A Social Butterfly I Am Not.

Today for lunch one of my coworkers and I decided to go to the Campus Center to eat and do a little shopping. After eating at Mamma Leone's (well, I ate at Mamma Leone's - my coworker decided to get sushi instead), we went to Barnes & Noble. Now, the Barnes & Noble in the Campus Center is not the same size as a standard Barnes & Noble, but it does have a fairly decent selection. With this in mind, I decided to look for the book Miracle Girls by Anne Dayton and May Vanderbilt, which I have sporadically searched for since it was released in September 2008 (and have obviously been unable to find). I am a huge fan of chick lit, and while this particular book falls under that category, it has religious undertones, so it is found in the Christian fiction section of the bookstore.

When I got to the appropriate section of the bookstore, there was a girl sitting in the isle looking at a book. I didn't think anything of it, and went on the search for Miracle Girls. Before I knew what was happening, the girl began speaking to me, causing me to promptly break out in a sweat. She asked me about the book I was searching for, which of course I could only tell her the title and author, having completely forgotten what the book was about (what can I say, I have a never-ending list of books I want to read). She then asked me if I was a student and a part of any campus ministry, and I told her I had graduated from college but worked on campus.

At this point, I had been unable to find Miracle Girls, so the girl suggested a different book and found it on the shelf, handing it to me and giving me a description of the plot. I skimmed the inside cover of the book, and then thanked the girl and said I would keep the book in mind. Feeling sufficiently awkward (and not to mention needing to get back to work), I excused myself, but not before asking the girl's name and telling her it was nice to meet her (I do have at least some manners - and her name was Caroline, in case you were wondering).

Immediately afterwards, I began thinking about my 30 Before 30 List, specifically number 27 - Hold a conversation with a stranger. I think I need to develop certain criteria for this particular item, because I am always turning to Brent (or in this case, my coworker) and asking, "Does that count as holding a conversation with a stranger?" Thus far, the answer I have received has always been a resounding "No." So I have to ask, what exactly should completing this particular item on my list entail?

It really is a shame I am so awkward in social situations, because if I hadn't been so nervous and shy, I could have been on my way to completing another item on my list as well, number 30 - Make a new friend (one not connected to someone I already know). All I would have had to say is, "It was really nice meeting you Caroline and I would love to continue this conversation, but I have to get back to work. How about we exchange email addresses?" I mean, Caroline seemed like an extremely nice person. How hard would it have been to say that?

Damn my tendency to flee as quickly as possible in the opposite direction of anything remotely social.