On Feb 13, 3:22*pm, Lenona > wrote:
> Found this.
>
> Lenona.
>
> http://lifestyle.msn.com/relationshi...documentid=276....
>
> Dear Miss Manners,
> Who should get the check? My question is in regards to the etiquette
> of getting the check at the end of the meal. I was raised that if it
> was not made very clear at the beginning (such as "don't worry we are
> taking you out"), to always make an effort to pay. My parents taught
> me it is polite to put up a little "argument over it," and I have
> always tried to do this when I have the opportunity; whether it is
> simply paying for myself or picking up the entire check.
>
> My husband believes if you are out with someone a little more well off
> you should simply take their offer, no argument.
>
> I feel like this is rude, but my problem is that I am just out of
> college and recently married. I can't necessarily follow through with
> the "argument" if I win. We see our parents on a pretty regular basis,
> and so tend to eat out with them frequently. The informality of these
> dinners means that no one specifies who pays for whom. Should dinners
> like these be understood as just dutch, or is it okay to simply accept
> as soon as they reach for the bill?
>
> Gentle Reader,
> Your husband's theory that those with more money should subsidize the
> entertaining of those with less is doomed. Miss Manners promises you
> that eventually, the perpetual hosts will feel that they are valued
> only for their ability to pick up the bill.
>
> Yes, sometimes even parents. The long habit of paying for their
> children often remains; many parents prefer to continue to do so and
> will make sure they win any such polite arguments as you mention. But
> even they will be flattered if you occasionally make a point of
> issuing a clear invitation at which you are the hosts -- at a place
> that you can afford.

>
>
*Sigh* Do you have the hots for Miss Manners???