It's okay to say No.

Yesterday I went to the gym. Again. I know, yay for me! But hold your applause, because I do not really deserve it. You see, after the gym I ate doughnuts. I think (and this is just a theory here) that I am sabotaging my body's fitness by eating junk food. Just maybe.

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When I retrieved my kids from the gym nursery, I asked about bringing the kids I babysit there on occasion. Their parents are also members, so I was wondering how it would work if I brought them - we pay with punch cards, and I wanted to know how I would go about getting them a punch card for me to use. Well, the lady in charge of the nursery said, "We discourage that kind of thing. But you've got to do what you've got to do."

So I took that to mean, We don't want other people to do that, but you totally can. We'll let you.

But, I know that what she was really saying is, No, you can't do that, but there is no official rule against it. I just don't want to offend you by saying so.

So why didn't she just come out and say that? I am getting a little tired of people dancing around what they really want to say, and trying to be polite instead. I'm all for politeness, don't get me wrong. But just hoping that I'll get what your trying to say by reading into the actual words? That's not going to work. Because? I have a hard time doing that. If you say, "It's not a problem" I think, it's not a problem. Not, it's kind of a problem, but I'm worried about saying no to you and you getting upset with me.

I'm a big girl. I can take no for an answer.

(Unless I really, really want to do it, and you tell me no. Then I'm going to whine. And whine. And whine. But only to my husband. Because he's just lucky like that.)