Idle hands, it is said, are the devil's workshop. Now just think what those hands can stir up when they type "Google" and search for an old friend or flame.

LISA: When I met Nancy, we were both teachers. Although she was in her mid- 30s, she was just getting into teaching. As we became friendly, I learned more about her.

When she was still a teenager she married Bill, a college student. She worked while he went to college, and later when he went to law school.

While he was in law school, they lived in a large apartment building with lots of other married students. They had parties and game nights. She said those three years were some of the happiest of her life. She became close friends with another married couple, Harriet, who was studying nursing, and Ed, who was studying theology.

Bill was not as happy as she was. He wanted money — lots of it. He ridiculed Harriet and Ed, as well as many other residents, for picking majors that would probably leave them poor, or at least not wealthy. He talked about how he was going to buy a Porsche and park it outside his law practice so everyone would know how rich he was. He talked about the vacations and the boats and the houses he would have. Nancy assumed he meant they would have them together.

Shortly after he graduated from law school, Bill told Nancy that he needed a new life to go with his new career, and that she and their two girls wouldn't be part of it. Although he sent child support payments (mostly on time), he had little or no contact with their daughters from then on. Nancy took the kids back home and lived with her parents for a while. Finally, she decided that she had to do something with her life. So she went to school and got a teaching degree. It took her almost seven years.

That's when I met Nancy. She was an excellent teacher and mother. I was always puzzled that a lovely, young woman had never dated or even had an interest in it. That changed one day after she'd been teaching for three years.

A handsome gentleman showed up at school and introduced himself as her old friend, Ed. He had Googled her. After graduating, he had gone on to divinity school, intending to be a minister. While he was there, though, he and a friend began twiddling around with some computer programming (they'd both always enjoyed it), and — long story short — wound up developing a bit of software that is now used by most telephone companies. He became a millionaire several times over.

Sadly, Harriet had passed away a few years earlier, leaving him a widower with three kids. He'd dated a little, but found that most women were only interested in his money. He found himself remembering kind, pretty Nancy and wondering what had happened to her. When they went out for coffee, he was delighted to discover that she was single. He sent her flowers at work the next day — and the following three days. They got married a year ago.

Have you ever Googled an old flame?

Got a problem? Send it, along with your questions and rants to [email protected]. And check out my e-book, "Dear Cheryl: Advice from Tales from the Front."