Went to the T-Market this weekend, where they sold limited editions of unique T-shirts. My friend got herself a cool though pretty expensive T with some abstract print we both couldn’t really make out. For me it was less exciting than I’d expected to be honest. Guess I’m not into T’s that much, myself. Anyhow, that’s not the interesting part of the story.
What can I say; the place was packed with people. I shouldn’t complain about that, though, ’cause that’s what you usually get at popular mass-events like this. What was interesting was the fact that at the minute my friend and I walked in each of us noticed two people we had known, and later on met another mutual friend. A small world? A kibbutz!
Now, I suppose it could be sometimes fun to bump into people you used to know and had somehow lost touch with. The only problem is that in some cases there would be a reason for you not to keep in touch with the people that you now see nearing towards you with a recognizing smile on their faces. Old colleagues you never had anything in common with? Neighbors you never bother to say hello to? Add in friends that got all boring and uninteresting (and don’t tell me you can’t sympathize with that one, we all have some ditched friends in our closets). And let us not forget the number one threat â€“ ex-boyfriends/girlfriends, of courseâ€¦
So, I say: be prepared. When coming across a Past Acquaintance, look away quickly and re-evaluate the situation: try to remember the reason why you became friends and the reason you parted ways. Most importantly â€“ consider whether you’d be interested in renewing the long-lost friendship. Try calculating these three factors and act accordingly (on a high to low grade scale):
1 â€“ Stop walking, smile and say “hi”
2 â€“ Smile and say “hi” but wait for them to stop
3 â€“ Just smile and see what happens
4 â€“ Raise your eyebrows without changing expression
5 â€“ Smirk!
6 â€“ Avoid eye contact, duck & cover
One more thing. Generally speaking, it is safe to always keep a minimal Mona Lisa expression on your face â€“ after all, you don’t want to scare away new *potential friends*!