Normally, I’m not easily embarrassed, but today I am and I just want to crawl into a hole every time I think about it.
Last night, my landlord stopped by unannounced to tell me that rent is going up in May. I don’t usually answer the door unless I’m expecting someone because I figure, “Hey, you should have called first or waited to be invited.” But I knew it was him, and my windows were open so he knew I was home. So I answered the door.
Here’s the scene:
I was wearing ratty pajama’s, with color treatment in my hair, and my living room’s a mess. That’s uncomfortable enough, but here’s the clincher…my Christmas tree was still up! Gah!!! The more I think about it, the harder I kick myself.
For some reason, at the time I wasn’t embarrassed at all. But I cringe every time I think about it now.
For the record, I took the tree down last night immediately after he left. There’s nothing like a little shame to get you motivated.
You have a pretty low threshold for embarassment. But maybe that’s a good thing.
I was waiting to read that you realized the ass was out in your jammies or something. I wouldn’t give it another thought. If you decide to keep your X-mas tree up 12 months a year, that’s no one else’s business.
I knew a family that for religious purposes (I’m not clear on the specifics) kept their tree up until Easter. (They did move it out to the back porch after New Years to get it out of the living room).
If questioned you could always pull that out as an excuse.
Honey. I have an animatronic sea lion with a big red bow on it in my yard, still. Also icicle lights on the porch. At least I don’t turn them on anymore.
The pizza people probably think I don’t even own any actual clothes. They only see me in my pajamas.
I hate people stopping by uninvited who aren’t close friends- landlord definitely included! I say, if you do that, you’re not allowed to hold anything you happen to see against the poor sap you interrupted! Once I was eating a powdered donut when the doorbell rang and I rushed into the bathroom to wipe my face so fed-ex guy wouldn’t know!
Meanwhile, I just took my wreath off my door a week ago. We still exist.
Oh boy, I see you didn’t ever visit the place I grew up. Not just the people, but the town itself left up giant plastic Christmas sculptures all year round. They figured that nobody would notice if they just left the lights off and, you know what, they were right at least for those of us that lived there. Women went to the supermarket in moo-moo’s with curlers, shower caps, and every manner of body treatment in the process of doing its thing.
I could take you on a personal tour of the underbelly of America that afterwards you wouldn’t be embarrassed by anything short of walking down main street with a bikini on backwards.
Were the lights turned on?
You should only be embarrassed if it fits better that way :eek:
Heh, we took down our Christmas tree last night too. Our reason? My mom is coming to visit. I just didn’t want to hear her talk about it, so I took it down. It wasn’t really bothering me otherwise. But we haven’t placed the furniture back yet, so the corner now looks kind of empty. I should put something there.
Ha! One year I still had a lighted Santa in the front yard at Easter. I put socks on his head for ears and put an Easter basket in his hand and called it good!
No embarrassment for you, little missy.
THink of it this way, the manager figured you planned it to up the “white trash” factor when you come begging to keep the rent down.
… you need to get out more …
I imagine the landlord has seen much worse.
Have you ever heard the joke about the blind man? Now that’s an embarassing situation!
I room with my landlord. Today he watched the music video for “I’m an Asshole” by Denis Leary over and over again and buzzed–not sang, not hummed, but buzzed like a bee–along with the tune loudly each time. He was wearing headphones and had no idea that I could hear him. It took all my will not to burst out laughing. I didn’t let on at the time, but later that night when he asked to borrow a couple bucks, I told him he’d earned the money with his a capella act. 
I couldn’t resist. Poor guy.
Once, a few of years ago, we actually left the Christmas lights up along the roof line for almost the entire year. (Turned off, naturally.) I’m actually ashamed of that. 
We have a device that clips them on from the ground now, so you can just pull them down without actually getting up on the roof.
A month or so ago, my apartment was in particularly bad shape. Sink overflowing with dishes, clothes all over my bedroom floor, mess everywhere. So when I got home from work, I was really embarrassed to find the note from the exterminator announcing that he’d serviced the apartment.
And THAT is why I always keep the porn hidden even when not expecting anyone.
One night I knew I was staying in for the evening and so I put on a t-shirt that a friend had given me. It was a gray shirt with two-inch-tall red letters saying, “I HATE PEOPLE.” I forgot I was wearing it when the pizza guy showed up.
It’d be much funnier if it was a real tree. Because by now, it would be more of a matter of sweeping up than taking down.
As noted, the landlord has probably seen far worse. Imagine walking in on this scene.
I’d never be able to show my face again…
You all are right. Stupid thing to feel bad about. It wasn’t the tree so much as that it’s more a 6ft symbol of laziness. Now that there’s a little distance from the moment, I’m over it. Hey, if he didn’t want to see me in my pajamas in front of a Christmas tree, he coulda called first.