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High School Reunions -

garyg

B&B membership has its percs
Anybody here make their 50th? Do something stupid at the 30th? I'm on the cusp of a half century since, returning to the ould sod (there's at least one B&B member there in that little town) on the morrow

I'm wondering as it will likely be the last hurrah, word has it the hosts found 75 of us out of 398. I know where too many are buried ..

Taking Wolfman for the shave, Chubby 2 Synth, AoS Sandalwood Cream .. just to be 60's some English Leather Aftershave

So, anyone have reunion stories? I recall Edith Bunker's ..
 
I just went to my 40th last weekend in San Diego. Was great catching up with folks, as only went to #10. Eventually, the group started to "clique up" and I headed back to my parents' house. Still, worth the time and money. They had a memorial wall for the 20 or so that were no longer with us. A bit sobering (despite the generous pour from the bartender).
 
We had one once. Doubt we'll have another, due to lack of interest. That sounds cold, but everyone is scattered now. My wife has only had two, and it's doubtful they'll have another, for the same reason.

The fun part was the day before I had to tend to an electrical issue at a penitentiary, so when they asked what I'd been doing, I said "Well, I just got out of prison yesterday."
 

oc_in_fw

Fridays are Fishtastic!
Never gone to one, probably never will. Should I ever make it back to Cleveland I will do cool things like go to the orchestra, Playhouse Square, and see other fun things from my time there. My high school doesn’t exist anymore- it got merged with our “arch enemy” about 5 years ago.
 
I am in the midst of trying to help, along with a bunch of other folks and I am trying to limit my time and responsibility, put together my 50th high school reunion. I went to our 40th and thought it was well worthwhile. I do live in the major metro area of where I went to public high school, so it was not a hard call to go.

I have been to a few over the years. They have varied a lot. I think as folks age some of the competition dissipates, but not all of it and not at all all of the cliques. There is a disturbing element that it is still high school after all of those decades! I won't lie, there are some PTSD triggering issues to going to a reunion. I think that is true for most people.

I have reconnected with really good friends at various of these reunions, whom I have kept up with afterwards, and that has meant a lot to me. I do not really care about the high school itself. Seemed pretty big and impersonal and I was not really active in much school related stuff, like sports, student government, etc. I did not keep up with my teachers or anything. I regret that to some extent. I definitely regret not keeping up with my friends from high school better, but I have reconnected at least to some extent with most of the folks I cared about.

I, too, am sort of thinking this will be a last hurrah, too. I suppose there is a sadness to it given the number of classmates who have passed away, and I am guessing have some major health issues.

I never did anything stupid at any of the previous reunions. I do not recall anyone else doing anything too outrageous either, except, perhaps prattling on to me excessively, but that was only a couple of people.
 

martym

Unacceptably Lasering Chicken Giblets?
Never been.
I have no desire to go.
Coming up on the 40th.
I don’t keep up with anyone from high school.
That part of my life is over.
 
Had our 50th this summer. i haven’t been back since the summer after i graduated. Attended a couple early. it Is a bit surreal to say to someone, "I haven’t seen you in half a century.”
 
Anybody here make their 50th?

Nope. Blew my 50th off 5 years ago. I didn't want anything to do with most of these people in the early 1960s, much less now. I did get a letter asking if I was the so & so who graduated from such & such, but I never responded.
 

never-stop-learning

Demoted To Moderator
Staff member
Got my 50th coming up in 2022. Been to every one except the 30th - family emergency kept me from that one - including the 45th.

I still have friends from HS and before that I see. Lost two lifelong (since elementary school) friends this year.

All the HS BS and posturing goes away by the 20th. By the 40th, you are all thankful to still be on the right side of the ground. ;)

YMMV
 

garyg

B&B membership has its percs
Well, my 50th was last night, I am safely home, having avoided the NOPD and OSP and a couple women who struck me as needy, or they just were impressed with a guy that had gotten a BBS with a boutique Canook razor then used English Leather to finish.. right ..

We had, in Cleveland Suburbia, folks come in from Singapore, NYC, SLC, lots of Florida, North Carolina, Texas, Cali, Washington, Hawaii, and more than this lone Michigander.

I had a great time, saw at least a half dozen folks that I hadn't seen since June 1969 .. reconnected with two that I'd gone to Kindergarten with lo those many grisly eons ago ..

It was fun, the only sad part was saying farewell for what some of us knew was the last time .. we all promised to do a 55th, or 60th .. but
 

garyg

B&B membership has its percs
They (reunions) are one of those polarizing things I guess, I understand why someone who hadn't any good friends or memories of their high school wouldn't be anxious to come back. We did have a pretty diverse group show, probably more of the Not In crowd than the Buck Owens, and also some puzzling no-shows. I'll go again if someone steps up to organize it, but have pledged to stay in touch with those whom I'd almost forgotten
 
I almost didn't go to mine, but my wife encouraged me. Was never part of the "in" crowd, so it was a matter of who would I strike up a conversation with. But when you come down to it, high school was just four years of our life, at a time before true maturity. That was how we were, not how we are. Have met a few that seem to be stuck in that part of their life, and, well, it's sad.

Some year ago, a cable network tried to do a "reality" show centered around high school reunions. Saw just a brief part of it, long enough to see that they were trying to stir up the old cliques and feelings. I was watching that slow motion disaster thinking "Dude, that was years ago. Let it go."

Because that's only four years of our life, and because here good job opportunities here tend to be elsewhere, everyone has drifted to other parts of the country and is no longer who they were. Had we stayed in the same area, it would be different.
 
i think they are losing their luster. With facebook you are able to see most of your classmates.

I know that for my HS 10yr reunion, only about 30 people out of a 450 student class showed up (i didn't go). They asked on facebook who was going.
 
I went to my 10th, then haven't been to any others, skipped the 20 year, 30 year, & 40 year. I've got a couple of years to decide if I'll make the 50th. Hopefully, I'll make it so I can decide!
 

shavefan

I’m not a fan
I only attended my 20th, just because I happened to be in the area at the time (I lived on the opposite coast). It was fun catching up I guess. I remember thinking how some people barely changed in 20 years while others were almost unrecognizable. Most notable though was that I got lucky twice that weekend with two of my former classmates.
 
Interesting thread. I hated my time at secondary school (13 - 16 yo) and at 6th form (17 - 18 yo), and have only ever been back to the secondary school once since I left in 1978. It was weird to be back but my wife was curious to see the place: it's in a small town near Cambridge. Once I had finished school, and got a job I moved away from the area and generally lost touch with people - you didn't have Facebook or internet or email then of course. Then later on I moved overseas to Asia and really lost touch with people!

Pre-Facebook, there was a website called Friends Reunited, which I signed up for, and a few people from my old school were also on it. I was mildly astonished that so many of them still lived within 10 miles of the place. I did try and contact one guy who was a good mate at the time but he wasn't particularly keen to communicate, never sure what his issue was.

I have a couple of Facebook friends from 6th form, which was a military academy (I didn't go on to the Army for various reasons, but some did), and I have met with one of them a few years back, but we are all scattered across the world so a reunion is unlikely.
 
i think they are losing their luster. With facebook you are able to see most of your classmates.

I know that for my HS 10yr reunion, only about 30 people out of a 450 student class showed up (i didn't go). They asked on facebook who was going.


I think this probably true. Like others have said also, depending on where you grew up many people may leave for a change or seeking greener pastures. My ten year is next year and I live many states away now so I doubt I'll go (maybe another decade), but it's easy to see what so many of them are up to now via social media anyway. I know many people have left the area, but many have certainly stayed as well. My graduating class was 700, so I'll be curious what the turn out ends up being.
 
I went to 10 and 25. It was ok. There were some people who I was really happy to see and reconnect with. There were others who I didn't really know all that well and didn't hang out with who turned out to be some of the nicest people I should have known way back when. And then most of them formed into their "cliques" as @Jaybeez said. I still hang out with two of my high school friends and figure if I wanted to see these people I'd be hanging with them. My 40th is coming up next year and as of now I have no plans to go. But that could change.
 
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