DEAR MISS MANNERS: When I was growing up, my mother always advised me to call friends between approximately 10 a.m. and 8 p.m. to avoid disturbing them, unless they had specifically advised me to reach them at other times.

Since the advent of cellphones, I find that I have been receiving calls and texts at all hours of the day and night! (None of which are regarding emergencies, by the way.) Is this the new norm?

Now I feel that I need to advise new friends and acquaintances to please call or text me only during certain hours unless it’s an emergency. I say it apologetically and explain that I work later hours, etc. Am I being too old-fashioned?

GENTLE READER: The etiquette on this was evolving even before the pandemic, at which point it collapsed completely. In the absence of weekdays or weekends, commutes or offices, school days or school holidays, work hours or nonwork hours, every daylight hour started to look the same.

Although she is not one to bend etiquette rules to convenience, Miss Manners nevertheless recognizes that the old rule was motivated by technological constraints. For many years, there was no way to silence a landline telephone that did not require subsequent repairs. This is no longer the case. Friends who call at all hours are still being inconsiderate; they should know that they might be waking you up.

However, you need not inform them what time they may call as you can enforce obedience by -- and Miss Manners realizes she is about to make a shocking suggestion -- turning off your phone. You are probably not the one to handle their emergencies anyway.

DEAR MISS MANNERS: My friend had a conflict with her now-former roommate when they were each moving out last month. When my friend rented a moving van, the roommate asked if she could borrow it to move her stuff across town. My friend was moving across state lines, and needed the van for much longer than the roommate did. The final rental cost was about $600.

My friend believes that the price should be split equally between them; the ex-roommate thinks that because she only used it for a couple of hours, she only owes $50.

I kind of agree with the roommate. But I feel awkward, because my friend was looking for someone to commiserate with her on how badly she got ripped off by this jerk.

I didn’t understand why she was so upset, and kind of froze. I eventually just said, “Yeah, that sounds annoying.” What would you do?

GENTLE READER: What you did is acceptable and also makes your point, albeit while leaving you feeling awkward.

Miss Manners assumes you are interested in avoiding the awkwardness next time -- not in advocating for the ex-roommate. To do that, you need merely shorten the gap between your casual agreement and your changing the subject.

(Please send your questions to Miss Manners at her website, www.missmanners.com; to her email, dearmissmanners@gmail.com; or through postal mail to Miss Manners, Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.)

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I am a lawyer in D.C., and I just completed a relatively prestigious yearlong fellowship/clerkship. I have had two job interviews thus far -- one for a government position and one for a nonprofit job -- and both times, I was surprised to find the interviewers wearing T-shirts, whereas I was wearing a suit.

Is it normal to wear T-shirts for interviews and meetings during the pandemic? It seems almost disrespectfully informal to me. Am I old-fashioned and behind the times?

GENTLE READER: Universal work-from-home is uncharted territory. Therefore, many sartorial “pioneers” believe that the old etiquette does not apply, and that they can conduct business meetings in their pajamas.

You will not be surprised to hear that Miss Manners disagrees. If you feel silly wearing a shirt and tie in your kitchen, remind yourself how silly the representative of a serious enterprise should feel conducting interviews in a T-shirt. And then keep doing what you are doing. Just because the person who has the power to award the job is wearing gym clothes does not mean that he will not feel disrespected if you do the same.

DEAR MISS MANNERS: A former supervisor introduced me to her friend, Entrepreneurial Emily, who was developing a product with my company in mind. Emily and I had a nice lunch, where I made it clear there was not an appetite or budget for her product for the foreseeable future. I also pointed her in the direction of resources to continue her product development.

Emily has continued to reach out to me every few months, and every time, I politely tell her there is simply no demand for her product in my company. She uses my personal email, as that was how we were introduced, so she permanently has my contact information.

I want to put a stop to any of Emily’s future solicitations, and do not want to hand her off to anyone else, as I feel my former supervisor did to me. How can I politely end this less-than-friends friendship?

GENTLE READER: You do not have to end any friendships, because the only friendship Miss Manners sees is between Emily and your former supervisor. Your relationship with Emily was a professional obligation. (And even your supervisor, who presumably likes Emily, would likely acknowledge that that obligation was discharged by the lunch.)

Your current relationship with Emily is roughly that between a mosquito and the person on whose arm it has landed, looking for another meal. The analogy is not perfect, as you do not have permission to squash Emily, who may otherwise be a perfectly lovely person. But it is time to cut her loose, which in this case means ceasing to answer any further communications.

(Please send your questions to Miss Manners at her website, www.missmanners.com; to her email, dearmissmanners@gmail.com; or through postal mail to Miss Manners, Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.)

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I am known as an exceptional cook and baker. I take great pleasure in entertaining, and pride myself on offering delicious, beautiful fare. Invitations are enthusiastically accepted, and even sought, which is certainly flattering.

I would consider myself otherwise to be a fairly average person: neither homely nor beautiful, rather quiet and reserved, no sparkling personality, but polite and pleasant. The food, and the more outgoing company that it attracts, would certainly be the draw at my dinner parties -- and not me. That is fine. I am more a people-watcher than a “people person.” I do not want to be the center of attention.

My problem is that men at the dinner table declare their love for me and even propose marriage (though they, and I, are already married) with surprising frequency.

I completely understand that they do not mean what they are saying, that it is just an awkward compliment about the food and nothing more. Nor do I have any romantic interest whatsoever in these gentlemen. But I hate to see the hurt expression on their lovely wives’ faces when their husbands make these outrageous comments, and I am rather annoyed when my husband begins to act possessive in the face of this false competition for my affections.

Is there a charming way to end this nonsense and protect the feelings of the ladies present without upsetting the party?

GENTLE READER: “Well, can any of you ...” and then you name some household skill your husband has. Or just reel off a list of what were traditionally considered manly tasks: rewiring the lights, fixing the roof, building bookcases, fixing the plumbing and such.

You are bound to hit at least one that each of the wives wishes her husband would do, or has always done herself. Those wistful looks will turn into gently accusatory smiles at their husbands, and you are unlikely to receive such ridiculous compliments from them again.

DEAR MISS MANNERS: A friend of ours did us a small kindness. When we thanked her, she replied, “God told me to.”

In the moment, I interpreted it as pretty close to “I wouldn’t have done it, but my boss made me,” and I was frozen into an awkward silence. In retrospect, I know she didn’t mean it unkindly. But I can’t think of what I should have properly said in response.

GENTLE READER: “Please thank Him for me.” Or Her, if you prefer.

DEAR MISS MANNERS: Reading the 1903 wedding announcement of an antecedent, I wondered about this statement: “Cards have not been sent.” What did this mean in a 1903 newspaper social announcement?

GENTLE READER: The items in question would have been engraved cards of admission, to be presented for entrance to the wedding venue -- used only at weddings where there would be reason to think that the uninvited would be pressing to get in.

As apparently cards might have been expected, and your relative had to deny using them, that must have been some wedding.

(Please send your questions to Miss Manners at her website, www.missmanners.com; to her email, dearmissmanners@gmail.com; or through postal mail to Miss Manners, Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.)