Ummm, do I know you?

We've all been there. I'm going about my daily business when suddenly, I am confronted by a supposed stranger who is clearly not a stranger at all. No matter if the person is low key, or a little aggressive about approaching me, I always panic when I realize that this person knows me, and I have no idea who the hell they are.

 I realize that it may also be uncomfortable for the other person, once they realize that I am completely oblivious to our apparent acquaintanceship; as Joel felt towards Clementine in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Clementine had erased her boyfriend, Joel, from her memory using super-duper technology afforded to her in magical movie-land by the science-savvy company: Lacuna inc.

Joel approaches Clementine at the bookstore she has worked at for years and she acts as if he is simply a browsing customer, and not her serious boyfriend coming in (gift in hand) to make up with her after having a terrible fight. Awkward...

(click here to see their painful exchange) 

 
Poor Joel walks out of the store with his tail between his legs, completely baffled by Clementine's apparent amnesic state of mind. Was this just one of her ploys to get under his skin?

Although this is an extreme (and fictitious) example of what can happen when one person doesn't remember the other, it illustrates how uncomfortable the whole exchange can be. 

Throughout my life I have taken many different approaches to stave off the uncomfortable feelings that arise when this situation presents itself. Here are a couple of tips to help you through it and perhaps have a little laugh about the whole thing:

Pick a name and go with it (sort of): "I keep wanting to call you Howard..." Humans actually have pretty good intuition and recent studies have shown that trusting our instincts or first thoughts can usually pay off by being somewhat accurate. His name may turn out to actually be Henry or Harrison, but hey, you were close right?

The "One-sided Introduction Dodge": This one is brilliant and requires an accomplice on your side, but you must be willing to take a risk that it may fail and your cover will be blown. When you are approached by the "stranger", introduce your friend (the accomplice) and often times the stranger will opt to offer their own name to your friend. Ah, crisis averted.

Just be honest: We've all experienced this before and it's not the end of the world. Just admit that you cannot remember who the other person is and be humble about it. A little smile can let the other person know that you are a bit sorry for your temporary lapse in memory recall.