Once in 20 Lifetimes...

I want that freedom livin' off the grid, I want those three cats that I call my kids, I want that spring break that was fucking lit, and then that video taken off the internet... Though, at my age, fucking lit looks a little different then when I was 25, but I did have a break (Summer, as opposed to Spring) that was, in fact, fucking lit, and it's all thanks to Colin (Cole to the rest of you). The year was 2006. I was 24 with an also ran of a boyfriend I wasn't smart enough to disentangle myself from, adrift after my two years with the Red Cross came to an end, when I wandered into the Staples on California Street in San Franscisco during back to school season. It was a fateful decision for many reasons; during my four year employ I publicly (read: embarrassed in front of co-workers) taught a reformed gangster the word phenotype (I believe he's a teacher now also so I say the embarrassment was worth it), survived an attempted kidnapping (very odd customer), and somehow managed to make the enrire store believe I was having a torrid affair with my manager (we absolutely were not and It's my official stance that I have no idea why they were under said impression...). It's also where I met Colin. Colin is like one of those Caribbean rainstorms that come out of nowhere; awe-inspiring, (potentially intimidating), and curiously comforting all at once. He strode in each day as if he was above the petty problems of us mortals and I was instantly enchanted! Seeing Colin became the most facinating part of my day (stolen moments eating ice cream while listening to Taylor Swift with the aformentioned manager notwithstanding :) ) and his enduring friendship is undoubtedly one of the best things San Fransisco has given me (I suppose Hawaii deserves a shout out as well, seeing as that's where he's from). So why am I telling you this? A, likely because rambling is my thing, and B, because Colin and I recently added a new level to our friendship: traveling (See the above mentioned fucking lit summer break). Where did we go? The Happiest Place on Earth! (Disney World). (Though it would've been happier had it been 25 degrees cooler). After four days I have aquired new knowledge for my ever expanding Colin dossier, the highlights of which are as follows: * Colin will spare no expense in order to avoid 1-ply toilet paper... * When it comes to alcohol, Caribbean roots beat Hawaiian ones (Only one of us was hungover occasionally and it wasn't me). * Colin does't understand the concept of a birthday cake being presented at a restaurant (he told the waitress they had the wrong table, despite this being his birthday trip. Insert eye roll here). * Niether of us has any sense of direction, especially when together. (Though I believe Disney changed the monorail routes hourly in order to disorientate us). But my most important Disney takeaway? Colin is one of those rare of individuals who materalize on an idle Monday and alter your very existance, if your smart enough to let them, and I'm ever so grateful that, for once, I was, indeed, smart enough.