middlebury and the tufts-to-be

A couple weekends ago I went back to Middlebury for the first time since I graduated, now four years ago. Like traveling back to Paris, it felt like it had been a long time since I was a student at Midd, since I was the one walking around campus with a backpack weighing me down, congregating at corners, and (a bit tipsily) dancing with friends at a concert. Supposedly everyone (who are these people??) says college is the best time of your life, but in some ways, I think I like this phase of my life better.

Dan and I arrived a bit early on Friday night, so we stopped first for an Otter Creek beer and the memorable salad bar at Mister Ups before meeting up with Laura and Brad (the now Tufts-to-be!! if you haven’t congratulated them already, do it in the comments!!) at our hotel and heading to the Guster concert at the hockey arena. Brad and I felt sure they’d sell beer at the concert, but no, just free Ben & Jerry’s ice cream... Oh, Midd. The concert was great, and afterwards we went into Middlebury village to quench that thirst at the same two bars that we used to trek down to in the freezing cold: Angela’s and Two Brothers Tavern.* Angela’s is basically the basement of Two Brothers, where the drinks come in plastic cups and the DJs have a knack for knowing just what songs to play so that every time you’re about to leave, you find yourself saying “let’s just wait until this song ends.” Who can walk out to “Don’t Stop Believing”???

We finally escaped later upstairs to Two Brothers where Laura asked me to her M_____ of Honor. I very happily said yes, and then quickly banned the M word. Matron just conjures up for me an old school marm rapping kids on the back of the hand with a ruler… Regardless of the title, though, I am so honored to stand up there with such a dear friend and be part of and witness to the unadulterated joy of marrying the love of your life.**

I wasted no time diving into my MoH duties, and about 18 hours after leaving Middlebury, I got back in the car and drove down to Boston for a girly afternoon of brunching and wedding dress trials. Laura tried on a few dresses and ended up buying a dress that is just absolutely gorgeous on her. It was so fun to be there for the big decision, especially since Laura was with me when I bought my wedding dress (and then promptly cried because the search was over…).

I have no idea how to wrap this up, so here’s a picture of the happy couple and me after a sledding catastrophe in Albany this winter:

*There was some talk first of crashing an on campus party but that got quickly quashed, luckily, since I think that was a bit more Middlebury than I was ready to handle.

**I know Laura and Brad will be happy together forever because they share a devotion to old Nickelodeon games and sports shows like GUTS and Legends of the Hidden Temple, as well as a love of penguin pajamas. Among other things.