Dr. Feelgood

Two girls run into each other at a store. The first girl, who immediately spots her friend, walks over a few steps to say, with her eyes beaming, "Hey! Nice skirt!"

The other girl, after reciprocating the greeting with another "hey!", goes on to say, "Nice..", as she affectionately rubs the other girl's upper arm, quickly realizing that her friend is wearing a rather plain-looking shirt. Catching herself from her imminent social faux pas, she stops short and quickly gives her friend a 2-second onceover, struggling to find a piece of clothing to focus on that looks distinctive enough to merit a not-so-obviously fake compliment.

"...pants," she finally stammers.

"Oh, thanks," her friend says with a smile.

It's amazing to see how much we humans (or should I say - and correct me if I'm wrong - women?) value the need to make other people feel good, regardless of whether we really mean it or not.

So you don't like her shirt. Or her pants, or her shoes, or - God forbid - her hair. Don't stall like a deer caught in headlights searching for something to compliment her on that she couldn't possibly interpret as being downright fake, just move on and talk about the weather.

That's what I do.