I think it was a cultural misunderstanding. The words “big fat” sound as though they were written by someone who is not a native English-speaker, and for whom, quite possibly, those words do not carry any negative associations.

And why even bother taking such a trivial incident to the media?

And those instructions referred to me throughout, a dozen times or more, as “the fat woman.” As in “the fat woman will signal you whether to play another verse.” I had known this organist for quite a while, and there was only one other singer up there, so he could’ve called me “the redheaded woman,” or “the woman on the right,” or even (gasp!) my name.

I only saw the instructions by accident, when the fill-in organist left them behind, and I actually thought it was pretty funny. But I can see how a more sensitive soul would’ve really had their feelings hurt by it.

So I wouldn’t necessarily be upset if someone described me as “big fat,” particularly after I’d refused to give my name. But it is pretty damn direct, and I can see as how it would bother someone.

Of course, without more information about the service station attendant it’s impossible to know for sure one way or the other. But given America is a melting-pot of different cultures it’s certainly a possible explanation.