TOTALLY GEEKED!

Lady Gaga Snerd · Guru

The younger generation reject the etiquette of their elders

lilyofcourse · My spirit animal is a pink flamingo.

Eh. It depends on what I'm eating. I don't always need a knife.

But I have threatened etiquette classes if the kids didn't follow certain rules in public.

Lady Gaga Snerd · Guru

I think the point of manners is to be considerate of others. I think it is time to reject a lot of this stupid, stuffy crap about which fork to eat a salad with, blah, blah. Some so called etiquette is just plain stupid. Let the stupid stuff die. We are not formal people. We don't need a lot of stuffy formal rules. ANd, yes, it is good to teach kids some formality when they are in formal situations, I agree. But, I think what matters is simply teaching kids to be considerate of others.

flan327 · Itty bitty's Grammy

Lady Gaga Snerd wrote:
I think the point of manners is to be considerate of others. I think it is time to reject a lot of this stupid, stuffy crap about which fork to eat a salad with, blah, blah. Some so called etiquette is just plain stupid. Let the stupid stuff die. We are not formal people. We don't need a lot of stuffy formal rules. ANd, yes, it is good to teach kids some formality when they are in formal situations, I agree. But, I think what matters is simply teaching kids to be considerate of others.

I can't set a "formal" table.

flan

ed11563 · Guru

I think the point here is that people are sharing their meal and their attention with their PHONES instead of with the humans around them.

lilyofcourse · My spirit animal is a pink flamingo.

I agree with that Ed.

I think this is the most disconnected connected generation ever.

Lady Gaga Snerd · Guru

ed11563 wrote:

I think the point here is that people are sharing their meal and their attention with their PHONES instead of with the humans around them.

Well, it's part of life now, so what? We can all bemoan it but the this generation is connected 24 hrs a day. I figure, if you can't beat em, then join em. I love my smartphone. And, you can either enjoy THEM for who they are as well or just sit around like another pissed off, offended old fart! biggrin

lilyofcourse · My spirit animal is a pink flamingo.

Yeah. Nothing like sitting at a table with 5 other people who all have their heads in their phones not talking to one another.

When you talk to your kid on FB than at the dinner table.

When you know what your favorite celebrity is wearing but have no clue what kid is wearing.

(All of this is in general and not pointed at anyone)

ladyloonatic · Regular

But the article is not necessarily about using mobile devices at the dinner table, it's about cutlery.

I don't think a knife is always necessary.

Incidently, most Brits/Europeans think Americans are cloddish for switching hands. The fork is in the left hand, the knife in the right. You cut and then put the food and fork in your mouth with your left hand. That's why forks are on the left and knife and spoon are on the right.

karl271 · Guru

I wonder if most Brits/Europeans still eat in that manner or if it is something that has just been pounded into OUR minds about the use of cutlery.

Over here there is seldom any use for a knife as most things are small enough to put into your mouth with the chopsticks. LOL But there are a raft of rules about using chopsticks, too.... And I notice most young Japanese do not follow them.

Bonny22Pye · Guru

Everyone I've met from Europe generally is a little surprised by American table manners.

Lawyerlady · On the bright side...... Christmas is coming! (Mod)

The point of a proper table setting is to make a meal an event that takes time so you can socialize. Dinner is served in courses, and the dirty utensils are taken away with each course, which is why there are numerous forks. You are not supposed to put a dirty fork back on the table cloth, and when the dirty dish is taken away, there is no place to put it.

flan327 · Itty bitty's Grammy

Lawyerlady wrote:
The point of a proper table setting is to make a meal an event that takes time so you can socialize. Dinner is served in courses, and the dirty utensils are taken away with each course, which is why there are numerous forks. You are not supposed to put a dirty fork back on the table cloth, and when the dirty dish is taken away, there is no place to put it.

Actually, I can and HAVE socialized with ONE fork.

flan

flan327 · Itty bitty's Grammy

I guess because people are more important than BS customs.........................

flan

Lawyerlady · On the bright side...... Christmas is coming! (Mod)

flan327 wrote:
I guess because people are more important than BS customs.........................

flan

Well, that's a tad hostile just because you don't like it.

Knowing proper manners is important so you don't look like a white trash baffoon when you are invited to a formal dinner.

Lawyerlady · On the bright side...... Christmas is coming! (Mod)

Of course, that does assume you would ever be invited to a formal dinner somewhere. If that's not likely to happen, I guess you don't have to worry about it.

Mary Zombie · Guru

I can't believe there are actually people here that think manners are outdated. I weep for society.

Mellow Momma · Sniff...sniff, sniff. Yay! A Bum!

Mary Zombie wrote:
I can't believe there are actually people here that think manners are outdated. I weep for society.

Honestly, I think it depends on the kind of places you go and the type of people you hang out with.

And at boarding school, no one will scold you outright, but there is a LOT of peer pressure to use proper table manners. There are no phones allowed in the dining hall either.

NAOW · Vette's SS

I'm ok with things not being formal all the time, but it is nice when you get to experience an occasion that warrants it.

As for technology, I don't think staring at your phone at the dinner table with other people present is polite.

Nobody Just Nobody · Rib-it! Rrrib-it!

Lawyerlady wrote:
The point of a proper table setting is to make a meal an event that takes time so you can socialize. Dinner is served in courses, and the dirty utensils are taken away with each course, which is why there are numerous forks. You are not supposed to put a dirty fork back on the table cloth, and when the dirty dish is taken away, there is no place to put it.

This. I've been to fancy dinners. You start at the outside and work your way in ask far as silverware goes. Simple. And while fancy dinners are not the norm or the everyday thing they are kind of nice sometimes.

As far as phones are concerned my kids aren't allowed to have theirs at the table. We're trying to teach them how incredibly rude it is in a society that tells them it's perfectly okay.

Lawyerlady · On the bright side...... Christmas is coming! (Mod)

The fact that anyone would scoff so much as to not even learn it in the event they might need the information is just amazing to me. There are a lot of people who still rely on manners and expect them. Just because you only ever eat with family and close friends most of the time does not mean you won't need it sometime or that your kids might - and it is especially important to anyone who is going to have a good career that may require them to travel and wine and dine clients. It's a life skill.

Lady Gaga Snerd · Guru

Mary Zombie wrote:

I can't believe there are actually people here that think manners are outdated. I weep for society.

You "weep for society" because some millennials are cutting their meat with a fork instead of a knife? hmm

flan327 · Itty bitty's Grammy

Lady Gaga Snerd wrote:
Mary Zombie wrote:

I can't believe there are actually people here that think manners are outdated. I weep for society.

You "weep for society" because some millennials are cutting their meat with a fork instead of a knife?

There are plenty of manners that are far more important, imo.

flan

Lady Gaga Snerd · Guru

Yes. I really don't think the collapse of civilization is imminent due to not using a knife to cut your meat.

TrudyML · Guru

ladyloonatic wrote:
But the article is not necessarily about using mobile devices at the dinner table, it's about cutlery.

I don't think a knife is always necessary.

Incidently, most Brits/Europeans think Americans are cloddish for switching hands. The fork is in the left hand, the knife in the right. You cut and then put the food and fork in your mouth with your left hand. That's why forks are on the left and knife and spoon are on the right.

I'm a lefty!

flan327 · Itty bitty's Grammy

TrudyML wrote:
ladyloonatic wrote:
But the article is not necessarily about using mobile devices at the dinner table, it's about cutlery.

I don't think a knife is always necessary.

Incidently, most Brits/Europeans think Americans are cloddish for switching hands. The fork is in the left hand, the knife in the right. You cut and then put the food and fork in your mouth with your left hand. That's why forks are on the left and knife and spoon are on the right.
I'm a lefty!

So is DS2.

flan

TrudyML · Guru

Left footed too!

flan327 · Itty bitty's Grammy

TrudyML wrote:
Left footed too!

Okay, you ARE special!

flan

lilyofcourse · My spirit animal is a pink flamingo.

ladyloonatic wrote:
But the article is not necessarily about using mobile devices at the dinner table, it's about cutlery.

I don't think a knife is always necessary.

Incidently, most Brits/Europeans think Americans are cloddish for switching hands. The fork is in the left hand, the knife in the right. You cut and then put the food and fork in your mouth with your left hand. That's why forks are on the left and knife and spoon are on the right.

I've always used my knife with my right hand.

I don't switch either.

Of course I learned to use my left hand so much when I went through a series of unfortunate events.

Mary Zombie · Guru

The knife is a small part of it lol.

flan327 · Itty bitty's Grammy

Mary Zombie wrote:
The knife is a small part of it lol.

But the OP is about how to use a knife.

flan

Mary Zombie · Guru

I know but there have been other comments about the disconnect....
Um....threads tend to flow
Is that ok?

lilyofcourse · My spirit animal is a pink flamingo.

There is so much lacking in manners these days.

Just simple decorum has been thrown to the side.

Mary Zombie · Guru

But any how....I see so many young adults that have no idea how to act....how to speak properly....it just makes me sad. In general.
Knives.....meh. but in a career it might be good to not look like a Neanderthal at a business dinner.....

flan327 · Itty bitty's Grammy

Mary Zombie wrote:
But any how....I see so many young adults that have no idea how to act....how to speak properly....it just makes me sad. In general.
Knives.....meh. but in a career it might be good to not look like a Neanderthal at a business dinner.....

But how do you eat a fat sandwich??? LOL

flan

Mellow Momma · Sniff...sniff, sniff. Yay! A Bum!

flan327 wrote:
Mary Zombie wrote:
But any how....I see so many young adults that have no idea how to act....how to speak properly....it just makes me sad. In general.
Knives.....meh. but in a career it might be good to not look like a Neanderthal at a business dinner.....
But how do you eat a fat sandwich??? LOL
flan

Well don't ask. Even if you are trying to learn some manners so you don't embarrass yourself --- don't ask about the sammich!!

Mary Zombie · Guru

flan327 wrote:
Mary Zombie wrote:
But any how....I see so many young adults that have no idea how to act....how to speak properly....it just makes me sad. In general.
Knives.....meh. but in a career it might be good to not look like a Neanderthal at a business dinner.....
But how do you eat a fat sandwich??? LOL
flan

In a closet!

Nobody Just Nobody · Rib-it! Rrrib-it!

What if the sammich is so fat it won't fit in the closet?

flan327 · Itty bitty's Grammy

Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
What if the sammich is so fat it won't fit in the closet?

You're doomed to die of starvation!

Honestly, the bison burger DH had yesterday was VERY tall.

flan

Nobody Just Nobody · Rib-it! Rrrib-it!

They say Bison is one of the best meats women can eat. The vitamins and minerals in it best match what a woman's body needs.

Mary Zombie · Guru

Oh no...danger danger danger Will Robinson!

flan327 · Itty bitty's Grammy

Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
They say Bison is one of the best meats women can eat. The vitamins and minerals in it best match what a woman's body needs.

When we go back, I'll try a bison burger.

flan

Nobody Just Nobody · Rib-it! Rrrib-it!

flan327 wrote:
Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
They say Bison is one of the best meats women can eat. The vitamins and minerals in it best match what a woman's body needs.
When we go back, I'll try a bison burger.
flan

They're good!

flan327 · Itty bitty's Grammy

Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
flan327 wrote:
Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
They say Bison is one of the best meats women can eat. The vitamins and minerals in it best match what a woman's body needs.
When we go back, I'll try a bison burger.
flan
They're good!

DH loved his!

flan

Nobody Just Nobody · Rib-it! Rrrib-it!

We used to have a little store where I lived that sold them. They were so good.

flan327 · Itty bitty's Grammy

DS1 is coming to town this weekend! Maybe I'll see if he wants to go.

flan

Nobody Just Nobody · Rib-it! Rrrib-it!

You should! It really just tastes like steak. I thought it was good. They also made their own peanut butter there.

Mary Zombie · Guru

Hmmm.... I saw bison at publix. Must try it.

Nobody Just Nobody · Rib-it! Rrrib-it!

I really like it. I can't get it here. Well, I can but it's top dollar and out of my price range.

just Czech · Give Me Grand's!

Okay, back to the OP.

IMHO, being able to set a proper table and know how and when to use the utensils IS knowledge. It is important to teach to our children, whether or not they use those skills in their daily life. It's the knowledge that counts.

I am aware of individuals who have had luncheon job interviews. Yes, they were judged on their social manners. A pass/fail interview. If you lack the manners, you are a no-hire.

There are college courses that teach social/etiquette skills.

Who wants to hire someone who eats with their mouth open? Yes, that is a part of proper dinning. So, please, learn how to set a proper table, how to use the utensils and don't slurp the soup.