Just got back from my 40th HS reunion!

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

I had a great time. I haven’t seen most of my classmates since graduation and it was wonderful seeing them again.

I don’t understand why people hate these things*. Maybe it was different when I was in high school – there weren’t a lot of cliques, and those that were didn’t waste time being nasty to non-member. The cheerleaders were far from dumb – they included our class valedictorian and salutatorian, as well as the future valedictorian of the junior class. There were honor graduates on the sports teams and no division between jocks and freaks (not that there weren’t differences, nor that people weren’t aware of them, but you didn’t have one group bullying the other).

It was great catching up. One flew in from Brazil, and there were people there who lived in California, Reno, and Chicago. No one bragged about how great they were doing (other then talking about their jobs). I had trouble recognizing people, but everyone seemed to recognize me, for some reason – I now have a beard, different glasses, and my hair is all gray.

They were smart to set this up as a two-night affair. Friday was a get-together at a local bar, which allowed people to attend who didn’t want to pay for the dinner. Saturday they held a cruise which took up right up to a nearby lighthouse for a spectacular view. The town was having its Maritime festival, so they ran fireworks, and we had a front-row seat.

It was just a wonderful event.

*You own. I can see why you might not want to go to a spouses – you wouldn’t know anyone.

2

I’m helping to plan my 25th. How many people do you think showed up for yours? What percentage of your graduating class showed up? We had about 150 people in our graduating class. I am hoping we get 50 to 80 couples.

3

We had about 110 in the class. I think about 60 were on the cruise, but that included spouses. Maybe ten more showed up at the bar.

4

My 15th is (would be?) next year. I missed my 10th, and even though we’re “friends” on Facebook, I haven’t seen most of them in person since HS.

5

I did my 40th reunion a couple weeks ago, and I agree, a splendid time was had by all.

We, too, had it set up as a two-day event – the reception/dinner one night, and then a barbecue the next day. My wife actually came to the barbecue, feeling the pressure to be friendly to a room full of total strangers would be less.

The clique stuff tends to disappear pretty damn fast when we show the tribute to all our former classmates who have died. Turns out the ones of us who survived have a lot more in common than what group we were in 40 years ago.

The organizers put the attendence at about 1/3 of the original class, and about half of them brought spouses.

6

Good for you - sounds like you had fun.

As for why others hate them, well…
Most of my friends were a year older or a year younger than I was in high school. And although I didn’t “hate” others in my graduating class and we got along OK, we were never that close. Thus, for me to spend money and time to go visit people I didn’t particularly like (or hang out with) then, or since then - well, why?
It would like having to experience Facebook live…no thanks!

7

Hate is s strong word. I just don’t have enough interest to travel 3+ hours to see people I didn’t care enough about to stay in touch with.

8

Meh. I wouldn’t travel three blocks to see a bunch of people who happened to be in the same building a few hours a day forty years ago.

The local college alumni went beyond “meh” to “actively annoying”, though – one of them cold-called with an invitation to something or other, followed by a request for a donation, and then (may have been the same idiot or a different one) spammed me with an e-mail bearing an attached 10MB photo album and video of the event.

9

I knew many of the people at the reunion since kindergarten. Lots of childhood friends, and we used to hang out in class, during recess, and after school. I moved away for college and haven’t seen many of them for years (some for 40). It was great to see them again.

10

I went to my 10th and 20th reunion. I would have gone to my 30th, but our son was seven months old and we couldn’t find a babysitter.

They were fun. I didn’t have a lot of friends in high school, but I had some, and those did show up.

11

I wouldn’t go to any grade or high school reunion if you paid me. Not everyone enjoyed their time in mandatory daily bully training camp, sorry, “school”. The only interest I have in hearing about the vast majority of the people I knew in school growing up is reading their obituary.

12

Is this like you, hotflungwok?

Scene from Billy Madison

13

Holy crap, no. Why the hell would you think that?

Red looks horrible on me.

14

Next weekend is my 40th from the Academy. Friday night dinner. Saturday events all daylong at the Academy, home comming weekend. Alumni dinner Saturday night. Sunday trip on the bay on the training ship to see the Blue Angles.

But my wifes 40th from high school is Saturday night. So we will go Friday night and Sadurday but leave in the afternoon. And go to her HS reunion.

Some of my classmates I am looking forward to seeing orhers I can do without seeing.