Miss Manners: She’s publicly blasting me because our charter bus left her behind
DEAR MISS MANNERS I ve encountered a lot of fuss about the pervasiveness of the non-apology e g I m sorry you re so sensitive or I m sorry you feel that way Related Articles Miss Manners Her peevish behavior in restaurants upsets me every time Miss Manners I don t want to tell people how we got our puppy Miss Manners What to do when the eulogies run past your bedtime Miss Manners She posted online that I stole her socks What do I do now Dear Abby My ex-husband is our neighbor and I m getting fed up with his behavior But what is one to say to acknowledge another s injury while reinforcing that you are not sorry and fully stand by your actions Particularly in a social setting in which silence is not an option I planned an outing for club members and their families to a sporting event in a nearby city Members could buy tickets and each person shared equally the cost of the bus trip After the trip was finalized one member who had bought five tickets informed me via text that she had a conflict and that I would need to hold the bus for minutes I replied that this would be impossible because of the precise times in the bus contract and the need for a buffer to allow for traffic delays I stated her to let me know if she couldn t rearrange her other commitment and that I could try to sell her tickets so she could recoup her money She only replied with OK Needless to say her family did not make the bus The video of the parking area shows that they were nearly an hour late The day after the trip she made a scathing post on our club s social media page about how I refused to wait and that thanks to me she and her family are out hundreds of dollars She even implied that I somehow enriched myself with the unused tickets She has garnered sympathy in the comments from other group members who know only her side Remaining silent is not an option but I am not sorry for any of my actions and want to reiterate that strongly What can be disclosed GENTLE READER When a customer gives a scathing account of poor function on retail websites Miss Manners has noticed the better companies politely explain the full context of the situation while still asserting their desire to make it right This post was tantamount to a review of your excursion If you can manage a polite measured reply that explains the situation as you have done here including your attempts to make it right that may change the other club members perspective And when they realize how much they all would have been inconvenienced by this woman s excessive lateness you may even garner sympathy At the very least they will have been warned about future timed events and you against planning them Related Articles Dear Abby She doesn t deserve the perks of a grandmother Asking Eric My son has video of me in a drunken rage but he won t show it to me Harriette Cole My friend changes her story so often and I don t know what s true Miss Manners Her peevish behavior in restaurants upsets me every time Dear Abby My dad wants to take this teen in It s going to be a calamity DEAR MISS MANNERS I have read much on the proper construction of a pousse-caf a cocktail having each ingredient conscientiously layered over the previous one Unfortunately none of these guides has described the proper way to drink the outcome after properly admiring it of discipline Does one gently mix the ingredients to complete the cocktail Or is it proper to try to sip each layer preserving the presentation GENTLE READER Sip each layer knowing that with each subsequent sip the layers will start to blend That is part of the experience or so Miss Manners has been informed Please excuse her while she goes off to try it out without delay Please send your questions to Miss Manners at her website www missmanners com to her email gentlereader missmanners com or through postal mail to Miss Manners Andrews McMeel Syndication Walnut St Kansas City MO
