it is known to anyone who knows me even a little bit that I do not enjoy my person space being invaded by people I don’t know or don’t like. Some people are huggers, some are close talkers, some people are touchers and to all of them I say PLEASE! Arms length PLEASE!

Mario and I went to the LA Fitness by our house the other night so I could see about membership and the cost of training and such. I asked the girl at the front desk if I could talk to someone about personal training and I swear I thought she was going to cry with happiness when I said it and she said, “oh I am so happy, I am the person in charge of the trainers” which is funny because she looks about 20. Anyway, she swooped around the front desk and I swear I thought she was going to hug me. I reflexively backed away yet she insisted in maintaining her distance inside my personal space bubble.  I inched back and during the course of conversation was able to get back to a comfortable distance.

So our time at the gym went on, we talked to one guy about the membership, there was wheeling and dealing, and then the close talking girl came back to work out the details about the training.  In the end I signed up for a membership and training sessions.  I paid and signed my life away and we finished the transaction.  As we ended all of this and were getting ready to leave, the trainer lady was sort of behind me and after handshaking with the gym manager over the general membership, she got me.  This time she actually hugged me!  As she was leaning down to do so I just started trying to get smaller and started saying “i am not a hugger, not a hugger, I am not a hugger”  (this was my tense, what are you doing, i don’t like this but am trapped here voice of course).  To this she replied, “Oh I like hugs, I used to be a gymnastics coach and I loved getting hugs from all my students.”  HELLOOOOOO do I look like an 8 year old little girl?  Is this not a business that you are running?  Not professional.  I just gave them a bunch of money, the least they could do was grope me without my permission.

Mario of course thinks this is no big deal.  “We hug in AA all the time, whats the big deal?”  Well I can tell you one thing, I would be finding a non-hugging meeting if I were in AA cause it would still not be ok with me.  Family, thats one thing.  Close friends you haven’t seen thats another thing.  But strangers???? No.  Not ok at all.

I will be having my training orientation with this woman.  Dear god I hope she doesn’t try to hug me again.  I wonder if there is a space on the form to specify that I would like a trainer who does not equate me to an 8 year old child, and also does not feel the need to hug it out at the end of a session.  Dear god I hope so…  Wish me luck…