Are you insulted if former high school classmate says you haven't changed?

[prolesunited]

At the grocery store, someone approached me and said she went to high school with me and even remembered my name. After she told me who she was, I did remember her and could put the face I remembered with her present appearance.

I complimented her on her memory and she said it was easy because I hadn't changed a bit. I graduated 24 years ago. I was pretty insecure back then, so part of me wants to take it as an insult, but then again, wouldn't that indicate I've held up pretty well?

So what about you? Would your former classmates recognize you? Is that a good or bad thing?

[Not_Giving_Up]

1. It's happened to me a couple of times

I take it as a compliment. Now, if it was someone who hated my guts back then for some reason, I might take it differently.

[NaturalHigh]

3. Take it as a compliment.

I'm sure it was intended that way.

[Spinzonner]

2. They always tell me I'm still as obnoxious as I ever was

[lildreamer316]

4. Compliment.

She dosen't know about your day-to-day; she's judging on outside. I think she ment it well.

[cssmall]

5. Don't worry about it.

They wouldn't even publish my graduation notification in my old hometown because my family were the liberals of the city and the fact that only three people from my old hometown still talk to me whilst the rest stare and don't say anything.

[SheilaT]

6. On the other hand,

how would you feel if a former classmate couldn't recognize you because you'd changed so completely?

I went to my 40th reunion (gasp!) in June, and because I had not seen anyone in at least 30 years (I went to our 10th, but nothing else until this year) I had to read the name tags to recognize anyone.

[Spinzonner]

8. Let's see

either you have reunions yearly (hence the 40TH reunion would be the 40TH year also) or if you have reunions every 5 years as is typical, then it's been 200 years since you graduated. Looking pretty good for your age.

Or, you meant 40th-year reunion or 40-year reunion.

Forgive me. I work on our class's reunions and this bugs the hell out of me.

[trackfan]

7. nome

I'm glad

[rockymountaindem]

9. Someone said that to me just the other night.

'Course, we graduated 2 years ago.

But anyway, I wasn't offended. If that person was and is one of my good friends, why wouldn't I be happy maintaining the same status quo she liked before?

[Susang]

10. Hard to say

I recently ran into a high school friend of mine in one of the strangest places imaginable. Sit back and I'll tell you a story (apologies for the length)....

I was doing karaoke with my friend John at Scot's (gay bar). Michael, my sister and her fiance were also there and we were all sitting at the very end of the bar. I noticed this woman was onstage singing "The Rose" in a trembling voice and I couldn't get over the feeling that I knew her.

The drag queen who was hosting said: "Let's hear it for Jill", as she was leaving the stage. That was it, I was almost positive that she was the same Jill I knew from high school (in Detroit). She hadn't changed much, but what were the odds of her being in the same Chicago gay bar I was in?

So, I debated whether I was right or not and if I should interrupt her conversation and say hi. My sister wasn't even sure it was really her. She and her friend were embroiled in a really intense conversation, so that made it even more difficult. Finally, after another drink, I walked right up and tapped her on the shoulder.

"Jill?", I asked her? She looked at me with zero recognition. Not a hint. I asked if her last name was McCoy. She said yes and was obviously struggling to figure out where she might know me from. When I said "Sue, from Mercy high school", she finally recognized me and gave me a gigantic hug that sent us crashing into the opposite wall.

This isn't the first time this has happened to me either. At my 20th year reunion, I had to constantly tell people who I was. Either I have changed so radically in those 20 years or I was extremely forgettable. Either way, it was unnerving and uncomfortable. Jill didn't recognize me and I had sang two songs right in front of her onstage. And I was a singer in high school!

I'd take it as a good thing. ;-)

[prolesunited]

11. What are the chances

that you would run into somebody you went to high school in Detroit with a gay bar in Chicago? That's wild.

The only reason I stood out was because I was such an anomaly. Kid from the wrong side of the tracks in rich kids school, in advanced classes with the smart kids, but hung out with all the partiers. I also had a little side business catering to the rich kids who did things their mommies didn't know about. I graduated a semester early, so I missed a lot of senior year hoopla.

It did remind me that my 25-year reunion is right around the corner. Perhaps I'll go. Maybe looking the same isn't so bad compared to what happened to the other people. :evilgrin: