds after he finishes his drink, Josh Warren will stick his hand in his cup and begin eating the ice cubes. He doesn’t just eat them though. He shoves a chunk in his mouth, bites off a piece, then sticks the remained back in the cup. It’s borderline disgusting. His car smells like summer and the Jurassic Park ride at Universal. Contrary to popular belief, he doesn’t love zebras. If you are with Ashley Jennings for an hour, she will have applied chap stick approximately 6 times. There is a good possibility it will be one of the jumbo lip smackers ones that 7-year-olds love. Right now she is maturing though, so it is rose scented. However, it actually smells like chocolate. She is guaranteed to be wearing at least one neon color, and her wrists are always covered in obnoxiously beautiful bracelets. I actually know all of her secrets, and will definitely be writing a tell-all book if she becomes famous some day J. Audra’s white Hyundai creeks when it makes a left turn. Also, the day she got the car, she slipped in a Panic at the Disco CD. It got stuck and remains forever. She has a birthmark behind her ear, and the Big Dipper in freckles on her forearm. She is also a kleptomaniac, so if you have a perfectly sharp number 2 pencil with a full eraser, guard it. BJ will make reference to the fact that he is good looking at some point in any night. He will also be sure to Scat (sing, not feces) and speak in his own made up language. He owns more clothes than I ever will. Also, Brooklyn. Somedays Jake speaks in accents. He also claims that every song is the first song he and his grandpa played together on the guitar. He is a hinter, not an asker, and will never let you throw away food. They are my pride and joys.
When I came to Fresno, and began conversing with my peers (which I gave up on in a week), I realized that they didn’t know their friends like I know mine. Perhaps their ultimate best friend, yes, but it was different. While some teenagers had Riverpark and movie theatres to occupy their time, we didn’t. We ALWAYS had to create our own fun. So we made movies, and toilet papered teacher’s homes. We spent hours upon hours playing cranium, and drove golf carts in the fields. We had bonfires, and deep conversations in the hot tub. We shared Pans of Gold at Perkos and indulged in sunflower seeds, Mountain Dews, and pepperjack cheese slices. Our entire lives, we were forced to be creative and partake in activities that require A LOT of bonding.
We’ve grown up together. There are some awkward romantic histories (because for some reason, in high school, we never dated outside of the group). We are a family. It is horribly dysfunctional, but completely beautiful. We are funny, and obnoxious, and loving. We are comfortable with each other and share a bond that’s honest and pure. They annoy the crap out of me sometimes, but they accept that sometimes I just want to watch Dan in Real Life or Elf again. They know that I’ll fall asleep 30 minutes into the movie (even though I’m at 6 in a row! Horray!). They give me sinus massages, and I’ll pop their backs. I’m Kris, not Karissa.
When I grow up, I don’t want to live in Coalinga, but I do want to live in a place that allows my children to make friendships like the ones I was blessed enough to make. I want them to make their own pizookie and have real conversations over sweet tea. I want my daughter to talk to her Uncle Josh like I talk to Steve Warren. I want the girls to spend hours in a white Echo at a park. I want my son to go camping and feel manly after his first cigar with the boys. I’ve just been very, very blessed, and sometimes I don’t remember. Thanks, friends J
