Ran into a guy this morning who I had not seen in 40 years.

[t walgamuth]

I was down in Madison Indiana over the weekend camping and fooling around and this morning we went into a restaurant, ordered and to kill time took my grandson outside and there was a fellow sitting at an outside table reading a newspaper and I asked him where he got it.... as the fellow started telling me I realized he looked familiar and after a minute more I recognized his voice and him.

He was a fellow I used to hang around a fairly good amount of time in 1966/67 my senior year of high school. I had literally not seen him in 40 years or so. Astonishingly he looks about the same except for gray hair and wrinkles. He is a slender lean fellow and must be nearly the same weight he was in high school.

I invited him in to sit with us and we talked.

We went to high school together at Greencastle high school (population 8,000). After hs we went our separate ways and lived different places. I live now in Lafayette Indiana (35 years) he lives in Madison (20 years).

It was a real hoot. I think its probably the most startling thing that has ever happened to me along these lines...to see someone after so long and they actually look pretty much the same.

(He did not say that I look the same......I am at least 50# heavier now!)

[Skid Row Joe]

One weekend. I was riding the 'L' (elevated railway) in Philadelphia, PA. when I lived there in 1973 during my regional sales training. I was reading the paper, and when I finished reading it, I folded it, and sat on it, because the car was nearly full of passengers, and there was no where to put it. A guy across the aisle was looking, and asked me if I was finished reading it? I said; "no." I stood up, opened the paper, turned the page, folded it, and sat down on it again." I thought the old coot was going to have a coronary right on-the-spot......LOL!

[t walgamuth]

Such a thoughtful post really deserves its own thread.

[Skid Row Joe]

Actually I visited by cell phone last night with a guy that I had not talked with in almost 40 years. He's a lot heavier, according to reports from the reunion, as am I, but still the same old Doug I knew In Omaha. It was great to visit again.

Also heard from another ex-pat southerner raised in Mississippi and Louisiana, that spent 10 years in Omaha too. Haven't seen Dave in 40 years, but visited with his Mom 10 years ago in New Orleans when there on business. He now lives in Seattle......funny. Re-unions are so much fun!!

[davestlouis]

Tom W, that's a great story. I have been reconnecting with gradeschool friends on facebook lately, after 25 or so years of non-contact. I used to purposely avoid people I grew up with, but have hit a point where I'm reopening communication...it's kinda cool.

I don't mean to hijack your thread, but I have an observation. I moved away from the west side of Cincinnati at age 18 because I found it stultifying. The people I've reconnected with who still live there all go to the same restaurants, see the same people at the country club, remember all of our grade school teacher's names. Many of them send their kids to the same schools they attended. It's like a time warp they live in. I have found that the people who moved away are a lot more fun to talk to.

[Skid Row Joe]

Originally Posted by davestlouis

Tom W, that's a great story. I have been reconnecting with gradeschool friends on facebook lately, after 25 or so years of non-contact. I used to purposely avoid people I grew up with, but have hit a point where I'm reopening communication...it's kinda cool.

I don't mean to hijack your thread, but I have an observation. I moved away from the west side of Cincinnati at age 18 because I found it stultifying. The people I've reconnected with who still live there all go to the same restaurants, see the same people at the country club, remember all of our grade school teacher's names. Many of them send their kids to the same schools they attended. It's like a time warp they live in. I have found that the people who moved away are a lot more fun to talk to.

Well-travelled people are more interesting to say the least.

The more travelled.....the more interesting.

[t walgamuth]

Originally Posted by davestlouis

Tom W, that's a great story. I have been reconnecting with gradeschool friends on facebook lately, after 25 or so years of non-contact. I used to purposely avoid people I grew up with, but have hit a point where I'm reopening communication...it's kinda cool.

I don't mean to hijack your thread, but I have an observation. I moved away from the west side of Cincinnati at age 18 because I found it stultifying. The people I've reconnected with who still live there all go to the same restaurants, see the same people at the country club, remember all of our grade school teacher's names. Many of them send their kids to the same schools they attended. It's like a time warp they live in. I have found that the people who moved away are a lot more fun to talk to.

Yeah, its interesting to talk to the few folks who have stayed in Greencastle their whole lives. Its true they know the names of all the old teachers and what the name of their dogs are now etc.

It was not an option for me since an Architect would not be able to survive in such a small town, but there certainly is nothing wrong with making that choice.

[THE ARS]

Originally Posted by Skid Row Joe

One weekend. I was riding the 'L' (elevated railway) in Philadelphia, PA. when I lived there in 1973 during my regional sales training. I was reading the paper, and when I finished reading it, I folded it, and sat on it, because the car was nearly full of passengers, and there was no where to put it. A guy across the aisle was looking, and asked me if I was finished reading it? I said; "no." I stood up, opened the paper, turned the page, folded it, and sat down on it again." I thought the old coot was going to have a coronary right on-the-spot......LOL!

You are an *******.

If I ever run into you I am going to take your paper.

Dig it?


EDIT: I am sorry, that story pissed me off.

Brother, feel good if he didn't tell you to shave your gray beard because it makes you look old.

That's all I hear.

Thing is, I AM old. Pretty sure it's not the beard.


INAPPROPRIATE
B.C.

[pawoSD]

Wow.......40 years is nearly double my age. Anywho...aside from a couple friends in HS (whom I'm still friends with), I'd prefer to never encounter any of those people ever again!

As for the post about the newspaper....that is not really something to be proud of. You know what they say....karma....look out.

[Chas H]

A few years ago I got a call from an Army buddy. We did basic training together back in '66. After basic I went to an artillery unit and he went to an MP unit, both of us still on Ft Bragg. We stayed in touch on the base until my unit got alerted for overseas deployement.
Turns out he lives not too far away, and he stopped by unannounced while I was adding a second floor to my barn. I thought he was a building inspector as he carried an envelope with him, and I had not taken a permit to do the work.
We had nice chat on the deck over coffee as he had quit drinking years ago. The envelope contained a photo of us out on a field training exercize. He observed I could walk past him on the street and he would not recognize me. I thought the same of him. Amazing what 35 years can change.

[t walgamuth]

I would not have recognized my friend probably unless I had heard him talk.

Glad for him he stopped drinking.