Lifestyle Requirements (HS Reunions) (graduated, separate, out of control, adults)

[sheerbliss]

My 10th reunion cost $50 to go. I didn't have it. It was all I could do to keep the bills paid.

The 20th was across the street from the office. I could only think of one or two people I might have wanted to see.

The 30th was a few years ago, assuming they had it. I was a thousand miles away by then and didn't even think about it.

[SUPbud]

reply sent as DM with my experience in similar

[SunGrins]

High School was not my thing but I went to the 25th reunion and all the guys were trying to get you to buy insurance or a car or invest in something. High School was not my thing but I went to the 25th reunion and all the guys were trying to get you to buy insurance or a car or invest in something.

My 50th was in 2016. They set up a Facebook page to try to gin up enthusiasm but it was the same old story. Even after 50 years some were still stuck in that era and they were the only ones excited about the reunion. Most of the FB chatter was of who died and how. We had 500 in our class but they could not get enough interested to cover the expenses and the big bash fell through. They had a downsized dinner and some weekend events. I did not go back (1000+ miles) and no one I knew went. My close HS friends are still vertical so it was good to know that.

Your post inspired me to go to our HS alumni Facebook page. I only knew a couple people there but there were so many COVID deaths of younger people or their family members it surprised me. It brought home how bad things have been back there.

[wit-nit]

I went to the 10th reunion and all the jocks and cliques were still the same sitting together bragging about their great accomplishments or selling stuff. Then I went to the 25th reunion and the same people were now bragging how successful they were and bragging about their children/grandchildren and how smart they are.
Since most of the people I knew or associated with in school didn't show up at either reunion I won't be attending anymore, waste of time and money.

[Lodestar 77]

I went to a large HS with a huge graduating class. Many surrounding Jr. High schools were assigned to this HS so I did not know a lot of classmates, although I did make friends outside of my own Jr. High school friends. I went to my 10th, it was nice. One of the guys who ran in a group of 7 guys and was really cool was now in a business suit and all business like! I enjoyed my time at this one.

I went to my 20th, this one was kind of a shocker. One guy who was really cute and had lots of girls hanging around came in from Hawaii, still had several women surrounding him, and was very definitely gay! I did manage to see my "first", kiss that is, from Jr. High, as well as others from Jr. High I had lost touch with. I went to the 25th and said, "no more". It was not a pleasant reunion at all. My 20th was my favorite.

I have moved out of state since then, and years ago my friend back home told me about the 40th when it was coming up. It was being held at a dive in a dive neighborhood, she said she wasn't going and did not know of anyone who was going. I did not go.

My 50th is in 2023. Depends on who is going to attend for me to decide to fly back there to attend myself. I am in touch with who I want to be in touch with, and I get updates on some people I know of names but not personally from my BFF.

[arr430]

I went to the 25th. The night was dominated by a guy who started drinking early and another who wanted to sell me insurance, and guys paying a lot of attention to my wife. Three quiet plain girls were stunning at 40, that was interesting.

There was no 50th reunion. I stayed in touch with one classmate until he died.

[EllieKay56]

I have been to a number of high school and grade school reunions. I helped plan many of them. I grew up in Chicago. So the grade school one is always fun because it is kids from the neighborhood.
High School was from all over Chicago. It was an all girl high school, so finding classmates was always a struggle since they usually involve name changes. About 12 years ago a group of us found each other on Facebook and it has grown from there. We had a party the year we turned 60. We got together just over a year ago for brunch when a classmate flew in from Australia.
What I enjoy, I have talked to people I was not friends with in high school. At our age we are past worrying about who has what and just enjoy each others company.
Grade school- the bond is so tight. Our parents were friends. Last fall we did a tail gate style reunion in a park by Lake Michigan. This way we could keep our distance and enjoy each others company. I talked to a few people that I hadn't in 30 years. It was good to laugh and share memories.

[elnrgby]

Originally Posted by cruitr

I'm currently working on my 50th Reunion. September of 2021. I'm the Chief Recruiter.

We've had about a dozen reunions since 1971 but mostly local people. If a classmate moved out of the area, we usually lost contact.

Now that I live 3000 miles from my high school, I took it upon myself to find old classmates that none of us have seen in a while. Imagine talking to someone you haven't spoken with in 50 years. Luckily I'm a sales guy and I'm good on the phone.

I did not marry my high school sweetheart. Here name is Terry. Terry wanted the traditional 3 kids and white-picket-fence lifestyle. I wanted to see the world, live a lifestyle of fun and travel with no kids. It would have never worked.

As part of learning my classmate recruiting skills, my first call was to find and talk with Terry, my HS sweetheart. I found her. She did have 3 kids and her husband just died. Terry asked me to fly to her home in CO and discuss the future. "There won't be a future for us Terry. My wife of 44 years and I have had no kids. We traveled the world. And are now comfortably retired in San Diego." She still wanted to go to the reunion. So I sold her a ticket.

I'm not a great looking guy, so finding a wife in the early 70s was not easy. I finally found a girl in the Air Force in 1975 that was willing to live what I now call the Hart-to-Hart lifestyle. Her name is Sue. Sue and I had a great life. We now live near the beach, own several sports cars, have 2 dogs, and a Max (watch the video below).

I spent most of 2020 calling the names on my 1971 graduation list. Class size = 165. Discovered 25 deaths and 10 MIAs. Talking with someone who you haven't spoken with in 50 years is quite an experience. Once an old classmate figured out who I was they always asked "Did you marry Terry?" No, but we're still good friends.

I was hoping to make the 50th HS Reunion a blow-out event. We are all at the retirement age of 66-67. But it's not working. Money and health are the big problems. Coronavirus is not helping either.

Anyone else ever work on a high school reunion? It's fun but it's not easy.

Btw... here's the lifestyle I was looking for in 1971. No local girls were interested. I was lucky to find Sue in 1975. We lived it with no regrets.

cruitr


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uSn9xPnjLps

This somehow ended up being a thread about high school reunions... but to me a more interesting part of your post was about looking back with satisfaction upon a childfree couple lifestyle (as opposed to the more common family-raising lifestyle). When I was a small girl in the mid-1960, my role models were James Bond girls... who generally weren't pregnant or wearing an apron :-), so I never could see myself as a traditional wife/mother, but only traveling in some exciting place with a dashing guy :-). I found it impossible to find a man with the same mindset in the US, but eventually (in my 40s) I did end up spending 11 fantastic years with a guy of my dreams who, however, was European (like myself originally). He unfortunately died suddenly, much too early (when he was 59, and I was 52), and nothing/nobody still remaining on this planet seems to come remotely close to the cool memory of him... I'm still a Bond girl, an old Bond girl now :-), but I can nowadays only do that lifestyle alone.....

[mlb]

My 50th is this September as well.

I have not been to ANY class reunions. I live on the West Coast - my hometown is in Wisconsin.

There’s a small handful of friends that I have kept in touch with over the years - I know 2 of them will not be attending.

That said - the reunion committee established a FB page. Complete with photos and stories of those who have died. We had a graduating class of 500.

And by posting a “hello” message on the page - I reconnected with a couple of old friends.

Honestly - that’s about as good as it will get. I cannot see spending over $1000 (airfare, hotel, car) to sit in a room with people I have not spoken to in over 50 years.

[slduvall]

Kind of timely...my 40th is this fall.

I was a good student, but didn't really didn't try to belong because I was having too much fun dating older guys .

Anyway, met my husband a few years after graduation and went on to have a wonderful life outside of the small town.

After 30 years in the military, we retired back to the area but zoned for a different high school. Which is now the best in the county.

I was friended on Facebook by the organizer of the last reunion, a guy I hated in high school, typical pompous a**. After we moved here the messages on Facebook became more frequent. Mostly due to the fact that we both had golden retrievers.

One day I was at the dog park and saw him, went up to him and he gave me a hug we started talking and he and another guy then started talking about a girl that was playing with the dogs. About how hot she was...it was my daughter! She was 16 at the time.

He still acted like the "popular kid" but now he was 56, severely overweight, missing a couple important teeth and dressed in overalls, and wearing sandals on his swollen feet!

He also delivers papers for a living and lives in the house he inherited from his parents.

None of that bad mind you, but he then started commenting on my FB page as well as the Class page. Why did I send my daughter to the opposing high school? Because it's nationally ranked dumbass! My alma mater was the best but that was 40 years ago. I saw him at a gas station a few months ago and he started commenting about my car. How I was the last person he ever expected to be driving a Porsche. What the hell! He then posted that on the group page! I've never posted a picture of the car, nor discussed it publically, as it is my husband's pride and joy, not mine. Now he never lets up!

As the reunion gets closer he is talking about all the people who are attending (we had 635 in the class) and if he scores a "popular kid" he is swooning all over them. Many of them still live here, and while a couple are successful, many aren't, but they are loving the attention. The most popular girl in school had 4 kids by the time she was 25, she was a sweetheart of a person but naive of what the world was really about. She was working as a waitress at a local restaurant last I saw her. I sometimes wonder if she wasn't given everything in school if she would have tried harder at life. She failed out of college because they require you to study and don't give out grades based on your popularity.

The ones that were really successful had left town to become someone. We have Dr's, Lawyers, Military Officers, some major CEO's and even an astronaut. But those people aren't being given writeups on the website when they sign up.

I told him I couldn't go to the reunion because that is the same weekend as parents' day at my daughter's college. Not missing that for "his" reunion. He is now asking for donations to the reunion for those that can't afford the $50 fee for the dinner. Since I drive a Porsche I can afford it right! He does this publically.
At least once a week he mentions the car, I guess it was always his dream. Sorry dude, that an unpopular nobody has your dream car.

And since I did mention on Fb that my daughter was going to DC for college he doesn't stop saying about how sad she's not going to one of the schools so popular with the local kids! I'll take a nationally ranked school over his SEC teams any day! He actually sent her a FB request!!!!

Rant over!!