A devastating story of tremendous implications: I was at a coffee shop a few days ago, in my usual morning commute mode, and I wanted to get some cream. At the condiment station, there was a guy sort of taking up the whole space, but I’m pretty tall, so I just reached over him and […]
An understated and understood undoing: I can not believe I am writing this. I went to dinner at the home of a new aquaintance (sic) who is a rather eccentric artist. The food was good but wierdly (sic) prepared. Things like sweet potatoes stuffed with poached fish and salad made out of raw beets. Anyway, […]
An armed inquiry: I have several firearms in my house – two pistols, two rifles and a shotgun. I keep them all cleaned, maintained and loaded (except for the shotgun). Do I have an obligation to tell guests about them? I know some people have an objection to being in a house with guns. LISTEN: […]
A curious cat calls out for killing with: So the post earlier today made me wonder…what would be the best possible new neighbor welcome present? Homemade cookies? A pie? Liquor? And what’s with the salt?? LISTEN: I was thinking about the very same thing. What a good idea they had, even if it was dreadfully received. Let’s […]
A thwarted, generous soul inquires: A few of us go to lunch every Friday, and we stay for a while. We have wine and talk and linger…anyway, at the end of the lunch, one of our friends always grabs the bill! What can I do to politely tell him to let it go? That it’s […]
A frisky hostess asks: When invited to a dinner party that’s relatively casual with no assigned seats, where is the proper place to sit? And, what if the host/hostess states that you may sit wherever you please, are there seats that are understood to be the hosts’ seats, or are all the places at the […]
A genial inquisition: Which is worse: To let a species go extinct, or to lick your fingers at the dinner table? LISTEN: That depends – is it a formal dinner?
In the immortal words of Mr. Stephen Fry, “Well, so fucking what? A polite person will, of course, make every effort not to offend someone intentionally, but that’s where it ends. Going about in public has its own inherent risk. It could be that you see a woman breastfeeding. It could be that you see a gay […]
A concerned host notes: A few weeks ago at a dinner party, one of my friends got very sick. He kept getting up to go to the bathroom and was audibly vomiting and… worse. I really didn’t know what to do, and he wasn’t in a condition to leave for a while. I asked everyone […]
A somewhat misdirected question: What do you think about microwaves? I went to a dinner party and you could hear the *ding* of the microwave as the hosts were preparing the food. It’s disgusting. LISTEN: What do I think about microwaves? Not much, really – I don’t have the occasion to use them much as I’m […]