Monday, December 15, 2008

Embarrassing/awkward

It’s weird, but a lot of times people will pop the question, “What is one of your most embarrassing or awkward moments?” as an ice-breaker question. First of all, if it was embarrassing to a bunch of people that I didn’t know or care about, why would I want to share it with another person I don’t know who is asking the question and wants a response face-to-face? Secondly, who asks that to someone who they really don’t know? If the conversation is filled with so much small talk that it ends up at this question, hang out with somebody else.
There should be an unwritten rule about asking this question. You shouldn’t ask it until you at least know where the person is from, or their major, or what they want to do with their life. Upon asking it, if they feel comfortable enough to answer, ask for their social security number as well. I dunno, it’s at least worth a try…
In any case, I have thought of some random “embarrassing”, awkward, or at least unsettling experiences I have had, or think most people have, that you might be able to say in such an instance where you have to give an embarrassing moment and too much personal information isn’t divulged. At least for me this is the case:

- Walking up to the podium in front of a large crowd (i.e. sacrament meeting or big dinner party where hundreds of people are looking at you at the same time.
- Peeing shoulder to shoulder in a public restroom with another man
- When you are by yourself walking across the street with a bunch of people in cars looking at you. (it might be just as awkward sometimes being the person in the car)
- Walking into an elevator when you don’t know anybody and you all stand in silence for several floors as the elevator creeps up…
- Twitching, snoring, screaming, or whatever when you are sleeping in class
- Drooling on yourself while sleeping in public
- Clogging the toilet when visiting a friend or neighbor
- Trying to be cautious when passing gas and trying to make it silent because you really have to go, and your plan fails…
- Dropping your tray at lunch
- Going to school with a black eye (people are going to ask and you don’t have a good story to tell them)
- Blowing a hole in your pants on stage
- Blowing a hole in your pants and go all day without realizing it until you get home and change
- Walking around with your zipper undone. (the problem is magnified when the shirt you have tucked in is sticking out)
- Smiling with something stuck in your teeth (only a good friend will tell you)
- Waving back to someone you think is waving at you, when, in fact, they are waving to the person behind you
- Showing up to an event either over-dressed or under-dressed in comparison to everyone else there who seemed to have got the memo…
- Passing out when giving blood
- Getting a physical…you know what part I’m talking about boys…(cough, cough)This problem is also made worse when it is a hot nurse/doctor checking doing the physical...
- When on a date you realize you don’t have your wallet or enough money to pay for the activity or food…

This is just a small list of things that can or have happened to me. Some I have only heard from other people and that is bad enough for me…if you have any other ideas, feel free to add to this list! So next time you get asked the question of embarrassing moments, you can have a quick lame response to kill the conversation again…

3 comments:

Katya said...

hahaha, so true. What's so embarrassing about passing out when giving blood? I do it all the time...haha

Kevin said...

how about sitting through a class where the teacher is making a joke about mormons and monogamy and than you say quietly when there is a pause - I am mormon?

Charles Tyler said...

Laughing at dead babies... thats always a conversation killer, but sometimes you can't help it...