Der

I must begin this post with the claim that I am not an idiot. I may be a little air-headed on occassion, but I'm not an imbecile.

It was Friday night, it was close to closing time, and a three top came into the restaurant. I was busy with another table at the time, so the bartender sat them and took their order for me (he's always a huge help). The party consisted of two guys and a girl-they ordered soup and salads. Since the bartender had taken their order, the first contact I made with them was when I brought the soup to the table.

As I set the soup down, one of the gentlemen asked me, "You don't by any chance have any matzah do you?"

Now, before I tell you my response, I have to add that he had a straight face and that I am not well versed in Jewish culture. Also, it was the end of the night, I was tired and busy, and I knew it would be a while before I could go home. My brain was slightly fried.

So, I looked at him quizzically, because quite frankly I had no idea what he meant, and said (get ready this is good!), "Mozzarella?"

As soon as the word was out of my mouth I wanted to suck it back in. Der. MATZAH!
The gentleman just uttered "nevermind" and I joked, "oh, that, no we don't have any".

Needless to say there were no more jokes (he was indeed joking), as I walked away I heard some commiserating laughter and a "Whew!" As in, "BOY did that fly over her head!"

I really dislike looking like a fool. So, two lessons were learned:

Lesson 1: I need to become more informed about the rituals of cultures that are unlike my own.
I've researched the need for matzah at Passover, the not using leavening, and the historical reasons for this, so at the very least I've gained a little knowledge due to my embarassment. I firmly believe in learning from one's mistakes, and try to do so.

Lesson 2: Think before you speak, woman!
This is a concept I have been working on for as long as I have been able to speak. There have been numerous occassions over the course of my life where I have had to pry my foot out of my mouth. This event was just another friendly reminder to process information before succumbing to the need to open my big mouth.