222 Quotes by Judith Martin

There is nothing like a good friend to help you out when you are not in trouble.

the obligation to express gratitude deepens with procrastination. The longer you wait, the more effusive must be the thanks.

Manners require showing consideration of all human beings, not just the ones to whom one is close.

Greece is a good place for rebirths.

Ideological differences are no excuse for rudeness.

Allowing an unimportant mistake to pass without comment is a wonderful social grace.

. . . women were brought up to have only one set of manners. A woman was either a lady or she wasn't, and we all know what the latter meant. Not even momentary lapses were allowed; there is no female equivalent of the boys-will-be-boys concept.

In its natural state, the child tells the literal truth because it is too naive to think of anything else. Blurting out the complete truth is considered adorable in the young, right smack up to the moment that the child says, 'Mommy, is this the fat lady you can't stand?

Screening telephone calls with a receptionist or the humbler answering machine is not a dishonorable thing to do. The warmest people in the world still need uninterrupted time to attend to their lives and should not be outwitted if they have made it obvious that they are not always available upon summons.