DEAR MISS MANNERS: I have an older house with only one bathroom. I make sure all personal products are off the counter when we have guests, but we’ve still had people rummage in the medicine cabinet and the cabinet under the sink.
My teenage nephew once made loud comments about finding laxatives in the medicine cabinet. Another time he talked about finding a big box of tampons under the sink.
My sister-in-law, his mother, was angry with me and said we shouldn’t have any embarrassing things for guests to find. Should we adjust our medicine cabinet in case guests are snooping?
GENTLE READER: Even though Miss Manners has heard of a more effective solution, please don’t say you got it from her.
The idea is to overload (some might say “booby trap”) the medicine cabinet before your snooping relatives arrive, so that when it is opened, things fall out.
Alarmed by the noise, you can then confront your nephew by asking sympathetically and publicly, “Noah, honey, what were you looking for?” Do you have a problem? Do you need some laxatives?
Yes, this will take some work on your part. But you only have to do it once.
(Send your questions to Miss Manners on her website, www.missmanners.com; to her email, [email protected]; or by mail to Miss Manners, Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.)