"Every time you walk down the street, everybody says hello."

This is a statement that Miss Manners has heard in a variety of tones of voice:

Proud, as in "I come from a charming place! Folks in THIS city are soooo rude."

Plaintive verging on petulant, as in, "I come from a village, so don't expect me to be as sophisticated as all you cos-mo-pol-i-tan types."

Exasperated, as in "Is there no privacy around here at all?"

Rattled, as in "Who are these people, and what do they want from me?"

But if attitudes are contradictory about greeting and being greeted, etiquette rules are even more so. Hikers properly greet those approaching them on the trail, but tourists who happen to be visiting the same site do not. Passengers on airplanes used to introduce themselves, but no longer do; bus passengers sometimes do, only to find their seatmates making sudden departures.

It is not always a question of the friendly approach being polite and its omission being rude.

It would be rude, for example, to greet someone you know who is having a hilarious time with an incongruous-looking person and who covers his face with the menu when he sees you coming. This acquaintance is probably conducting important business, and cannot spare the time for social niceties.

Nor would it be polite to roam around parking lots at night offering greetings to strangers as they unlock their cars. Or for unrelated adults to hang around schoolyards saying hello to stray children.

Yet the excuse of "I'm just trying to be friendly" always resonates with Americans, for whom being open to friendship is a virtue.

This is not necessarily because we are bigger-hearted than others, although Miss Manners does not rule out that happy possibility. A country that began by staking out sparsely populated territory and has continued ever since to be an unusually mobile society has to condone making friends fast.

That was a huge departure from European customs, which Americans then began to ridicule as snobbish. It is not a fair charge, even though we needn't feel sorry for people who were having such a good time ridiculing Americans for being open.

Friendliness toward strangers is necessarily context-dependent. When you live in crowded cities, very likely spending your entire life in the same one with all your nursery school classmates, you don't need to make new friends at every turn. What you need from strangers is for them to please keep out of your way. And to refrain from scaring you.

You still must acknowledge those you know, those whom you frequently encounter, and those with whom you have even fleeting business transactions. In small towns or other restricted areas, such as a campus, that may mean nearly everyone; in large cities, it may mean very few, but it does include neighbors and shopkeepers.

Yet the tendency is either to chat up everyone, including the express-checkout clerk who is trying to move the line along ("And what about your cousins, are they fine, too?"), or to ignore next-door neighbors and tablemates at large social gatherings.

To cover these different situations, there is a range of greetings:

Dearest friends and close, but not necessarily dear, relatives: kiss air near cheek, once or serially, depending on local custom. Next circle, handshakes or equivalent gestures, depending on generation.

The same group encountered where silence is expected, for example at the movies or a funeral: Meaningful nod.

Household companions, neighbors, co-workers: acknowledgement upon arrival and departure, ranging from "Good morning" and "Good evening" to "Hi, is there some coffee made?" and "OK, I'm out of here."

Acquaintances glimpsed on the street: Pleasant nod without breaking stride.

Strangers: Maintain stride without breaking into a smile.

Strangers with whom one is trapped, as at a wedding dinner or shipwreck: Full introduction.

DEAR MISS MANNERS: A friend of mine is to be a bridesmaid in a wedding in October, when she will be eight months' pregnant. She would like to prepare some ripostes for those at the wedding who will find it necessary to comment on her pregnant state, which will be readily apparent. How do you suggest she handle the 37th instance of "Well, you're just about ready to pop, aren't you?"

GENTLE READER: By producing her most benign maternal smile and saying gently, "Yes, and you might want to step out of the way."

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DEAR MISS MANNERS: For my job at a country club, I often have to call people to promote events or for similar reasons. Much as I dislike being so much like a telemarketer, I have no choice.

That said, my question is about talking to nannies. Most of the nannies who answer the phone speak very little English, usually only enough to convey that the woman I am trying to reach is not home. I tend to ask to call back and leave a message on the machine, because I've found that any human message-taker is almost always unreliable (I include myself in this), and if they don't even understand the language...

However, I have this nagging feeling that I'm being rude -- after all, I usually don't do this if I somehow catch someone who does speak English -- though I can't think of a better response, short of calling repeatedly and driving the poor nanny nuts.

GENTLE READER: E-mail.

Or -- if you can imagine such a thing still existing -- letters.

Miss Manners recognizes the delicacy of your worrying that you might be discriminating against a foreigner by not imposing on her time. But she assures you that calls to deliver information that is more convenient to have in writing are an equal opportunity nuisance and alternative methods should be used.

DEAR MISS MANNERS: Our daughter's boyfriend is staying with us for a few months, and while he's been no trouble as a houseguest, his dinner-table habits are somewhat revolting. We are at a loss on how to improve the situation.

We are not talking about knowing which fork to use -- there's only one, and it's a meat-and-potatoes, family-style meal. We are talking about hunkering over the plate with both elbows on the table, pushing food onto the fork with the fingers, stabbing meat like it's got to be killed before it can be hacked apart, then blatantly dissecting to separate unwanted elements from each bite.

I've managed to stop him from digging in before the rest of the family is seated by announcing, "I'll be right there; please wait and we'll pray." I've watched for opportunities to correct my own children -- "Elbows off the table, please" -- but the subtlety is lost on him.

I have noticed my daughter bump his elbow off the table occasionally, but mostly she ignores the problem. How can I help this college student who eats like a 2-year-old? He might be my son-in-law someday.

GENTLE READER: Not if he thinks he will be treated like a 2-year-old and instructed on how to eat. By you, at any rate. That's your daughter's job.

It seems that she realizes this, but is understandably reluctant to keep nagging him (which would also head off the problem of his being your son-in-law).

Miss Manners advises her to inquire, matter-of-factly and in private, if he wouldn't like to take the opportunity of learning table manners that would serve him in whatever circumstances to which he aspires.

If so, let them conduct the lessons in private and try to ignore his lapses. If not, you -- and your daughter -- will at least know what to expect. Bad table manners merely reflect a lack of training; a bad attitude reflects a lack of the quality you should most want in a son-in-law.

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DEAR MISS MANNERS: When I purchased a nonfiction title about 1,300 pages in length, logic would suggest that with a work-a-day life, it will take some time to finish.

My girlfriend reads a good deal herself, and has plenty of her own reading material, but almost every time I see her reading lately, she's in the middle of the same copy I purchased for myself to read. I am not wholly frustrated by the fact, but I do feel as if I have purchased a meal that, before I've had a chance to finish, someone else has started to nibble from it, or someone has tried on my new shirt before I've had a chance to wear it.

What are the rules of etiquette for addressing this situation? Or maybe a better question would be, is there anything here worth addressing?

GENTLE READER: Miss Manners suggests that you address the lady before you find yourself addressing a courtroom to explain why you had to dispatch her.

Although she thinks of herself as a tolerant soul who is always urging people to make allowances for one another's little foibles, Miss Manners can be pushed too far. And appropriating a book that a housemate is in the middle of reading is a classic definition of Too Far. If the lady is also making little noises of amusement or astonishment as she reads, or relating favorite parts to you, it is beyond all human decency.

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I was dining on rabbit at an upscale restaurant when I noticed I had a small bone in my mouth. Now, I am not an expert on etiquette, but I seemed to recall that when one finds something disagreeable in their mouth at dinner, the proper course of action is to lift your fork to your mouth and discreetly discard the unpalatable item on your fork, and replace it on your plate.

My girlfriend found this offensive and called me on it. I tried to explain that I thought it was proper etiquette but she wasn't buying it. Can you help clear this matter up for us?

GENTLE READER: Yes, yes, you are right: inedible parts are discreetly taken out the way they went in (fork or fingers), with the exception that, although fish is eaten with a fork, the fingers are used to remove bones from the mouth.

But what Miss Manners wants to clear up is what alternative the lady proposed. Lodging the bone in your mouth until you left the restaurant? Swallowing it? Did you have a quarrel before the incident that you failed to mention?

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I got an invitation to a floating shower for a wedding. What is this? I was told by a friend that you drop off the gift and are given a covered meal and leave. Can this be true?

GENTLE READER: Oh, sure. There are a lot of greedy people floating around, and one of them was bound to come up with the idea of collecting the loot without having to associate with the donors. The next clever person will think of charging for the meal.

Meanwhile, Miss Manners has a question of her own:

Can it be true that people comply with such instructions?

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