Does your life-plan at 15 measure up to where you are today?
When I was 15…my future dream was to be a wife and mother. I was sure that my boyfriend and I would be married right after I graduated. He was a baseball player who had won a scholarship to the University of Arizona, so my plans were to follow him out there after I finished high school. I had absolutely no interest in attending college. Raising children, being a pro-baseball player's wife, and volunteering in the community was the direction I’d pegged for myself way back then.

Do you now have your dream career?
When my boyfriend was killed in a car accident during my junior year, my future plans were crushed. I graduated from high school and went away to college – simply to find myself – not caring about my education at all. Somehow, after many years of searching for my direction, I managed to find myself at an insurance company in Cleveland, working as a Customer Service Representative. Over the last 10 years, I’ve worked my way up the ladder to project management (middle management). Dream career?? - nah. I do enjoy what I'm doing enough to tide me over until I win the lottery or find a very rich, very old man.

Were you lucky enough to become the rock star that we all dreamed of being?
I was convinced I’d be the next Madonna. During my college years, I sang with various bands around the country. This granted me a handful of opportunities to meet some national musicians. My best memory is having Bob Dylan drop by a local pub one night after his concert in Tampa. He asked to join the house band (us) for a few songs. To this day, I still get goosebumps each time hear “Knocking on Heaven’s Door” and remember that night.

Are you still "Friends-4-Ever" with the gang from all those years ago?
I salvaged one friendship from my high school years. Renee and I became friends the day she joined our class mid-year during junior year. I recall her walking into our choral group, with her uniform skirt all the way below her knees. I snagged her after class, took her to the bathroom to show her the “skirt-roll” to raise her skirt to the non-regulation (yet socially acceptable) length. We’ve been friends from that day forward. As a side note…she never wanted to have a family – she only wanted a career. She’s now a stay-at-home mom, married for 10 years with two children.

Was your bad hair experience on homecoming night truly the end of the world?
I have so many bad hair days (never wish for naturally curly hair), homecoming was just another night for me. My homecoming date – now that was a different story….worse than any bad hair experience. Let’s just say that when he picked me up for the dance – he was wearing bowling shoes.


So, my dreams at 15 couldn’t have been more different than where I’ve landed. I am still single (too picky??) with no children (I couldn’t convince myself to do the single parent thing). Yet, I have no regrets. All of my married friends want to be single…and I often wish I’d lived the life that I’d dreamed. However, I’ve learned that the grass is always greener on the other side. Life is what you make of it….dreams or not, you should always make the best of what is handed to you and cherish each day. I’m signing off now, before I use every cliché known to man.