Readers (and randos from the internet) have had a few things to say about a few things Etiquetteer has had to say.
Regarding Alternative Hostess Gifts:
“Since I know nothing about wines and which one to select, I always send flowers. But I send them a day or two early so the host has time to deal with them, but also knows they don’t have to order flowers if they wanted some to brighten their house anyway.” What could be more Perfectly Proper than this?!
“Understanding a little about you, the gifts you appreciated most are from guests who had an intimate knowledge of you. If you know your host well, choose something your host will appreciate; if you do not know your host well, choose something safe and practical (that includes wine). Speaking for myself, I prefer no host gift be given as I tend to be very specific in my tastes . . . around the holidays my preferred gift is high quality eggnog in a bottle from a local dairy.”
Regarding Wedding Gifts:
“Etiquetteer, you wrote ‘Finally, Brides Today can be so uppity about getting anything that looks like it might have belonged to their grandmothers.’ Actually, Grooms Today can also have strong opinions about wedding presents. Our society is moving away from public acceptance of stereotypes based on gender, sexual orientation, race, religion, handicap, addiction or body size. It seems brides are the one group of people who can be sneered at with impunity.” The Wedding Industrial Complex has given us the Bridezilla, and Etiquetteer will continue to call her out for her lack of consideration. Grooms may indeed have strong opinions about wedding gifts, but Etiquetteer has yet to see anything like the news coverage Bridezillas get over their rapaciousness.
Regarding “The Star-Spangled Banner”:
“It’s not a ‘song.’ It’s an anthem.” Perhaps you are referring to this sentence from column 20.16? “If you’d rather the United States pick another song as the official National Anthem . . . or start your own.” If another song is ever chosen to become the National Anthem, it will become an anthem. Thank you kindly for pointing that out. Etiquetteer hopes it made you feel better.