I've Got Mad Love: The Mean Girl Beginning

My time at Brigham Young University was not the most academically successful time of my life.

To say the least.

That is how I found myself repeating the entry-level Biology course in September 2005. My first go-around found me going to class only a handful of times throughout the semester and taking almost none of the tests, resulting in a failing grade. When I decided to get my collegiate life together, I retook many classes in an attempt to blot out those failed courses.

Luckily, my bff Megan needed to take the course (for the first time) and we signed up for the same lecture/lab. In each 30-person lab, we sat in a closet of a room and were taught by a TA; Megan and I sat in the back-right corner of the room, in order to ensure maximum anonymity. Our lab was full of chuckleheads, which meant that Megan and I had ample entertainment each Friday afternoon after class.

One of our favorite targets was a boy who sat a couple desks in front of us—he mumbled under his breath constantly and gave off a preppy/churchy vibe that wasn't uncommon in the mostly-Mormon student body. We never chatted with him, we rarely talked to him when we graded each other's papers, and we laughed every time his mutterings raised in volume. Dude talked really loud!

Megan and I especially enjoyed one of the last labs, which was about evolution and the science behind it. This preppy kid raised his hand after one of the TA's comments, and he said that his dad was a respected geophysicist and was still able to believe in creationism. His comment was interesting and led to a longer discussion about mixing faith with science; many of our classmates were not happy with this fellow's assertion and each point made was followed by a muttered "Well, my dad's a geophysicist...."

It is possible that I have said "Well, my dad's a geophysicist" a million times. There may also be a chance that the phrase may have also spurred mine and Caleb's first real meeting a few days later. And there is definitely the possibility that said meeting was planned for nefarious purposes.

No one has ever pegged me as the "nice one" in a group, let's just say.

I've Got Mad Love is a blog series about my and my husband's courtship, engagement, and wedding.