DEAR MISS MANNERS: Help! My husband and I stayed at my parents’ house and slept in their guest bedroom. Friends of theirs had gifted them with a terrible, but very expensive, mattress. It slopes ...

DEAR MISS MANNERS: Last year a neighbor had a Christmas party. She invited a lot of people and it was quite crowded. She made a number of tasty dishes and provided some drinks. This year, she has sent ...

DEAR MISS MANNERS: What is the proper way for my 16-year-old daughters, who are twins, to respond when a friend asks them, “What do you want for your birthday?” They are having a small party, and one ...

DEAR MISS MANNERS: In 2023, I gave my husband’s niece a lovely wedding shower at a restaurant. It included lunch and mimosas. The luncheon was about $1,500 with gratuity. I also paid for the cake, ...

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I was in line at a busy cosmetics store. The line wasn’t moving very fast when the woman behind me asked me to save her place: She said an employee had forgotten to give her ...

DEAR MISS MANNERS: One of my friends endlessly plays with the food she does not want to eat, without ever signaling by the position of her cutlery that she has finished. So all of her fellow diners ...