Boys will be boys

If you want to run into someone you really don't want to see, go to the local grocery store. The first week that was back, I ran into an former co-worker who made my life miserable. I was looking for the organic yogurt (shock, they didn't have any) when I thought I heard someone call my name. I turned and there he was: Max.

Max was a pharm tech at the same time I was. He was 10 years older than me, but was very immature. He could be really really nice--he was the one who talked to the chief into giving me a job before I even thought about applying. But he could also be the biggest asshole. Just imagine someone picking on all your insecurities over and over again and bringing up insecurities you didn't know you had. He did that.

Now whenever I go to Gu-cci-B, I try to stay aware of who is around me and lay low. I've gotten pretty good at avoiding people, but my skills were undermined by my weakness for rotisserie chicken.

Recently, I rediscovered rotisserie chicken--the tasty, juicy and tender meat (plus, it's ready to eat)--and noticed that there were peach cobbler samples next to the chicken. As I started to sample the cobbler (yum), my second thought was, "Surely, someone I know is going to come up behind me or beside me and say something as I enjoy this delicious cobbler." As I took the second bite, I could see a lime green blob to my left, but because it was only on my periphery, I tried to ignore it. You know--if I don't see you, you can't see me.

And then I heard it, "Hey, Mel. How's it going?" I turned and saw the green blob and then looked up at the curly-haired baby face. I thought he looked familiar, but I didn't recognize him and then it hit me. Ambrose. It's Ambrose.

"You made a pretty serious pass at me last time I saw you--you invited me to make out in your truck at our high school reunion," almost came out of my mouth, but instead I said, "Oh, hey, good. Yeah, I'm alright. You?"

I saw that he was with his plain-looking wife (doesn't hold a candle to me) and his little girl, so I didn't say anything. Besides, the wife was already shooting laser beams at me. Why at me? She should have shot them at her husband; he's the one who forgot to introduce me to her and vice-versa.

Ambrose and I were in the percussion section in middle school. That was three years of hell. While Fernando teased me relentlessly about my boobs (Ninfa and I were the only ones who were out of AA bras in 7th grade), Ambrose made fun of me because I didn't have designer name jeans, purse, blouses, watch, makeup, etc. Despite this, there were a few nice moments. He invited me to one of his parties and it wasn't like the movies where they invite the dorky girl to make fun of her. Also, his mom loved me.

Someone who shouldn't have avoided me did, though. I saw Juan in the Student Center. Juan was always shorter than me; he's a pudgy guy. Not very handsome, but he was really funny and I got along with his sister, whom he resembled a lot. That's probably why he started wearing black and makeup like Robert Smith. But I digress.

Our eyes met and he quickly turned away as I raised my hand to wave. I had been snubbed. I told my lunch date what happened (she was in band with us too) and after she got her sandwich, tapped him on the back and asked him what he was doing on campus. I tried to hide behind a pillar, but walked up to them. Juan said he wasn't sure it was me; unless he talked trash behind my back, I thought things were OK between us. Unlike Ambrose.

I'm going to be stuck here for a while and I need to learn how to handle these situations. How can I keep myself from feeling like a chump when I'm snubbed pre-wave? Do people want to reconnect? I know don't have a lot of time to go over old times, but I'm willing to sacrifice an evening of stalking people online in order to gossip about them instead.

Or I could switch grocery stores.