I have trouble recognizing people I know. This can lead to uncomfortable circumstances, because Indonesians have memories like elephants. Someone may greet me with open arms and a big smile. “Pak Will! Apa kabar? Tumben ya!” Yeah, tumben, as in Who the hell is this person? How does he know my name? How does he know my son’s name? How does he know where I live? How does he know me even though I’m wearing a motorcycle helmet? 
One time, I had a fairly long conversation with a girl sitting at JCO and when she got up to leave, I said it was nice to meet her. She informed me, politely, that I already know her and that we had met a number of times. Good grief. Just this morning when I was entering Starbucks, a young woman smiled at me and said Hi! I thought she was just being friendly, and so I nodded in a brief, friendly way and moved on. Turned out that she is the girlfriend of one of my Barista friends, I have met her several times, and in fact had been chatting with her online just the night before. Oh dear. And so I end up looking like a snob, or, worse yet, a complete idiot. Clearly, my brain is broken.
One time, I had a fairly long conversation with a girl sitting at JCO and when she got up to leave, I said it was nice to meet her. She informed me, politely, that I already know her and that we had met a number of times. Good grief. Just this morning when I was entering Starbucks, a young woman smiled at me and said Hi! I thought she was just being friendly, and so I nodded in a brief, friendly way and moved on. Turned out that she is the girlfriend of one of my Barista friends, I have met her several times, and in fact had been chatting with her online just the night before. Oh dear. And so I end up looking like a snob, or, worse yet, a complete idiot. Clearly, my brain is broken.
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