Posts tagged ‘pimple’

Apr 29

18. Pimples

After rolling out of bed in the morning, you head to the bathroom to brush your teeth. You look in the mirror and there it is . . a pimple.

These seem to always come when you least need them; right before you get your picture taken, when you’re meeting a potential client for lunch or heading to an interview.

“Alright,” you might say, “these things are perfectly natural and they happen to people all the time.”

And yes, they do. But what happens when you see somebody with a huge pimple on their nose? You look at it. Admit it, you can’t help it. It is just the way our minds work; we see something that stands out in a person’s face and we’re automatically drawn to it.

The issue here, however, is how awkward this situation really is when the pimple is observed by someone else. You noticed the other person’s pimple, and they noticed that you looked at it. Darn it! You made it too obvious. When a person is speaking to you, and especially if he or she is being extra self-conscious for the day, they tend to follow your eyes in conversations in order to make eye contact. If you get distracted by that big red dot on their face, they will notice. And now you know that they noticed that you noticed. Don’t worry, even if you didn’t look at it, they would assume that you’re actually avoiding it just to be nice. Children won’t avoid it though, they’ll tell you the truth; so if they’re present prepare for some fun.You just can’t win here.

Good news! This situation doesn’t go very far. You will probably not discuss the pimple anyway, but be prepared if you have to. I’ve encountered a scenario where a girl asked me: ”Does it look that bad?”

“No, I can barely see it.”

I could “barely see it” but from far. The thing was huge. She knew it. I knew it. Awkward.

Apr 13

3 Comments

#6 When children tell you the truth

..in front of others.

If you’ve ever heard a child tell you,

“Are you having a baby too?” (while pointing at your stomach)

“Why is your face so hairy?”

“Do you have a lot of money?”, or even better:

"You look like a fly with those glasses."

Yes, those glasses that cost you a paycheck and a half make you look like a fly. Hey, I didn’t say it!

From user jpctalbot, flickr.com

You know what I’m talking about. They indirectly tell you a truth by asking you a question. They ask you if you’re having a baby and making you realize that your belly is big. By asking why your face is hairy, they remind you that you haven’t shaved in a while, and by asking you if you have a lot of money, you realize that you’re not rich.

I was in my old room of my parent’s home, sitting on the futon reading a book. When my three-year old cousin comes into the room and says “Your room is messy”, when I had spent the whole previous evening tidying up. But hey, she told me what she saw. What I’ve noticed before though, is that these children are taught to keep their opinions to themselves at a very early age. I will tell you about a situation in which I was in when I volunteered at an elementary school not far from my high school.

I was partnered up with a high school girl that had experience in the elementary school deal, she knew the teachers and many many students. She had been volunteering for about two years. I can go on and on about her, and probably so could the child we were playing with. Except he’s a lot more bold. We were playing with the play-doh, and another child next to us was drawing Liz, the high school girl. As soon as the child finished, our play-doh kindergarten partner said:

“Annie, you forgot something. She has a lot of pimples!“

Dude.

Liz turned bright red. I didn’t know how to react, so I did what my instincts told me to do and I told on him. No, just kidding. I changed the topic immediately and pretended I had not heard anything.

Ever been in a situation like that?