I was listening to the pop radio station this afternoon in the car and this song came on that was new to me. As far as I could tell, the song was basically about dancing and having fun. For whatever reason, that song generated a flood of memories for me of times when my girlfriends and I would go out dancing during the college years. I vividly remembered every part of it:

• The "getting ready" part: This was almost was as much fun as going out itself. Since we all lived close together (yay strategic dorm/apartment hunting!), we spent a huge amount of time picking out the best outfits (half the time I had to borrow clothes since I didn't own anything "appropriate") and doing hair and makeup, all to achieve just the right look. We had the discussions on which place to go to, how to protect ourselves from unwanted strangers (weird guys, bad dancers, etc), and what signal to give each other if we needed help. It was also a good time to share our "club names" - or maybe I had the only one - since I did not want to give out my real name.
• The "getting hyped up in the car" part: Of course, this assumes that a car was available. If not, then we either had to take a taxi (expensive!) or use the campus shuttle (totally not cool) or walk (if we were going to a frat party, and that meant we had to wear comfy shoes that was dance-worthy). Either way, we had to psych ourselves up for whatever potential the night had in store for us. This included much giggling, reminiscing of earlier experiences, and resolutions of not to do stupid things.
• The "dancing" part. Once we reached our destination, we just danced. That was our whole goal. We literally danced like no one was watching (very easy to do in a club or dance party; the darkness and strobe lights make it very difficult to see anything).

I don't know what was so special about the dancing, but literally my friends and I loved it. The freedom, sometimes playing an alter ego, not worrying about an upcoming exam/paper/project, listening to fun music - all of that was just a release.

So today, when I heard that song, that's what came back to me. All those memories I hadn't thought about in years, certainly not since I had my daughter. I thought about it - what if my friends and I were to get together now and and just go out dancing? I still don't have the clothes (I would just have to make do with what I've got), and my shoes double up as work shoes, but hopefully I still have the moves. But do I even want to? I have to say, most of the time, the thought never crosses my mind. I'm pretty content with my life. But sometimes, every so often, maybe I am inspired by something I see or read - I get this feeling, this itch to go out and party with my friends again. Just to have fun without worrying about the bills or work or planning the next event or a holiday or what my next Shabbat menu will be.

Don't get me wrong - I have plenty of fun. But those college days...always a good memory.