[ back ]
'Oops' can thaw brain freezes
(by Barbara Christian - January 11, 2012)
WINDOW ON MAIN STREET, BY BARBARA CHRISTIAN
'Oops' can thaw brain freezes
Brain freeze. No, not the headache you get from eating ice cream too fast but the embarrassing brain freeze you get when your mind goes blank in front of a lot of people and you realize your gray matter is not going to retrieve whatever it was you were about to say.
We've all suffered moments like these. For instance, I won't soon forget the time I attempted to introduce my sister to someone and forgot her name. OK, she was just married, and I drew a blank, but still. The five seconds between, "Hi, I'd like to introduce you to my sister Carole ..." and finally coming up with her last name was excruciating.
My brain freeze was in front of just one person who has likely forgotten that moment. Now, imagine the agony of standing in front of an audience and going blank -- an audience which includes dozens of cameras and recording devices which immortalized your blank moment forever?
Few of us have ever had to suffer a long, nightmarish lapse as publicly as did presidential hopeful Rick Perry. It came during a recent debate when the poor man couldn't think of the last of the three government departments he would do away with if he were king of the land.
When no one came to his aid to provide the elusive third department, the governor of Texas charmingly drawled the only thing that came to mind. "Oops!" he said. You would be heartless not to empathize.
Brain freeze we found is contagious, because a week or so later another candidate, Herman Cain, lost his train of thought in front of the televised meeting of the editorial board of a major newspaper. Some astute observer clocked Mr. Cain's interlude somewhere north of 60 seconds.
It's not just the presidential hopefuls from one political party who are prone to numb mindedness. President Barack Obama is not an off-the-cuff kind of guy and almost always depends on a teleprompter to get his words out in the proper order and without epic silences.
Then, of course, there is his gaffe-prone vice president, Joe Biden, who does noting but speak off the cuff, to the delight of those of us who enjoy a candid moment and colorful phraseology.
Brain freeze. Even us mere mortals have been known to succumb to it. In fact, it happened to one fellow mortal just last week during Chagrin Falls Village Council's first meeting of the year and swearing-in ceremonies.
Doing the oath-of-office honors was state Rep. Marlene Anielski. She nearly designated all seven elected officials answerable to the citizens of Walton Hills.
A few seconds passed before someone stage whispered, "Chagrin Falls." Mrs. Anielski, a former mayor of Walton Hills, recovered, did not miss a beat and explained her former position and force of habit. When she gave the oath of office to Mayor Tom Brick, the representative emphatically stated he would be serving "the village of Chagrin Falls."
Mrs. Anielski is not the first to misidentify her location. Many years ago, the then-council president forgot where he was and called to order the Chagrin Falls chapter of Royal Arch Masons.
Ah, yes, to err is human, to forgive divine, but the best anecdote to brain freeze is to smile and say, "Oops."
[ back ]
