photo by Clif Burns
Ed. Note: If this was you and you are interested, please email [email protected] so I can put you in touch with OP.
“Dear PoPville,
I know this is a long shot and I’ve never done anything like this before, but… I wanted to try anyway.
We met on an amtrak train on July 5th. It was the 99 Northeast Regional train, and it left Philly at 2:45pm. We were both in Philly over the weekend visiting our respective friends. You had the window seat, and I asked if the seat next to you was free. You turned your focus to me and said yes. (And I thought you were a handsome stranger.) For most of the train ride we didn’t talk as you had headphones in, and I closed my eyes, sleeping in and out. We only talked during the last ~20 minutes before my stop when you made a sound, in-between a groan and a sigh and I asked, “Had a long weekend?” Our conversation continued when I asked another (more personal) question:
“I saw you using Hinge… how is it?” You responded “miserable” with a small, tired smile.
Your name starts with M, and you’re 39 years old. On that day, you wore shorts, a black t-shirt with some small green text element I can’t recall, and sandals that looked similar to Tevas. You told me you rollerblade and play hockey. You don’t watch anime nowadays, but you know of its existence as you watched a bit (like DBZ and Gundam Wing) when you were younger.
It’s been a week, but at times, I think about that short moment for some reason, and I’ve always been the type to follow my gut. If I could turn back time, I would have boldly asked “Would you have swiped right on me?” despite having a bit of an age difference. (Which was ultimately what stopped me from asking in the first place.)
I didn’t say it then, but I want to throw out my shot this time. If by chance this reaches you… please let me know if you are interested in chatting more with me. If there’s anyone that thinks they might know M, and it’s not much trouble, can you please let them know about this post? Thank you so much for your time.”
Ed. Note: If this is you, please email [email protected] so I can put you in touch with OP. PoPville is not affiliated with either party, please proceed with any potential connection at your own risk using caution as you would any online encounter. For those curious about past missed connections, many have been made and when possible I’ll try to update when/if more are made.