ArcaMax

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I live near a university, and graduate students are always looking for odd jobs to make extra money. One of them does my laundry twice a week, and always returns it beautifully folded.

This week there was a surprise: a clean pair of red underwear with a reinforced, O-shaped opening in the crotch. It was quite well-made, and ...Read more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: My first pregnancy has been 10 years in the making due to infertility. I would like to tell some specific friends the news before I announce it in general on social media.

However, when I try to start a conversation with these friends, such as via text, they talk about themselves and don't ask how I am, so I don't have a good...Read more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I have a gregarious friend who likes to involve service people, such as cashiers and waiters, in conversations he is having with me.

Occasionally I will make a request, such as asking a waiter about the contents of an entree, for a reason this friend knows. He then often says something to me along the lines of, "Do you want ...Read more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: My children's school district is the first organization I've dealt with in my professional career in which employees routinely ignore their customers.

I make an effort to ensure that the person I'm reaching out to is the appropriate person for my question; I send a focused, respectful email, and I receive no response. In one ...Read more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I was invited to a shower for a friend's daughter's wedding. It was called a "suitcase" shower, meaning that everyone was asked to give a gift card since the bride lived out of town.

When they started opening the cards, the family slowly realized that they couldn't tell what people gave, or pass any gifts around to share, ...Read more