a peek inside the fishbowl

1 | Kirsten W

October 14th, 2008 at 6:36 am

… have a super awkward conversation while breastfeeding my new baby.

Uh, I know because this happened to me about a month ago while I was in the airport waiting at my gate!

2 | Kathleen

October 14th, 2008 at 6:39 am

Marry him! 40 years after High School we did get married.

3 | Marla

October 14th, 2008 at 7:06 am

Be frostily polite, ignore his wife who stole him from me; and occasionally direct pointed glances to his region of hair loss, when I’m not staring at his scalp with a carefully crafted look of abject horror.

4 | J.

October 14th, 2008 at 7:11 am

have a awkward ‘so what have you been up to lately conversation’. Realize that I was better off without him. Think that he’s current wife may have gained some weight since the last time I saw her (kidding.. :P )

5 | Mary Lynn

October 14th, 2008 at 8:48 am

be very surprised since I don’t remember actually having a boyfriend in high school. I was incredibly shy around boys back then. I got over it eventually!

6 | porter

October 14th, 2008 at 9:02 am

hope that he was alive and that I wasn’t running into him in heaven.

7 | DaniGirl

October 14th, 2008 at 9:24 am

try really hard to avoid a conversation, but be friendly if contact were unavoidable. We’ve been divorced for 15 years, and I’ve finally forgiven him enough to be civil but not much else.

8 | Ginger

October 14th, 2008 at 9:26 am

…say Hi and ask how he was doing and basically catch up. All my relationships from high school ended on fairly good terms for us being hormonal teenagers. Now…had you asked about one of my college boyfriends…I would probably pretend like I didn’t see him and keep walking!

9 | Natalie

October 14th, 2008 at 9:27 am

ask him how’s he doing, catch up on his news and thank my lucky stars I moved on!

10 | Bob LeDrew

October 14th, 2008 at 9:47 am

Awkwardly say hello and find the quickest exit line ever discovered.

11 | BeachMama

October 14th, 2008 at 9:58 am

Still want to wring his neck ;). Seriously, though I am not sure. Last time I saw him some 16 years ago, I couldn’t stop laughing. Not sure if I would be nice this time or not. He wasn’t exactly the best boyfriend.

p.s. Happy Thanksgiving

12 | Tali

October 14th, 2008 at 10:47 am

Run, and possibly call the police.

Seriously.

13 | Lynn

October 14th, 2008 at 11:26 am

Pretend I don’t recognize him, and if he stopped to say hello to me (not very likely!), I’d get out as quickly as possible. I don’t have much tolerance for the awkward.

14 | mrsgryphon

October 14th, 2008 at 4:09 pm

I married my first long-term boyfriend from high school, but if I ran into my first-ever boyfriend, I’d give him a big hug and we’d find the nearest coffee shop for a chat… we were still really good friends after we stopped dating, but lost touch when his new girlfriend decided she didn’t like him talking to me. He found me on Facebook a while ago, so apparently it’s okay for him to talk to me now, 15 years later.

15 | megan

October 14th, 2008 at 4:45 pm

Look away in shame for the horrible way I treated him.

16 | Soire

October 14th, 2008 at 5:45 pm

I did. I was 9 months pregnant and had just come out of a movie theatre. It was a very awkward conversation. :/

17 | LO

October 14th, 2008 at 7:47 pm

I would (and did) be very nice and outgoing and genuinely want to know how he is. I would also hope I was having a great hair day!
Lo

18 | AlisonG

October 14th, 2008 at 8:11 pm

I guess one of the small blessings of marrying your first and only boyfriend (together nineteen years, married for twelve) is that you never run into an ex!

I won’t go into the downsides …

19 | cohaire

October 14th, 2008 at 9:59 pm

Ask him how he and his boyfriend are doing! He was the perfect prom date — he picked out a “fabulous” dress for me and fantastic flowers. He danced well and was totally hysterical. He came out soon after high school. It wasn’t much of a surprise!

20 | Mom On The Go

October 15th, 2008 at 5:25 am

I would try to be polite and friendly – you know, sitting next to a stranger on an airplane – though we do have some people in common still. I saw him once about 12 years ago and smiled awkwardly and took my seat at his brother’s wedding. My best friend from childhood was the bride. Since then I’ve lost touch with her and haven’t seen him. I hope I’d be grown up enough for a civil conversation. He was a nightmare but I got out of it.

21 | Miss Vicky

October 15th, 2008 at 11:42 am

I used to have dreams about running into my ex and slapping him across the face. Can you say unresolved hostility?

Really, I’d like to think I would be nicer than that. At least civil. But yeah, exit line is a must.

22 | Katie

October 15th, 2008 at 1:48 pm

exchange hellos and news, I guess. Ask after his mum and his sister. I can say that I keep ignoring him on Facebook… I’ve got no ill will, it’s just that my life is pretty complete as it is.

23 | Mary Lynn

October 16th, 2008 at 11:19 am

Katie’s comment made me laugh. What is it about old boyfriends wanting to connect on Facebook? I have an ex from about 10 years ago who’s sent me three different friend invitations. And I just think, “dude–you broke up with me via an email sent to me at work…why would I want to reconnect?” I don’t wish him harm, but I don’t see any advantage in catching up with each other, either.

24 | Robin

October 16th, 2008 at 9:15 pm

keep running!

25 | Scatteredmom

October 17th, 2008 at 8:26 pm

Hope he doesn’t see me. I broke up with him for Hubs, who at the time was the same age as his DAD.

Oops.

26 | Protect your Child

October 20th, 2008 at 12:34 pm

hmmm Well If it was one of my Ex GF’s… probably I would say… Hi?