DEAR MISS MANNERS: How can one respond when bumping into a friend they haven’t seen in a year or so, and the first thing the friend says is, “Where have YOU been?
The tone of voice suggests that I am hiding and being unsocial, when in fact the friend hasn’t reached out to me, either, during that time. It puts me on the defensive to explain why I haven’t been in touch with them.
Of course they know I am there to volunteer, and their catty tone suggests that they’d almost forgotten about me. Meanwhile, I have been at the organization longer than they have and even helped to train them! I just don’t know how to respond to such remarks. This is constantly happening with a relative of mine. Yes, we have told her, and her bore of a husband, multiple times that we need the specific dates. We thought we had it licked this last time, as she told us on Tuesday that they would be arriving on Friday. That gave us a day and a half of notice. But when they got here, they would not tell us when they were leaving. I could not get them to tell us until the day before they left.
When did this become okay? My mother won’t let me at them to make it crystal clear, as she thinks I am being rude.
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