YVONNE&YVETTETIQUETTE

ELAINE OF ELAINE’S ON DINING, WINING AND WHINING

2010-03-09T13:33:00.000-08:00

Asked if she ever goes gaga over the famous people who come to her restaurant known for it’s famous clientele that includes prolific writers, filmmakers, actors and other consummate New Yorkers, Elaine Kaufman, owner of the famous Elaine’s on New York's Upper Eastside thinks for a moment, looks at Diane Becker, the restaurant’s superb, no nonsense manager and responds, “Sidney Poitier was awesome

THE JOB OF LEAVING A JOB

2010-03-03T11:20:00.000-08:00

It doesn’t seem like most people are leaving jobs on their own volition these days but if you’re one of the two lucky people in today’s job market who actually found another job, careful how you leave.No need to gloat, especially if you know that most of your soon to be former colleagues are miserable. Telling them that their turn is coming up may not be the best thing to say to them because you

IT’S MY PARTY AND YOU’LL PAY IF YOU WANT TO…

2010-02-24T13:18:00.000-08:00

Even before the recent financial crunch, people have thrown birthday parties that require a fee. For some, it’s the only way they could have had a party. They’d rather their good friends join in on the fun at a reasonable cost than not to have anything at all. Sometimes the celebrant or friends and family execute this plan.While that’s understandable, it may not be to guests who want to

THE CURSE OF CURSING IN PUBLIC

2010-02-17T05:29:00.000-08:00

If you buy into the phrase, “curses like a sailor”, there are a lot of sailors out of uniform amongst us, no matter where you live. We can safely assume that we have all used some of ‘those’ words, and will continue to use them when they serve us. We use them as exclamation points, expressions of disbelief, pain and anger or just because a cuss word seemed right at the time. Let’s examine the

THE SWEETEST DAY FOR HAITI

2010-02-10T01:04:00.000-08:00

On Valentine's Day, expectations run high, so do the prices of roses, dinner and baubles. Last year, we wrote a post of dos and don'ts for Valentine's Day. In light of what's happened in Haiti, we thought it would be trite to discuss the etiquette of Valentine's Day.We told you about The Sweetest Day, a special day celebrated in Ohio that's not just about bon-bons. Instead of the usual gifts,

THE 2009 RUDEY AWARDS

2010-02-03T07:28:00.000-08:00

It seems to be no surprise that Kanye West was most frequently nominated for our first annual Rudey Awards. In fact, so many of our followers mentioned him, we have decided to give him the distinctive, Rudey Hall of Shame award. This suggestion comes from a fan and follower of ours in Chicago. We don’t think Mr. West will lose any sleep over this - that would be way too gentlemanly.Our good

POSTER GIRL FOR BAD BEHAVIOR

2010-01-27T07:06:00.000-08:00

When we first heard about, YaVaughnie Wilkins, the jilted lover of a very rich man and her poster project, it seemed like a story straight out of a tabloid. Instead, her love story was straight out of a tabloid. We felt her pain upon learning that the man she thought was hers for keeps was going back to his wife for keeps. We’ll never know the nitty-gritty - with or without it all of our lives

HAITIANS UNDER FIRE AND GRACE

2010-01-20T12:26:00.001-08:00

There's been a lot of talk about the spirit of the Haitian people. It is strong and determined, we've seen it at work day in and day out ever since this horrific natural disaster.The other day, we saw something quite wonderful on a news report. A line of Haitian children had been waiting for hours in the blistering sun for a bottle of water. As they were each handed one, not only were there

WHEN GROOMING AND GREASING UP GOES PUBLIC

2010-01-13T08:34:00.000-08:00

A funny thing happened on the way to an early morning appointment the other day, a woman on the bus took out her little makeup bag and pulled out her mascara and proceeded to lengthen and thicken right there in her seat. Afterwards, she went digging into her bag and took out a brush and compact. A stop and half later her cheeks had some color to them but not after she used a germ laden hand to

ETIQUETTE FOR THE NEXT DECADE: OUR WISHES

2010-01-05T20:51:00.000-08:00

Yvette’sThat people will stop putting their feet on furniture that doesn't belong to them(including public transportation, the office, at the theater and other public meeting spaces).That young people will stop calling older people sweetie or any other term of endearmentThat people will go back to saying you're welcome, instead of no problem or no worriesThe stroller brigade will learn to make

WE WISH YOU...

2009-12-24T03:50:00.000-08:00

A MERRY CHRISTMAS, HAPPY HOLIDAYS AND EVERYTHING WONDERFUL.

The Gift You Keep Giving

2009-12-16T07:18:00.000-08:00

A couple of years ago, Yvette gave a friend a piece of furniture, a small table. The friend appeared to be grateful and happily took it home. Apparently, her happiness was short lived because she ended up giving the table to her sister. She had no problems sharing this with Yvette.We don't like re-gifting. We think it's rude and inconsiderate and takes the thoughtfulness out of giving. People,

TIPPING POINTS:WHEN DOORMEN BECOME DOORMEN

2009-12-09T05:13:00.000-08:00

It's time to peel off crisp bills and give them to those whom we believe have gone beyond their duty to make our living where we live more pleasant during the year. We also tip these people because they tend to make less than the tippers - not so these days with many tippers out of work and doormen know that. They know everything. They know that you're spending more time at home and you've

THE CHRISTMAS CARD GAME

2009-12-02T08:50:00.000-08:00

Christmas or holiday cards are a nice way to get in touch with people you haven’t seen in a while and probably won’t see for a while. Many of us have observed children of friends grow up through the years by way of Christmas card picture frames. One family we know had a professional photographer photograph their family every year, the card is so beautifully produced, they’re keepsakes.When we

THANKSGIVING: DON'T BE A TURKEY

2009-11-19T00:15:00.000-08:00

And we're off and running. The holiday season kicks off next week with Thanksgiving. Some of us will spend the most time we've ever spent all year round in our kitchens basting, chopping, stirring and hoping that it all turns out well. We thought we'd whip up some dos and don'ts for both hosts and guests.For hosts...Do be honest, if a guest asks what should they bring, tell them. Nothing worse

HAPPY HOLIDATING

2009-11-18T19:33:00.000-08:00

There is no more rigorous a test of a relationship, especially a new one, than the holidays. We've all starred in our personal Home Alone movie and not always by choice.I, Yvette, would like to share an experience I had last Thanksgiving. I had been dating someone for about five months. The closer we got to what would be our first major holiday, the more uncomfortable I became. I wanted to ask

ELEVATOR MANNERS: GOING UP?

2009-11-11T06:30:00.000-08:00

We say they’re going down, especially in our hometown of New York City. What is it about New Yorkers who treat other New Yorkers like the Invisible Man, Woman or Child? How about a nod or a basic greeting, something more humane than walking onto an elevator and distributing the silent treatment? Cell phones and BlackBerrys don’t help. Now, there’s really no reason to recognize anyone else, we’re

QUESTIONABLE QUESTIONS

2009-11-04T09:48:00.000-08:00

Being twins, we’re used to questions. We’ve been asked them all from “Are you identical?” to “Which one is the evil twin?” Call us sensitive when it comes to some questions, but when a question makes you wince then it’s probably the kind that’s trying to peg your social status, your financial status, your love life, etc. Below are some that pass the wince test. (Please note that some of these

MAY I ASK FOR MY MONEY, PLEASE?

2009-10-28T10:21:00.000-07:00

There’s nothing more uncomfortable and frustrating than chasing after money owed to you. And during these economically difficult times you can barely catch your breath as you run for your money. You’ve emailed, left phone messages, emailed again and left another message and then you begin to wonder if you’re beginning to annoy the client and maybe he/she is so annoyed, they’re not going to pay

When A Contrarian Takes The Floor

2009-10-21T16:48:00.000-07:00

Beware of the contrarian in the room. As soon as a conversation takes off, he or she will turn into the CONVERSATIONATOR and obliterate any spoken word with endless disagreements and contradictions. They’ll oppose when there’s nothing to oppose.For example:You: I wish it would stop raining.The Conversationator: Be glad you woke up healthy this morning.What? You make a comment about the

SOCIAL BUTTERFLYING ALONE

2009-10-14T06:56:00.000-07:00

There is nothing more challenging than going to a party alone and the only familiar face is that of the host’s cat that looks exactly like the one you had as a child.Most people will know their host but that isn’t a guarantee that you’ll have someone to keep you company during the party. No decent host worth their cheese puffs would spend the whole time with one guest. So, how do you do, ‘How do

WHEN THE FLU GOES TO WORK, WILL YOU?

2009-10-07T10:28:00.000-07:00

When we’re not feeling, all we want to do is feel better. We’re so busy minding our health, we forget about minding our manners.H1N1, depending on with whom you’re talking, is coming our way with a vengeance along with the seasonal flu. Now, more than ever, is the time to go into germ control wherever you are, especially at your place of work.If you’re climbing up the ladder, slow down during flu

Stealing the Show: Noisemakers, Filmmakers and Troublemakers

2009-09-30T07:14:00.000-07:00

All Yvette wanted to do was sit back and enjoy Boz Scaggs and Michael McDonald in concert. She could hear everything just fine, but McDonald’s body had a camera for a head, compliments of the bootlegging filmmaker sitting in front of her. She wondered what to do, write off the concert or take action? Hoping that he wasn’t some sort of nutcase, she took action.“Excuse me, sir, your camera and its

The No Gift Request, Part One: Ignore it or respect it?

2009-09-24T10:02:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, a very elegant, engraved invitation arrived for a special birthday celebration. There was an email address and phone number for RSVP’s and also a request, “No Gifts Please”. We are going to that party this evening and we are sure that there will be gifts. Many don’t believe in walking into a birthday party empty handed. It’s a show of gratitude and friendship and who doesn’

Heard Any Good Apologies Lately?

2009-09-16T08:32:00.000-07:00

In the past week, we’ve seen three displays of egregious behavior on television and not one of the offenders offered what we call a ‘clean apology’. They were big on excuses and double talk but not one stepped up to the plate immediately and apologized for their behavior. Their handlers did it for them, tweaking and re-tweaking stiff, souless statements.Since most of us don’t have handlers and