Circular Conversation…

I work in a very diverse and multi-cultural team and on many occasions someone says something and it is not immediately clear what point they are trying to get across, but you figure out a way to understand each other.  Then you have those times like I had today where you have to go and speak to someone about something for the second time.  I approached this individual and starting in by saying, ” I’m sure you remember last week when I asked….”  As I’m speaking I can see his head nodding and he is smiling but his eyes are telling me that he is completely clueless about what I’m saying.  I try again, I rephrase my question.  More nodding and smiling.  I’m thinking “this is the point where you actually speak and words come out that tell me what I need to know.”  Nothing.  Normally by now I would give up and find another way around my problem.  In this case however, this person is the only person who can help me or rather who should be able to help me.  If he does not know the answer then my problem just got much bigger.  Then those fatal words came out “leave it with me.”  Oh no, not that!  What he is really saying is “leave it with me until you forget you asked me.  That way it doesn’t matter that I don’t have a clue about what you talking about.”  In the end I walked away nodding and smiling.