Rosanne

When I think back to my days in high school, I would have to say that I probably interacted with Rosanne more than any other person. It surprises me a little to consider this but I guess she was just always quietly there. She shared most of my classes with me (sat with me in a good number of them save for Grade 12 World Issues); hung out with me between classes, at lunch, and sometimes after school; and on top of that (here's the kicker), I think I spoke to her on MOST weeknights via MSN messenger. MSN messenger has died out in large part due to the advent of facebook but back in high school, I recall it being a pretty big thing - this idea of being able converse with someone in real time without hearing their voice or seeing their face.

It's tempting to simply write a giant story about what Rosanne and I went through when we were in high school. I might do that someday but I think, for now, that I ought to stick with the purpose of this blog: why Rosanne is awesome.

Well, Rosanne is probably the sweetest girl you will ever meet. I think I once said that Rosanne was so sweet, she could rot teeth although I don't know if that's exactly the kind of compliment you should be giving a girl when you were in high school. Congratulations, you have something in common with gingivitis. But in all seriousness, Rosanne was just... the nicest, sweetest girl you could ever meet. Never had a mean thing to say about anyone but still somehow managed to be sympathetic to all the things I ranted about (even back in high school, I did this quite often). Everyone in the school loved her - students and teachers alike.

Speaking of teachers and why they loved her, Rosanne was probably the best student in our entire grade. She's smart, works super hard, and is generally one of those students who, as a teacher, you hoped you had in your class every year. I think the only class we took together in which I got a higher mark than her was Phys. Ed... and we took a lot of classes together through our four years of high school.

Rosanne was also a curious person. It's hard to explain but I was once hanging out in the halls with my friend David when Rosanne passed by and greeted us on the way to her locker. When she was gone, David promptly turned to me and said, "What a funny little girl..." And it was true, you know? Rosanne had these funny little quirks that you didn't always notice because she was quiet. It wasn't just the things she said... for example, Rosanne was the only person I ever knew who managed to keep the corners of her textbooks from bending inwards. It was truly baffling and something I never quite understood about her. It wasn't like she took noticeably better care of her books than I (or others) did. I mean, maybe she did, but if so, it seemed to be something that came naturally to her. Seriously, she could use a textbook for an entire semester and it would still be in pristine condition on the last day.

To this day, I am occasionally prone to ranting about what it means to be a "nice guy" and how our society seems to have problems coming to terms with what this means. Well, if I had to think of who epitomizes a "nice girl," I would think of Rosanne. I think that pretty much sums it up.

Jenny

Back when I was in fourth year, I was struck by the sheer number of people working in residence who were named Jenny (sheer number = 3). They were also all Asian and knew my friend Dave, which didn't help matters. Gradually, though, I began to associate certain general traits with each Jenny. There was this one particular Jenny who thought I was a don for the longest time - in fact, it wasn't until sometime in second semester that she found out that I wasn't. Since then, she has repeatedly insisted that I "misled" her into believing that I was a don in a fourth year. Really, all I did was eat with dons who also happened to be my friends but apparently, this counts as me having taken some active role in "misleading" Jenny into thinking I was a don.

Jenny is extraordinarily resilient. As much as I (and others) take advantage of this as an opportunity to make fun of her, I do admire the ability she has to take everything in stride. Basically, she's a good sport who's capable of laughing at her own mistakes. After all, it wouldn't be much fun to tease Jenny if we actually hurt her feelings. But as it stands, her resilience makes Jenny a lot of fun to be around and I feel like the universe would be just a little bit duller without her.

For all that, Jenny is capable of being a very caring individual, as evidenced by her two successful years as a don in residence. I think that that was something that first got me to notice Jenny as someone I could actually be friends with. She takes the time to ask you about how things are going and although I've never personally experienced this, I am very much convinced that if our conversation ever moved beyond casual bantering, Jenny would be a very sympathetic listener.

She dresses well too - another thing I noticed about her. Residence cafeteria is not usually a place where you wear your best clothes. Not only are you risking the possibility of spilling something on it, but there is also a smell that gets all your clothes, although admittedly, I might be the only person who is actually bothered by this. Still, Jenny makes the effort to dress nicely (it is, after all, a public space and there's no reason to look like a slob), which, for awhile, confused me a bit. I remember asking, "Are you going somewhere?" every time I saw her because she always looked dressed up. I soon realized that this was rarely the case. Still, it never hurts to dress nicely.

Jenny also has a dog named ABFP (Angel-Baby-Furball-Pie). Saying "Ab-fuh-puh" brings joy to many and even though Jenny refuses to acknowledge the acronym, I feel like I should attribute all the happiness we derive, from saying ABFP, to her.