When Old Flames Beckon Online

By ELIZABETH BERNSTEIN
WSJ

Is it really a good idea to "friend" our old flames and crushes online?

Ask Joy Moore, who recently went searching for her first love on the Internet. In 1974, he was captain of the high-school football team—tall, handsome, with mutton-chop sideburns that Ms. Moore says were "all the rage at the time." He took her to church events and taught her how to kiss. Then he moved away.

Flash ahead 30-odd years. When Ms. Moore saw her old love's name on Facebook, she says she felt "that little flutter" in her chest.

Until she saw his picture. "He had a beard down to his belly and looked just like one of the members of ZZ Top," says Ms. Moore, 49 years old, an executive coach in Albuquerque, N.M. "His accomplishment for the year was being the local darts champ."

Think about it. We went years without reconnecting, and everything was fine. But now, thanks to social-networking sites such as Facebook, MySpace and LinkedIn, our old lovers are essentially popping up in our own homes. It's like having a secret stash of ice cream in the freezer. Even if it's a little stale, it can be hard to resist.

(Continued here.)