This posting will be painful for some of you, but necessary. Please try to remember that what does not kill you just might make you stronger. At least, it will enlighten you. Ignorance might be bliss but it isn’t if you step on the toes of another person. You’ve received an invitation. You’ve studied it for hours. The invitation does not list your child by name nor does it mention that children are invited. The invitation may be in written form or verbal; it does not matter. The rules apply for each scenario. What do you do? In the midst of your bewilderment you will recall these words: THEY ARE NOT INVITED. You are now plotting… You are considering bringing your bundle of joy,…
Posts by K. Martini
I’m self-appointing myself a C.O.P. (Cellphone Opposition Policewomen). I don’t have a badge yet but this is the mental picture I have of myself. I recently returned from a business trip where the business took five hours and the time spent in the airport, 14 hours. There is nothing glamorous about business travel. What awaits the weary business traveler is bad food, long lines, security checkpoints, erect nap times and personal space invasions. I can muddle through all of these with a minimum amount of whining. What I cannot seem to overcome however, is my hypersensitivity to cell phone usage in the airport. This cannot be overstated. I personally chose to carry a regular cell phone. It is not a smartphone. It does not…
Elizabeth Taylor once said “It’s not the having, it’s the getting“. Liz and I were not besties but I’m sure she was alluding to the great American past time of the garage sale. It’s that time of year again where the American public opens themselves up to the humbling experience of self-enterprise. Where complete strangers follow the beacon of handmade signage to obtain the holy grail of ” THE DEAL”. I confess I am one of the flock. Not only do I look forward to this pilgrimage as a customer, I also become a vendor. Today, I’m directing this entry to the pilgrims. Each year I tell myself that it will be the last. Exhausting hours of preparation and imploring my friends for extra…
Believe it or not, there are faux pas avoidance techniques specifically for the knock-back category. Tackling the “how to drink” adventure is in no way neglectful of the fact we are all born with the ability to drink. It is the refinement of this gift that needs attention. Your stylistic beverage consumption may never be noticed or rewarded with accolades. If your technique is less than stylish, you will be noticed. For some of you, that might be a bonus. I’m going to divide this into two categories; non-alcoholic and alcoholic. If you only consume alcoholic beverages, you can skip to the second part. FOR ALL DRINKERS: Please sip rather than gulp AND sip without food in your mouth. Non-Alcoholic Beverage Swilling Technique Tea…
Phone Call Faux Pas; Say that six times after a glass of Pinot and a 12 hour work day. Today’s posting will be short and to the point. No need to beat around the bushes here. While engaged in an active call, please use the following as your guide. Avoid or Do Not… Eat Chew Gum Talk to Someone Else Cough, Sneeze or Blow your Schnoz Multi-Task* Make Unnecessary Noises Hang up in Anger or Frustration While one could assume that these need no further explanation, I’m going to expound anyway. Eating while on the phone is rude and crude. Stop it. Listening to someone chew gum on the other end of the receiver may not bother you but it irks me to death. …
I consider myself blessed to be a resident of the United States of America. When it comes to tipping however; the blessings sometimes become blurry. Due to the vast array of venues and circumstances tipping can apply to, I’m going to break up the subject matter into bite-sized pieces. Sometimes I just crack myself up. In some countries, tipping is considered “bad form”. In others, it is considered optional and others still, prohibited or insulting. Those rules would certainly make life just a little bit easier for us to follow in the U.S.A. Unfortunately, I don’t live in Fiji, Samoa, Georgia (the country) or Singapore. Here in America, tipping is confusing in part because it is expected for most services. It is socially obligatory…
Ladies of Prom age…it’s your turn. If you took a moment to read my post on Prom aimed to the Boy-Men, you will see that there are some cross-over points for you to ponder. Even in this day and age of increased gender equality, the guys may assume most of the financial burdens. Yea. Sometimes it’s just really great to be female. There are some caveats to this however. I’m not going to bore you with another tragic prom story from my past. Take a look at the last post and you will have enough fodder to keep you for a long time. In fact, my pictures may give you the confidence you might be lacking. I will support you completely if you (silently…
Proms are age specific. Sometimes I wish they weren’t. If you are one of the fortunate girls who went to prom with someone you actually liked (or puppy loved), I congratulate you!! I, on the other hand, was not THAT girl. Although I had a modest amount of popularity, I was forced to attend prom with boy-men I did not like. I will not name names but it is very tempting. Time for the story and lesson… My goal was to be able to attest in my old age that I attended all the proms I was able to. It was a numbers game for me. This is a sad and sobering fact. While I was successful in achieving my goal, I can honestly…
After struggling with what to write about for my first post, I’ve been lead to a subject near and not so dear to my heart; How to be a good dinner guest. With all of the topics to choose from, this one, single theme continues to creep into my personal life. While I might be going out on a limb, I’m going to assume that most of us have not been raised in a barn or had (real) monkeys for parents. With that said, the obvious question might be why some folks behave like they have. Parental example. It’s common to blame our parents for all the wrongs in our life. Of course, our bad choices are their fault. It’s their fault for…
Categories: All, Entertaining, Everyday Civilities, Guest Relations, Holidays / Occasions, Out & About
faux pas [foh pah] noun, plural faux pas [foh pahz; Fr. foh pah] a slip or blunder in etiquette, manners, or conduct; an embarrassing social blunder or indiscretion. There are as many words for a social blunder as social blunders. My personal favorite (aside from Faux Pas) is peccadillo; a very minor or slight sin or offense; a trifling fault. The word is just flat-out fun to say. Years of silently and sometimes not so silently witnessing social errors lead me to purge through blogging. I can’t possibly be alone in my frustrations! Misery loves company… Not only are there a zillion words for etiquette, there are a zillion more possible subjects just waiting for juicy comment. BUT… comments are not enough. As…
myfauxpas 