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.
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.
Bro, homie, dawg, phil
It’s easy to go years without knowing names, better if you don’t use that last one
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.
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.
