Strangers

Every pregnant woman will tell you that there are many special things about your time carrying a child.  I hope that most of my post focus on that rather than the inconveniences of being pregnant.
This post, however, it will be about one thing.

Strangers.

Specifically weird things they say to you by the mere fact that you are pregnant.
I'd like to make a few distinctions since there are many reaction types.

First, there is genuine interest and excitement that just comes out wrong.
That would be like the woman who was standing in my line waiting to be cashed out at the Barrel.
The podium that houses our computer screen hides my body to a degree and from her vantage point she could see from about my shoulders up. As I finished the transaction I stepped forward to hand her a reciept. This new positioning allowed my body to be seen in its fullness. (and I mean FULLness)

She said "Woah! How long do you HAVE?" Her eyes were wide in disbelief that she had missed my pregnant body for the whole of our transaction.
I laughed as I realized that I had caught her so completely off gaurd and truly startled her with my belly. I answered "I have a little over 3 weeks till my due date."
"No kidding," she replied then with panic on her face she corrected herself, "Not that you look...I mean... Its just..."

She couldn't figure out how to unreact. It was funny but I felt bad that she was agonizing over it so I told her about how everyone at work thinks if I lean over to rest on the counter, I'm going into labor. Or how when I bend down to stretch or reach something from a bottom shelf, they worry that I'm on the ground because my water broke. She seemed relieved that I wasn't offended and we laughed together about how  people are so  worried when a woman is as pregnant as me.



Now another type of reaction is misplaced interest, obivous ignorance, and intrusive touching.
I've heard about this and never experienced it...
Until last night.

James and I decided to use some (very valuable) coupons to the local Waffle House.
Looking foward to my hashbrowns, (double order of extra crispy scattered, smothered, covered, chunked, capped, and diced. YUM.) I sat with my husband as we continued a rather deep conversation we had begun in the car.

Interupting our conversation, a new waitress arrives at the table and hands me my husbands' bacon cheeseburger saying, "aww you gonna feed the baby a wittle burwger?!" (I'm trying hard to type this the way it was said. It's proving to be difficult.) As she sets down the food at the wrong places, I'm trying to move the plates to their correct home.  Meanwhile, she puts her hand on my belly and I try hard to ignore her hoping that she will get the message that she isn't welcome to touch me.

I am looking over the order to realize that my eggs are undercooked, my hashbrowns are missing topping and aren't even crisp in the slightest.
(Note: I've never sent my food back at this Waffle House, they are usually so great. )
Still thinking about my belly rather than my food, she says, "Oh you don't like that do you??"
Her hand is still on my belly.
I point out a particularly lethargic fly sitting on the table right next to my food and she doesn't seem alarmed by it or worried that it may have been in our food. She instead asks "Oh, is it just sitting there?"
'Yeah, it isn't moving much. But how is that relavant?'- I'm thinking.

She moves on and says "I really love pregnant people..."(she has soooo overstayed her welcome at our table by this point) "...well, not their attitudes but more of their bodies. You know?"
Now I have to break it to her that my food isn't correct to the order and of course she sees it all as if I'm being cranky and demanding because I'm pregnant.
She even said "Oh I understand, you want your food, you're pregnant, I'll get it for you."

When she delievered her second attempt at my order, she asked James "That yo baby?" My verbal filter was really struggling to continue working at this point so I said something like "Of course he is, who else would I be out with?" I was so uncomfortable and could no longer enjoy the meal I was so looking forward to. The comments she made made me so frustrated that even though I never got my order completely corrected, I just shoveled my food in and gave my husband the bill and coupons and headed for the car where I couldn't say anything rude to her.

As I'm bolting for the door she looks up from a table shes cleaning across the room and asks "how were those hashbrowns for you, preggers?" Really? REALLY?!

I get mad just thinking about the way she talked to us but I just couldn't think of a way to handle it without getting unnecessarily rude back with her so I left without ever addressing the problem with her.
She was so far out of line to speak to me that way, ask about my personal business, and touch my body. I can't believe that people aren't raised better than that but not everyone had my momma. :)
I am just glad she is a stranger.
I will hopefully not encounter her again.
But in case I do, I'm enrolling in Ju Jitsu. ;)