Lessons Learned

I learned 3 fundamental lessons today.

This morning, I realized that one of my contact lenses was badly misplaced. I searched high and low for it but that tiny piece of silicon was nowhere to be found; so I had to glumly accept the fact that it was gone. I was running late for church, so I had no choice but to go without my contacts and as a result, I was as blind as a bat today. I couldn't recognize people from afar, and it was terribly embarrassing.
Lesson One: I should never misplace my contact lenses again.


My family and I went to the mall in the afternoon and there was this free-gaming thingy going on (organized by The Orange Box company, which is a gaming device) and my brother and I just went to have a glimpse of the event. The current game was Team Fortress 2, and they had like a dozen players - 6 guys per team. The setting was like a typical Cybercafe, I guess, but I had no idea that Cybercafes were this noisy. The players all had headphones on, and they were screaming instructions into the mikes at their teammates. And then the other people who had gathered around to watch were yelling and cheering them on. Every few minutes, they would erupt into gregarious and deafening roars. I've never seen guys get so excited over a virtual game before. I used to think that football stimulates their energy and enthusiasm, but apparently they get a lot crazier when they're gaming.
Lesson Two: Nothing makes a guy crazier when he's immersed in his favorite game.


And then the big finale: I went to the optical shop with my mom to get my new pair of contact lenses. The optician said that my power for both eyes have increased =( (Dang you, computer. It's all your fault!) Anyway, there was this familiar-looking girl who was sitting beside my mom. She was a customer too and she was filling up a form. I kept thinking that I knew her because she looked so much like the girl I met in Sunway Pyramid a few weeks ago (my friend had brought her along and that was how we met. The girl's name was Shahirah, I think.). So... I told my mom:
Me: I think I know her... can you look at her form and tell me whats her name?

So my mom casually took a peek and turned back to me. "Sha..." she mouthed.
Bingo! It must be the same girl!
Excitedly, I leaned over and said, "Shahirah?"
She looked up in a daze.
Me: Hi... do you remember me? We met sometime ago in Pyramid?
Girl: Err... no... *looking confused*
She probably had like short-term memory or something, and I wasn't ready to give up because I was positive that it was her.
Me: You know Iggy, right? He introduced us that day.
Girl: Hah? Who??
And just then, her mother came over and smiled at us. "Oh, do you know each other?"
By now, I was terribly embarrassed. "Uhh... no. I... she just looked like someone I knew. That's all. Wrong person."
Her mother started laughing, and I just kept quiet. Her name wasn't Shahirah, but Sharizeen or something like that. A few minutes later, I came to a conclusion that this was probably Shahirah's sister, because they looked so alike! And her name was similar to Shahirah's. So this time, I boldly tried again.
Me: Do you have a sister?
Girl: *smiling* Oh no, I'm the only daughter.
Me: Ohh. (OH CRAP) Haha. Sorry. You just.. really look like my friend. I figured you were her younger sister or something.
Girl: It's okay.
And then the optician handed me my contact lenses and I was ready to go. I couldn't have been more relieved as I left the shop! And I flashed one last smile at the girl and her cute little mother and hurried out. I hope hope hope that I'll never bump into her again, because can you just imagine what she'll say if asked how we met?
"Oh, that Chinese girl thought I was her friend... then she thought I was her friend's sister... maybe if she stayed longer, she would've asked me if I was her friend's cousin and etc. So weird, right?"

Lesson Three: I'd better shut up and keep my thoughts to myself the next time I'm in doubt, rather than ending up in humiliation, just like today.