Tied by a promise

Chee-oo, there is stuff I wish I could blog about. But I made a promise that I would only blog my own story. And when my story intersects that of someone else, if I don't have her permission to include her in the story, well, then, you only get part of the story.

I'm actually a rather private person (Hah! You say!). I've simply learned that unless I risk my deepest self, I don't connect with other people. A stony heart stays cold. An open heart gets broken. Is either worse? For me, I choose to rip away the tough outer layers so that my heart is tender, and I can let you in.

I know other people aren't like that.

This morning, I bumped into two clients having their own meeting. One needs nothing further from me ever again, the other has a currently working project. They paused their convo, the current client said hi, and so we exchanged a few words about our project's status and I turned to go.

Nothing further client: "Yes, Bob, as a matter of fact I AM doing well, thanks for asking!"

Me, cleverly: "..." and "uh," and finally "Whoops! Okay, I'm an ASS. I am so sorry. Thanks so much for pointing out this GAPING WOUND in my social skills, I appreciate your courage in bringing it to my attention."

After which, we joked around some more and I reassured her that I was serious: I deeply appreciate it when someone takes the time to show me how I'm being an inconsiderate turkey. I didn't consciously ignore her, the current client had simply dominated my attention. I received from Nothing Further Client a true act of friendship: to risk my reaction to pointing out a flaw. I'm literally blind to where I'm inept. I love it when someone steps up and drives a point right through my skull.

All of which is peripherally related to what I can't blog about, but I feel a little bit complete at the moment, after sharing this other story with you.