Awkward Moments Chapter 2: Umbrella Etiquette

Today we begin our second topic about awkward moments. Yesterday we talked about elevators, and today we move on to UMBRELLAS! 

Before I studied abroad in Spain I never took an umbrella anywhere with me. There was something about walking around in the pouring rain and getting drenched that I actually enjoyed at times, and couldn't be bothered to carry around an umbrella the rest. A hood was my defense mechanism of choice until I spent 9 months living in the Basque Country, where it rains about 70% of the time. So when you consider that I was there from September to May it breaks down to about 2 weeks of  sun when we got there, 3 weeks before I left, and random sunny, beautiful, beach days scattered in between. Now don't get me wrong, that isn't to say it's not a place to go, and that it was miserable and rainy, I am just painting a picture for you to understand the total awkwardness I am about to tell of. 

In Europe you walk almost everywhere you go. To the bus stop, the metro, the market, stores, where ever. It is uncommon to hop in your car and drive 5 minutes to the store when you can just walk there and bring your basket-on-wheels along. This means that the beautiful cobble stone sidewalks are generally fairly full with foot traffic, and when it rains in Bilbao EVERYONE carries and uses an umbrella. When you have a sidewalk that is usually wide enough for just two people and you throw rain, baby strollers, dogs, and umbrellas into the mix, things tend to get a bit, well, awkward. Now I don't know if there was some umbrella etiquette handbook that I missed getting upon passing through customs, but I do know that I had no idea of the flow that everyone else did. In order to pass by one another, no matter how wide or narrow your path, one person has to raise their umbrella up, and the other pull it down. This enables both people to walk by one another while remaining dry and not hitting each other with their umbrellas, and looks like some sort of Target commercial.  I'm assuming by this point you are getting where I'm going with this...

I cannot count the number of times I whacked people with my umbrella, went up instead of down, twirled in circles to try and navigate myself around without inflicting injury on those around me, or just flat out got stuck with someone else's umbrella. And because yo soy Americana (I am American), they were not pleased with my misunderstanding of umbrella maneuvering, to say the least. Many, many "lo siento"-s (I'm sorry) were said, as well as my usual noises, facial expressions, and meaningless half-word/half-sound utterings. I am notorious for making a situation a bit more awkward than it needs to be, so these situations were an almost-daily struggle. And this doesn't even get into the times I would walk into a room and shake off my umbrella just to splatter those around me, or open it and almost take someone out!

I still do not understand umbrella etiquette and have faced situations like these in Chico since that time, so I can only thank the Lord that I am now living in LA, where umbrellas are seldom used, and walking everywhere is highly uncommon. Although I do miss those days. . . . 

As you can see, there are many situations that are awkward. This one is a little off-beat and not experienced by all, but I know there are a good deal of you out there that have encountered situations just like these. Send me any you can think of, I am going to try and continue this saga as long as I can. And let me assure you, some of the ideas in my mind are a little...dirtier, so be sure to keep up ;)

Today's Quote: "A man who carries a cat by the tail learns something he can learn in no other way." -Mark Twain

Touching, To Say The Least

My dad emailed me this video a few days ago and it wasn't until yesterday that I actually watched it. It brought tears to my eyes and a combination of sadness, joy, and disbelief to my heart, and I just wanted to share it with you all. It relates to 9-11, so be prepared.

Awkward Moments Chapter 1: Elevators

Everyone encounters them throughout their life and has to deal with them at some time or another. That's right, I'm talking about awkward moments. Because I just started a new job I have become increasingly aware of all the different kinds of awkward moments that we have to face, and therefore have decided to embark on a mini-series if you will all about them! 

Everyone who is put in an awkward situation is left with the same exact feelings and tends to react in the same ways-- discomfort, uncertainty, and a dash of uncomfortable, then you throw in the awkward smile/grin, diverted eyes, or sudden need to check your cellular, and there you are, in an awkward moment thinking "uhhh..what should I do/say now?"

I find it only appropriate to begin this journey down Awkward Lane with elevators. Every single day I ride the elevator up 8 floors and back down again at least once, and I have only had one experience that differs from the normal awkward situation I described above. An elevator is a very close, compact space which means you are in relatively close proximity to the others around you, regardless whether you know them or not. I have found that generally people do not speak in elevators, even if they are among friends, but then when someone is exiting, you bid each other a due and wish them a good day. Very friendly and very conversational in comparison to the last few minutes you shared. 

The most interesting thing for me is that I can be packed wall-to-wall in an elevator with friends, but unless there is a camera out and mirrors inside, we rarely speak. When I was in Vegas a few weekends back we all piled into an elevator, and fell silent. There's just something about them that makes people turn into a deaf-mute.

The worst is when there are only two of you in it. When it is down to the final two how do you react? Do you ask them how their day is going or how they are doing? Do you pretend they aren't there at all and continue to watch the numbers light up and pass by above the door? Or do you just close your eyes and take the moment as a calming and relaxing one? There are so many ways to react in these elevator situations. I had a pleasurable elevator moment yesterday on my adventure to Floor 8. There were a number of us in the elevator and when the third person exited, leaving myself and another woman, I simply said, "And then there were two." She responded with a good amount of laughter and said, "That's a good title." Not going to lie, in my head I immediately had visions of myself as a television or movie writer of some sort, even if just the show titles. Because I work in the entertainment industry, I validate this thought as completely normal. :)

So there you have it, the beginning of my first mini-series (because clearly the Guilty Pleasures one failed to ever make it past Chapter 1). Expect many more of these posts, and please feel free to write me with any awkward situations you can think of or moments you have had, I am always looking to have a good laugh at the expense of someone else's awkwardness. ;)

Today's Quote: This is completely made up off the top of my head right now simply because I have been manifest destiny-ing a lot of things in my life lately. So I really just want to say... "Manifest your destiny! Dream it, believe it, and you shall no doubt achieve it!"