Putting aside the Bold to ask guests to both prepare the party and pay for their drinks, Miss Manners can’t imagine how anyone could even go through $10 worth of water, tea or coffee. So it would appear that guests also pay rent for use of the venue. This borders on extortion.
There’s nothing wrong with having a planned potluck, but that’s where it ends. Hosting a party has to take some of the responsibility for basic amenities. Even restaurants don’t charge for still water.
Dear Miss Manners: My son is in first grade at a local primary school. We drive it every day to drop it off and pick it up, which involves parking it and escorting it to and from the building. These drop-offs and pick-ups usually take around 15 minutes each.
I have gotten into the habit of parking on a residential street that is convenient for getting in and out without having to wait for crossing guards and others. Lately I’ve noticed the lady outside the house I usually park in front of, giving me sideways glances, and the other day she waved her finger at me from afar like I was a naughty schoolboy. This residential street is approximately half a block from the school and is a public street with no residential parking permit required. The husband and wife in this house are obviously retired and well-off, and they park their car in the garage; I don’t encumber them in any way.
Should I start parking elsewhere? My instinct tells me that I have every right to park there, so why should I make my life harder to accommodate them? They are the ones who bought a house next to a primary school (the school has been there since 1957). Am I allowed to continue parking there?
Yes, but if the the dirty looks continue and you feel emboldened, you can reasonably say, “I’m sorry, but parking on this street doesn’t appear to be restricted.” Did I miss something? Miss Manners simply asks you to prepare yourself for the answer.
New Miss Manners columns are published Monday to Saturday on washingtonpost.com/advice. You can send questions to Miss Manners on her website, missmanners.com. You can also follow her @RealMissManners.
