{"id":3484,"date":"2026-06-10T09:34:38","date_gmt":"2026-06-10T09:34:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=3484"},"modified":"2026-06-10T09:34:38","modified_gmt":"2026-06-10T09:34:38","slug":"miss-manners-whats-the-rule-about-greeting-strangers-on-the-park-trail","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=3484","title":{"rendered":"Miss Manners: What\u2019s the rule about greeting strangers on the park trail?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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DEAR MISS MANNERS<\/strong>: I usually run in the morning through a particular park and am in the habit of greeting the park\u2019s other patrons, who are all much older than me.<\/p>\n

Read more With pal Jujubee aboard, Ginger Minj is ready to \u2018Stop! That! Train!\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n

I noticed that if I don\u2019t say hello, they don\u2019t look up from their walk to greet me. However, if I do, they always give me a bright smile and a hello.<\/p>\n

Is it a rule that the younger person must greet the older person first?<\/p>\n

GENTLE READER<\/strong>: Greeting each other is a custom among hikers, but no actual rule requires runners to offer greetings \u2014 though it is gracious.<\/p>\n

Others may simply have had more on their minds or been less aware of their surroundings, whichever way you prefer to think of it. But you know that they appreciate your greetings.<\/p>\n

DEAR MISS MANNERS<\/strong>: My daughter married a very nice man 18 months ago. We have had some contact with the in-laws, and are friendly.<\/p>\n

The mother-in-law tends to be very negative, and is known to say unkind things about whoever isn\u2019t present. I ran into her while shopping, and she went into how she was worried about my daughter: She looks sad, she looks sick, she looks worried \u2026<\/p>\n

I changed the subject after saying she was fine. If I didn\u2019t know the mother-in-law\u2019s history, I\u2019d think that she was just concerned. But I know what she is like.<\/p>\n

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How do I tactfully tell this woman that commenting about my family to me is off-limits? I know she\u2019ll be insulted anyway, and she is known to hang onto this sort of thing, but I need her to know.<\/p>\n

GENTLE READER<\/strong>: Why? Miss Manners could remind you that it is impolite to criticize another person\u2019s behavior \u2014 which is what you propose.<\/p>\n

Read more Largest ICE detention facility wasted millions and put detainees at risk, report finds<\/a><\/p>\n

But as you\u2019ve just said, it will also make the mother-in-law angry, causing her to talk more. And it will not change her behavior. Better to do what you did, which is to blithely assert that your daughter is happy and healthy \u2014 and then change the subject.<\/p>\n

DEAR MISS MANNERS<\/strong>: I have a friend who persists in inviting herself over to my house. I would be extremely hesitant to propose to even a very close friend that I should be a guest at their house without first receiving an invitation.<\/p>\n

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Even more surprising to me, when I display resistance to the idea, she persists, something that I find amazing. When I have agreed, she invites others also.<\/p>\n

Am I totally out of date on manners? Rather than pressing a friend to conform to my wishes on such matters, I always am careful to give others space to decline gracefully.<\/p>\n

GENTLE READER<\/strong>: But you have a rude friend. Miss Manners does not therefore mean to suggest that you can be rude back, but neither does this require an endless variety of responses.<\/p>\n

You can say, \u201cI\u2019m sorry, we can\u2019t do that,\u201d the first time, and perhaps the second. After that, when asked why not, or when it would work \u2014 and on and on \u2014 the answer is simply, \u201cWe just can\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

Please send your questions to Miss Manners at her website, www.missmanners.com; to her email, gentlereader@missmanners.com; or through postal mail to Miss Manners, Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.<\/em><\/p>\n

Read more Today in History: June 10, Benito Mussolini enters Italy into World War II<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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