Long Goodbye
This is going to make me sound socially retarded but here goes; I've always hated it when it's time to leave extended family gatherings or any other social occasion that my parents have dragged me to over the years, where I don't know the people involved very well... and it's not because I don't want to go!

Nope, it's down to the prickley kiss goodbye from an aged and unfortunately bearded great-aunt, an embrace from a distant uncle or that horrible kiss on each cheek thing (which I've always found cringeworthy in itself- you can barely get away with it if you actually are French, for god's sake!) favoured by pretentious colleagues of my Mum's.

Which brings me nicely to a few weeks ago when it came to saying goodbye to a cousin who I'd previously not seen for four or five years. I lent in to give him a hug goodbye, he seemed to be going for a peck on a cheek- you know when you bump into someone on that street and you both do that funny little dance to try and get past each other (ooo another cringeworthy experience!)? It seemed to happen like that... only with our heads. I think he thought I was trying to pucker up for some sort of hideous cousin snog!

Why oh why can't we go back to the Victorian times where a simple handshake or wave was completely acceptable as opposed to an unwelcome personal space invasion by people we barely know?!
(Ella Mentree, Sat 29 Nov 2008, 16:44, 2 replies)

i get that with people who i barely know
but in a different way,

we go to shake hands and there's always some confusion whether we're gonna do a classic handshake, or the one where the back of your thumb is gripped by the other person (street styl).

what always happens is we choose different handshake styles and end up spakking out with our hands as we both adapt to the others choice
( weaver., Sat 29 Nov 2008, 17:08, closed)

Fail 5 / Hi Fail
...A fail five, or hi-fail, is amusing and difficult to get wrong. Breaks the ice at nerdy parties
(Snake (on a) Crane FKA thwack, Sat 29 Nov 2008, 17:49, closed)