Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2007/09/12
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Hi Daniel, "You want more at twenty past eight, and you have enough at twenty past four." Some say ten past two. Just nitpicking, really. It's 'common' etiquette here. There are a lot more of these conventions, too. The beautiful thing is: they almost all have a good reason. If you prefer being polite over rude, that is. In fact it's non verbal signage of respect. Except for the position of cutlery, though. That was a mere sign to the butler and his staff to enable them to see (without having to ask and thus disturbing those at the table) from a distance that the next course could be served. And a table of 12 persons with their cultery all in the same directions when finished, it looks nice, too ofcourse. It were the days before democracy. But who knows this anymore? It's become obsolete. And completely inappropriate. So wherever you want to put it, it's OK. About the first phrase: visualize the clock and you get the cutlery positions. Knife ofcourse at the right (unless it's especially put there for spreading butter on your bread). That's how they thought it to this only since very recently liberated (faux-)etiquette junkie. (and very happy about it) Philippe Op 12-sep-07, om 06:49 heeft Daniel Ridings het volgende geschreven: > I noticed in my PAW this week that there is something that took a > while to learn when I came to Sweden. > > Here's the link again and look at the position of the knife and > fork on Gunn's (that's her name) plate: > > http://www.dlridings.se/paw/2007/36.html > > If you finish eating and put your silverware any other way than she > had done, you will get the host and hostess offering you more and > more food, second helpings, on and on ... > > By placing your silverware the way she has, it means: I'm finished. > You will be offered desert or coffee, but you won't be terrorized > with second and third helpings :-) > > Took a while to pick up that trick ... > > Daniel > > _______________________________________________ > Leica Users Group. > See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information >