Author: L.A. Plume

Dear L. A. Plume Every year, thanks to in-home, easier-than-ever-to-use PCs and printers, we seem to get more lengthy Christmas letters. One special one, from folks in California whom we never see, had a paragraph’s worth of details on the exquisite bed linens in a quaint B&B in Murmansk. Do I give a whit? Not unless I’m headed for Murmansk (unlikely), in which case I’ll ask you. Do they think we care? How conceited can people get? Fed Up Frieda

  Dear L. A. Plume,   It’s that time of year again and I’m having my annual holiday party. Invitations have been issued and the count of people who will fit into the venue, the amount of food and drink I need, have all been calculated to fit into my budget, when lo and behold, several people have asked if they can bring a friend, a few family members, or some neighbors.

Dear L. A. Plume, I went out to dinner with a group of acquaintances to celebrate one of their birthdays. I felt uncomfortable when the conversation became an interrogation of one of the ladies present. It seems as though her child was in hot water with the law.

Dear Ms. Plume,             If you are taking food to a dinner party, should you also take a gift? I overheard this debate going on between a husband and wife at brunch one Sunday, and keep forgetting to ask. The husband said no, that the food was enough. She disagreed. Who is correct?             Lia

Dear L. A. Plume,             My dear friend has recently received a letter from her daughter-in-law to be, and it’s the vilest, most cruel, inflammatory and derogatory letter I have ever read. My friend is devastated by this young woman’s obvious capacity for hatred, and she can only wonder when it will extend to the rest of the family as well as the children, and she is confused by what outcome was expected.

Dear L. A. Plume, One of the joys here in the SC Lowcountry is that required dress for most occasions is generally on the casual side. Unfortunately, that’s also one of the tricky things, only because some of us were raised by mothers whose fashion mantra was: “But what would people think?”

Dear L. A. Plume,   This is a true story, and do not laugh. Just when you think you’ve seen all manner of bad guests, another one comes out of the woodwork.

Dear L. A. Plume,             There is a woman with whom I went to school; she has more money than I can even understand. When we go out, she orders wine or food, takes a taste and then sends it back after she has sampled it and deems it unacceptable. I guess it is her way of not paying for anything, but it is really embarrassing. What can I do?             Joann

Dear Ms. Plume, For years now, my husband and I have received graduation invitations from a part of the family so far extended that we’re barely sure how we are related; we don’t even know who these graduating children are.

Dear Ms. Plume, I attended a lovely afternoon tea this past weekend. I expected it to be a very civilized affair and it was until some woman who seemed to be dressed like “Barbie Goes to Tea,” in what I guess was her rendition of a Victorian wedding gown – complete with froufrou hat, wrist length white kid gloves, and patent leather shoes – approached my friend and chided her for taking off her gloves!