The other day I was driving with this guy right on my bumper but there was nowhere to get out of his way. When the car in front of me finally did change lanes, we were approaching a red light so I wasn’t gonna race to the red light just to appease this jerk behind me. But of course he changes lanes in a huff and stares at me the whole red light and I just kept thinking, “That’s AWKWARD!”
I started contemplating other awkward situations, like at school when I’m the only one walking down the hall and it’s empty but then someone waaaaaaaaaaaay down the hall appears on the same side as me and I think, Ok, do I wave now and move to the other side, wait until we’re closer to do it and smile and say hi? Do I just keep my head down? Does anyone else worry about such things or are these just the mad rantings going on in my head alone?
And of course the mother of all mother awkward situations is when 1.) You get asked if you’re pregnant, and you’re not! or/and 2.) YOU ask someone if they’re pregnant, and they’re not! I must admit both happened to me twice. Once, when I visited a church for the first time and during the meet and greet someone asked me when I was due, to which I said, “Oh no, I just had a baby!” (Trying to play it off) but then she asks, “Oh, how old is your baby?” And I had to admit that Ashley was in fact already 3 mo. old and I still wore maternity clothes (I should note I gained 60 pds w/ her and was very surprised when I didn’t have a 60 pd baby and had to lose all that weight). Another time I was asked if I was prego was at school, but I won’t embarrass the culprit;)
But like I said, I can’t waggle my finger at anyone because as much as I hate to admit it, I’ve done the same thing (shrugs). Once to one of our acquaintances from high school whom we hadn’t seen in a while but when we saw them 4 mo earlier, I could’ve SWORN she said she was pregnant and they were painting the nursery but demonstrating my ADHD once again (SQUIRREL!) it was actually that she told me there were taking the nursery down b/c their son was turning 2 and he was getting a big boy room. So when I asked, “When are you due?” And she said, “Oh, I’m just fat.” Talk about mortification!
The other time was to a complete stranger- the cashier at the Disney store and yes, I know the cardinal rule that you never ask anyone this under any circumstance unless you’re absolutely, positively 100% sure . . . but I’m telling you, even a 9-month pregnant woman could not have a more prego belly than this girl. I’m still convinced she was messin’ w/ me;)
Soooooooo, what are your “That’s so awkward!” moments? Do share!!!
Jamie Ayres 
I have so many awkward moments it’s hard to remember specific ones.
Your driving one reminds me of something I did a few times when we had the RAV-4. For some reason I would occasionally lean on the steering wheel in such a way that the horn would honk unintentionally. So, usually I’d be sitting at a REALLY, REALLY red light like 6 cars back and would get lazy and lean on the wheel and end up honking the horn. So of course everybody around me was either irritated or staring at me like, “What’s her problem?”… for the entire duration of the light. Awwwwwkward. Luckily this hasn’t happened to me since we got the Mazda. 😉
I am so paranoid of asking the wrong person if they’re pregnant that I actually kind of wait too long. Like the mother of Kathryn’s best friend at school, Ben. I suspected she was pregnant for MONTHS…. but didn’t want to say anything in case it was just the cut of her sundresses or something. We even had this whole conversation about 5 days after I had Charlotte, where she congratulated me on the baby and then there was this awkward pause when I was THINKING of congratulating her on her pregnancy (and I think she was expecting it maybe) but I didn’t want to say anything… awwwwkward. I never did say anything to her until a couple of weeks ago when Kathryn started back at school. It turns out she was due any day (I think yesterday, Oct 2?). I told her I had waited to say anything and we had a good laugh, she said she appreciated my restraint 😉
It’s also very awkward when you say something and then realize it might sound derogatory about the person you’re talking to and then you’re like, “No no no, I don’t mean like YOU, just other people”… My brain is tired so I can’t think of a specific example right now but hopefully you know what I mean… I hope I’m not the only one who has ever done that. Like nothing racist or bigoted or anything, just lame stuff. I hate when that happens.
The one that happens most often is not remembering someone’s name and I act like I do and hope that someone else calls their name so I can finally use it.
PS..you would NOT want a 60 pd baby! LOL
Jamie, you are right! Those are some of life’s most humiliating moments–but I love the reply..”No, I’m just fat!” That takes the cake….and she probably did! LOL
One time a girl told me she loved me for the first time and I told her “Thanks”. That was pretty awkward.
HA! The girl Dan is talking about is me! But in his defense, I told him I love him on our first date, lol.
Megan, I’ve made those “not you though” comments A LOT, and specifically to one person lately, eeek! You think I’d learn my lesson, but what can I say? I’m awkward;)
Well yesterday I took the XA group to Julian (old town around here famous for apple picking) and there was no place to eat our picnic lunch. We walked around aimlessly for a while and then we grudgingly went up the hill to the top of the old cemetery. It looks very much like an old fashioned one in a Disney movie. So we sat on the benches there. When we arrived there were a lot of people, but by the time we finished our lunch, I looked up and we were the only ones there. I guess we were irreverent to the dead! Now I feel pretty bad about it, but what’s done is done. We were hungry and wanted to sit.So I am so sorry.
On top of it all I spilled water on the inside of my leg pant, so that was awkward! I’m such a classy college student leader!
And to overcome that awkward thing when I pass people, I just always say Hi. Even if they say nothing back. Works for me.
Love ya!
Tara
Well, at this grand ol’ age of 54, I have had numerous ackward moments. Perhaps if I didn’t seem to be such a jabber jaws, that would not be the case. However, my akward moments come from not remembering someones name, okay, so lets be honest – not just – I don’t remember your name – it is – SERIOUSLY – I don’t even remember ever seeing you before, ever in my life. Thoughts that go through my head as I look at this person, who is talking about things that she obviously thinks I remember, are WOW- who are you, we knew each other when?, we did that together?…. I try so hard to smile and the thought keeps racing in my mind are- NO, NO – don’t squink your eyes…. stop tilting your head… all the clues to the person talking that I really have no clue who they are. Sometimes, they have so many details about “us” when we knew each other that it is kinda scary – all most like – did I bump my head for a time in my life – and some of the memory files got erased!
I can’t tell you how many times I have literally spent days thinking, and trying to figure out who people are – and then something will happen, or I will see something that jars this aging mind of mine and it is OH YEA!!!! (Which by the way, when it happens I usually say it out loud… when you are in a crowd of people – it can be somewhat embarassing ) as people turn to look at you, you just kinda smile and think to yourself – did I just say that out loud – they kind of give you that “are you crazy lady”… at which point – I quite often just look at them and say – oh, I am so sorry – just remembered something that I forgot… and yes I am a little crazy – crazy as a loon – as I tell my Grand Daughter…. smile, giggle and walk away.
Some reactions are so funny… like they kinda back away, or they get that frown like “she is nuts”… life is just way to serious – sometimes you just have to do what you can to make people laugh. Afterall, if they are someone you don’t know, they will probably tell someone about it, which will make them both laugh – and then they tell someone else, and so on… so I guess if I can make someone laugh even if it is a stranger – its okay! The world needs more laughter! Children laugh on average of 400 times a day – Adults laugh on average of 7 times a day…. isn’t that crazy!
Oh – my mind – such a crazy thing. A friend told me one time that my mind was like a pin ball machine… the thoughts are like random “hits” on the bumpers as they make their way down the path of the machine – ding, ding, ding… and then sometimes – they hit wrong – TILT! LOL… great analogy! And oh so true!.
Love ya baby,
Michelle
I’ve done the same thing myself.