memes

When I was around 20yo, I spent a summer with a new group of friends pretending I knew everyone's names. It was anxiety hell. Today, I realize that I can just admit that I forget names and ask and it's no problem. But that was an interesting summer.

Seems a little early...

It's happened to me a few times over the years, but if anything it's an opportunity to think up a nickname. Sometimes they stick and all.

most names are made-up anyways, and i can't remember made-up stuff. there has to be something profound about it or i forget it

actually i have adopted a hobby of just giving people new names (yeah i know it could be seen as disrespectful but for me it's just a normal way of doing things) and then calling them by that name. yes, it has led to confusion in the past. but it just feels like the proper thing to do. (yes you can call me weird and no i won't take it as an insult.)

also, there's this weird phenomenon that when i make up a new name for somebody, somehow that's much easier to remember. and if i do forget and make up a new name again, that new name will often be the same as the first time. so there seems to be something "recognizable" or "fundamental" about it.

Once sat at the same table as another guy in high school every weekday for six months. We traded less than ten words in that time. Later we became great friends.

so relatable, i call everyone "dude" or "man".

i think names are an exception and only reserved for rare occurrences. honestly, i wouldn't mind if people didn't have names in general. just call everyone "child" "man" or "hey you" depending on their appearance. names are a weird concept to me. it's not natural that people have names, i guess.

A month? I've known guys for years and still don't know their names and it is WAY too late to ask.

This is not correct. We wait until someone else says their name.

For real. Came into work for six months and talked to this dude about a bunch of stuff every time. Only a week ago did I find out his name. Now I can finally say his name instead of starting off with "hey bro"

it's been 5yrs since I knew my neighbor. we still just call each other neighbor. we hang out at least once a week.

But sometimes you meet people who you never see again. That brain space could be used for Vim keybindings.

We don't need names, so long we vibe

Jfc, if you knew how long it has taken me to know the names of some of my friends, and not just work friends or gym friends, it would be absurd.

Hell, even after months of hanging with someone, you might not know their last name; it's all "hey, I'm zipper". Why zipper? "I dunno, you know how it is". Yeah, I feel that. Anyway, went a beer, zip?

My chronic pain/disability support group shares space with an autism support group. Not a single one of the autism group knows my actual name afaik, but we'll hang out down the road at a diner some nights as a mixed group when we're meeting at the same time. It's all "hey, beard!" And "sasquatch, wanna see my cat?" And sometimes just "man". I've known some of them for years and we don't know each other's actual names. A couple of them, I've been to their house, and vice versa, and we don't know each others last name at all.

One guy in specific came over, heard my wife call out my name and was confused as hell because my name sounds like a regular word and thought it was a different nickname. Asked for the story behind it, and I had to show him my driver's license because he thought I was fucking with him. We'd had dinner together at the diner dozens of times.

No need for real names when you're bros

Knowing someones name is a bit too intimate for my taste.

The only reason you need to know someone's name is to talk about them behind their back.

why say their name when you could instead say “guy” or “man”, or, occasionally, “buddy”?

"I once worked with a guy for three years and never learned his name. Best friend I ever had. We still never talk sometimes..." - Ron Swanson

I have ADHD (+ other stuff) and so names has always been a massive issue for me. A few years ago I just stopped trying because I don't talk to most people anyways. out of the ~25 people in this class with me right now (fun fact! I am breaking a law by being on my phone rn :3) I know the name of,
1: teacher
2: girl with pink hair
3: trans friend
4: person who sits next to me and cannot understand what a function is to save his life
5: someone who I sat next to in 3rd grade

The others, no earthly idea. I have COWORKERS in this class who I don't know their name 😓

It’s cool. I don’t usually care about people‘s names that much, and I know he doesn’t care about my name, so why does it matter.

For the most part people can call me dude and bro until the end of time at work.

Oh thank god its not just me.

Something profound about only knowing someone by your shared experiences