Guide to Etiquette and Modern Manners

The Debrett's indispensable guide to etiquette and modern manners is a book that has been in my house for years, and is occasionally bought out by my mother to correct mistakes made at supper or to satisfy particularly snobbish guests. However I had never considered reading it all the way through until yesterday, it offers some very intriguing advice about marriage, children, parties, and general household activity. The chapter on 'social kissing' was of particular interest as it seems to be the 'in' thing to do when greeting someone- to kiss on both cheeks. 'Some people - skilled practitioners of the air kiss - manage to do without any physical contact whatsoever, but making the stagey mwah mwah sounds social lift-off. Others gently bump cheeks like dainty dolphins.' (pg 216) So other than how to socially kiss someone, the book illustrates how to conduct oneself when others are present. This book is a fascinating and humerous read, although the ideas in some cases are very traditional, it would benefit many people to take heed from what this book suggests.

'I see everything.'

I was initially reluctant to read this book, as my mother teaches children with autism and therefore keeps a stash of 'biography type' books on the subject. Some are narrowly more interesting than others. However this book recieved so much hype when it was published in 2003 that I felt now would be the time to see what the fuss was all about. I began to realise as I read through the fascinating life of Christopher that perhaps we as designers can associate with his 'emotionally dissociated mind' and the struggle to predict the emotions of others. As designers we attempt to go beyond predicting the emotions of a single person to predict the impact of design on the emotions of a population - especially in the case of commercial advertising. Also we often become fixated on a subject wanting to know all about a single subject to develop it futher than others have done before, this is comparable to Christophers knowledge of prime numbers or names of countries. Overall the book was a very entertaining read and shows how everybody views things differently. As designers we are encouraged to think 'outside the box', this book perhaps encourages us to look at things literally first. 'I see everything.' ( pg 174)