Senior Caleb William Duncan is one of the best guys you could ever wish to meet. He really is. If he were a food, he would be ice cream, definitely. He is just so smooth, and delightful and cute, and just makes everyone's day a million times better. I would have to say that his only problem is his lack of white blood cells, he only has a few of them, but don't worry, he's not going to die.Lemme explain our history...
One day Caleb Duncan came into Zupas, although I did not know who he was at the time. He interviewed and promptly got the job, of course. He seemed pretty alright, but I figured he'd be one of those adorable BYU boys that works at Zupas for a couple of months then goes about his life, whatever. I wasn't too intimidated by a future of a friendship so the entirety of our initial interactions consisted of me confronting him with an odd object in my hand saying "Caleb, do you think I could kill you with this?"
Now, I'm not sure what his initial reaction to these situations were, but he seemed to handle them quite wonderfully. I assume the normal reaction of freaking out, and maybe talking to the company about their mentally unstable employees, never crossed his mind, but instead very confidently shot me down with logical reasons as to why I would not have the ability end his life using a twisty tie or a drinking straw.
Depending on what you believe about fate or serendipity, one might think that our relationship would have ended there. Luckily, I didn't...don't have a driver's license. Caleb, being the gentleman he is, offered me a ride after we were done with work every night, believing a longboard to not be a reliable form of transportation. Those drives home were quite enjoyable; he's just delightful to be around, ya know? They were eventful as well. We did stuff like read whole articles from a New Yorker magazine, left at the restaurant, and make pit stops at grocery stores and gas stations, or just talk about work or life or people.
The Caleb/Zupas carpool soon grew to entertain quite the crowd, on some nights. A regular crew consisted of Melissa, Aimee, Caleb and me; whom we called the fantastic four (ok, so I don't know if anyone ever actually called us that, but there were four of us, and we are fantastic).
The events then grew from trips to the grocery store to be as big and awesome as bonfires up the canyon. The first ever Tri-Quarterly Zupas Funfest (named by Caleb, himself) was in April of 2009. We initially tried to have a bonfire up at Aspen Grove, but couldn't actually get through the multiple feet of snow. We rethought our plan and found the perfect spot way down by the mouth of the canyon. That has been our spot ever sense, but we're also open to new possibilities.
Did you know that each semester (depending on contracts and such) some BYU students are homeless for three days, more or less? I gladly offered my couch to Caleb in these situations, although he did... initially... want to "rough" it and live in his car.
I would definitely say that Caleb's presence was an extremely important ingredient to my amazing summer last year. Listen, of course I was super stoked to the idea of him going on a mission, but there was always a glimpse of sadness at the thought of losing him for two years. Oddly enough, I was the first one to leave. College was great. Although Caleb wasn't physically there, he was still a great addition to my year. Don't worry, we visited plenty. No matter how much I saw him I was always overjoyed when we were reunited. On one such occasion, I learned my lesson about being too excited when seeing him. I had just received a lecture from him about priorities and how hanging out with him was way more important than sleeping. I sat, tired and grumpy, on the parking lot curb, but the second I saw him neurons started firing. I jumped up. Muscles contracted causing my feet to flail and I, with help from the winter ice, fell smack on my butt. Lifting my head to see his mocking face, through the windshield, was painful and yet still exciting. He then lectured me on controlling my emotions, because, as we saw that night, I could be hurt if I don't.
I would have to say that Caleb is quite a wise man. But some of my favorite situations have to do with Caleb acting like a complete child. Apparently, he knows how to wrestle and tackle people using football moves, who knew? We also like to help out in the community, by having fun of course. The Reams parking lot was always scattered with shopping carts after work, which we took care of on a couple of occasions. I feel like the night that ended in a wardrobe change for him was important for some reason, but I do not recall why. How someone gets a seven inch long hole in his pants from simply riding some shopping carts around a parking lot, I have no idea, but he did it. We ended that night with a fashion show where Caleb tried on my brother's old clothes. We came to the conclusion that my brother has an awesome, and yet weird, fashion sense and that Caleb is quite talented at ripping his pants.
Caleb can be quite childish, in the best and most fun way, but he also has his powerful, insightful moments. Sometimes he does something, like grow a beard for you, just because it would sincerely mean a lot to you. (He also lost the bet we made about whether or not he would have a girlfriend before his mission. I was right, of course.)
He has always been there to offer me well needed, logical, advice. And he is one of the most diligent and hardworking people I have ever met.
Caleb appreciates that there are perfect bites of things, like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. He also doesn't share ice cream cones. Sometimes Caleb buys me dinner and I buy him an ice cream cone. He is handsome and, genuinely, has a great heart. Occasionally, I drive him absolutely nuts, but he still appreciates my hard work. He has been my boss twice, and I think I'm doing better this round, except when I profess my love for him while we're working.
I am so proud of Caleb and his devotion to serve the lord, not just for two years, but in everyday. Those Spanish speakers in McAllen, Texas won't know what hit them, but everyone involved will come out of the situation more blessed than ever before.
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