Whatever happened to......?
Nov. 10th, 2004 09:38 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
poltr1Every so often, I think about the people in my past, where they are now, and what they are doing. More often than not, it's me that sends out the first message. Sometimes I get a response from that person; sometimes I don't. Even though I know it's unreasonable for me to expect (and demand) a response, I still get hurt and angry when I don't receive one. But I'm happy when I do receive one.
This past weekend, I remembered a pair of sisters from high school. Sharon was in my class level; her older sister Karen was a year older. I first met them through the school's gaming club. We spent afternoons and lunch hours playing D&D or Cosmic Encounter -- much to the consternation of the rest of the games club, who would rather play wargames and wanted nothing to do with us. They were also big fans of Tolkien's LotR trilogy; they re-read the books every year. In a way, they were the ones that introduced me to science fiction and fantasy, and put me on the path I've followed for the past 25 or so years. And being the serious students that they were, they weren't interested in dating anyone.
Karen was a real-life Girl Genius. (Except that Karen was a brunette, not a blonde.) I had a high-school crush on her, but like most crushes, the interest was one-way; she wasn't interested in me at all. She went on to MIT to study architecture.
Sharon was the animal lover. We were in a lot of science classes together. Her and I were co-voted "Class Pinhead" in our high school class, but after much complaining from Sharon, the title was changed to "Mad Scientist". (Too bad we didn't re-do the photo for the class yearbook, with us in the chem lab with safety goggles, beakers, and dry ice. Instead, we're both looking in a dictionary.) She went on to SUNY/Oswego for pre-med.
Where are they now? This weekend, I did a Google search on their last name. I found Karen's curriculum vitae fairly high on the list. She's now an adjunct asistant professor of architecture at USC, and co-developer of an architectural/CAD software program. And, to my surprise, she got married in 1999, the same year I did. (A lower-ranked hit was a site of a friend of hers that had wedding pictures.) So I dropped her a quick email note with very cursory information, and invitation to write back as time permits.
I haven't heard back from Karen yet, but I got a note from Sharon the next day. She said that her and her boyfriend were wondering about the folks they knew from high school, what they were doing now, and lo and behold, comes a note from Karen to her that I wrote. (Synchronicity or what?)
[Update: Just got a note from Karen this afternoon.]
Sharon is now a veterinarian in Dahlgren, VA -- due south of Washington, DC. We've sent emails back and forth the past few days, getting caught up on each other's lives.
It's great to hear from people in my past, to know that they're doing well. But at the same time, I need to be aware that they aren't the same people I knew years ago -- I've grown since then; so have they. And while we not have the same level of friendship we have back then, I'm content with what I have now.
This past weekend, I remembered a pair of sisters from high school. Sharon was in my class level; her older sister Karen was a year older. I first met them through the school's gaming club. We spent afternoons and lunch hours playing D&D or Cosmic Encounter -- much to the consternation of the rest of the games club, who would rather play wargames and wanted nothing to do with us. They were also big fans of Tolkien's LotR trilogy; they re-read the books every year. In a way, they were the ones that introduced me to science fiction and fantasy, and put me on the path I've followed for the past 25 or so years. And being the serious students that they were, they weren't interested in dating anyone.
Karen was a real-life Girl Genius. (Except that Karen was a brunette, not a blonde.) I had a high-school crush on her, but like most crushes, the interest was one-way; she wasn't interested in me at all. She went on to MIT to study architecture.
Sharon was the animal lover. We were in a lot of science classes together. Her and I were co-voted "Class Pinhead" in our high school class, but after much complaining from Sharon, the title was changed to "Mad Scientist". (Too bad we didn't re-do the photo for the class yearbook, with us in the chem lab with safety goggles, beakers, and dry ice. Instead, we're both looking in a dictionary.) She went on to SUNY/Oswego for pre-med.
Where are they now? This weekend, I did a Google search on their last name. I found Karen's curriculum vitae fairly high on the list. She's now an adjunct asistant professor of architecture at USC, and co-developer of an architectural/CAD software program. And, to my surprise, she got married in 1999, the same year I did. (A lower-ranked hit was a site of a friend of hers that had wedding pictures.) So I dropped her a quick email note with very cursory information, and invitation to write back as time permits.
I haven't heard back from Karen yet, but I got a note from Sharon the next day. She said that her and her boyfriend were wondering about the folks they knew from high school, what they were doing now, and lo and behold, comes a note from Karen to her that I wrote. (Synchronicity or what?)
[Update: Just got a note from Karen this afternoon.]
Sharon is now a veterinarian in Dahlgren, VA -- due south of Washington, DC. We've sent emails back and forth the past few days, getting caught up on each other's lives.
It's great to hear from people in my past, to know that they're doing well. But at the same time, I need to be aware that they aren't the same people I knew years ago -- I've grown since then; so have they. And while we not have the same level of friendship we have back then, I'm content with what I have now.
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Former classmates
Date: 2004-11-10 10:19 am (UTC)KG
Re: Former classmates
Date: 2004-11-10 08:18 pm (UTC)