Friends and Relations

Earlier this week I attended an impromptu seminar for the department. Since I'm not teaching this term, I was available to attend and I felt it would be a good opportunity to meet a few of the professors I have not taken a class from yet.

At the beginning of the seminar, the department chair introduced the speaker and then asked each of us in the audience to introduce ourselves. After I introduced myself, the chair added, "And Robb is related to another of our PhD students, Kimberly." And then the next student went on to introduce herself.

And I was left thinking, "I sure hope no one gets the impression that Kimberly and I are any sort of relation except husband and wife." And later than evening, when I related the seminar experience to Kimberly (who was working during the seminar), I mentioned my same question.

Kimberly replied, "Oh don't worry. Everyone knows that I'm married. No one would ever mistake us for brother and sister."

I shrugged my shoulders. "I guess you're right. But part of me thinks that I should have said something."

The next day, Kimberly was heading to one of her classes when one of her professors stopped her in the hallway. "Kimberly, how are you? Oh - I met your brother yesterday."

She was confused for about half a second, and then she thought, "Oh dear. Robb was right." And she had to go on to explain that her brothers are not PhD students. And they do not live in this state. And they do not share the last same name as her. And that the man he met was her husband.

"Oh - of course," he sheepishly said. "How silly of me." And yet, so predictable.