We've all experienced the Walk of Shame for one reason or another--the feeling of humiliation when you wander back to or away from some state of guilty comfort. It sometimes feels like rows and rows of schoolyard bullies are there to call you out with "ohhhhs" and "ahhhh snaps" as you stroll ahead. Eventually the embarrassment subsides and you no longer give a damn, but for a moment you feel the whole world is watching.
Of course I'm referring to the moment when Craigy "the nose" Lawler calls you out for some, often very subtle, food smell. Nothing glamorous, no 5 course meals required, could be as simple as broccoli. My walk of shame came in the form of a measly freezer burned Boca burger and bowl of microwave broccoli. If I'd known that that meal would have branded me, I would have cashed in for something a bit more tasty, spice it up a bit to make it count. I'm not alone, though. Jill's plucky burrito move a while back burned her pretty quickly, as well as her grilled cheese sandwich -- scandalous. She admitted to us that instead of leaving the premises as required by "law", she simply hovered in C's ER patient room curtains, out of his vantage point, and wolfed down the food. Nice! Diane has been roasted, too, for cooking a t-bone stew.
Tonight was Emily's turn. We brought her back an order of french fries from a dinner outing. It seems we all temporarily forgot our 'audience'. She happily opened the container, squirted a hearty dollop of ketchup, and proceeded to eat as we chatted. Then we heard the dreaded phrase: "What's that food smell?" This is where the schoolyard bullies would sing a chorus of ahhh snaps, and ohhhhs. She was called out and had to finish her fries in the solarium. Fortunately, she was among fellow "called out company" as she slowly put on her shoes, grabbed her fries and took her short walk of shame from her state of comfort on the couch to his patient door. We could certainly sympathize and had a good laugh upon her return.
At least it gave us a reason to laugh tonight...
~E
Dear Craig
ReplyDeleteThere isn't a day I haven't thought of you and your courage and strength. I reflect alot on the time we had the privalege of sharing your time here in Ann Arbor. When I was working downtown for TCF you can't imagine how many times I thought I saw you walking to class only to realize it was someone else. When Kim, Jeff and I talk about the fun the 3 of you had going out I see how much they glow inside with happy memories. I don't have a video camera but I have something better and that is the pictures of all of you in my mind that will never fade with time.
Love to you all
Aunt Donna