Tuesday, September 6, 2011

"how are you?" "good"

sometimes when people ask me, "how are you?" i try to answer as honestly as possible. for instance, if i'm really tired i respond, "pretty tired, but i'm hanging in there". so today when i was at work, a client says, "hi kim! how was your day?" i say, "my day was a little crazy but it's going well thank you" :) later on, a co-worker of mine asks me, "so besides your day being a little crazy, how are you?" all i could muster up for a response was, "good". really kim? after a moment's pause and a sigh all i could say was "good"? the one-word-generic-answer that everyone uses. even when they're honestly doing well or when they're not. the one thing i did not want to fall into--the thoughtless, generic, i-don't-have-time-to-talk-because-i-have-to-get-back-to-work, answer----"good". but frankly, things were good! i wasn't lying. i wasn't deliberately being vague. my life has just finally reached that point where nothing exciting or new has happened or is coming up. things were....well, good. sure, this could be a post that screams, "you're over-reacting, kim! don't make a big deal out of this!" but i honestly want to be upfront and real with people. especially when they take the time out of their day to find out how i'm doing. they didn't have to make small talk, but they did and because of that the least i could do is respond sincerely. the courtesy and consideration of communication among people is very important. i feel like people are so rude or impersonal these days, its really sad! 

WARNING::rabbit-trail::
 yesterday i was shopping with some friends in noho, i didn't buy much. just one cute owl coaster. and the cashier asks me, "would you like your receipt printed or emailed to you?" my friend & i were surprised. we even giggled at the idea, "wait, what? you email receipts now?" he says, "yeah, it makes returns really easy now". wow, our culture has become so electronically run that we can't even return something face to face anymore--sure convenience is a huge issue. but i meet some of the neatest people when i go out of my comfort zone.

OKAY, back to my previous thought::

so, if you see me get irritated when i am talking with someone who is so engrossed in their phone or computer more than me, to the point that our conversation is made up of several one word answers and desperately asked open-ended questions. sure, the timing could be off, they could be in a non-talkative mood, or they just want to get rid of me (haha), but my point is, when i ask, "how are you" or someone else asks me that, a thoughtful and genuine response would be nice once in a while. because frankly, its because i would really like to know HOW YOU'RE DOING. :)