Your most embarrassing moment

[random numbers]

Anyone ever tried the fall down, get up, and do a big sweeping, theatrical bow? Does that help with the trip and fall in public?

Most of my falls are when I'm alone, but there was a mis-judged the curb thing once....
I just stood up and pretended it never happened.

[Onyx_TKD]

2)  At university going to class which was at the bottom of a very steep hill just off campus I stepped off the path to let a couple of people by and ended up sliding all the way to the bottom of the hill.   My professor made that one worse by asking me if I was okay before he started the lecture.

Sounds like you just found more efficient way of getting to class! Maybe you should have started bringing a toboggan and made that your normal route.

[Shakira]

I have to say, this thread does make me feel better about my embarassing moments...at least we all know we're not alone!

A couple years ago, my very best friend and her husband had their first child. She was very excited and told DH and me that their children would call us Aunt and Uncle. They planned on having him dedicated to their church a couple months after his birth, and as his honorary aunt and uncle, she asked if we would come too.

Sunday morning, we sat in the pew with her and her husband. The pastor called for the parents and grandparents to come forward for the dedication. They all got up and stepped forward. Then the pastor looked at DH and me (I thought), and said "why don't the aunt and uncle come forward as well?" Unbeknownst to us, my friend's brother and his wife (the actual aunt and uncle) had sat down in the pew behind us. My friend's mother turned toward us (I thought) and said "come on guys, come up!"

So DH and I are all excited and bound up front with all their family...and my best friend is shaking with suppressed laughter. By the time I figured out what was going on, it was too late to reverse my actions. She grabbed my hand and we did stay up there for his dedication, which was sweet of her. Her whole family, who has known me for several years, thought it was just HILARIOUS.

Wow, every time she has a baby though I'll have to relive that one!

[bansidhe]

Anyone ever tried the fall down, get up, and do a big sweeping, theatrical bow? Does that help with the trip and fall in public?

I have - complete with shouting "Ta da!" That was when I fell at work in front of people I know, however. I haven't tried it when falling in front of complete strangers. Yet. 

[bansidhe]

I just remembered this story from the pre-cell phone and GPS days. At a former job, a whole bunch of us went to a resort in the foothills for some special luncheon and meeting. I carpooled with Diane, which in retrospect was a bad choice as neither of us has any sense of direction.

We made it to the resort, but next had to locate the clubhouse/restaurant where luncheon was being held. This was a separate building from the main resort. We got lost, then more lost, then hopelessly lost and ended up driving around in the foothills, up and down and around and around and sometimes in circles, for some time.

Finally we found someone who gave us directions and made it to our destination. Everyone else had long since arrived, of course, and were seated in a large meeting room in the restaurant. When we walked in they all burst into applause - and laughter. The room had a huge, floor-to-ceiling window looking out onto the foothills and they'd been watching us drive around and around the whole time.

[Debbie506]

One of many -

DH's uncle's funeral.  DH was a pallbearer and went early with other pallbearers.  Funeral was in a nearby city I didn't know at all. I drove down with two other family members who also didn't know nearby city well.  We got to the funeral home about an hour early and decided to go get a bite to eat.  I didn't want to get lost, so we literally drove six blocks up the street and found a fast food place.  Unfortunately, none of us realized that due to one-way streets and other factors, getting back to the funeral home was not a point A to point B trip.  We ate and then spent forever trying to get back to the funeral home. We would spot it "over there" but couldn't get off the four-lane highway to actually get "over there".  When we finally arrived the funeral was well in progress, with the doors closed.  I was initially too mortified to go in, but my neice had more spine and just walked in and sat down with family, so I did too. 

That is the first and last time I will ever arrive late and interupt a funeral.

[Hmmmmm]

The thread about annoying ring tones reminded me of this. Not my Most embarrassing but it was extremely embarrassing at the time.

About 6 -7 years ago, my new cell phone allowed you to download ringtones and assign specific rings to different people. My DS thought it was fun and I didn't care if he changed them, so often found myself not even realizing it was my phone ringing.

I was out of town on business at meetings on contract re-negotiations with a business partner.  The negotiations were not going well, the lawyers on both sides were starting to use words like "fraudulant" and "failure to comply".  Around mid day of our third day, things had become pretty heated. Our lawyer asked me to step out of the confernce room with him for a quick discussion and I left my cell on the confernce table.  When we walked back in, everyone was laughing (including my boss) because my phone was playing AC/DC's "Shook Me All Night Long".  The fact it was my husband calling brought some to tears of laughter.

The good thing was it was a much needed break from the tension. But for the next hour, no one in that room could direct a question to me without a grin on his or her darn face. And any attempts to try and explain my son's actions just made them turn into giggling pre-teens.

[Waterlight]

You can't tell us that without telling us WHO, Winterlight!

Actually, it's Waterlight, no relation to Winterlight (at least none I know of).   

If you're REALLY interested, please message me.  He is well-known in sci-fi television, not so much in other areas.  He had a major role on Star Trek: Enterprise, and a recurring role on Stargate Atlantis.

[GreenEyedHawk]

You can't tell us that without telling us WHO, Winterlight!

Actually, it's Waterlight, no relation to Winterlight (at least none I know of).   

If you're REALLY interested, please message me.  He is well-known in sci-fi television, not so much in other areas.  He had a major role on Star Trek: Enterprise, and a recurring role on Stargate Atlantis.

Ack, sorry! 

[Waterlight]

Anyone ever tried the fall down, get up, and do a big sweeping, theatrical bow? Does that help with the trip and fall in public?

Most of my falls are when I'm alone, but there was a mis-judged the curb thing once....
I just stood up and pretended it never happened.

One thing that has worked for me--since I'm a major coffee addict--is laughing it off and saying "See what happens when I haven't had my coffee?"

[bansidhe]

That is the first and last time I will ever arrive late and interupt a funeral.

Oh boy...that brought up a long-forgotten memory. I was also late to a funeral. It was for my friend's father and I got quite lost on the way to the church then when I finally found my way, was held up by a traffic accident. It was kind of a comedy of errors only it wasn't very funny. I walked into the church just before the procession up the aisle started (it was a Catholic funeral - not sure if they're all like that) and was the recipient of quite the dirty look from the giant, scary Irish priest. 

[Julian]

Oh dear, all these 'late to funerals' tales have had me searching Youtube for the Dave Allen sketch where the corpse was late to his own funeral...

half an hour later, I'm still sitting here watching old Dave Allen sketches and laughing like a loon.

Sigh...  haven't found the one I was looking for though!

[Bijou]

I like to watch the program Pawn Stars.  My son likes flea markets and the like. 
One evening my husband and I went to a pizza place.  While we were there my son and his family, including his out of town FIL, whom we have met only two or three times and the FIL's wife, whom we had never met, came in.  They all sat at a table across from us and we were all chatting.  I asked my son if he watches Pawn Stars, but it came out "Porn Stars".  I didn't realize my  mistake until the snickers started and my son feigned being horrified and indignant.  Boy, did I feel stupid.  I guess it's one thing to ask a friend if they watch porn stars but quite another to ask your own son such an indelicate question. 

[Kaora]

I'm pretty immune to embarrassment now, I need to be.  I'm klutzy.

In recent memory, I think my most embarrassing moment was deciding that the sliding glass door, on a house my parents were being shown by realtors, was open/didn't exist and walked right into it!  A huge thunk later and a chorus of everyone asking if I was alright, and I proved to be fine.

Or, the time I was in an improv troop and misspoke.  The skit we were practicing, so not infront of an audience, was the newscaster one, like you see on Whose Line, where you have an anchorman, the host and the weatherman.  I was once the weatherman, and misspoke.  I intended, "Bugs Bunny was beat up by Elmer Fudd last weekend," and ended up saying, "Bugs BUnny was knocked up by Elmer Fudd last weekend..."

I also once waltzed around Death Valley in a pair of sandals.  I thought it was a good idea; no one told me we were also going to climb the Trona Pinnacles and hike through Darwin Falls, where I promptly slipped in the river and got smattered in mud.  At least its my family, who know I'm a walking disaster...

[Jocelyn]

In January, I went out to lunch with a colleague. Walking back to our car, I stepped on something. My left foot pivoted to the left, but my shoe didn't. Which caused me to pitch forward. I grabbed my colleague's arm as if I planned to hurl her to the ground so I'd have a safe place to land. Fortunately, she was wearing a down coat, so even though I grabbed her hard enough to sprain my own thumb, I didn't do her any injury, and she was able to stay on her feet.  It was bad enough that it happened in front of people, but it would have been even more embarrassing if I'd dragged both of us down.