Embarrassing Moments Part 1

I am a horrible journaler. I am the type of person that has to have a point to everything I do...and somehow writing to my alter-ego doesn't inspire me enough to do it! So, this blog has become my journal in many ways. I figured I needed to record some things that I don't think I ever will forget but should have them written down just in case I manage to succeed in blocking them out of my memory!

Durring one of my semesters in college, Taylor and I had recently "found" each other and our common bond of philosophy and academia was high on our list of topics. We were the geeks who got in trouble for being too loud in the Library as we were having Venn Diagram speed drill contests. (ahh...the golden days!)

We have this other friend named Jen. Jen is an english major. Jen likes feel-good, romantic, transcendental literature. We don't like feel-good, romantic, transcendental literature. We like rationalistic treatises.

Taylor and I took Dr. Ladd's rhetoric class together one semester. This class was one that required a whole candy bar and as much humor as possible to get through. In one section of the class, Ladd surveyed the history of rhetoric from the ancient greeks to modern day. Whenever he would reference "romanticism," Taylor and I would look at each other and make some smart comment about Jen and her quest for Walden Pond or her love for Emily Dickenson' s "Who am I? Who are You? Are you an airhead too?" Then we would talk about Jane Austen's "Senseless Sensitivity" and it would just go downhill from there!

Mind you, this was a very large class. It filled up the entire downstairs of Appleby with numerous students who considered it their semester "thorn in the flesh." As good butt-kissing students, we sat close to the front...but not too close. (semester seat choosing is a very strategic process)

On one such day, Ladd made a reference to Romanticism which caused Taylor and I to smirk at each other and mouth out one of our academically sarcastic comments. Mid comment, we hear Dr. Ladd say, "How come every time I say the word "romanticism" you two start laughing??" About half-way through his sentence, we realized he was talking to us as our necks turned our smile-frozen faces back to the front of the classroom.

Here's how Talyor and I work. When a cute guy comes up to talk to her, Taylor gets speachless and just smiles. (or at least "Allison" does!:) I keep the conversation going. However, when I am unexpectedly put on the spot like that in front of a crowd of people, the only thing that moves in my body is the red flush overcoming my face! I am the rule-follower. I don't push my limits. I am that "good student." Getting called out like that is a horrifying experience for me! Thoughts race through my head a at a thousand miles per hour: How did he notice the pattern?? I mean, we are two students admist a vast sea of warm bodies and "romanticism" is one work amidst an endless dictionary of rhetorical words he uses! When Dr. Ladd pointed us out in front of the entire class, I completely froze and couldn't get anything to come out of my paralyzed mouth except an unintelligible, "uhhhh." I looked at Taylor with HELP written in my eyes. She at least was able to talk and responded with an all-so-clever, "bbecause wwwee dddon't llike ittt????"

Shining moment. We laugh about it quite often today. Serves us right for making fun of Jen. All I wanted to do was to FIND Walden Pond right about then and become a noble savage myself!


For Tomorrow:
Embarrassing Moment Part 2: Bekah and the Italian Waiter