Kiley Wellendorf | Co-Editor-in-Chief

Everlong – Foo Fighters

I was laying on a bean bag chair snuggled against one of my high school best friends when someone tripped and toppled over us. Apologies were exchanged, laughs were shared, and we questioned why he fell down in the first place. “Oh, I didn’t see you there!” He gushed sympathetically. Huh. The stranger got up and left, all the while knocking down glasses and causing a scene before he swayed over the deck where groups of people were gathered.

She got up and I stayed, refreshing social media accounts and glancing around at all of the strange faces I recognized from Facebook. Turning on my back, I kicked my feet up on the couch and directed my gaze to the ceiling, depicting whether or not I was ready to round the block and head back. All of a sudden it hit me. I was a stranger, seated in someone’s living room and openly welcomed into a whole new life. It wasn’t a weird transition, there wasn’t any tension involved, and quite frankly I felt really comfortable.

I Go Blind – Hootie & The Blowfish

Prior to our arrival at this apartment, I was squished against old high school classmates and familiar faces in a dark room. It was sweaty. The music was at an obnoxiously loud level and panic surfaced the room once the walkways became filled with bodies constantly bringing up high school and college. But the most wild part? The familiar sense of security somehow intertwined with the sharp sting of change. The feeling was a little heavy, clouded against the staleness of the air and sticky floors. Somehow, it was okay. Hugs were shared, pictures were snapped, and eye contact was made with people whose lockers used to stand a few rows down from mine.

The Mephistopheles of Los Angeles – Marilyn Manson

I think that’s the most glorious part of growing up – you always remain connected. Whether it be trading a private school for state school for the weekend or running into someone in the aisles of the grocery store. The connection is still there and it’s vivid. Somehow it continues to stick, despite the silence received for months on end. Hey, remember that time we laughed at the same joke in class? What about the time we sprinted out of a party and found pieces of bark in our hair from hiding in the trees? This doesn’t really fade. Well, maybe. It doesn’t matter if they were someone who handed you a sweatshirt at a shop party when the heat didn’t work or if they looked over at your test laughing because hey, they failed it too. It’s a weird Carroll County connection. It’s real. Don’t you feel it too?