DEAR MISS MANNERS: Too often for my comfort, I find myself at the bottom of a staircase, escorting a woman upstairs. My instinct is to let the woman go first, but the unfortunate result is that when I follow her up the stairs, my eyes are at the level of her bottom.
The situation is even more complicated if short skirts are part of the equation. The “solution” of my going up the stairs first means that the woman is then left at eye-level with my buttocks (which my wife kindly assures me is not a hardship), possibly making them uncomfortable.
To avoid — or at least minimize — any discomfort, who should proceed up the stairs first?
GENTLE READER: The correct procedure is that the lady goes up the stairs first, and a gentleman keeps his salacious thoughts to himself.
Should you go first, however, Miss Manners, unlike your wife, believes that you would be in no danger of exciting the lady behind you.
***
(Please send your questions to Miss Manners at her website,
www.missmanners.com
; to her email,
; or through postal mail to Miss Manners, Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.)
Latest Advice Columns
-
Asking Eric: My sister stopped speaking to me because I didn’t attend her daughter’s wedding
-
Dear Abby: It bothers me that I don’t know anything about my 17-year-old’s life
-
Dear Annie: Man is unkind to his son’s girlfriend, who was a caregiver to his dying wife
-
Best of Miss Manners: I didn’t give my window seat on the plane to the woman who asked. Was I wrong?
-
Hints from Heloise: How to extend the life of a razor blade and more …
