Of Friends, Forests and Disney

I left off last post talking about how I met Catherine and my friends. I remember one day, when we were all taking a walk in one of the parks near my old house I mentioned offhandedly how I wanted to be pretty, maybe try and put brightly colored ribbons in my hair. Catherine exclaimed, "Oh, so that's what you've been up to. I won't let you get popular with the boys! You're mine, Ellie! Mine mine mine!" and playfully chased me around until she grabbed me, holding me very tightly as if that would keep me there forever. We all laughed and thought it very funny.
I remember that along the rocky path we always walked on there was a forest at the end of it. It was really, really spooky, but Florence said that she wasn't afraid and tried to walk in one or twice. She's bravest of us all. Rebecca would hold her back and say that they shouldn't. Flo would always ask why, and Becca would say that we could get lost, or something along the lines of that. That's Rebecca for you. Stopping people from making bad or rash decisions. I think that Florence went in on a dare a few days later, but she either saw or heard something and ran out. We didn't blame her; those woods were creepy as hell.

Catherine once told me that she would only be comfortable going into those woods if I came with her. I agreed, and we tried going in  by ourselves. We never did. It was  just too unnerving. There were no birdsongs or rustling of little animals. Just pure silence. And even on the warmest, brightest days that forest was dark and cool. Something about it didn't seem right.

Back in the days of the Disney Renaissance, the girls and I would marathon through the ones on VHS and come up with stories all our own. Some of them were stories about how, through that dark forest, there was Beast's castle or maybe Sleeping Beauty being guarded by thorns. Others were about the Disney Princesses meeting and trotting into another tale. Maybe ones with Aurora fighting her way out of the dream world Maleficent put her in, or Snow White and Cinderella having parties with the dwarves and animals. We had so many stories going on that I can't possibly remember them all, which I wish I did. Memory is a strange thing.

Hello

So I'm just starting this as a way to cope with how I feel. It's been going on for months, now. I hate it.

I know that this is some blog that no one will probably read, but I don't care. My best friends told me that I need to get all of my feelings out, because they worry about me. None of what we're going through is good or healthy, so here it goes.

My name is Elizabeth Jayne Rosenthal. I'm 21 years old, born May 11, and I have no clue what my bloodtype is. Probably O. I'm a major in anthropology, I have a cat named Lunagirl and for the most part life is awesome. Well, was. It was awesome. Now, it's all surreal.

I was 5 years old when I met Catherine Marie Moore at Victor Montée Daycare Center. I barely remember my babyhood, but I remember meeting her. She toddled up to me and told me that I had the nicest, longest hair she had ever seen. When I was young, I had very, very long hair, down to my thighs. I wish I never cut it. We started talking about little things that I can't remember, and not soon we were inseparable. I remember that she was the one who started the whole 'Rapunzel' nickname.

Catherine would play with my hair and tell me that I was the fairest in the land. We would have so many playdates and sleepovers together, each and every one of them precious to me. We didn't have many friends other than each other due to us being branded 'weirdos'.

We stayed together even through elementary school, where I finally met lifelong friends, who in turn became hers. In order, I met Rebecca Schellen, Naomi Hertz, Florence Eichel and Vivian Laub. They are the ones who thought it would be a good idea to start this thing. I never doubted them once.

I'll continue another day. I need to sleep.