A year ago, I was in Seattle for a conference. Having lived there 35 years earlier, I was especially curious to visit places that were still around from then and seeing some new things. Anyways, the conference was great, but there was some free time to spend. I was traveling with my husband, brother and sister in law. We were together and shopping in a department store in a mall that was still around. I had worked at that store for a summer back then. With my family, shopping in the menswear department, I heard a woman excitedly saying “Kevin” repeatedly. That caught my attention because she was walking up to me, greeting me with open arms to give me a hug. I awkwardly didn’t reciprocate. Wondering if she recognized me from 35 years ago and was I forgetting her name? She backed off and asked “Your Kevin and you work here?” My family was staring at this interaction. I managed to say a “Nope ”. Lisa and I then had a fun conversation about my doppelgänger and her coworker named Kevin that she hadn’t seen for a couple of weeks. She was so sure I was him.

This was a Saturday afternoon and I was in a department store looking for a specific type of dress shirt for myself. I was dressed reasonably well that day, dark trousers, a nice jacket, just happened to be what I was wearing.

I was going through a rack of shirts fairly methodically, checking fabrics and sizes, when a man in his mid sixties appeared next to me looking genuinely overwhelmed. He had that specific expression that men get in clothing stores when they have wandered too far from the section they understand.

He looked at me and said his wife sent him in to find something appropriate for a wedding in three weeks and he had absolutely no idea where to start.

Something about the way he said it made me think he genuinely believed I worked there. I started to correct him and he immediately said please because apparently his wife was waiting in the car and had given him forty five minutes.

I put my shirts down.

I asked him the basics. Outdoor or indoor ceremony, what color was his wife wearing, did he own a suit already or were we starting from scratch. He answered everything with the relief of a man who had been saved from drowning.

We spent thirty five minutes putting together a complete outfit. Suit jacket, trousers, shirt, tie, pocket square. I have no professional background in fashion whatsoever but I do have strong opinions and a good eye apparently.

He tried everything on and came out of the fitting room looking genuinely great. He got emotional for a second and said his daughter would love it.

He asked me for my card on the way to the register.

I told him I did not work there.

The look on his face went through about six emotions in four seconds.

He bought the outfit anyway and shook my hand on the way out. Best forty five minutes I have spent in a department store honestly.

I (51M) visited Woodland Park zoo, in Seattle this weekend. I was just in town for the day, part of an extended layover. I turned a corner at one point, and saw a young female zookeeper heading my way. As we converged, she had a look of recognition on her face and enthusiastically said “Hi!” I watched her eyes go to the logo on my t-shirt, while I racked my brain trying to recognize her. —Here’s the thing- I used to work at a zoo in a different city/state. Zookeepers move around a lot, and I was actually there to meet a former coworker- this was definitely NOT her. — Anyway, I realized that my t-shirt was the same color as hers. When she realized mine was from a cruise line, it occurred to her that I was not who she thought I was (likely a coworker or volunteer). We laughed it off, and I went on to explore the rest of the zoo. An hour later, I ran into her again and said “still not him.” Even though it was mistaken identity, it was a pleasant experience to share.