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By Steve Smith
Senior Reporter
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hen Chad and Carrie
Collett arrived at the
University ofNebraska-Lincoln a
few years ago, they had been dat
ing each other for less than a year
Three years later, their courtship culmi
nated with a June wedding.
Chad, a junior Spanish and political
science major, and Carrie, an undeclared
freshman, now live in a modest apartment at
18th and Knox streets.
Not surprisingly, the Colletts admit some
adjustments were needed during the first few
months of their marriage.
“The biggest change is that the center of
interest goes from ‘me’ to ‘we,’” Chad said.
“That’s what’s most important.
“Typical college kids my age are busy
thinking about what’s best for them. It
changes your whole pattern of thinking.”
Carrie smiled. “We were ‘we’ before we
got married, though. We’ve been ‘we’ for a
long time, I think.”
The more things change, the more they
stay the same. Aside from things on the
surface, Chad said their relationship hadn’t
changed that much.
I ne major dmcrence
is those pretty pictures up
there,” he said, motioning
toward the couple’s
wedding photos above the
fireplace. “That, and we got
a heck of a good loan and
some dandy gifts at the
wedding.”
Neither student thought
they’d find a reason to get
married at their age.
“No way,” Carrie said.
“I didn’t think I’d get
married for quite a while.
For a couple months after
the wedding, I was still
signing my checks Carrie
Masck.”
Yean, vnaa aaaea, i
didn’t think I’d ever get
married. I was too self
centered ... but we decided
we were tired of the whole
dating thing. We wanted to
settle down.
“But I still feel weird
introducing her as my wife
when we go out.”
If they go out.
Home entertainment is
usually the ticket when the
Colletts find time for
recreation. Funds, or the
lack thereof, influence their
activities most.
“Man, I’ve still got that
tuition bill to pay,” Chad
said.
“We don’t have a lot of
money to go to the movies
a lot of the time,” Chad
said. “Sometimes, we’ll go
out to eat, rent movies —
whatever. Usually, it’s
something to do at home.”
Valuable time to spend
together isn’t nearly as easy
to find now that they are
both tom between classes
v
and work.
In addition to carrying 12 hours of
classes at UNL, Chad is an assistant manager
at Gateway Shopping Center s Kay-Bee Toys.
It’s a job that sometimes requires more than
40 hours of work a week, he said.
Carrie also juggles the textbook and the
timecard. She works full-time at Centurion, a
local cellular phone company.
But it’s a lifestyle they both gladly
accept.
“Beats being single,” Chad said with a
laugh. “That sucks.”
Some may wonder why the Colletts tied
the knot so early in their college careers —
Chad still isn’t old enough to drink legally —
instead of waiting until after college.
But if they had not pooled their resources
through marriage, college might not have
been possible, Carrie said.
“If it wasn’t for being married to Chad, I
probably wouldn’t be able to go to school,”
she said. “I started classes here for the first
time in two years this semester.”
Chad said he didn’t feel he was missing
out on anything by marrying young.
“I’m glad I’m married,” he said. “I don’t
have to go out like some of the single guys on
campus. They have to go out and look for
someone to be with, but I don’t have to worry
about that.
“Married life really makes me want to
come home, utncrwise, nome is really
boring.”
The Colletts are convinced their marriage
will stand the test of time. Chad mentioned
recent research that says two-thirds of young
marriages eventually end in divorce.
“That doesn’t bother me,” he said. “1
pissed away my high school years drinking
and going out all night. I don’t need that
now.”
It’s two nights before Halloween. Chad
sits on the living room couch, watching
MTV’s infamous “Bcavis and Butt-Head ”
Carrie is getting ready to go to a costume
party, dressed as a pig. She’s going alone;
Chad has to get up early the next day to go to
work.
“It’s not a big deal,” Chad said. “Some
times we do things by ourselves. I don’t sec
that as a problem in our marriage at all.”
“I think it’s one of the benefits,” Carrie
said.
With keys in hand, she’s ready to leave
They give each other a kiss and a hug.
“1 love you, babe,” Chad said.
“I love you, too,” Carrie replied.
r- *
Chad and Carrie Collett partake in a traditional honey’moon pose in the doorway of their apartment. The Colletts, who are b
UNL students, have been married since June.
m
Piioro by Damon Lee
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