Serendipity

OK, two guys walk into a bar...

 If you saw my Facebook page this morning, you know how this turned out. I was supposed to meet two friends -- John and John -- at a bar last night to watch Game 4 and eat some really awful hot dogs.

 I get there. No John. No John. The hot dogs are skinny and pale looking, but I toss two of them into a bun and spritz on some mustard.

 Ugh. Awful.

 It's a good game. One that will get INTENSE, eventually. (I haven't screamed like that since the '86 Mets.)

 So, anyway, I'm talking to the bartender and then to this gray-haired guy sitting next to me. Suddenly...I'm staring at gray-haired guy and ask "What's your name?"

 Turns out he was one of my very close friends from the 1970s -- someone I later lost touch with and haven't seen in over 30 years.

 How is this possible?

 "Do you come here often?" I ask.

 He says he'd never been there before. He lives about 45 miles away. His father is in the hospital nearby and he drove in to take his mother to visit his Dad. Then, he stopped for a drink on his way home.

 What really amazed me about this is the era we are living in. Nowadays, it seems you can find virtually everybody you ever met if you know how to use your computer. In the last few months I have re-connected with friends from the '90s, the '80s, the 70's -- even a friend from junior high school who I haven't seen since 1968.

 Younger people don't find this amazing, because this technology has always been part of their lives, but the rest of us are kind of tickled that people we never thought we'd ever see or hear from again can be found so easily.

 Lee, however, was an exception. For years, I have tried to find him using all sorts of websites and programs. Alas, he was nowhere to be found. Well, until last night.

 He told me he lives out east on Long Island (near Riverhead) in a house he built himself, with his own two hands. (Well, actually, a friend helped, so I guess there were four hands involved.)

 This was such a stunning thing that even though we talked for over an hour, we stopped repeatedly to say, "I can't believe this..."

 He has a computer, but has never connected it. (One of those email-free Luddite types!) He had to get home and get up for work in the morning. I'm guessing we're going to see each other next weekend.

 I'm still stunned about this chance meeting. I just wish the hot dogs had been better.

 

Comments

[Caroline Del Piano]

I'm still amazed by this story! Have fun reconnecting! We're looking for someone from our elementary school days. Not sure if we'll find him anywhere but its so much fun trying to find them!

[lwt]

so what happened to john and john? did you [or they] go to the wrong place? that happened to me last month. i was supposed to meet nancy and another friend to celebrate one of our birthdays at a place called sweet basil's. my directions told me to turn right on eagle rock, and look for a green awning. i turned into the driveway of the wrong building with a green awning. i sat there for an hour waiting. then, because i don't have a cell phone, i went home. they called me at home and gave me better directions and i found the place.

[aubreeze]

that is a great night! even if your friends did diss you

[nan]

well about 50 people are gathering in the city this saturday - most of whom haven't seen each other in at least 40 year- we all went to Camp Farrington in East Brunswick NJ- and camp closed in the late 60's. Long story short - we've used the internet to find people who found others - and after months of making plans and connections- now this should be a blast

[Nutley Nancy : )]

sounds like fun nan. my college reunion is coming up and a former room mate and i are trying to decide if we'll go. the problem with these reunions is often the people you hope to see there and reconnect with don't go : (

[Tom McAdam]

That's a great story, Bill. Even better than finding old friends via facebook, which I still get a kick out of. My high school class is organizing a 35th anniversary reunion on facebook, and it's kinda fun. We'll all gather in a room with our laptops and chat all night long.

[lwt]

i went to my tenth year high school reunion just out of curiosity, but subsequent reunions became more expensive and since most of my friends either didn't go to my high school or weren't in my class, there were very few people i wanted to see. i haven't been since. our 40th was last year they tell me.

[Linda]

I love this kind of stuff. My daughter has been reconnecting with "kids" she graduated 8th grade with. (when schools were K-8) It's interesting to see what they all ended up doing.

[Nutley Nancy : )]

wow both linda's have the same "icon" is this the new system yet? does it know all lindas? (insert twilight zone music here ; )

[mikeymike]

most recently, i've been facebooking with a along lost friend from high school as well. (excuse my absence). and yeah, my sons are not impressed. "its easy, dad." grrr....

[bill Ervolino]

FROM BILL: I called one of the Johns yesterday to ask why he didn't show up. He reminded me that when we had talked earlier in the day, I wasn't sure if i was going out. The plan -- which I had forgotten about -- was for me to call him after I took a nap to say if I was going or not. My bad. Oh, well.

[lwt]

nancy--this is my icon from the laptop. if i use the other computer, i am green.
whatever.

[Evelyn]

Having moved back into the town where I graduated High School, I've had a lot of those in-person moments. (The trustees of the Community Center include 3 people in my FLHS class). But the closest I have come is being online, searching for the name of my great-grandparents - and I wasn't even sure of the first names - and finding an online message to someone named Cathy, who was searching for someone with my last name in Jersey City in the same time frame as my great-grandparents. A few emails later, and it turns out that she is married to my father's first cousin, and was trying to find us. She'd been to my Dad's funeral,(the only time we'd met)and had lost the contact information (and we'd all moved since then). Two weeks later, I had photos of the great grandmother I had never seen, and a listing of second cousins I didn't even know I had. I love stories like this!

[TerriP]

About five years ago I walked into the Federal Court building to file some papers in Indianapolis and a guy turned around and I said-"I know you" Your last name is Wu. We talked for a couple of minutes and he was the collections area manager at Ft Bragg Federal CU while I was the Sr. Loan Manager back in the mid 80's -that's NC to Indianapolis. I'm from here but he moved here for a job. Crazy! I get a huge kick out of Facebook too. All of the people I've had no contact with since high school. I missed a get together weekend before last because I wasn't feeling well! Look forward to the next one!

[Linda]

Last week I saw a familiar name in the obituaries. A woman who lived next door to the house I grew up in. There were 2 kids and a father. He died in 1978. Anyway I left a condolence email (to the daughter) the Record thing has and today her only child a daughter wrote me back. She says her mom is 65 an on constant oxygen, but didn't say why, and has always lived in Garfield. In fact if she's living in the house her parents bought after they moved away from the old neighborhood I pass the place EVERYDAY!

What are the chances 2 women living next to each other in the 1950s, would each die exactly one month to the day apart.
My Mom 9/21, her Mom 10/21. Creepy!

[woroideob]

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