Recruiting Season

I meant to blog today about Halloween and all the associated festivities, but John is currently at the Notre Dame football game with our camera (lucky boy!), and so that post will have to wait at least until tonight.
However, I have another small story I would like to share. It's recruiting season right now for residencies all over the country, and as the wives of residents we must do our part to make a good impression on the candidates (as we call applicants) and their wives (or husbands, as the case may be). We had Candace and Ryan Slater here last week (so much fun) from Toledo, so I was really excited when I remembered that Dusty and Cortnee Watson (also from Toledo) would be here this weekend.
Cortnee (for those who haven't met her) is a girl who is beautiful, stylish, and very kind. She and Dusty just got married last December, and every interaction I have ever had with her has been delightful. She is so complimentary about my girls and so nice to me and I shouldn't be intimidated at all. However, whenever I am trying to make a good impression, I get nervous. And whenever I get nervous, I talk faster and faster and think less and less clearly, and pretty soon it's just like verbal vomit, really. Sentences spewing forth faster than I can recall them.
So my conversation with Cortnee went something like this:
C.W.: So, do you like South Bend?
E.W.: I LOVE South Bend, I love everything . . . blah. . . blahdity blah. . . .
C.W.: (too polite to look bored) What made you pick to live here?
E.W.: Blah. . . blahdity blahdity blahdity. . . . faster faster faster
I think it was 99 words Emilee:1 word Cortnee. But really, I was doing okay. I think less than half of my sentences were completely nonsensical, and that's saying something for me when I'm trying to be impressive. But then this is how we ended the conversation:
E.W.: I love your sweater--so cute!
C.W.: (sweetly) Thanks!
E.W.: Where did you get it?
C.W.: T. J. Maxx.
E. W. : Oh, I love T. J. Maxx. Such a great store. Such a wonderful store, you can find so many great things. I'm so proud of you!!
I'm so proud of you?? What kind of adult says that to another adult? What did I mean? I'm so proud you can shop for yourself? I'm so proud you know how to find something cute? It's one of those stock phrases that I keep as a mom for those times when I don't really want to have to think what I'm saying to my kids, but I want them to be happy. And it slipped out when I really would have preferred it stay in.
She looked only mildly confused when I said it, and my backpedaling from that statement just got more and more incoherent, so I let it go. Thinking about it makes me turn red all over again. I think I should be officially off the recruitment roster.