I'm Weird... But You Already Knew That, Right?

When I'm bored, I've been known to do some weird, off the wall things.  I can't think of examples off the top of my head, for some reason, but I know that I do it.

There are lots of things, productive things, I could do when I need to fill up time.  You know, like go for a walk, work-out, maybe even read a book.  Do I think about any of those things when I'm actually bored?  Not very often.

No, I'm the person that starts doing something weird...and then I get stuck on it and it starts consuming me.

Yesterday just happened to be one of those days...and now I find myself doing it again this morning.  Before I tell you what it is...I have to give my beloved back story. 

You all know I'm from England.  If you didn't - now you do.  And now you know the reason as to why I always have to give these back stories... because if I didn't, none of what I will eventually tell you will make any sense.  

I moved to America when I was 12.  That was 17 years ago.  I was born in London, and lived there until I was 12.  In the 17 years that I've lived in this country, I've never been back to London - and only spoken to a handful of family members or seen a handful of family members in that time.  Thanks to Facebook, I've been able to connect to several more family members that I was close to 17 years ago - but really hadn't spoken to since.

Now, the weird thing is - I don't have the best memory.  That's not weird...that's not the weird part.  I'm terrible with remembering stuff that's happened in my life.  Ask me the exact time my kids were born?  Have no idea.  When did Hubby and I meet?  Hmmm....I think it was about 7 years ago.  Ask me to recollect the first day my kids went off to school?  Sorry, can't help ya.  My mind just doesn't hold on to that stuff.  It's horrible for me to admit - but it doesn't.  Those important memories in my life have vanished.

And I think I know why.

This is the weird part.  It's because I can remember everything about my life in England.  Yep.  I remember the people that lived next door to me, the place I went to school, the people I went to school with.  I remember it all.  And, because of that - my brain just doesn't have the room to remember the important stuff.... like when I met my Hubby or when my child graduated from Kindergarten. 

So, there's the back story. 

Yesterday, I was bored.  I was sitting at my computer reading some blogs, browsing around Facebook... and then I got this inkling to try something.  I started looking up people that I knew from England.  Not family members...just random people I lived close to or went to school with.  I found a couple of them, too.  Once I found them, I moved on to another.  I didn't reach out, I didn't send a "hey, you remember me?" message.  Nope.. I found them, saw what they look like now, was satisfied, and then moved on.

I even managed to find one of my old neighbors - who used to babysit me, actually - that is now a hot shot reporter for Sky Sports in England.  I was fascinated that this British celebrity was a girl I used to know...spent quite a bit of time with.  That led to looking up her younger brother - who I used to have a big crush on...yes, at 12...don't judge.  Found him.  Moved on to another.

I thought about sending a message to them both... but then I wondered:  Why would these people remember me?  I was 12 years old the last time they saw me...they've moved on with their lives...they're all grown up.  I'm the one that can't seem to get rid of any of my memories of England - surely they're not going to remember the girl that they lived next to for a couple of years 17 years ago.  I'm the weird one that holds on to insignificant memories like that. 

So, this is what I'm spending my time on.  Looking up old acquaintances from years and years and years ago.  Does it make me weird?  Probably.  But it's so much fun...not only seeing what these people look like now - but also the fact that I can remember their names and with a couple clicks, find them on the World Wide Web.  Most of them don't really look much different from what I remember.  Get this, I even managed to find a teacher I had in 3rd grade!!!  Can you believe that?  Why I remember her name, I have no idea...but I did.  And I found her. 

Alright, I must find something more productive to do with my time....like laundry or something like that.

I ask you guys, though - have you ever searched on Facebook or another social networking site looking for people from your childhood?  Had any luck?  If you did - did you reach out to them?  I'm wondering if I should... but not sure.  I guess I'll wait and see what you guys say.

Till next time. ;)

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