Weird Situations

Yesterday I stood in the middle lane of the M6 queuing for an ice cream.

The traffic was at a stand still for five hours after a tragic incident involving a horse box, a caravan and a lorry. After the first hour an ice cream van in the slow lane opened for business. They did a roaring trade in the spring sunshine and then the inevitable happened due to the lack of any facilities. Half the motorway descended on the neatly cut hedgerows of the small Cheshire hamlet next to that bit of motorway. Sad for the locals. It will be interesting to see the impact on the growth of their hedges though.

It was a very social occasion and for many the most human contact they had had all year! You meet an amazing cross section of people if the motorway stops long enough for everybody to leave their car.

@relentless-red said
Yesterday I stood in the middle lane of the M6 queuing for an ice cream.

The traffic was at a stand still for five hours after a tragic incident involving a horse box, a caravan and a lorry. After the first hour an ice cream van in the slow lane opened for business. They did a roaring trade in the spring sunshine and then the inevitable happened due to the lack of a ...[text shortened]... amazing cross section of people if the motorway stops long enough for everybody to leave their car.

In my previous job I became the line manager of a person who was previously my line manager. Once a month we would meet for supervision. It was very weird.

I would say the highest density of ostensibly "weird" situations that I was in over a period of time was my first year in Indonesia 1991-1992. The second period of above-average "weird" situations density was probably in my first year in Japan 1994-1995.

The number of times I have gone into the "Ladies" washrooms, by mistake.

@great-big-stees said
The number of times I have gone into the "Ladies" washrooms, by mistake.

The one place where offering your seat to a lady is simply never taken as old fashioned gallantry.

@relentless-red said
The one place where offering your seat to a lady is simply never taken as old fashioned gallantry.

I was surprised that no urinals were on offer...then she struck me.

@great-big-stees said
I was surprised that no urinals were on offer...then she struck me.

Stees, there usually is a sign on the door showing 'Gents' and'Ladies'. How can you possibly miss it - are you often drunk?

@torunn said
Stees, there usually is a sign on the door showing 'Gents' and'Ladies'. How can you possibly miss it - are you often drunk?

In the 2nd of my two “faux pas” there was an obstruction leading me to believe the sign said “men”. I could not see the “Wo”. The other was just a “ mistake”. In neither was there any alcohol involved.

@great-big-stees said
In the 2nd of my two “faux pas” there was an obstruction leading me to believe the sign said “men”. I could not see the “Wo”. The other was just a “ mistake”. In neither was there any alcohol involved.

I did this cold sober back in 2011 was on a trip to a little Island off of Vancouver called Port Hardy. We had a stop in Toronto I believe it was and walked into the women's side instead of the men's. There were two women there and I said oops I took the wrong turn, they actually thought it was quite funny. I should have been embarrassed but I wasn't as they took it well. Man those washrooms were some big.

-VR

@great-big-stees said
The number of times I have gone into the "Ladies" washrooms, by mistake.

And no one batted an eyelid!

@drewnogal

LOL....

-VR

@relentless-red said
The one place where offering your seat to a lady is simply never taken as old fashioned gallantry.

If you think that's the only place, you haven't met a modern "feminist".

@torunn said
Stees, there usually is a sign on the door showing 'Gents' and'Ladies'. How can you possibly miss it - are you often drunk?

You'd be surprised.

Most places I've been to indeed show that sign in the local language. But a. that local language may not be yours and 'M' may mean 'Mulier', i.e. 'woman'; and rather more unfortunately, insistently with-it establishments may use "creative" signs for the two (or whatever - they're as confused as I am and definitely more out of pocket!) genders that are completely unguessable unless you're not only as, but also the same kind of woke as the interior decorator.

I've never missed one yet, but cambronne, I have come close.

@shallow-blue said
You'd be surprised.

Most places I've been to indeed show that sign in the local language. But a. that local language may not be yours and 'M' may mean 'Mulier', i.e. 'woman'; and rather more unfortunately, insistently with-it establishments may use "creative" signs for the two (or whatever - they're as confused as I am and definitely more out of pocket!) genders that ...[text shortened]... [/i] woke as the interior decorator.

I've never missed one yet, but cambronne, I have come close.

Maybe we should give ourselves time, and not wait until the last second. 🙂

@torunn said
Maybe we should give ourselves time, and not wait until the last second. 🙂

Maybe the mulieri shouldn't hold up the line by chatting so much.