Thank goodness first impressions don't have to be the last
Thank goodness first impressions don't have to be the last
It often happens that our first impressions are not always what we had hoped them to be. That was the case earlier this week when I blessed a coworker with my presence at a business function. It was one of those gatherings where prominent individuals got together to drink, eat and talk shop. The atmosphere was all business with just enough gossip to make it interesting. Small talk eventually led us to tables of hors d'oeuvres and so the embarrassment began.
We carefully selected a few treats and among mine were miniature carrots and ranch dip. We began chatting with others while eating and not five minutes into our conversation, much to my horror, a ranch-covered carrot attempted a suicide mission. I quickly cleaned up my mess with only a few chuckles and comments from bystanders. Trying to remain cool, I made a few small jokes and decided laughing was the best cure.
This was not the end. I quickly realized my error when I decided to be brave and attempt a second pass at the food. This time the deviled eggs and marinated mushrooms caught my attention. The mushroom was a little big and having already made a mess earlier I was determined to cut it into ladylike portions. With a fork I applied a reasonable amount of pressure only to have the utensil snap in half and what happened next was in agonizing slow motion. One of the deviled eggs on my plate catapulted itself turning end over end and landed a few feet away … on a shoe. And not just any shoe, a strappy black sandal. The only thing more mortifying than wiping egg off someone else's foot was having one woman witness both the flying carrot and egg incident.
After sharing this with some of my family and friends, I was comforted with the fact that I wasn't the only one that had "dropped the egg" during a first impression. My parents reminded me of the first time they met one of my guy friends from college. I had invited a group of friends over to my parents for a home cooked meal and a tour of the farm. After exchanging introductions, my friend excused himself to use the facilities after our long drive. He emerged from the restroom with "water" splashed all over the front of his kaki pants. Not just a little water, a lot of water. Everyone couldn't help but stare and my friend was so speechless he couldn't defend the situation. To this day he's scarred.
My sister also related a story about a co-worker who showed up to his first day of work in a suit. Normally this wouldn't be unusual, except he was hired to roll barrels. Rolling barrels consists of running behind a truck (for miles) and putting down or picking up the orange barrels used in road construction. He thought he had applied for some cushy office job, but probably ruined his suit his first day on the job.
Because many of us have probably given a few rough first impressions at some point in our lives, we know the importance of the second chance. To all of you who haven't been blessed with one of these character-building moments, yours is coming. Just remember … laugh. That being said, I'd still advise anyone to steer clear of me if I have a deviled egg on my hors d'oeuvres plate.
Jonda Pingetzer is the page designer for the Columbia Basin Herald.
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