Did she really just say that?

When I was riding the train back from Paris last month I sat next to a woman whose nationality shall remain anonymous (and no she wasn't French or Dutch). After a few minutes we began talking and she told me I needed to read the book "French Women Don't Get Fat." Those of you who know me, know that I've always struggled with my weight, having lost about 90 pounds from the time I finished high school until the time I finished college - and I could still stand to lose some more. Needless to say, I wondered if she was just raving about the book or if it was a pointed comment. The answer soon revealed itself to me.

An hour after the journey started, our conversation had long since passed. I got up to get my luggage and she looked at me and said "Yes, you do need to lose a bit of weight - but you're not as fat as most Americans I meet."

I wasn't quite sure how to take the comment. Was I supposed to be flattered by her "compliment?" The kicker is that she gave me her number at the end of the trip and told me if I was ever in Paris, that I should call her.

I put enough pressure on myself in life without hearing it from strangers, so somehow I think I'll pass on her invite. Seriously. What are people thinking when they make these comments? I laugh about it now, but geez. And they say Americans are blunt. Oh well. The story makes great fodder for cocktail parties :-)