I got my first official boyfriend the last week of high school.. we also went to the prom together.. It was also then that I knew I wanted to live on my own.. no friends.. NO boyfriends.. just me.. I felt it was a right of passage I needed to do.. I am not sure if it stemmed from being a twin.. but I did it. and i loved it.. except when I would be scared SHITLESS walking to and from my car underground at night after work.. I was always on the bottom floor.. and I lived in constant fear of a break in.. constant.. but i did it..
I remember when me and Dust broke up and I wanted to do something for me.. something I always wanted to do.. move to the big old city.. Me and Lu headed in with a stack of resumes in hand and a dream.. instead of handing them out, we ended up just shopping and getting our drink on.. probably at Moxies on Robson.. haha.. and as we got in the car to drive home to the valley.. I said.. I should apply at ONE place.. so we happened to be in the Yaletown area.. and I headed into Cactus Club while she sat in the running car..
well little did we know.. they hired me.. on the spot.. the only time that had ever happened to me.. and I was SCARED.. apparently the manager of Cactus went to school with Dustin.. and he saw him on my resume.. next thing I knew I was moving to Vancouver by myself and wondering how that all happened so fast..
and then there was my apartment.. back in the day when I thought I had " no money" ay yiyi .. I didn't get a Yaletown apartment like all the girls I worked with..no no.. I wanted to live closer to the water.. so I went the Denman and Davie route.. my apartment was so close to the water, I could see the coast line.. it was perfect.. except the apartment was a shit hole..
I repeat.. a shit hole.. the elevator worked 50% of the time.. which I thought was VERY new york living.. why I am not sure.. the traffic was insane.. especially at fireworks time.. and I walked to and from work everyday.. because I was too cheap to take a cab.. (my chiseled new calves thanked me).. I worked doubles and closes because I had no friends and nothing else to do.. I remember literally living off of a diet coke and a bag of puff cheesies the whole time.. my apartment was kiddy cornered from the 7-11 and that's all I wanted.. after about 5 months of it.. it got old.. and I was tired of the homeless people living in my foyer.. literally.. there was a notice up in the hallways about being careful about the laundry room because people were found shooting up :0 and that right there scared my mother so much.. she told me to bring my laundry home to do it.. lol.. at least one good thing came of it..
my car was broke into 5 times in the garage.. and I still remember the long dark underground hallway to my car.. it freaked me out to no end.. and I lie awake at night to this day and at least 2 times a month think about how lucky I was to not have had anything bad happen to me.. the door to my apartment was always sticky.. and I remember one time trying to get into it and a man was walking down the hallway.. and I literally thought.. THIS IS IT! alas.. it wasn't ;) but I decided then it was time to head home..
I was clearing an easy $200 a night.. and why oh why I didn't just move the 30 min walk to Yaletown.. I will never know.. who knows what might have changed in my life if I had..
ahh to be young and carefree again.. I hope my girls follow their crazy horrible wild dreams somewhere fun.. and I will be right behind them with my freak flag (kelle hampton ;) I thank my luck my stars my mama let me do all the things I wanted to do.. I have asked her why or how she let me do it.. and she always responds with a "would you have listened?"
and the answer is always a NO..
