Ever been mortified by something you said?

Working on a hospital ward a solemn gentleman came in carrying a spectacular bouquet of flowers. "Wow! It's somebody's lucky day" I said to him. " It's old George's", he replied, "He died here last week, these are from the funeral today".

I once asked a young lady when her baby was due ...she’d already had it whoops

I was in the community centre and noticed that a man had his sleeve tucked in his pocket. Thinking he was wearing a sling "O how did you hurt your arm" I said. He gave me a sideways look and replied "I lost it in an accident 15 years ago". 40 odd years ago, but I still blush at the memory!

BlueBelle, I came unbelievably close to making the same comment to my hairdresser, who I hadnt seen for quite a long time. Something, most likely shyness, held me back, fortunately as it turned out as I later discovered that she was neither pregnant nor a recent new mother!

If only shyness had stopped the words "wow, didn't you look different" coming straight out of my mouth when a plump middle-aged woman was showing a group of us some photos of her when she was fifteen to twenty years younger!

I once joined in a conversation about dieting by saying ‘oh I couldn’t eat that fem fresh (creme fraiche)

Many years ago when I was about 18, I was trying to impress a lad I'd met at a wedding. We were stood at the edge of the dancefloor watching the drunken guests throw down their old school shapes, when I saw a really fat, sweaty, very badly dressed woman frugging away to "Stayin' Alive", I pointed out to the woman and said to the lad, "Look at her, she looks like a beached whale!". I expected him to laugh but when I turned round, his face had gone stony and he said "That's my Mum your'e talking about". I wanted to die! Needless to say, I never saw that boy again!

I've worked with many Filipino people, and always found them to be light-hearted and humorous. Asking about favorite foods would amuse him , since as he said , to them all food is good and can be eaten.They find it hilarious that we only eat certain parts of the food. I wouldn't worry at all about what he said, he would have found it funny that anyone would have a favorite food when he probably grew up eating anything and everything. I'm sure he appreciated the fact that you took time to speak to him.

stella1949 Thank you for your reassurance!

Helping out at my local pub which was hosting a wedding, I stood with the tray of welcome champagne, waiting for the bride and groom to appear. A middle-aged lady asked if she could have a glass, and I said, "Sorry - we're waiting for the bride."

"I AM the bride..............."

Red face and embarrassed apologies.

Sazz1006 the nurses still make the same mistakes!
I went to see my husband who was very very ill at the time and looked very haggard and said to me' I think your dad has had a better day today'
My husband didn't hear and I didn't correct her!

After a school residential trip I was helping parents collect up their childrens’ bags and paraphernalia. One mother had a disability - (only one hand - possibly thalidomide related) and was struggling to carry everything, so I offered helpfully “do you want a hand?”.
Oh dear!!! Mortified!

Working in a hospital I was on a ward and saw a female patient I had seen a few times previously. As usual, she had a couple of visitors at her bedside and I remarked on how popular she must be to always have people visiting. She glared at me and replied that they weren’t friends - they were prison officers. I guess I should’ve noticed the handcuffs earlier.

I very recently answered the door to find two people, a man standing behind a woman who I thought were from the Salvation Army?Jehovahs Witnesses? standing there. they asked if I was busy and I said yes I was, very sorry. No I didn't want to talk. Could they come back. No I said but I smiled sweetly and closed the door. A few hours later I got a phone call from my tutor from Uni who I had recently found me on Facebook and now lived in France. Hello I said -she said 'can we visit you? I said ,yes when?' - she said 'well, now, we are round the corner, we came earlier but you sent us away.

Not so much said as did. Son home from uni borrowed my car so was picking me up from work. Waiting for me in a pull in/turn around area near the car park. Gave him a little wave as I approached. Opened car door. Got in. Closed door. Turned round and found myself facing a complete stranger who said cheerily 'where would you like to go today madam?'. Looked out at my car which was identical colour and was parked behind and slightly overlapping car I was sitting in. My son was creased with laughter. Mortified.

I knew someone who often worked abroad. When he told someone he was going to Egypt he was asked where that was, he replied north Africa. Oh the person said my sister lives in Johannesburg maybe you'll meet her, tell her I am fine . Some people ??

Many years ago, I took my young daughter with me to a Blood donation session. Afterwards, the donors had to rest on the trolley for 10 minutes.

My daughter looked at the chap on the next trolley and said in a loud voice, "You've only got one arm!" After a few seconds deliberation, she continued, "You can't clap!"

The chap found it highly amusing and thanked me for not intervening.

I once commented to my unmarried sister in law that my daughter said I was turning into a right old spinster !

At my son in law's funeral ( in USA) the local church laid on a buffet. My daughter and I were in the queue when an unknown lady pushed in front of us saying ' family first '
At least it made my daughter smile a little.

Has anyone ever said to an overweight friend wearing a smocky kind of oufit: Congratulations! When's it due? Ouch, ouch and mega-ouch!

Thanks for this post. I’ve sat with a cuppa having a really good chuckle. Definitely brightened up my day.

Similar to anitampl I came out of a shop laden with packages and jumped into the back seat of a car at the taxi rank.
After settling myself I gave directions to the driver whose wife then appeared at the passenger side window looking mighty displeased.
I soon hopped out when he told me he wasn't a taxi, just waiting for his wife in the only parking spot he could find.

I was 14 and my uncle had come to visit accompanied by his second wife who we hadn't met before.

At the dinner table, I commented on a strange whistling sound and was mortified (my toes still curl at the thought) when Aunt Joan replied "that's my hearing aid, dear, it's on the blink". She was quite all right about it, her daughter from her first marriage was my age and had to smother her giggles, my mother sent me the kind of look that kills.

I was newly pregnant, temping as a secretary in a government department in central London. My boss was friendly and would sometime chat for 5 minutes about this and that, including his month old baby.

One day he asked me if it could possibly be really tiring looking after a new baby. My head was full of my visions of my happy baby sleeping in the cot and me taking long walks with the pram along the riverside in the sunshine and I replied that I didn’t see how it could be that hard, not as hard as getting up early to catch the bus and train into central London and work in an office all day.

7 months later, with a baby who screamed so much she was exiled to a side ward in the maternity hospital at night, I knew different and often thought of my boss’s poor tired wife and my ignorant words.

I was at a party on my own, as my husband had gone to a meeting. I was chatting to another lady on her own and said "Oh, has your husband left you as well?" She smiled sweetly, and I learnt afterwards that he had run off with the receptionist at his office.

When I was middle-aged I was talking to my best friend about another woman. I said "she's still got long hair and she's our age". I could have bitten my tongue off as my friend had long hair. I wanted to say that her hair was lovely and she suited it, but no words would have helped.

A friend and I were clothes shopping many years ago. As I picked out a rather lovely dress she said 'that will look good on you - it would look common on me but it would suit you' > I think she was trying to say the right thing but it all came out wrong. I just let it go.