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I just received notice that my high school is having their
40th class reunion. How many here went to their class reunion?
I was looking through the list of graduates from the year,
i remember exactly two of them, and they were the two i hung out with in college.
I'm wondering whether it's worth it to attend the reunion.
At $90 ($94.41 via pay pal) that sounds awfully pricey and
i'm seriously doubting whether it is worth it.
Is it unusual that i'd remember so few of these class mates after
40 years?
What on earth would they be doi8ng that costs $90? I also have to question whether it is worth the five hour drive to get there and the cost of a hotel room for the night.
My 40th reunion is in 2014. I will go but preliminary plans will not cost as much as yours - Plus, I will only need to drive an hour to get there - I've reconnected with a lot of old classmates via Facebook that I wasn't really friends with in high school. It makes a difference, I think.
I've connect4ed with a number of friends from college on facebook,
none from high school. One of the guys I know from high school
i'm connected to his wife on Linkedin, but I never use Linkedin.
I've connected with quite a few high school friends on FB. Some of them I didn't know well at the time, and some of them that were close I can't find. Oddly, though, I can't seem to find anyone I knew in college (except one guy I hardly knew, but we were both members of the student motorcycle club at the same time). Social media is like that - very hit and miss.
There's one guy from school who had a snooker table (like pool) in his house, and lived practically right outside the back gate, so a group of us played snooker at his house almost every lunch time the last couple of years of school, although I wouldn't say we were really close friends. He is on FB and we have friended eachother, but he just doesn't use FB very much, and AFAIK hardly communicates with anyone much that way.
And so it goes. I could give more examples, but won't.
Hi LHIA,
I guess it depends on whether or not you think its worth the money to attend your reunion and on top of that there is that long drive.Honestly I've never attended any of my HS reunions as I really don't care.I never made any real friends there since I majored in a trade that required busing to a vocational school for half the day school day every day.I have no interest finding out how badly those I went to school with had aged or what they did with their lives as adults.Nope I'd rather sit home and crack open a beer:) Cheers
Mârk
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Stellar response, Mark. I feel the same way and have never attended a reunion.
Scott
As much as it might be nice to go and flaunt my long hair in
front of these male clasematss who are probablly on their way
to going bald, are very much overweight, and many of them
are probably divorced (while i've been happily married for
26 years, and things are going well.) But not at $90. I have better things to spend $90 on.
So right now going to my high school reunion sounds about as
appealing as having a root canal..
If by some chance I do end up going (which looks doubtful at this
point) I absolutely won't be cutting my hair for it.
In my case the travel would not be a big deal as I live in the
same house I did when I went to high school. I recently went to
a reunion and it cost somewhere between $20 and $30 if I remember
correctly. A couple of guys who always had the latest hairstyle
in high school were bald, fat and looked (to me) a whole lot
older than me. At least I still have most of my hair.
I went to my 25th college reunion this past June. The cost was about $250. That was for three nights. The $250 package fee included housing (in student dorms), three meals per day, entertainment, snacks and drinks, and participation in almost all campus activities and events.
I've been repeatedly told that this price is cheap compared to other schools, but I haven't done any research to verify this claim. I'm not even sure which "other schools" to which we were being compared. I suppose they mean small private liberal arts colleges, as I doubt most big state universities even have general 5-year or 10-year class reunions.
The lowest air fare was about $1000, so the registration fee was really only a small part of the total cost. The $250 was the all-inclusive option. The other option was to pay something like $50 then find your own housing and buy your own meals.
I've never been to any of my high school reunions. I hated high school. My 25th high school reunion was in 2009. I was going to change my mind for this one; I figured maybe enough water had gone under the bridge to let go of the old grudges, but when I looked into it, I decided it wasn't worth the cost (my financial situation was worse in 2009). For some reason beyond my comprehension, it was held in Las Vegas. Apparently, that's becoming a really popular thing for Hawaii high schools to do.
I forgot what the exact cost of it was, but the total cost, including air fare, meals, hotel, ground transportation, etc, would've been comparable to my college reunion.
As for remembering only two people, the important thing to consider is WHY you only remember two people. If it's because you didn't find most of your classmates to be particularly interesting people to hang around with in 1973, then they might not be very interesting to hang around with 40 years later either. Of course, over a time span of 40 years, some people do change a lot or have many interesting experiences.
But I want to know what's included in that $90. There better be at least a good dinner and a good band.
I also hated high school, the two guys i hung around with were the two guys I continued to hang around with in college.
I had very few friends at this high school, I suspect that alot
of that has to do with my coming into the school in the last two years. My first year of high school was in Wisconsin, the second year was in a town about thirty miles from the high school I graduated from. Also my family was not rich so we didn't fit into
to this town which consisted of lots of kids who were born with
silver spoons in their mouth, and were rich snobs. If you didn't have a car and lots of money you were nothing in this town. That may be why it's $90 for this thing.
I have no desire to go, especially at $90. By comparison banquets
at our encampments and at science fiction conventions run in the
$35 neighborhood. So i'm leaning toward skipping it.
As far as i can tell it is $90 for about two-four hours of
who knows what. It doesn't include a hotel room, or anything
else apparently. The only uupside of this reunion is to go
and flaunt my long hair while many of the male classmates are
probably going bald now. But at $90 it ain't worth it.
OK, I get the picture now. I probably wouldn't go either.
Yeah, $90 + hotel + gas is an expensive price to pay for a few hours of schadenfreude. Also, if you don't remember them, I'm guessing they probably wouldn't remember you. They'll probably exchange a few pleasantries with you while thinking, "Who let the riffraff in?", then turn back to their friends, continue sipping their martinis, bragging about how they made a killing betting against their clients at Goldman Sachs or whatever. Then they'll probably forget about you after a few weeks. Not worth it.
Trading Places (1983) --- snobby preppy rich kids
Never have attended any of my HS or Univ. reunions. However, In 2010 A huge party was planned for all the fplks, who as teens/longhairs/rockers/etc. hung at the huge shopping plaza acrosss form our HS It was a day of good food, live music, memories and old and new friends. Many I had not seen in years. Much better than a stale "class" reunion where most of the attendess wer kids I never hung with. Nope. My crowd was the gang that partied at the Plaza.
Hi Jason,
This is exactly why I never attended any of my reunions. Why would I spend good money to go to an event where I don't even know most of the people? I think these reunions are a money-making scheme for someone. Overpriced crap I say. Much better to do as Mark said-just stay home and crack open a beer. Or, in my case, a cold soda.
Ted
High school is like jail. They throw together in close quarters people who really don't want to be with each other. When one reaches adulthood, the mobility that brings enables one to seek out kindred spirits. Then is when you learn what real friends are.
Add to that the fact that people change, and they usually have even less in common than they did before. In high school I was seen as not particularly athletic because I didn't care for team sports. Yet, by middle age I was often taking long hiking trips, and by then, many of the so-called "jocks" had taken up a lifestyle where their most active activity was surfing - in front of their television set. Many of them couldn't walk a mile in a day, much less twenty. And few of them had any substantial hair.
Sure, I could have gone on a "look where we are now" quest by attending a reunion, but why waste my time on people who didn't feel I was worth their time back when. About them, I really don't care.
Once you know you're cool, you don't need validation from others, especially uncool clueless creeps.
Bill
"many of the so-called "jocks" had taken up a lifestyle where their most active activity was surfing - in front of their television set. Many of them couldn't walk a mile in a day, much less twenty. And few of them had any substantial hair."
This, Bill, are the people that reached their peak in High School, which is pathetic, because everything goes downhill from then on and all that is left for them are the memories that their life was really great once, but it will never be that good again.
I would rather live a life were it starts out bad and then becomes better, especially after school, rather than the other way around.
Here in germany we don't really do these reunion's, at least in the part where I live, but if that were the case, I wouldn't attend any reunion whatsoever. I never really liked my classmates, save for a few.
Without going to my high school reunion I can guess where most
of those from my school are:
1. Most of the guys who had girl friends got married right
after high school, are now divorced..
2. Most of the jocks are now couch potatoes, greatly overweight,
the weights they lift is the can of beer.
3. Most of the guys who complained about us long haired guys are now completely bald or 90% bald with a major comb over.
4. The guys that were voted most likely to succeed, or were the
"popular" guys are now unemployed, possibly homeless, and living
completely miserable lives.
So in conclusion i'll skip my high school reunion. Going to this high school reunion sounds about as exciting as watching
grass grow or watching paint dry.
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Hmmmmmm, if there was a "like " button on the mlhh I would certainly trigger it with your statement:) Lol
Mârk
You got that right. Public schools have their virtues, but they are basically minimum security prisons you are legally obligated to be in.
They can charge whatever ridiculous amount they want for my HS reunions. They won't be seeing me there. The happiest movement of that time for me was walking up on that stage and getting that little piece of paper saying it was over.
Now I like the way you phrased this.
This! Now this is a great statement! And every inch my hair grows, the cooler I get! Onward and downward, mates! Thanks Bill!
Ted
Like how you phrase things Bill. I have never had any inclination to attend any school reunion or wish to be reminded of my school days. Yes it was a bit like jail, and I was glad to get the hell out of there. I got bullied at school and was one of those geeky kids with no interest in team sports which makes the people less talented or good at them feel even more alienated.
I had my own small group of friends and we went our separate ways after we left school.
People can change for the better or worse on the road to maturity. The jerk you may remember in high school may have matured into a nicer person afterwards but you always see them as they were at school and not afterwards 25 years later.
School years are a bit of a time capsule, I remember in 1985 i was one of only 3 guys out of 600 guys in a mixed sex school who had shoulder length hair or longer.
I learnt a hell of a lot more stuff outside of school then i ever learnt inside. I feel like my school years were wasted ones and hated wearing school uniforms which i loathed.
Duncan
Does the invitation not say what the $90 covers? If not better asking the organisers than try posing the question on a men's long hair web board.
It says nothing about what the $90 covers. The whole thing is extremely short on information. Has the date, location, cost of
$90. No details on what the $90 covers, no invormation on when whats time it stars or ends. Oh and it states it will be the best
reunion ever.
Basically the woman running eent out a short flyer thta refers you to a website. The text from the web site:
Welcome to the XXXXXXXXXXXXX High Class Of 1973 web site.
Add any additional home page content here... xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx High School Class of 1973 40th Reunion on Saturday Night October 12, 2013 at the XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX. Rooms are blocked and reserved for anyone coming in from out of town. This will be the best reunion yet.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
XXXXXXXXXXXXX High School Class of 1973 40th Reunion on Saturday night October 12, 2013 at the XXXXXXXXXXXNewton. This will be the BEST reunion !!!
40 Year Reunion
DETAILS
XXXXXXXXXXXXXX High School Class of 1973 - 40th Reunion
Saturday October 12, 2013 at The XXXXXXXXXXXX. There are rooms blocked off with special pricing. Call the XXXXXXXXXXXX and mention XXXX Class of 1973 40th reunion for a discounted rate.
There are 2 payment option plans. If you choose pay pal on this site, there is a $4.41 surcharge for a total.of $94.41. Otherwise, you can mail a check for $90.00, payable to XXXXX Class of 1973 c/o xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.
One of the things that I find really odd about all this:
The woman organizing this and receiving the checks isn't even a
a member of our graduating class. That for me sounds warning bells. So for me one of the items of concern is I have no clue
who this woman is and how she is remotely connected to the high
school i attended.
Of course it doesn't tell you. Then nobody would fall for the overpriced event. And of course it will be the best reunion ever. Next reunion will be the best ever-but the price will be a lot more too. Count me out please.
Ted
It seems that one fact that LHIA inadvertently uncovered here is
that almost everyone on this board was extremely unhappy through
their high school years. Is that a common trait with longhairs?
I myself am not a big fan of generalizing. I hardly think this is a common trait among longhairs. I just don't think the length of someone's hair has anything to do with the price of tea in China. Your thoughts please Long Hair In Albany?
Ted
Ted,
Partly what inspired my post was that it seemed that among
those who were posting that they were trying to outdo each
other about how bad they had it at school and how few friends
they had etc. About all that was missing was that they had to
walk 10 miles to school through 3 feet of snow each way. Was
everybody on this board that downtrodden in school?
Hi MG,
Point well taken. I sure hope everybody wasn't downtrodden in school. I know I wasn't. But there many times when I wished it would hurry up and be over with. Of course, now that I'm older, school is more appealing. I couldn't believe after 30 or so years I was able to do well enough to pass 5 Microsoft exams. These exams have around 25 questions and they give you 4 hours to do the exam. As I have heard before, youth is wasted on the young. Now I guess we better get back to the business at hand. Growing hair!
Ted
Yes for the most part High School sucked big time. I hated being there and alot of the kids also hated being there and it showed big time in how they treated classmates, teachers, et.
I don't think there were any kids in the school that liked being there.
I would also mention that this was a very ritzie town, many of the kids had there own car, If you didn't have a car you were
an outcast. I didn't have a car so taht was strike 1 for me.
These were also kids who got Bar Mitzvah presents of a new
car, expensive jewelry, expensive watches, etc. We weren't rich
so that was strike 2.
The only good thing I can think of in regards to high school
is finally graduated from the prison. The kids didn't want to
be tehre, the teachers didn't want to be there either and it showed itself very often.
Finally I would note that we had two high schools in your town,
North and South. The south high school was essentially the forgotten school. It wss smaller than north. A few years ago
they demolished the North High School and built a new
high school that cost a ton of money. The south high school
remains the dump it always was.
BTW, I would mention I lived about 1 mile from school and had to walk no matter what the weather was. You were only
eligible to ride the bus if you lived more than 3 miles away.
But yes I absolutely hated high school. About the only good thing about it is there were a few of us who had long hair. Several of us guys had waist length hair although we didn't hang
around together.
IMHO there should be something noted here, some people liked high school, I on the otehr hand hated it with a passion. Too many kids I hated back then and have no desire to ever see again. There is a very good reason why I don't remember any
of their names. I hated being in that school and alot of otehr
people hated being there too and it showed every day in the way they treated fellow classmates and teachers.
If you were one of those who loved high school and have fond memberies then continue to enjoy that part of your life.
I do have fond memories of that era, i loved the idea of going to school every day flaunting my long hair which the teachers
and administrators hated. I also loved finding many new ways
to break the dress code. It was a great era to be alive and
have long hair. But I also hated alot of my classmates, many of
whom were conceeded, stuck up, snobs. Unless you were on the football team, or one of the popular rich kids you were nothing
in this school. Many of these kids were complete failures in
the human being department.
So the bottom line here is if you enjoyed high school, then good
for you. I still hated my time in that prison known as high school. Which is too bad because it could have been
an enjoyable experience if some parents had taught their kids
how to be human beings instead of stuck up spoiled rich kids.
.
Hi LHIA,
Excellent reply! Thanks!
Ted
You're welcome.
IMHO that is a common fact for all kids in high school, short hsit,
long hair, or no hair. The only kids who liked high school were the popular kids, the kids on the foot ball team, the cheerleaders,
etc.
Hi LHIA,
I would tend to agree with your points. Some people have trouble socializing but I don't think hair length is a factor.
Ted
I went to my 40th a couple of years ago and it was nice. I reconnected to people I had not seen in years, some that I went to school with from the first grade. I would say to go!
An update on this: the reunion was this past weekend. I did not
attend. Haven't heard anything about how it went.
What does the $90 cover? "Ticket price reflects: Dinner Buffet: appetizers, entree choices, and coffee/desserts. Also included: interactive class website, photographer to capture the event (pictures to be posted on the website), decor, music, and incidentals."
Still way over priced, so I didn't attend. Attending this reunion sounded about as exciting as watching grass grow. And at $90 it wasn't worth it.
(BTW, the two friends I was closest to in high school didn't attend.)