Old Roommates, Rock Broadway!

Not too long ago, I found my very first college roommate on Facebook, along with two other awesome ladies that lived on our floor/in the same building. They were all from my first term at BYU. I started college only about 2 weeks after I graduated from high school. I got accepted on the premise that I would come for summer term first. I remember being devastated that I had to leave Santa Rosa and all my HS friends behind so quickly. However, my college days in DT (Deseret Towers) proved to be fun, exciting, and incredibly enjoyable. I attribute 90% of that to these awesome ladies, and other friends I met that term.

Moving forward...Susie Sweetland was my very first roommate. She is awesome. We hit it off pretty quick. She's from Oregon, and has such a laid back, chill, non-judgmental, friendly demeanor. We also had a similar love of good music. She introduced me to writing more poetically in a journal/notebook. And of course, we had numerous star-gazing nights together with our respective boyfriends. I love that she's just so authentic and real. I don't question who she is and know that she'll give me 100% honesty.

Kierstin Olson is also awesome. She is so much fun. This girl cracks me up. I feel like she's someone you peel layers with. She is bubbly, happy, and has infectious laughter. But then there's so much more to her. She is deeply devout, and yet also surprises the socks off you with her real, true, non-pious sense of self. She's also very smart and responsible.

Lastly, Jessica Weiss...who is what? Oh yeah...awesome. This girl is pretty much brings a party wherever she goes. She brightens the atmosphere and is so hilarious. She is fun and goofy and so great. When I think of Jess, I think of her driving us to Park City (with the other girls as well), getting lost on our way back, nearly ending up in Wyoming, and singing Nada Surf's "Popular" at the top of our lungs. And yet, she's also someone who is more than meets the eye. I think she is sensitive, kind, and completely loyal.

There's the background. These are three awesome women I had the pleasure of getting in touch with again through the lovely Facebook. We all got to talking and thought it would be so great if we could get together again. Jess, Kierstin, and myself are all still in UT, while Susie has returned to Oregon. However, it was just our luck she was coming through here on her way to/from a wedding in Idaho. We all worked it out and made a plan to see each other. Jess made the awesome suggestion of attending the Deer Valley Music Festival she was volunteering at. So we all met up one Saturday evening for some fun.

We went up for the "Broadway Rocks!" concert. Since Jess was volunteering she was able to get us a decent spot on the lawn for viewing. We all brought some treats to eat, and after many, many years apart, we were able to catch up. The concert was so much fun. Some of the songs they performed were:
"The Wizard and I"
"Come Sail Away"
"Seasons of Love"
"Bohemian Rhapsody"
"Proud Mary" (btw, I learned the name of this song that night - never knew!)
"Hey Jude"
"Phantom of the Opera" and "Music of the Night"

That's only about half of them. It was great because people were getting up and dancing, singing, and totally enjoying themselves. I'm pretty sure all of us were recorded on the video camera of this gay couple sitting in front of us, being dancing fools. We were happy to oblige them with our ridiculous moves. (Ok...so mostly it was just the large, pregnant woman who likely looked ridiculous.) And of course, we had so much fun talking and catching up on each other's lives.

Here are some pictures from the evening...

Kierstin and Jess:

Susie and me:

And Kierstin gets a gold star for going up to this awesome guy who was dancing around with his golden cape, and asking him for a picture: 

It was a blast, and I'm so glad I had the chance to get away for some great music, good food, and the best...catching up with long-lost friends! Love you girls!