Now I’m sure I’m not the only one who forgets people’s names the minute they announce it. See, what happens is this: When I meet someone and they’re first to introduce, I’m too busy reminding myself that I need to introduce myself once they’re done. That might sound crazy, but I’ve actually walked away from handshakes without giving the other person my name, only to have them pull me over to say they don’t “believe” they got my name, when what they really meant to say was “Aye! You smokin’ crack?! You better get your behind over here and tell me who you are before I jump you!” And boy, if I wasn’t black, my face would resemble a big fat cherry every time that happened. So apparently I was hearing what they were saying but not really “listening”. Yea, that’s bad, I know, but I’m working on it. Remember that people’s names are important and one should strive to learn them…..

But how do you know if someone knows that you don’t know their name? Perhaps when you say “Hey, man” every time you see them? Or “‘Sup Dude” or better yet, just “‘Sup?” Do they take offense to that? I once had someone completely ignore me because they had reason to believe that I didn’t know their name and when confronted, said, “Pshh, you don’t even know my name.” At this, I was taken aback but not surprised. After all, I had never really called her by her name and on several occasions just couldn’t bring it to memory. However, at that instant it immediately shot out of my mouth and left her quite dumbfounded. She had no excuse and was embarrassed, to say the least. But people do notice…no matter how good you think you are at masking it.

But you may slip up every now and then and find yourself in a nasty mess. I mean, let’s say you legitimately forget someone’s name. How many tries does one get before asking becomes unacceptable? Are they allowed to have clues? What if you just don’t see that person that much? What if they really look like this other person you know? And don’t get me started with twins, telling me they look nothing alike! Who do they think they’re fooling?

But the worst part is, they rarely every forgot my name!! What’s that all about? Why can’t things just be mutual? Cheez! Get it together people!

Popularity: 7%