An Unintentional Time Capsule

My Facebook friends were probably cursing me this week. I made sure that the first pictures everyone sees upon looking at their profiles are from the most awkward time of their lives...

Yep. That would be high school prom.

Being the cool person dork that I am, I really loved prom. So much, that I made my way to four of them. And yes, I'm gloating. I was proud of that accomplishment. Totally worth something today too...I mean, I'm pretty sure that's how I got my day job. That simple fact made my interviewer think I was cool. (Ha.)

My senior prom was in 2005, a time when most high school students had some type of digital camera, but still took disposables in their little sequined handbags to capture the evening's events. Nobody wanted to get yelled at for losing their expensive $200 digital camera. And who wants that type of responsibility anyway on the best night of their lives???

I never got that disposable camera developed. I don't know for sure, but I think I put it in the car (aka Land Yacht) I was driving back then to take it to the mall to the camera store, but it never made it out for one reason or another. Between my sister and I, we had everything in that car except the kitchen sink, which probably was in there once or twice when we moved, but was the only thing that ever came out. So the camera was as good as lost the minute it made its way into the boat, lost under the heaps of water bottles, homework, sports equipment, and other teenage girl paraphernalia.

After my sister went to college, my mom sold the land yacht for scrap metal and parts, and she and my sister cleaned it out. That may or may not have taken longer than all of our three moves combined. The camera found its way to me and then into the car I drive now (certainly on its way to being developed), where it has been in the passenger side door pocket, through wind, rain, and temperatures far above 150 degrees, or whatever the recommended temperature for storage, for at least FOUR YEARS. The film expired in 2006.

This past week I found it (again) and it finally made it to the camera store for developing. I figured the pictures would totally fit in, since they definitely would have the expired film look. I was not disappointed. I was, however, amazed that I am old enough to own a time capsule. EEK.

And now for a trip down memory lane...

At least our prom fashions don't look out of style yet...or is that what everyone says when they've lived through a fashion era?

The traditional prom pose...

And that fabulous '00s hairstyle. I didn't know there was one, until I saw this.

And yet looking at these pictures makes me smile, because this really was one of the most fun things of high school. I loved my dress, I loved my friends, I loved dancing the night away, but most of all, I loved my date. And I still do, all these years later.