By: Charlotte Gravert, Peak Associate

I’ve been feeling funny lately. Could it be the annual spring fever? It’s already March and the midterm season is in full blast. Maybe I’m just stressed. 

I’m tossing and turning half asleep. I open my eyes to check the time and almost fall out of my bed as a wild STARLY appeared! It’s sitting right in the middle of my old childhood bedroom with me!

Wait. There’s no Starly in the most recent Pokédex (nor in-person, not until Pokémon GO inevitably becomes the new reality). Panic strikes as I check my surroundings. Troy Bolton sporting that Disney star smile and a Wildcats uniform from my pillowcase? Rubbing my eyes in disbelief, the Starly disappeared, but I’m still stuck in my High School Musical-themed bedroom. 

Scrambling for my iPhone, all I can find is a Motorola Razr laying on the bedside table, which among other things, also features a Nintendo DS and an assortment of CDs and game cards. Oh, Nintendogs! I flip the phone open. Time and date: 6:59 a.m. March 10, 2006. Before I can fathom a clear thought, the alarm goes off blasting Nickelback’s “Rockstar.” 

While struggling to operate the flimsy flip phone, a knock on the door is followed by a Karen poking her head in to remind me to get ready for school. Wait. Karen is actually my mom with the asymmetric haircut that she rocked in the early 2000s.  

I swing my legs out from under the red bed sheets, just to find myself dressed in a matching Wildcats PJ set. I had almost forgotten about this pre-teen phase of mine. The Twilight aesthetic that hit me like a train in 2008 had a much longer-lasting impact on my general taste. I still listen to “Roslyn” on repeat, come at me. I’m planning which Disney princess lip gloss to put on for school that day when . . .

Suddenly, I startle awake and find myself feeling stiff as a board at my desk. My half-written midterm essay is glaring at me from my laptop. The date reads March 2021.

I wish my 2006 throwback had lasted a little longer. I didn’t even get to play Pokémon Pearl or check on my Nintendogs. I wonder how my golden retriever Daisy is doing. Did I give her enough water to last 15 years?

Bummed, I close down the various tabs on my computer. That’s when I come across the article I must have read before dozing off. “2006 is making a comeback! For its 15-year anniversary, Pokémon is remaking Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl for the Switch.” 

I quickly drop my summer courses, cancel my apartment lease, and phone my mom to tell her I will be back home for the summer. I’ve got Pokémon to catch, and High School Musical to rewatch.