This morning I had to get out early.  I had things to do and I needed to be home by 8:00

So I was at a Surf Bagel in Lewes by 6:30 to drop something off and get the Sumstine ladies bagels.  Then I needed to get air in one of my tires, so I went to WaWa and did that and got a cup of coffee.  Then I went to Home Depot to get some lumber.  And I was out of there by 7:30.

So I hit 3 different retail places and was on my way home by 7:30.

At all three places, I was greeted with a, “How are you?”.

Which is fine.

It was kind and courteous and said in a friendly manner where my presence was acknowledged.

But was it genuine?

Did they really want to know “how I was”?  Or was it just something they said?

Something they said to everyone.

The second I completed the transaction, did they really care how I was?

I think not.

It then occurred to me as I drove home, that I needed to switch things up.

From now one, I’m not going to say, “How are you?”.

Because lets be honest, I really only care about the response maybe, what, 10-15% of the time?

So you do know what that means, right?

It means when I ask you, “How are you?”, that means that to you, I actually genuinely care about your response and about your well-being.

So I need to some up with something else to say.

Something new.

No more disingenuous, “How are yous” greeting to random people.

Here are some that I have some up with:

1 How did you sleep last night?  But that might seem too invasive, plus if I’m meeting them in the early evening or even late afternoon, that question might be moot.

2 Do you like celery?

3 What’s your favorite dining utensil?

4 Can you drive a stick shift?

5 Which shoe do you put on first?

6 Don’t you hate it when you bite your tongue?

7 What’s up with that low tide yesterday?  That one will make them think.  If they respond with an acknowledgement that something was amiss with the low tide yesterday, then it would mean they are along for the ride.

I’m still coming up with alternatives. 

Please, feel free to share any random greetings you might have.

• That Guy