I missed my last school reunion, 25 years I think, because both kids had some medieval stomach bug and it didn’t seem fair to spread it around. I made the one before that, the ten year anniversary, because a magazine flew me back to Brisbane to write it up. (I went with my glamorous photographer, Kate, and jeez did she get some mean stares from the wives)
There’s supposed to be another one in a couple of weeks. Forty years since graduation. I guess by fifty too many of us would be dead. I had thought I might drive up to Ipswich and maybe even stay overnight. I’ve got a couple of old mates I wanted to catch up with. But I suspect we’ll be in lockdown again by the time it rolls around.
The get together will happen at some point and I’ll make an effort to get there. The ten year gig was kind of fascinating, with the arcs of people’s lives starting to come into clear focus. One highlight was watching a couple of blokes, one a cop, the other a career criminal, manoeuvre around each other all night in a sort of heavily armed truce.
I imagine by now that a lot of the posturing and status anxiety might be behind us. Life will have truly knocked the shit out of everyone and enough of us have already passed on that the Reaper will have a seat at bar the bar just to keep an eye on his future prospects.
One thing that did surprise me, I had a look through the facebook page for the event. I didn’t even recognise most of the names.
Coming up to 30 for me next year. The 10yr mark for my one turned into a culture war - the only ones willing to organise it wanted to do a family thing at a park during the day. The ones without (and some with) wanted to do a free for all night thing at the local leagues club. Turned out they were both a bit wishy washy as attendance was split. I opted for the afternoon at the park version because it seemed better to do it sober and still be able to drive for the getaway (too many bad memories of non existent public transport or taxis (pre uber) and being stuck somewhere trying to sober up and figure out how the eff to get home on the central coast of NSW). I kick started another FB account in the last year or so just for the birding people i've met (and the odd family members i dont see) and the algorithm ratted me out. Slowly but surely i was exposed to all the old crowd. I was too polite to reject offers of "being friends" with the people from school and now it seems that they are all expert vaccination researchers and i have to periodically put them on a 30 day mute in amongst all the ads and quizzes. I still keep in touch with a core group of mates from that time - and that is the main show. The other school people are just the freak show - curiosity makes me stick my head in the tent but ultimately it is all smoke and mirrors.
40 years next year I think. Went to the 10 year one - the rodeo was in town, Chainsaw was the bull to beat and Billy Ray had an Achy Breaky Heart. Had an outing with a bunch at the races maybe 5 years ago but I am still close to my best mate of 50 years and a few of the other lads and lasses from high school. Absolutely no one from uni.
A few from the old school have passed away, the old headmaster is gone as is the legend that was our "School Sergeant". Wonderful man. Occupation of Japan, Korea, Vietnam, Borneo/Malaysia, married a Japanese lady and he was as we found out years later, a Sri Lankan prince.
Also nearly four decades since skool and never looked back. Until the ten year reunion, I'd seen precisely two alumni - one who I picked up while driving a taxi! I went to the decade marker and, man, were they all boring. No contact since - yay, I think.
Better times at the recent uni reunion. I never finished my degree but my greatest mates are from that period. It was a bit awks at first, cos we were fresh out of lockdown 1.0, but the tall stories, the glimmers of recognition, the 'oh wow - look at you!' moments, the 'oh crap - did you go through that?' stories were golden. Kids, careers, grey hairs (or complete lack of any hair), tragedies and wins were shared. The emotional intensity was quite overwhelming and I had to walk a away a few times to reset. Feels and memories that had been dormant or squashed for half a lifetime bubbled up. Weird but good.
Then we all kicked on well into the night. Oh, and I showed off a bit, because I'd gone so much further outside the box than anyone, myself included, ever expected.
Jeebus, counting back, it’s close to the 40 year mark since I left high school. However, I think my school celebrates significant anniversaries since foundation, rather than have reunions per se. I’ll check it out but I think it’s at 64 years now.
I'm in touch with precisely one person from high school. I don't have hard feelings about high school. Just not warm fuzzies either. I haven't heard of any reunions over the past 30 years, but I'm not exactly hard to find either.
I think the term “Your Mileage May Vary” describes high school reunions pretty accurately. High school is such a formative time in your life, but by the time you’ve hit fifty it fades a bit when you think about your life experience after that.
I have fond memories of most of my classmates (bar a few munters that haven’t improved with age) and enjoy catching up with them when I can. Some of them are still as close as they were during school, others are spread to the winds…
The young man (or woman) we were back then is still lurking in all of us - If only my pants size was the same as when I left!!
Coming up to 30 for me next year. The 10yr mark for my one turned into a culture war - the only ones willing to organise it wanted to do a family thing at a park during the day. The ones without (and some with) wanted to do a free for all night thing at the local leagues club. Turned out they were both a bit wishy washy as attendance was split. I opted for the afternoon at the park version because it seemed better to do it sober and still be able to drive for the getaway (too many bad memories of non existent public transport or taxis (pre uber) and being stuck somewhere trying to sober up and figure out how the eff to get home on the central coast of NSW). I kick started another FB account in the last year or so just for the birding people i've met (and the odd family members i dont see) and the algorithm ratted me out. Slowly but surely i was exposed to all the old crowd. I was too polite to reject offers of "being friends" with the people from school and now it seems that they are all expert vaccination researchers and i have to periodically put them on a 30 day mute in amongst all the ads and quizzes. I still keep in touch with a core group of mates from that time - and that is the main show. The other school people are just the freak show - curiosity makes me stick my head in the tent but ultimately it is all smoke and mirrors.
40 years next year I think. Went to the 10 year one - the rodeo was in town, Chainsaw was the bull to beat and Billy Ray had an Achy Breaky Heart. Had an outing with a bunch at the races maybe 5 years ago but I am still close to my best mate of 50 years and a few of the other lads and lasses from high school. Absolutely no one from uni.
A few from the old school have passed away, the old headmaster is gone as is the legend that was our "School Sergeant". Wonderful man. Occupation of Japan, Korea, Vietnam, Borneo/Malaysia, married a Japanese lady and he was as we found out years later, a Sri Lankan prince.
Also nearly four decades since skool and never looked back. Until the ten year reunion, I'd seen precisely two alumni - one who I picked up while driving a taxi! I went to the decade marker and, man, were they all boring. No contact since - yay, I think.
Better times at the recent uni reunion. I never finished my degree but my greatest mates are from that period. It was a bit awks at first, cos we were fresh out of lockdown 1.0, but the tall stories, the glimmers of recognition, the 'oh wow - look at you!' moments, the 'oh crap - did you go through that?' stories were golden. Kids, careers, grey hairs (or complete lack of any hair), tragedies and wins were shared. The emotional intensity was quite overwhelming and I had to walk a away a few times to reset. Feels and memories that had been dormant or squashed for half a lifetime bubbled up. Weird but good.
Then we all kicked on well into the night. Oh, and I showed off a bit, because I'd gone so much further outside the box than anyone, myself included, ever expected.
45 years for me, never been to any reunions. I agree with Dave W. below except I have not kept up with a single person.
Jeebus, counting back, it’s close to the 40 year mark since I left high school. However, I think my school celebrates significant anniversaries since foundation, rather than have reunions per se. I’ll check it out but I think it’s at 64 years now.
I'm in touch with precisely one person from high school. I don't have hard feelings about high school. Just not warm fuzzies either. I haven't heard of any reunions over the past 30 years, but I'm not exactly hard to find either.
So maybe the blah feeling is mutual!
I think the term “Your Mileage May Vary” describes high school reunions pretty accurately. High school is such a formative time in your life, but by the time you’ve hit fifty it fades a bit when you think about your life experience after that.
I have fond memories of most of my classmates (bar a few munters that haven’t improved with age) and enjoy catching up with them when I can. Some of them are still as close as they were during school, others are spread to the winds…
The young man (or woman) we were back then is still lurking in all of us - If only my pants size was the same as when I left!!