Yeah! I Was Totally Waving At You! ...Not.

[Sigmund]

Good Evening,

May all be well or on the mend.

Have you ever noticed a friend or family member at the mall, grocery store, etc., and waved to them, "Hi!" " Hello!" and then realize you waved at a stranger? (And said person is looking at you like you are some kind of weirdo? Ha!)

Or, and this is a BIG "or" , noticed a person waving to you and you wave back...it wasn't you they were waving to? (It was somebody behind you.) *color me embarrassed*

What did you do? (I have some suggestions.)

Thank you for any and all responses.

Peace.

 

[blunthead]

I'll bet the second one has happened to most of us; which begs the question if it the second happens more often than the first, how is that possible?

 

[AnnaMarie]

There are YouTube pranks about that.

I kind of did the waving. Kind of.

I was fresh out of high school and in my first "real" job. Everyone was quite friendly. One day I was in the bank and saw one of my co-workers behind me in line. I waved and said hi. She was close, looked right at me....and turned away. If she had spit on me I wouldn't have felt more embarrassed....she was close enough she could have spit on me.

I get back up to the office, and as I'm walking past her desk she's all friendly and saying hi. I stopped. I glared. And I said something about if your going to be so rude out of the office don't suddenly be nice IN the office. And how did you get up here from the bank so fast. And....why are you over there too??? And her identical twin sister came up behind her and said to me "Your the girl from the bank. Hi!"

 

[nate_watkins]

Good Evening,

May all be well or on the mend.

Have you ever noticed a friend or family member at the mall, grocery store, etc., and waved to them, "Hi!" " Hello!" and then realize you waved at a stranger? (And said person is looking at you like you are some kind of weirdo? Ha!)

Or, and this is a BIG "or" , noticed a person waving to you and you wave back...it wasn't you they were waving to? (It was somebody behind you.) *color me embarrassed*

What did you do? (I have some suggestions.)

Thank you for any and all responses.

Peace.

 

[blunthead]

There are YouTube pranks about that.

I kind of did the waving. Kind of.

I was fresh out of high school and in my first "real" job. Everyone was quite friendly. One day I was in the bank and saw one of my co-workers behind me in line. I waved and said hi. She was close, looked right at me....and turned away. If she had spit on me I wouldn't have felt more embarrassed....she was close enough she could have spit on me.

I get back up to the office, and as I'm walking past her desk she's all friendly and saying hi. I stopped. I glared. And I said something about if your going to be so rude out of the office don't suddenly be nice IN the office. And how did you get up here from the bank so fast. And....why are you over there too??? And her identical twin sister came up behind her and said to me "Your the girl from the bank. Hi!"

That's not fair! Then they told you stories about how that kinda crap happens to them all the time.

 

[HollyGolightly]

You'd be a fun friend to hang with Sig!

Funny you started this thread - I was thinking of sharing some recent WalMart weirdness somewhere, but not sure where. About a week ago, I was there trying to find the pink lemonade mix and some man - kindly, normal looking, maybe the same age as my uncles - came up to me, put his arm around me and starting telling me it was so good to run into me - how's your mom? the kids? the husband? And I have no idea who he was. I humbly asked "Are ya'll doing OK? Very good to see you - give everyone my love".

I'm not certain that I am who he thought I was, but I can't be sure that I just didn't recognize him. So we both just played the game. Let me know if you see me on youtube funny stuff pranks videos. You'll know me when you see me.

 

[Dana Jean]

You'd be a fun friend to hang with Sig!

Funny you started this thread - I was thinking of sharing some recent WalMart weirdness somewhere, but not sure where. About a week ago, I was there trying to find the pink lemonade mix and some man - kindly, normal looking, maybe the same age as my uncles - came up to me, put his arm around me and starting telling me it was so good to run into me - how's your mom? the kids? the husband? And I have no idea who he was. I humbly asked "Are ya'll doing OK? Very good to see you - give everyone my love".

I'm not certain that I am who he thought I was, but I can't be sure that I just didn't recognize him. So we both just played the game. Let me know if you see me on youtube funny stuff pranks videos. You'll know me when you see me.

Oh hell. I had an old man who was with his wife come up to me and hug me and kiss me on the cheek once, acting like he knew me. I was mortified wondering if I was getting creeped on by some old guy. This was at a very high end gift store, they looked very clean and the wife was chatting politely with the counter girls as she was purchasing something and didn't see what her husband was doing.

I was so taken aback, and very angry at myself that I let a total stranger kiss me on the cheek! Why didn't I say NO!? I was being polite and was socialized to be polite to my elders. So, I just let him molest me?

I made myself feel better by thinking maybe he had Alzheimer's or something.

The wife collected him and off they went and I just stood there feeling stupid and creeped out and angry at myself.

 

[Grandpa]

I get waved at my strangers more often than I wave at them, and that's probably good. That may change as my eyesight continues to deteriorate.

One advantage to getting old is that your GAS factor*** diminishes. So if I don't recognize someone, rather than trying to pass it off, I say, "Where do I know you from?" (When the answer is, "I'm your son," then it gets embarrassing.)

So someone says "hi" whom I don't recognize, I do look around to see if there's anyone else because I'm trained like that now, then turn back and say, "Hi. Where do I know you from?"

One big problem is getting honked at from cars. I cannot make out people's features through car glass. Always been a problem with me. As a teen, a car would go past the other way, honking. It was just rolling metal to me. I'd have to hope someone else was riding with me to let me know whom I just offended.



***GAS factor is the "give a s*** factor," which has some proportional relevance to the PITA factor, which is the "pain in the a** factor."

 

[Dana Jean]

I get waved at my strangers more often than I wave at them, and that's probably good. That may change as my eyesight continues to deteriorate.

One advantage to getting old is that your GAS factor*** diminishes. So if I don't recognize someone, rather than trying to pass it off, I say, "Where do I know you from?" (When the answer is, "I'm your son," then it gets embarrassing.)

So someone says "hi" whom I don't recognize, I do look around to see if there's anyone else because I'm trained like that now, then turn back and say, "Hi. Where do I know you from?"

One big problem is getting honked at from cars. I cannot make out people's features through car glass. Always been a problem with me. As a teen, a car would go past the other way, honking. It was just rolling metal to me. I'd have to hope someone else was riding with me to let me know whom I just offended.



***GAS factor is the "give a s*** factor," which has some proportional relevance to the PITA factor, which is the "pain in the a** factor."

Nowadays, when I run into a familiar face, or someone thinks I'm a familiar face -- I will ask. Or, I will say hi and immediately say my name to remind them to be polite. And I also do it in hopes that maybe they will say their name back when I'm struggling, but I have yet to have anyone take the hint. So, I just ask.

 

[blunthead]

Oh hell. I had an old man who was with his wife come up to me and hug me and kiss me on the cheek once, acting like he knew me. I was mortified wondering if I was getting creeped on by some old guy. This was at a very high end gift store, they looked very clean and the wife was chatting politely with the counter girls as she was purchasing something and didn't see what her husband was doing.

I was so taken aback, and very angry at myself that I let a total stranger kiss me on the cheek! Why didn't I say NO!? I was being polite and was socialized to be polite to my elders. So, I just let him molest me?

I made myself feel better by thinking maybe he had Alzheimer's or something.

The wife collected him and off they went and I just stood there feeling stupid and creeped out and angry at myself.

He might have sincerely thought you were someone else, then realized after that maybe you weren't. And so he'd have been very grateful for your politeness. I doubt he was psychologically unstable, and if he'd been drunk you'd probably have noticed a corresponding odor. I mean, one assumes an older person means well and is simply mistaken. Nevertheless, I imagine it would be very uncomfortable to say the least to a woman for a strange man to do something like that.

I've always had people mistake me for someone else. I guess I have one of those faces. I must look like someone who also looks like someone else.

 

[mustangclaire]

I did that only yesterday. Waved at someone in another car thinking it was my friend. It wasn't. I waved like a loon years ago at someone I thought was my mum in the same style car (mini). It wasn't. I usually realise as they go by, then say out loud..."I could have SWORN that was (insert name here)", just incase anyone has been near enough to witness my faux pas. Just so you know I had my eyes tested last week for the first time in over 20 years. My eyes are fine

And I'm used to people thinking I am some one else. I am an identical twin remember.... Often strangers wave at me and I just figure they think I'm my sister.

Always a pleasure to see your posts Siggy.

 

[fljoe0]

When I was in high school, I had a friend (John) who, as a joke, would call his mother bad things and she would return the favor to him. They laughed about it and had a pretty good time with it. Sounds weird but it was pretty funny.

Anyway, John and his mother were in a department store one day and had gone their separate ways looking at stuff in the store. After a while, John spotted his mother and walked up behind her and said, "Hi, ugly." The lady turned around and it wasn't his mother. Then he made things worse by saying, "I'm sorry, I thought you were my mother."

 

[GNTLGNT]

...I immediately fall flat and urinate on myself...diverts attention immediately!...

 

[HollyGolightly]

That's hysterical fljoe0 !

 

[HollyGolightly]

Oh hell. I had an old man who was with his wife come up to me and hug me and kiss me on the cheek once, acting like he knew me. I was mortified wondering if I was getting creeped on by some old guy. This was at a very high end gift store, they looked very clean and the wife was chatting politely with the counter girls as she was purchasing something and didn't see what her husband was doing.

I was so taken aback, and very angry at myself that I let a total stranger kiss me on the cheek! Why didn't I say NO!? I was being polite and was socialized to be polite to my elders. So, I just let him molest me?

I made myself feel better by thinking maybe he had Alzheimer's or something.

The wife collected him and off they went and I just stood there feeling stupid and creeped out and angry at myself.

Good grief! You must be some kind of beauty for a married man to do that right in front his wife! I knew it!

 

[GNTLGNT]

Good grief! You must be some kind of beauty for a married man to do that right in front his wife! I knew it!

...she'll not take the praise, but she is a vision of beauty...

 

[HollyGolightly]

...she'll not take the praise, but she is a vision of beauty...

Aha - I could see it shining clear through cyberspace.

 

[GNTLGNT]

...I have had the honor and pleasure of seeing a photo, she truly is quite comely...

 

[doowopgirl]

There is a woman I see frequently at the local shop who insists on calling me Catherine. She has heard people call me Lois and looks at them like they're wrong. As I've been called worse I just let her call me Catherine.

 

[HollyGolightly]

There is a woman I see frequently at the local shop who insists on calling me Catherine. She has heard people call me Lois and looks at them like they're wrong. As I've been called worse I just let her call me Catherine.

LOL - that is crazy!