Thomas P. Farley is a manners expert, author and consultant who has been interviewed on matters of etiquette by the New York Times, USA Today, CNN, ABC, NBC and CBS, as well as on radio stations across the country. As the overseer of Town & Country’s “Social Graces” column from 2000 to 2008, he helped that magazine’s readers grapple with topics as disparate as “Elevator Etiquette” and “Horrible Things People Do in Public.”
The weeks between Thanksgiving and New Year’s supply bountiful opportunities for expressing joy. We entertain. We cook. We worship. We decorate. And we exchange gifts.
Directions to the dinner party? Check. Appropriate attire? Check. Leaving yourself enough time to get there? Checkeroo. You’ve thought of just about everything. Everything, that is, but a gift for your host.
Unless you live on a houseboat off the coast of East Jabib, chances are you’ve gotten phone calls from friends who unexpectedly announce that they’re going to be passing through your neck of the woods.
Despite “assistance” from the plethora of high-tech gadgets we now take for granted, most of us feel more time-strapped than ever. That’s partially because a good percentage of the population—yours truly included—spends many hours each week on-line.
Okay, it’s quiz time. You done a giant favor for a friend and you’ve just received his only expression of thanks—via text message. What do you think? Would any of the texts below satisfy you as adequate for the scenarios described?
The time for holiday parties is upon us. Although many of these get-togethers will be diversions you’ll look forward to with great anticipation, in the case of annual office gatherings, you may not be quite so psyched.
Can it be ten years since the calendar retired “19-” in favor of “20-”? I’ll never forget standing in Times Square as the ball dropped on that historic night.
There may be nothing so regrettable as an invitation that ends with the words regrets only. I cringe anytime I receive a party notification with that instruction. The concept of “don’t call to say you’re coming…just call if you’re not coming” is, quite frankly, a recipe for party disaster.
We’ve all been there. After a fun night out for dinner with friends, the check is being passed around. Wallets and purses are pulled out.
