Meeting New People

I must admit, at the age of 28, I still find meeting new people daunting. I don't have the most shining social skills, I feel awkward, so then I tend to be very quiet and aloof and people usually think I'm not very friendly or fun and have no inclination to get to know me better.

Well, okay, the truth is that I'm not very friendly, I don't like people and I detest people who are overfamiliar. The only people I don't really get nervous about meeting is fellow doctors. Most of them are awkward too and I feel like I can see straight through them.

It is a fact that I meet new people every single day at work, but those are patients and it's not on equal footing: I usually have their file in front of me with all of their personal info in it, I start the conversation, I can ask any question I feel is necessary and I can usually end it when I feel.

This week I met something of a South African celebrity; no one on a global scale, but he'd definitely be recognizable walking down almost any street in SA. I'm by no means a screaming fan, and I was not looking to take pictures with said celebrity or anything like that. But I was really ticked off, because when he found out I was a doctor, he called me Miranda Bailey from Grey's Anatomy!

Now, if a fellow colleague had likened me to Miranda, I would've taken it as a compliment and maybe even blushed. As a doctor she's competent, dedicated, an overachiever. I would let her treat me anyday and I'd be honoured to have her as a teacher.

But to non doctors she's scary, short and fat! That's not how I see myself. In the moment I gave a half sarcastic chuckle, like: "You're not serious..."

But I went away wondering if that's the kind of first impression I give: DON'T MESS WITH ME!! Even when I'm not trying.

Anyway, my excuse was that besides being generally awkward, I was going on 40 hours without any real sleep. That excuse always holds up!!

And today I'm in Cape Town, I think it's 33 degrees, no wind, dry. It's easy to understand how fires start on days like this! I'm off to a wedding in a little bit. The only people I know at the wedding are the bride and groom and the bride's family a little... Maybe I can start conversations using my moves on the dance floor??? ...Not very likely!