{"id":8454,"date":"2026-09-05T08:35:15","date_gmt":"2026-09-05T08:35:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=8454"},"modified":"2026-09-05T08:35:15","modified_gmt":"2026-09-05T08:35:15","slug":"miss-manners-i-tried-to-educate-these-dog-walkers-and-they-snubbed-me","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=8454","title":{"rendered":"Miss Manners: I tried to educate these dog walkers and they snubbed me"},"content":{"rendered":"
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DEAR MISS MANNERS<\/strong>: I was hiking in a beautiful country that proclaims itself more polite than the U.S.<\/p>\n

Read more Dear Abby: This persistent stranger seems to think I\u2019m somebody else<\/a><\/p>\n

On a \u201cleashed dogs only\u201d hiking trail, two local women approached with an unleashed dog that tried to eat my only sandwich.<\/p>\n

I said, \u201cLadies, I don\u2019t know if you\u2019re aware, but there\u2019s a leash law in this park.\u201d (There\u2019s a huge sign at the trailhead, \u201c10 Reasons You Should Leash Your Dog.\u201d)<\/p>\n

I got a look that said, \u201cLet\u2019s not even acknowledge that dog-hating Yank.\u201d<\/p>\n

What can I say next time? This occurs often. Is the nation\u2019s vaunted politeness actually just passive-aggressiveness? My wife, who hails from that very province, wanted me to say, \u201cSorry [a word they use a lot here] \u2014 don\u2019t I know you from somewhere, Karen<\/em>?\u201d<\/p>\n

Or should I have texted their picture to the park violation hotline from the get-go?<\/p>\n

GENTLE READER<\/strong>: You already know the answer to this.<\/p>\n

Miss Manners wants to be on your side. She really does. But your proposed solutions and biased attitude toward a whole country, when only two people have been rude, are preventing it. And really, besides the leash violation, their only etiquette infraction was an exasperated look.<\/p>\n

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If there really is a park violation hotline and you wish to turn them in, by all means, proceed. Perhaps it will liberate you from vilifying people \u2014 and whole countries, and innocent people named Karen \u2014 under the guise of etiquette.<\/p>\n

DEAR MISS MANNERS<\/strong>: I am in the process of throwing a surprise 25th wedding anniversary party for some very dear friends who are special to many \u2014 and I mean many<\/em> \u2014 people.<\/p>\n

Read more De La Salle impresses in win over Cardinal Newman, except in one area<\/a><\/p>\n

The couple have done so much for everyone whose lives they have touched \u2014 from working with kindergartners through fifth-grade kids at church every Sunday to taking on a parental role in three girls\u2019 lives after their mother passed. There are too many other examples to mention. They are truly a blessing to everyone.<\/p>\n

Of course after being married for 25 years, they have everything and anything that they need. When I send out the invites to approximately 50 people, how do I ask them to give money to the couple instead of physical gifts?<\/p>\n

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I know that the husband would like to take his wife on a New England vacation, and I know he will do so with or without our help. But if we can give them some money as a gift, they can have an even bigger and better vacation.<\/p>\n

I was told that it isn\u2019t proper to ask for money, but I feel that if I ask in a loving way and explain why I am asking, it would be OK. So how would you do it, Miss Manners?<\/p>\n

GENTLE READER<\/strong>: By hosting a party on your friends\u2019 behalf \u2014 and without their knowledge \u2014 you are representing them to their guests. And it is Miss Manners\u2019 guess that the risk of embarrassing these dear friends by asking their intimates to pay for a better vacation is too great to be worth it.<\/p>\n

Let the fact that you are surprising them with 50 people on their anniversary be enough of a gamble. Your present can be that they will have plenty to talk about on their trip.<\/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 Bay FC beaten by Kansas City\u2019s last-minute goal in 2-1 NWSL loss<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

And this was in a country that proclaims itself more polite than the U.S.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5289,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8454","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-advice"],"yoast_head":"\nMiss Manners: I tried to educate these dog walkers and they snubbed me - Next City Digest<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=8454\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Miss Manners: I tried to educate these dog walkers and they snubbed me - Next City Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"And this was in a country that proclaims itself more polite than the U.S.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=8454\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Next City Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-09-05T08:35:15+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=8454#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=8454\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/13065d40d633843429ac57d4e5c06f9b\"},\"headline\":\"Miss Manners: I tried to educate these dog walkers and they snubbed me\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-09-05T08:35:15+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=8454\"},\"wordCount\":633,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=8454#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/afa6305b0bc2ad18ff319793b8dcff0b.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"Advice\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=8454#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=8454\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=8454\",\"name\":\"Miss Manners: I tried to educate these dog walkers and they snubbed me - 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