Etiquette: those unspoken things that go without saying. In the same family as Chivalry, Manners and Politeness.
Chivalry makes some folks dissolve into puddles of mush by wielding his shiny sword and chainmail armor. He was more commonplace and accepted decades prior. Nowadays, he confounds other folks who just don’t know what to do in his presence. Chivalry makes appearances less and less in bigger cities. Wondering, but not too concerned with why he doesn’t fit in. These days he spends the majority of his time in tribal communities, villages, smaller towns and the wild.
Manners is Chivalry’s little sister. Her twin, Decency, died in December 2009. Around the same time ‘Jersey Shore’ debuted, which was not a coincidence. Homicide. Manners is prim and proper inside and out, very well read, and surprisingly good company to keep. She lights up a room and truly never goes wrong. She loves Norwegian Industrial Metal, though her favorite singer is India.Arie.
Politeness is the dashing older brother of Chivalry and Manners. There is no other like him. If he could communicate any direct message it would be, “Please don’t be fooled by imitations.” Though the same could be said by any of the 4, Politeness was the first of them all to coin this term behind unspoken lips. Politeness likes to make appearances everywhere, but especially enjoys showing up in unexpected circumstances. He is still screen savoring the double play made .00000000198 seconds ago when a prisoner was kindly asked by a fellow inmate if he wanted to eat the roll on his tray. The prisoner truly did not, so in another uncommon gesture considering the locale, he said, “Thanks for asking. Here you go, #19.”
Etiquette is the youngest sister in the family. She is still unsure of her way in this world. And is the most ambiguous of them all. She weaves her way through
bathrooms:
-Don’t use the stall next to an occupied stall if there is a whole row to choose from.
-Courtesy flush
-If you’re in a multiple floor office building, shit in any bathroom not on your floor.
group dining:
-Don’t take the last morsel, offer it up first.
She fought the other 3 for it & won–
-On a date, the man pays.
gyms,
gum/cigarettes:
-Don’t ask a reliable source more than once a week. Offer up alternating weeks.
And the like.
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Etty likes living in the in between. She especially likes that she is not recognized, observed or even acknowledged by all. What she does is allow for two people that don’t speak the same language or come from the same background/ culture to have an instant commonality.
She is thinking of partnering with Cupid for an upcoming project.
Stay tuned.
