dear reader,

And so begins another incarnation of the Rochelle Marie Gandour photo album of me, yours truly, with an abundance of embarassing photos from the more impressionable years of ro's life and mine(oh what havoc we wreak on fashion as young people . . .).  Much like the previous photos, there will be very few of yours truly . . . posterity needn't suffer so.

rochelle and i met when we were three with thanks to the guiding hand of fate (i.e. our parents) and we became quite fast friends.  every weekend was spent in a multitude of places:  her home, my home, the LSU organic chemistry labs (i shudder to think what lasting effects that had on my opinion of chemistry . . .), my parent's engineering office (it wasn't so bad - there was a pool in the back). . .  In a very cliche sort of way, wherever she went, there i was and vice versa.

Things were going smashingly during that haze that people tend to call childhood.  At her house there was dress up, stuffed animals, a dollhouse, pig pong (don't ask - just trust me when i say it was pretty funny) and at my house were Barbies by the truckload (i have a total of 38, if i'm not mistaken), legos (the benefits of having older brothers), and a lot of randomness.  A lot of times we just played make-believe.  sometimes i think i'm still playing make-believe . . .

But, of course, things were not meant to stay as such - rochelle soon moved off to parts unknown (my geography has never been a strong point) - places like indiana and arizona.  If memory serves, she came back to baton rouge in between stints in indiana . . .at any rate, she came back to baton rouge and then promptly headed off to virginia.  again, on account of that mysterious hand of fate . . . <grin>

so where are we all now?  despite ploys on our parents' parts to get us both into rice where we would study together and become world-renowned scientists, she went to grinnell in iowa while i am, of course, in u of m in michigan.  despite sporadic communique and quarrels, we have stayed in touch and have been the best of friends.  i love rochelle like family and i don't know where i'd be without her.

as an update to the old photo collection, here are a few more current photos of this chick - i'd have more, but they're all sideways at the mo'