If nothing else, I am forgettable.

Cortney explained it, after we walked by someone I had known for years, who kept walking without even acknowledging me.

"You don't have a unique face," she said. "There's a lot of bald, white men with facial hair. You don't stand out."

Neither does said acquaintance who walked past have a unique face, nor stand out, but I recognized him immediately, and as I made eye contact, and smiled he simply walked by; stoic, and staring to the distance in front of him with no acknowledgement of knowing me.  This happens. It happens a lot. As we walk places, Cortney will often be approached by people who recognize her, having seen her perform, or remembering her from past interactions. People I have known for years often will look right past me, without even a flinch.

It's ok, really. I guess the side benefit is that if my acting career ever does take off maybe I can be famous, and anonymous at the same time, while hordes of other good-looking bald guys with facial hair get harassed with, "Hey! Aren't you.. that guy?!" by mistake.

I can write off the people who haven't seen me in over a decade. In my 20s I had long hair, and was relatively thinner. My 30s saw my hair transform from trim, to buzzed, to bald, and my face from clean, to goatee, to salt & pepper.  I don't really look the same as I did when I was young, but then again, aside from the lack of hair, I don't look that much different. A while back my friend Michael said I haven't changed much at all - nor has he. We both credited our good, Italian genetics for staying young.

Again, there's good and bad to that. Most people from that point in my life I don't care to interact with. If I cared to, I still do. Maybe not frequently, but they're at least within the larger circle of my life.

For me it is more than facial recognition. Yes, that plays into it. If you're dressed in a Halloween costume with makeup or a mask, I might miss you. But energy often gives people away. Once I'm in their energy, I sense who they are. I've recognized classmates from elementary school years down the road just by getting a sense of their energy as they engage with others. Do I always engage with those other people when I recognize them? Heck no. There isn't anything much more awkward than explaining to someone why they should recognize you, or who you were to them in the past, and having them struggle to remember before acquiescing a feeble, "Ohhh... yeahhhh.... hey, how have you been?"

So I pass, knowing that I'm just remarkably forgettable to most people. 

I wonder if I could write a story... "Forgettable Me."  I'll have Minions who all pretend that I don't exist.