DEAR MISS MANNERS: A friend has a dreadful habit of always mentioning, as an aside, how wealthy -- or strapped -- someone is when their name comes up in conversation. Some of these people I know, some I do not.
I wish I had addressed this habit when she was still merely an acquaintance, but it's only now that we often speak on the phone that it is glaringly obvious to me.
I would really like a good response other than my silence or changing the subject, which has had no effect. Perhaps something gentler than my inclination to blurt, "You know, that's rude."
GENTLE READER: "How fortunate you are to have friends so close that they even share their financial information. I am shy about such things and would never talk about it to anyone except my accountant."
If you are feeling bold, Miss Manners will allow adding, "... for fear of its being passed along."