You may want to sit down for this one... this may come as a bit of a surprise... but, I used to by quiet.
I am the youngest of three, by quite a bit and when I was entering high-school my parents had just began their divorce. While my older sister and brother were off at college, I was pretty miserable back at the homestead. Maybe even gothic on some days.
I was very uninterested in socializing, talking or even smiling. I had a couple of close friends and a boyfriend and that was all that I cared about. That, and chain smoking Marlboro Reds and listening to Nine Inch Nails.
When it came time to decide on college, I was quick to choose Roger Williams in Bristol, RI. The campus was pretty, the radio stations played grunge music and it was far enough away from home.
The summer leading up to my freshman year, I attended a few events at RWU with my family and it is safe to say they were pretty concerned about my attitude. I sought out another miserable chain smoker at orientation and we had decided to be roommates. Her name was Dani. My mom said she walked into the gymnasium where the new students were hearing some motivating presentation and found us slouched down in our chairs with our feet up in the very back. I was known to give dirty looks to people without even knowing I was doing it. Things looked bleak.
So, just weeks before summer was over, I got a call from Dani that she had decided not to attend RWU and I was on my own. I was horrified. Now I was going to be randomly matched with someone I had NEVER met before.
Still, we packed up the "buggy" on a very early August morning and headed down with my belongings... a dark green bed spread, a tapestry, a micro-fridge and a trunk filled with Brenda Walsh's wardrobe.
I remember pulling onto campus that day and my mom rolling down her window saying hello and smiling at everyone! (sound familiar?) I was so embarrassed and already home sick.
As we unloaded the car and were shown to my new room, there was no trace of a roommate. To make matters worse, I overheard some girl with a strong NY accent (who is now one of my best friends) say "Oh great! That bitch from orientation is across the hall!"
My mother and sister sensed this wasn't going to end well after a few attempts to spark up some conversation with some of the other dorm mates. I had no room mate, I hated college so far, and I wanted to go home.
They pulled away that day to me sobbing and begging them not to leave me there.
About ten minutes later, my bedroom door opened and in walked the happiest 18 year old girl on the planet.
"Hi, I'm Amie" she said with a HUGE smile... "I am so sorry that I am late!" I watched her in awe as she unpacked her brightly colored bed spread and giggled with excitement. Who was this person? A disney character?
"What do you want to do tonight?" she asked...
Naturally, Amie had made some friends at orientation and she was happy to let me ride on her coat-tails the first night. It was soon clear that I had no choice but to be happy. I was living with a clown. I thought I was going to wake up the next morning and find her juggling.
My mother called that evening, expecting to give me a pep talk I would imagine, but instead I informed her, "my room mate is cool and everything is great!" To this day, my family can recall what a surprise and relief that was!
Columbus Day weekend came very quick...I was having a blast! When I went home for the long weekend, my mom described it as a different person walking into the front door. I was all smiles and eager to return to my new life at RWU.
Today.. 15 years later... Amie is one of my very best friends. In fact, her office is right next to mine. That's right, I get to work with a real life clown! She is one of my favorite people on this planet for many reasons... but the number one reason is because she taught me to smile again.
