An Embarrassing Moment

Have you ever had a moment so embarrassing that you wish you could just disappear right there, right then?

I had mine today.

I had been going over five different reports written by our Netherlands and Mexican offices to ensure there was no inconsistency in the way the overlapping transactions were analyzed in the two countries for transfer pricing purposes. For those who know me well, I am more of a math person. I would usually take a longer time to analyze reports than when I am looking at numbers. So after poring through the reports for a few hours, I finally came up with my analysis. Feeling confident that I did a good analysis, I went to the manager for a discussion in a small conference room. I sat beside him.

That’s when the trouble started

GROWWWWWWWWWWLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!!!

My stomach began GROWLING almost immediately.

At first, I could just ignore it and pretend I did not hear anything. Then the sound got louder. After a few more growls, I knew it wasn’t gonna stop any time soon. I tried to conceal the sound by pressing my tummy against the table. Of course, it did not help.

With the sound so loud, I could not concentrate on my discussion at all. It was becoming too distracting. I was sure my manager could hear but was too nice to say anything. I couldn’t think straight at all; all the time thinking of bolting for the door. Somehow the few moments the manager was talking felt like eternity. Then whenever it was my turn to speak, I just babbled my way through. Several times, I wished the floor would just open up and swallow me inside. It was so embarrassing!

Finally, I apologized for the sound my tummy was making as it had become too obvious to disregard it. Then I got a most unusual response. Instead of just laughing it off, my manager said that it was his tummy that was rumbling away and not mine even though it evidently wasn’t his. How kind of him!

After that, my tummy just continued rumbling for the longest time. Funny thing was, the moment the meeting stopped, the growling ceased too. Strange but true. I am sure there wasn’t any butterfly in my stomach as I wasn’t even nervous at all.

What is your most embarrassing moment?