The Rejected Hug and Other Awkward Greetings (A Holliday Blog)

I hate wearing pants; this morning I forgot to put them on.  I know it sounds like I am setting up a bad joke, but I forget all the time.  I put on a shirt, make my hair look somewhat respectable and try to put my wallet into my nonexistent pocket.  As I write this I am in my underwear and a t-shirt.  I’m just not a fan of pants.

I’m also not a big fan of touching, (the segue will make sense, just keep reading); I like my space.  The odd hug is nice, but for the most part I’m good with a high-five or at best a half hug.  (You know the one where you use one arm and pat the hug-ee on the back?)  I may give the best high-fives in the world, but even with the half hug I always find a way to make it awkward, just like trying to put a wallet into missing pants.  <=(There it is!)

The awkward only gets worse during Christmas time.  Don’t get me wrong I love Christmas.  There is something about having all your family in one place that leads to a good time.  But with family comes awkward.  The handshakes, hugs, kisses, I screw them all up.  It’s hard to look someone in the face after you stick your hand out when they are clearly coming in for a hug.  I imagine it is on par with showing up at work with no pants, though not having done that I really can’t say.  I can tell you how embarrassing it is to miss a handshake and end up squeezing someone’s arm as if we were medieval barbarians going off to war, (not so cool).

I may be overly sentimental having spent last Christmas so sick, but overall, I do enjoy the holidays, (even the terribly repetitious Christmas music), it’s a nice time to reflect on what is really important, and there’s always the presents too.  Now I just have to make the official greeting between family and friends, (and heck, even strangers), the high-five.  Did I mention I give the best high-fives?