"Recouping"

You know when you hear someone say something to you, and your brain registers the words and they're talking perfectly loud enough, but somehow, you just don't have any idea what they're talking about? Normally when that happens, most of us will say "What?" and then the person repeats what they just said. If you're lucky, you'll actually understand what they said that time, but every now and then, they'll say it again and you'll still not even have a vague idea of what it is they're trying to communicate.
Human beings have this wonderful trait. We will do anything to keep from looking stupid in front of one another. Unfortunately, a guy named Murphy came along and set up this law. This wise-guy decided that whatever it is we don't want to happen, will inevitably happen. Therefore, any attempt to save face we make will just make us look even more idiotic. Often to a point beyond repair.
Just such a tragic instance occured this afternoon, when I happened to run into one of my proffesors on my way to somewhere important. I gave an obligatory wave and he replied with "Hey, kiddo! What's going on?" (Don't you love it when proffesors talk like young uns?) I said "Not much" as I continued down the hall in the opposite direction. He called after me "That doesn't sound like you!" meaning that he knows I'm a busy person, so it's unusual for me to have not much going on. But I heard his comment and was really confused by it. I had no idea what he was talking about! What, was my voice different? Was my reply somehow out of character? I said "What?" and even when he repeated himself, I was no less perplexed. So, not wanting him to know how lost I was, I came up with an answer that made sense to me and said "Yeah, my nose is kinda stuffy" and continued down the hall. Then, and only then did I realize what my proffessor was talking about.
There's simply no way to recover from something like that. And this was my Communications proffessor! I would like to know exactly what went through his head upon hearing me say "Yeah, my nose is kinda stuffy." Actually that's a lie. I don't want him to remember the incident.
In most cases when you do stupid things, you can do a little "recouping" (in the words of Mr. T). In a situation involving things you say, there's nothing you can do. You just gotta walk, my friend. All you can do is walk.

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"Recouping"