DEAR ABBY: On New Year's Day, my stepdaughter and her husband dropped in unexpectedly. They live two miles away, and we see them frequently. After a very hectic Christmas, I had been looking forward to a quiet, relaxing day with my husband. I had not even showered when they arrived.
Even though I was uncomfortable not having showered, and in my pajamas, I made our surprise guests welcome. I offered breakfast and coffee and spent hours with them. After 1 p.m., I finally decided to shower and dress. I made a fresh pot of coffee and offered our guests more to eat. I took between 45 minutes and an hour to shower and dress. When I emerged, I offered more coffee and food. They finally left hours later.
A week later, my husband and I had a huge argument concerning how "rude" I was for having disappeared for almost an hour to shower and change. Abby, I did everything possible to make our uninvited guests feel welcome. Was I rude to abandon our guests for this selfish reason? Your input is much appreciated. -- CHERYL IN ILLINOIS
DEAR CHERYL: You were not rude to go and get cleaned up. The people who were rude were the "drop-ins" who didn't bother to call and arrange a convenient time before coming over. As to your husband's "snit," I think he was angry because he was left alone to entertain them for an hour. Too bad, so sad!