tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14874528.post771660336949343811..comments2024-03-27T13:32:06.780-02:30Comments on The Other Side of Eighty: Grumpy Geezer GripesWisewebwomanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15281689872840844191noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14874528.post-50313516529947161602012-05-23T21:14:29.971-02:302012-05-23T21:14:29.971-02:30"...1. Talking with your mouth full
2. Starti..."...1. Talking with your mouth full<br />2. Starting to eat without waiting for others<br />3. Answering the phone while others are talking<br />4. Hitting your teeth with your cutlery<br />5. Not using cutlery<br />6. Hoovering through the laid-out dishes<br />7. Texting during the meal ..."<br /><br />1. I was always taught to not talk with your mouth full. I strive not to do so and get annoyed at myself on the few occasions I have needed to do so.<br /><br />2. Starting to eat without waiting for others is something you do only when invited to do so - e.g. slow service in a restaurant, or, when the situation necessitates it - e.g. on the 'fire line' meal protocol goes out the window due to the urgency of the situation.<br /><br />3. If you haven't turned your phone off and it rings it is better to answer it and say you are busy right now and I'll call you back as soon as i'm free. if it keeps ringing - Turn it off!<br /><br />4. Hitting your teeth with your cutlery ... ????? Never really known this to occur, at least not with the people I've eaten with.<br /><br />5. Some meals/dishes you do not use cutlery - Arab cuisine are meals commonly taken without utensils, many Indian(Asian) dishes and South American dishes are eaten by hand.<br /><br />6."... Hoovering through the laid-out dishes ..." Not familiar with this expression. In Australia it is referred to as 'grazing the table' - common in buffet layouts and Bistros.<br /><br />7. "... Texting during the meal ..." - see 3, above.JohnDhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00608216150220329902noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14874528.post-6048380349808045642012-05-19T23:26:56.689-02:302012-05-19T23:26:56.689-02:30RJA:
Distraction is not the best neighbourhood to ...RJA:<br />Distraction is not the best neighbourhood to find yourself in!<br />I remember being appalled at my first lunch here (Swiss Chalet - a Canadian roasted chicken chain) and being appalled at everyone picking up the chicken and chowing down.<br />All these years later I`m still in shock. I wrote reams about the barbaric behaviour of the natives to my mother.<br />XO<br />WWWWisewebwomanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15281689872840844191noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14874528.post-41370786740192622612012-05-19T23:24:52.027-02:302012-05-19T23:24:52.027-02:30Yes, T, I was taught the same thing. It enhances t...Yes, T, I was taught the same thing. It enhances the experience so well and keeps the servers from saying "are you finished?" around the whole table.<br />Also I was taught to never cut a bread roll but to break it gently. That makes sense for safety reasons too, doesn't it?<br />XO<br />WWWWisewebwomanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15281689872840844191noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14874528.post-6224834046114605142012-05-15T00:45:47.110-02:302012-05-15T00:45:47.110-02:30I do feel you should choose your friends more care...I do feel you should choose your friends more carefully, WWW. I, too, abhor the very faults you described. And, I agree with Twilight. The American habit of leaving ones cutlery higgledy-piggledy all over the plate drives me to distraction (though I have drive to my distraction discreetly, so my American "better-'alf" don't catch on!).R J Adamshttp://sparrowchat.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14874528.post-26692492441678827802012-05-14T12:05:05.022-02:302012-05-14T12:05:05.022-02:30I don't often eat with anyone other than Himse...I don't often eat with anyone other than Himself, so can't add much here. <br /><br />My own wee quibble, and I have noticed it much more in the US than the UK, is how cutlery is left after finishing eating. I was always taught to leave knife & fork neatly together "at the 5 o'clock position", which makes it easy for servers/waiters to pick up the empty plate, as well as looking neat. This piece of etiquette seems to have fallen by the wayside. Not sure it makes a lot of difference in the great scheme of things though.Twilighthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14138621610593773784noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14874528.post-9340425900797241842012-05-13T20:47:43.628-02:302012-05-13T20:47:43.628-02:30Nick:
Thanks so much for being human after all!!
X...Nick:<br />Thanks so much for being human after all!!<br />XO<br />WWWWisewebwomanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15281689872840844191noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14874528.post-2008115118251216002012-05-13T08:51:44.426-02:302012-05-13T08:51:44.426-02:30Ooh, I am tolerant, aren't I? Not so tolerant ...Ooh, I am tolerant, aren't I? Not so tolerant on other things though. Like people who love the sound of their own voice and people who look down on anyone not of their rarified background.nickhttp://nickhereandnow.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14874528.post-82215147527162025442012-05-13T00:49:56.052-02:302012-05-13T00:49:56.052-02:30Ramana:
I feel close to killing for a good convers...Ramana:<br />I feel close to killing for a good conversation some days. My next post will on that very topic!<br />XO<br />WWWWisewebwomanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15281689872840844191noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14874528.post-26216221950882905792012-05-13T00:49:05.768-02:302012-05-13T00:49:05.768-02:30GFB:
Does your wife sneer anywhere else? :)
XO
WWW...GFB:<br />Does your wife sneer anywhere else? :)<br />XO<br />WWWWisewebwomanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15281689872840844191noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14874528.post-88164254809938544912012-05-13T00:48:30.474-02:302012-05-13T00:48:30.474-02:30Sharon:
There is one guy I know who eats like an a...Sharon:<br />There is one guy I know who eats like an animal in a corner of the room. It is incredibly disturbing. He can't even be with others. Or others have now abandoned him. I know I for one can't eat in the same room with him. Or probably he with me.<br />I love the conviviality of friends and a good table.<br />And when that is absent or a few can't share in the bonhomie, it is not worth the aggravation.<br />I totally get what you had to do.<br />XO<br />WWWWisewebwomanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15281689872840844191noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14874528.post-35951865015128713812012-05-13T00:45:32.618-02:302012-05-13T00:45:32.618-02:30Irene:
I imagined they were raised in homes that h...Irene:<br />I imagined they were raised in homes that had "everyone for themselves and a boarding house reach an asset!" engraved as a motto over the table.<br />And can't really be blamed. I guess.<br />My parents were fastidious, as was I with my kids and grandkid.<br />XO<br />WWWWisewebwomanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15281689872840844191noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14874528.post-48033668080131716912012-05-13T00:43:43.426-02:302012-05-13T00:43:43.426-02:30Nick:
Oh my, far more tolerant than cranky old me!...Nick:<br />Oh my, far more tolerant than cranky old me!<br />XO<br />WWWWisewebwomanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15281689872840844191noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14874528.post-59148545133304312872012-05-13T00:42:55.573-02:302012-05-13T00:42:55.573-02:30Oh right GM, forgot the old eternal teevee in the ...Oh right GM, forgot the old eternal teevee in the corner killing any conversation in the room!<br />XO<br />WWWWisewebwomanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15281689872840844191noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14874528.post-88368283209054000632012-05-12T22:34:18.363-02:302012-05-12T22:34:18.363-02:30We live in an age of fast everything and instant e...We live in an age of fast everything and instant everything including, instant nirvana. Respect? Who has the time for it? Social niceties? Are you living in the middle ages?<br /><br />And you have left out language. Four letter words, and rude gestures have replaced good language and repartee.Rummuserhttp://www.rummuser.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14874528.post-47357278477849456162012-05-12T16:26:45.888-02:302012-05-12T16:26:45.888-02:30I was raised to have good manners at the table an...I was raised to have good manners at the table and other place .Still I see no reason for the waiter in this classy diner where I take my wife to sneer when I tell him to bring us a bottle of their best plonk.Government Funded Bloggerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14937389348779245666noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14874528.post-36031845288887210272012-05-12T13:54:34.283-02:302012-05-12T13:54:34.283-02:30Did this post ever resonate with me! Call me a fus...Did this post ever resonate with me! Call me a fussbudget (or worse) but an absence of table manners causes me to question the civility of the offender and to see them as somewhat selfish.<br /><br />Someone who has recently dropped in status in my life is outrageously guilty of all of the above, except that instead of hitting his teeth with his cutlery, he makes "uhm uhm uhm" sounds in the back of his throat while he chews. He shovels the food in as if there was a time limit on how long his plate could stay on the table. He talks with his mouth stuffed to capacity. When I give him a gentle reminder and say, "Sorry, I can't understand you," he gives me a blank look. This is a man who was raised in a fairly well-to-do family and has a degree in engineering. Maybe I'm a grumpy old curmudgeon, but, honestly, this was a big factor in my needing to put space between us.<br /><br />Yes, to me, it is indeed the little things that matter. Hurumph.Sharonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02852119592451618703noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14874528.post-59047391667389235582012-05-11T19:38:02.845-02:302012-05-11T19:38:02.845-02:30I don't know what sort of people you hang out ...I don't know what sort of people you hang out with but they sure don't sound like polite company and not the kind of people I would want to hang around with. They sound like barbarians who never had manners to start with. Ask yourself if they did. They probably never were gentlemen and ladies. It sounds like it's time to find new company. Or to exclude these people from. xoxIrenehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05043376053971475659noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14874528.post-20077253363027672712012-05-11T18:30:12.584-02:302012-05-11T18:30:12.584-02:30Hmm, I'm definitely not as fastidious as you. ...Hmm, I'm definitely not as fastidious as you. Talking with your mouth full, starting your meal straightaway, answering the phone, finger eating - not too bothered. Hitting teeth with cutlery, hoovering through the platters, texting - very bothered, particularly the last. Excuse me, could you engage with the assembled company and not with your anonymous little gadget?nickhttp://nickhereandnow.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14874528.post-30986624407557951602012-05-11T18:25:00.157-02:302012-05-11T18:25:00.157-02:30Oh good. I am not the only one. I also hate when ...Oh good. I am not the only one. I also hate when invited for a visit and the TV is left on across the room.Grannymarhttp://grannymar.com/blognoreply@blogger.com