Bicycle Etiquette
May is National Bicycle Month. And here is our gentle reminder for both bicyclists and motorists alike to practice Bicycle Etiquette. (And isn’t our little Victorian bicyclist a most proper and memorable representation of the concept?!) My husband James has commuted
’Tis it better the milk precede the tea into the cup… …or not???
Are you an MIF or an MIL? …and which one is Queen Elizabeth II? This is quite an important discussion item in many tea etiquette circles. Yes. ’Tis true. If you are a 'MIL,' you put your Milk in Last. You are easy
Appearance and Civility
We speak. We speak always and in many ways. Words are only one of the many methods we use to communicate. Mary Eliza Haweis, who wrote The Art of Beauty in 1878, concluded that “Dress bears the same relation to
Cell Phone Etiquette: “You Are Not the Only One”
Let me tell you a true story. It was reported on Good Morning, America. It seems a young woman had been invited to have tea with Queen Elizabeth II in the Buckingham Palace gardens. She was actually sitting with the Queen
The Mathematics of Civility Part 2
Last week I asked myself the question, “Why would you want to add to all the pain that is already in the world?” I decided to subtract my critical attitude and desire to lash out at the owners of the
The Proper Way to Eat a Scone
In the oh, so proper world of tea etiquette, there are six (yes, SIX) ways to properly eat your scone. The main thing to remember, however, is that the scone must be halved horizontally. Please don't hurt my heart by
The Origin of P’s and Q’s
I love English signs. The last time I was in England, I started taking photos of typical British signs: “Mind Your Head.” “Park Tidy.” “Way Out” (is this a description or a direction?) Probably the most famous is “Mind