Throw me into a group of strangers and I’m mostly a wall-flower. Don’t get me wrong, I’m very much a people person, but I’d prefer to meet people individually or in group of two or three prior to being thrust into a room full of strangers. Of course, sometimes you don’t have a choice. Although, I don’t like it, I generally accept it as a challenge to remember names and faces. Sometimes I’m successful and sometimes my retention span seems sadly lacking.
It would never be my intent to treat anyone with a lack of civility or respect. That’s is not to say that no one has ever not been offended by one of my off-the-wall comments or thoughtless actions.
Years ago I was horrified to realize that a friend I met for lunch was a vegetarian. How thoughtless would you have to be to order a steak medium rare? You think I’m kidding – right? I only wish. So how many times did I meet a dear Jewish friend for breakfast and order bacon to go with my eggs? As the General would say, ‘Sometimes, I simply don’t stop to think?
In my defense, my Jewish friend is a Christian. I’m not sure if being Christian minimizes the dietary restrictions adhered to by a Jewish person of faith, but by the time I realized the error of my ways, he could have easily concluded I was an insensitive bigot. I am a little embarrassed that I thoughtlessly didn’t apologize or even think to ask if he had been offended.
Then there was the time I referred to the General as my first wife. While factually, it is a true statement, it probably felt a little awkward to the person I was visiting with who was going through a divorce.
Then there was the time I mistaken someone’s mother as his wife. Seriously, that had to be interpreted by the mother as a compliment. Of course, I remember taking my daughter to a gathering when she was age three or four and someone told me I had a really cute granddaughter.
I’m a jokester at heart, but I’d never knowingly solicit a laugh at anyone else’s expense. My mother raised me better than that. I know it is never polite to ask someone’s age. One of the things I routinely do is poke fun at myself. I figure it is better to laugh than to cry.
Don’t get me wrong, there are limits to how crazy I want you to think that I am capable of being. The accompanying photo defies explanation. It is simply the case of a picture being worth a thousand words. I decided I’d use it for my advantage and let you guess the story behind the picture.
So, what do you think? Which explanation is closets to the truth?
(1) The picture was taken minutes after being released from captivity by aliens from the planet Mars who thought I resembled Walter Cronkite, the American broadcast journalist who served as an anchorman for the CBS Evening news for 19 years.
(2) The picture highlights my ability to adapt to a game of charades while maintaining poise and dignity while impersonating a radio disc jockey transmitting a radio signal through the aluminum foil.
(3) The picture is the latest “Silver Alert Logo”.
(4) The picture is just “out there” to negate it ever being used by one of my kids to discredit me. A man can’t be too careful.
So What Do You Think? Personally, I thought the “Silver Alert” represents a good play on words, but I could be wrong. That may not be the correct answer. The choices is yours: “A” “B” “C” or “D”.
Since a picture is worth a thousand words, I’ve given ample clues.
All My Best!
Don
Carpe Diem 