You never know what people are thinking...

So when my husband and I got married we hyphenated our last names. So my work changed all my stuff--name plates, business cards etc. I have pretty close relationships with a lot of my clients and whenever my orientation comes up I let it come up so a lot of them know. With some people though we just don't talk a lot about personal stuff and so with some people it hasn't come up. Well, apparently the only time you change your last name in the US is when you get married, pretty much if you think about it only when you marry a man. So I've had a lot of conversations lately. I kind of thought everyone knew before. Apparently I was wrong--but now they do. Everyone has been wonderful and congratulatory.

The other day I had one of my clients in that I hadn't seen for a while. I was a little concerned because she is older and very Catholic and I felt like it hadn't come up before. So anyway she immediately noticed the name change and her face just lit up. "Oh my, did you get married?" she asked. I responded that I had just a few weeks ago. She excitedly asked how long I've been with her. I responded that actually I had been with him for almost 18 years.

Her response wasn't exactly what I thought it would be. She loudly exclaimed: "Oh thank God." When I looked confused she explained. Apparently a couple times over the years she had asked me if I was married and I had said I wasn't--in my defense, I wasn't. Anyway apparently she had spent all that time worrying about me. I was such a nice young man. It was such a shame I was all alone in the world. I'd make such a good husband for someone. All of that. Apparently it really distressed her. And now in one fell swoop she found that not only was I married but I'd never really been alone to begin with. She was absolutely ecstatic.

I guess you just never really know what people are thinking until you give them the opportunity to tell you...