May 17, 2010

Modern Manners Monday: What Would YOU Do?

You encounter a casual acquaintance you've not seen in quite some time.


You exchange hugs, pleasantries and catch up on what each the other has been doing since you last spoke.


As you're sharing your updates, you can tell that the friend is anxious to say something. You allow a natural pause.


She then pats your stomach and says "Congratulations on your pregnancy! How far along are you?"


You are NOT pregnant.


What do YOU do?

25 comments:

  1. LOL, MY goodness, I normally would have an answer for this one, but this is a touchy one. I imagine that I would would and tell her, simply "I'm not pregnant.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Since I have a sense of humor I would probably just laugh it off and then tell her some kind of joke about me not pregnant.

    ReplyDelete
  3. "What makes you think that I'm pregnant?"..

    Ball back in her court.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Tiffany In HoustonMay 17, 2010 at 10:13 AM

    Onefromphilly for the win!

    ReplyDelete
  5. wow! Yea...@onefromphilly took the words right out of my mouth

    ReplyDelete
  6. I'd just tell her I'm not pregnant and give the blank stare

    ReplyDelete
  7. I would laugh and say, unfortunately I don't have that excuse, just put on a few extra pounds, but I'm working on taking it off, but you look great!
    This will give the person a few seconds to recover from their faux pas. The person did not say it to be rude, otherwise they would have just said, wow, you got fat! If I were ever to make that mistake, I would hope that my friend would be gracious enough to laugh it off.
    Gigi

    ReplyDelete
  8. Yep. Gigi is right on. Manners about making the other person comfortable.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Tell her you aren't pregnant and the head straight to the gym!

    ReplyDelete
  10. I'm 40 years, 5 months along...she'll get the joke

    ReplyDelete
  11. People STILL make this mistake?? Well if this is a friend, manners dictate that I wouldn't be passive aggressive in order to make her squirm. I'd laugh it off and tell her I'm not pregnant, just need to hit the gym more often.

    I think the 'what makes you think I'm pregnant?' approach is good for strangers or someone you're not fond of - to teach them to not make this amateur mistake again.

    ReplyDelete
  12. This happened to me twice last year!! I just said "Oh, actually I'm not pregnant - this is just the leftovers from the 3 that I did have!"

    But I was mortified nonetheless!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Oh I have done this before its soo very awkward! If someone thought I was preggers I would just correct them and laugh it off.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Justice Fergie yeppers! Laugh it off and keep it moving.

    ReplyDelete
  15. I had a 5 lb cyst on my ovary that made me look four months pregnant. Before I had surgery a woman asked me when I was due. I asked "Due for what?" You could hear the crickets chirping.

    ReplyDelete
  16. This actually happened to my younger sister with a sister-in-law (who I'll name Mrs. X) that hadn't seen her in a while found themselves sharing an elevator at the same company. My sister lived abroad with her husband (gained weight after marriage) told me that she politely told Mrs. X that she wasn't pregnant and at that point had no children. Mrs. X apologized for the faux pas and my sister politely accepted, then changed the subject. -pearls

    ReplyDelete
  17. Quickly tell her you were just joking and pat your own belly! Telling her that you yourself has been feeling "pregnant" lately!

    ReplyDelete
  18. I would tell her, lightly, "I'm not pregnant, it's just a little extra weight." But the woman who asked clearly has no manners--there are too many people who might "look" pregnant and not be. Instead he should wait for her company to give cues about her pregnancy--or ask leading questions, like "so, tell me about all the exciting things going on in your world!" If baby talk doesn't come up, it's because she's NOT pregnant.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Ohohohohoho!

    "Nine months after I can get myself knocked up, sugar!" since it's someone I know.

    "Any day now," if it's someone I don't.

    ReplyDelete
  20. If its a random stranger, I politely but firmly tell them that its not good manners to ever imply that a woman is pregnant (even if they are clearly 9 months along). Sadly, with the advent of the style of tops these days that are "baby doll style" this is a more common occurrence than should be socially acceptable! I had a friend who was a sweet size 6 get accosted by a woman in IKEA wanting to swap pregnancy tips. The look of horror on my friend's face didn't stop this ignoramus from plowing ahead with questions until my friend finally declared, quite loudly, "I'm NOT pregnant!! Please STOP."

    If its an old friend or casual acquaintance I would just smile and say, "I'm not pregnant. But I'm SURE the shirt/top/dress I'm wearing is misleading. Fashion these days." If it was someone I didn't really care for...lord, all bets are off. I'd go Southern Belle on their hiney. "Bless your HEART..."

    ReplyDelete
  21. Punch. Her. In. The. Face.

    ReplyDelete
  22. This actually happened at my last class reunion (the 20th). I was actually standing in the bar with a drink in my hand when the person said it. I had just had my second child about 2 month before. Well now my 30th reunion has rolled around and I've recently lost 30 lbs and have a great dress picked out. I sure hope I run into the "are you pregnant lady"! As painful as these comments are to hear they can be very motivating.

    ReplyDelete

 
© 2008-2011 The Broke Socialite Media, All Rights Reserved | Site Design by Simply Amusing Designs