I’ve always wished to communicate fluently in a language other than my native English. Like many, I know a smattering of words in Spanish, Japanese, French, German and Swahili. I am confident that my rest room needs will be accommodated, my greetings conveyed and common curse words could be muttered under by breath in Mexico, Japan, France, Germany and Kenya. I am also confident that my worldly vocabulary will forever be limited to these few words. I continue to lean on my belief that with friendly enthusiasm and genuine interest, anything can be conveyed – it will just take a little longer. In college, I briefly dated a young man who was of Puerto Rican descent. Understand that his attendance was legendary as his…
Posts from the “Entertaining” Category
Most of us have one. We have one member of the family, friend or acquaintance circle who is best described as “colorful”. I am no exception. Last Thanksgiving was especially meaningful. For the first time in 25 years my entire extended family joined together for merriment, food and fellowship. The youngest tot to the oldest patriarch united together under one roof for a day of loving chaos. As the day progressed and the wine flowed, my “colorful” sibling became increasingly colorful. Never one to restrain his gaiety (or his filters), I found we were about to enter forbidden and uncomfortable territories. Good taste does not have to squelch good humor. Unfortunately, there are some folks whose joke telling stipulates that all those within earshot…
NAPKIN: A diminutive little device used to wipe your mouth and hands while eating. If you happen to live in Canada, Australia, South Africa or the U.K., you may even refer to this handy little wipe as a Serviette. If you are American, please refrain from using that term as you will appear pretentious which would be a separate faux pas than we are addressing here. At the least, you will appear foolish especially if your dinner companions are wearing camo and/or are donning a mullet hairdo. So be it paper or cloth, there are specific etiquette guidelines for napkin use. Please note the following pointers: Place your nappy in your lap when seated at the table. Days of yore dictated that the guest…
God has blessed me with many gifts. Thankfully those gifts include legs. My legs are fully functional in that I can get from point A to B without issue. My gene pool however; did not donate leg length. Vanity forces me to visually extend what my gene pool did not by wearing shoes with heels higher than a flip-flop. This fact does not pose any inconvenience with two regular exceptions: Hiking in the woods and having to remove my shoes at the door of a home I’ve been invited into. While my vanity can remain intact comfortably in the woods, it takes a hit when (as a good and humble house guest) I feel obligated to deposit my lifts at the front door upon…
The heavy traffic of wedding season is now upon us. Fond memories of weddings past conjure up images of kisses and toasts. Many times the former is a direct result of the later. Ad nauseum. I have not pinpointed the reason why this bothers me. The reception room is filled with the cheerful clinking of glasses by utensil, groom kisses bride, bride kisses groom. All I can ever think is “please, just let them eat!“. I have no idea where this custom originated but am hoping that it is contained and quickly eradicated the world over. Aside from the dollar-dance, it is the lack of toasting know-how that disgruntles me. Toasting is not unique to weddings of course so the following simple rules apply…
A few years ago, my daughter was describing a situation she caught herself in unwillingly. She was involved in a friendly conversation at work with several of her fellow nurses. It was friendly only on the surface as one of her colleagues clearly had an axe to grind with another nurse. As the axe wielding colleague gave way to temptation and verbally assaulted the other, the rest of the group was left with their mouths agape and an uncertainty on what to do. The nurse receiving the tongue lashing politely handled the situation with noble composure and professionalism. No rescue or interference was required. It also would have been professionally unwise. The rest of the group stood there with an expression my daughter aptly…
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,…
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…
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 