Could You Be a “Retrosexual”?
Let’s look at your symptoms.
1) You’ve become the consummate Googler, especially of your exes.
2) You’re a virtuoso Facebook stalker, especially of your exes.
3) You poke, IM or write email messages to your exes, trying to recapture the magic of yesteryear.
4) You’ve ever said, “all I want is to see her/him again.”
While all of us have probably Googled an ex from time to time, a few people are taking it to the next level, and trying to reunite with/resurrect lost loves via Facebook and other social media. If you’ve answered yes to any of the above questions, the Boston Phoenix (quoted in Time Magazine) thinks you’re a retrosexual: a creature born of the Facebook era, in which time passed does not end a relationship/obsession…
“You’re curious to see what she looks like, and it’s easy to fantasize about alternative courses your life might have taken.” It’s the same feeling that compels people to attend high school reunions.
Gentle reader, not all of us feel compelled to attend high school reunions. But I digress.
The piece shares stories of people who re-met after many years, to tepid – or incredibly awkward – results. But there’s always someone with the silver lining of a story that makes you think – hey, this just might work for me too…
[…]what about Elise Garber and her first kiss, Harlan Robins? For them, life really did resemble a romantic comedy. Robins remembered his summer-camp girlfriend and replied to her Facebook message. They agreed to meet for drinks the next time he was in Chicago. When they saw each other, something clicked. They talked into the night, went out the next day, then decided to give their long-distance retrosexual romance a try. Surprisingly, it worked. Garber quit her advertising job and moved to Seattle to be with him. On Sept. 6, they married. “And to think,” says Garber, “I worried that we’d spend the whole evening talking about summer camp.”
So there you have it. Retrosexuality leads to happiness. Just like JDate…it works for other people. Since all my exes are married, I’m looking forward to the next article: about how retrosexual homewrecking is the wave of the romantic future.
I actually retrosexually dated an old flame who I found over FB. Biggest problem-she was in America and I, in Israel. That didn’t last long. But what the hell, why not try to recapture the magic?
Benji
I’m a retrosexual! I had a romance with a gorgeous Finnish guy after meeting at a youth hostel in Sydney in February 1988. After that trip we kept in contact via snail-mail letters and Xmas cards, but couldn’t afford to visit each other at that time (both right out of college). We lived separate lives (I married-he had a longterm girlfriend). I got divorced in 2006, and Googled the Finn Man in 2008 after having dinner with my friend that went to Australia with me. She brought her photos of the trip which prompted me to think of him! Thankfully we were both single at the time I Googled him! I went to visit him in Europe a month later after not seeing each other for 21 years. It was love at “second sight.” We married in Helsinki in July 2009. Now we’re waiting for his visa/green card approval so he can move to the US to be with me! He’s the love of my life.