DEAR ABBY: What is proper etiquette when video-recording in someone else's home? My mother frequently visits my brother and his wife in another city with her trusty videocamera in tow. My brother and their toddler are always shot in their best light, but somehow she always manages to catch and film my sister-in-law first thing in the morning as she makes her bleary-eyed way to the bathroom. Mom especially likes shooting the dirty dishes or piles of laundry.
I've asked Mom why she didn't put down the camera and help with the chores, or at least film the great feast that led to the dirty dishes, but it does no good.
My mother makes no secret of her dislike for my brother's wife and uses her electronic demon to exact some demented pleasure. Is there a noncombative way of saying, "Leave the damn thing at home"? -- NOT EVEN A STATE, PLEASE
DEAR NOT EVEN: The best way to deal with this is for your brother to firmly tell your mother that she is welcome to visit -- on the condition that she leave her camcorder at home.