PHASE 2: APOLOGIZING

It went something like this:

Them: So where do you work, anyway?

Me: (grimacing) Uh . . . Walmart?

Them: Oh, uh, okay, haha . . . yeah, I heard of the place! Haha, uh . . .

By acting awkwardly, I made things awkward for others. By apologizing for myself, I forced others to apologize, too. Eventually, I realized that apologizing was a form of self-judgment in the way that hiding my job history was.