DEAR MISS MANNERS: I am lucky enough to have gardens all around my house, including along a city sidewalk. My problem is how ...

If I open my umbrella, then the rain that hits it falls onto the people next to me, most of whom do not have umbrellas.

GENTLE READER: While she agrees that neither pretending not to hear nor running and hiding are good solutions, Miss Manners ...

If absolutely stuck next to them, you could open your umbrella just enough to make a small tent over your head, in which case it will drip only onto your own shoulders. But you would be excused for ...

I respond in a cordial, or at least a civil, way to friends and neighbors who ask me questions about my garden while I am ...

Please send your questions to Miss Manners at her website, www.missmanners.com; to her email, dearmissmanners@gmail.com; or ...

DEAR MISS MANNERS: Lately it has seemed that the phrases “We’re pregnant” and “They’re pregnant” have been subsumed into acceptable usage.

Shortening someone’s name can be a sign of familiarity. But with a new relationship, it can be overly so. Miss Manners ...

Was it right to leave and not be the last remaining guests, or would it have been better to stay until the new year was ...

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I was invited by a friend who works in our state’s governor’s office to attend a college football game in ...

For people, such an occasion might be a ladies’ spa day, where the husband would not be invited. In the case of flatware, the ...

GENTLE READER: There are ways to inquire about others’ health without going into sordid details. The phrase “GI issues,” for ...