Miss Manners: Our new neighbors stop by at inopportune times. Should we invite them?

DEAR MISS MANNERS: My fiancé and I moved to a new neighborhood and our neighbors were very friendly and came over to introduce themselves.

One of our neighbors likes to talk a lot and comes over a little more often. One evening he rang the doorbell at 9pm as we sat down to a late dinner (we had been painting all day). He brought us oranges from his tree. He chatted with us for about 10 minutes then left.

After he left, I started to wonder: Are we still supposed to invite our neighbors inside when they come over? We’re still unpacking, our house is far from tidy and sometimes when they come by, it’s at an inopportune time. At the same time, I don’t want to be considered rude.

GENTLE READER: You can’t reasonably be expected to entertain uninvited guests – especially after a recent move – so there’s nothing wrong with accepting the oranges and saying, “We look forward to welcoming you when we are unpacked and ready to welcome guests. »

Miss Manners is only relieved that your neighbor also had the manners – and situational awareness – to leave after 10 minutes. She was afraid, when you mentioned the time, that your question would be how to do a polite eviction.

Please send your questions to Miss Manners on her website, www.missmanners.com; to his email, [email protected]; or by postal mail to Miss Manners, Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.