PUBLIC APOLOGY For Being Rude

Face blindness. What has it got to do with FROG you may ask? Well absolutely nothing, yet for me EVERYTHING!

Have I ever passed you by in the street or perhaps the supermarket and given you a blank stare? Or maybe I’ve smiled politely at you, searching your face for a clue and then passed on by? You probably thought I was being rude, and rightly so, but you see there is so much more to this story!

This post has been a long time in the making….I’ve toyed with how to approach the subject and then figured it was such a random post that I gave up on the idea numerous times. But I’ve hit a point now where I just need to write this so that those who will read it might understand….

People say they are bad at remembering names; well I am too on some level. But recognizing people’s faces is where I fail the most. Somehow that part of my brain just doesn’t fire quite the way it is meant to, and I’ve been doing it all my life. My earliest memory is from when I was about 5. My dad shaved off one side of his mustache as a joke, and I couldn’t spot it- even with my whole family laughing and hinting that something was different about him… it took me ages to notice it!!!! And since then I have got progressively worse, yes old age is catching up on me and its getting me into some serious pickles!

So this is my official apology to all of you out there, who I may have passed by unknowingly… it’s not you, it’s me!

FROG is a tricky little business for me to run with my crappy facial recognition. Most of it is done online, and so many of you I have never met. For those of you who I may cross paths with- it may only be for a brief chat which makes it a real struggle for me! Whilst we’re having a chat about your box, or the weather out on the front step I am usually busily trying to lock in some special part of you so that I may recognize you later on- and frustratingly I’m not good at that part either!

I never knew what was wrong with me, until I Doctor Googled it after seeing a documentary on TV about it (laugh if you will- but I don’t do doctors unless I am on my deathbed- and so far I’ve never quite got there- so DR Google is my savior!). There are obviously varying degrees of it, and I know that many of you can relate to parts of my story, but I can assure you that I am seriously ULTRA CRAP at it (ULTRA CRAP being my own personal diagnosis- let’s not get all technical about stuff OK?!). The amount of embarrassing moments I have had over the course of my life lead me to believe that DR Google and I have made an accurate diagnosis at ULTRA CRAP level.

But my brain function isn’t all that crap. Looking on the bright side, if you tell me your name, I can probably tell you exactly what you order, where you collect from, and your ordering frequency, plus a whole heap of other useless information! Yep that side of life I have down pat- however it’s not very helpful when I’m out and about buying my groceries!

I’ve been honest with you in the past about my issues with anxiety. Well I can tell you that my lack of facial recognition skills definitely adds a massive pile of extra anxiety onto me- especially living in a small town where we are all bound to bump into one-another at some point! My FROG customers are the most important thing to me, and just thinking about the fact that I may have passed you by and ignored you fills me with dread! I long for the day when I am brave enough to wear a badge that says 'FACE BLIND (not being a rude b*tch I promise!)'

So please! Next time we cross paths, if I give you a blank stare, please call out and say G’day! I’m not being rude, and I really would love to talk to you!