Hospitality
84 conversations where the hosts get into hospitality.
84 conversations
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Dear LFTP: the single man and the holiday cliques
- Would it be wrong for the lonely single man to start declining holiday invitations?
The first Dear LFTP letter: a single man, happy with his life and plenty of friends and family, dreads the holidays — at Thanksgiving and Christmas gatherings of 15 to 25 people,…
From No. 603 · Found Out
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Dear LFTP: the inclusive dinner and the autistic boy
- How can I stay inclusive when a new family's severely autistic child disrupts my neighborhood movie night?
Mike reads the first Dear LFTP letter: a single woman hosts monthly inclusive neighborhood dinners and movie nights (kids, dogs, a ramp for an elderly neighbor), but a new…
From No. 600 · Rage The Elephant
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Dear LFTP #2: friends who always bring extra people
- How do we stop friends from inviting extra people to our gatherings?
Mike reads the second letter: dear friends who socialize a lot keep inviting extra people to gatherings at the listener's lake house — including, once, a passed-out stranger ('my coyote fell asleep on the couch').
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Dear LFTP: the $600 lawnmower and buying them a mower
- My nephew's wife took my $600, lied about it, and is avoiding me. Should I say something or let it go?
Mike reads a letter from someone who gave a nephew's wife $600 for a self-propelled lawnmower; she spent it, never bought the mower, and now avoids them.
From No. 587 · Coffee After Sunday
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Dear LFTP: the book-club crashers
- Is my partner right that we cannot stop inviting the unwanted book-club women without looking mean?
Mike reads a letter from a book-club host annoyed by two uninvited regulars who never read the books and only discuss ailments: can they be dropped without looking mean?
From No. 582 · Risky Business | Christian Risk-Taking, Community Engagement, Faith in Action
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Dear LFTP: the $99 birthday bill and "Jesus always pays"
- Was it wrong to be taken aback when I was expected to split the cost of a friend's birthday dinner?
Mike reads a letter from a man invited to a friend's birthday dinner at a popular restaurant: after the birthday boy excused himself, the waiter presented the bill and the nine…
From No. 580 · Not Sure | Old Testament Law, Holy Spirit Guidance, Christian Discernment
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Dear LFTP: the $900 couch letter
- My best friend and her son (about a thousand pounds combined) cracked my new $900 couch and want to bring more family over — what do I do?
Mike reads the second letter (same anchor/merge note): the writer bought a new house and a $900 couch; her best friend and the friend's son — 'about a thousand pounds' combined — audibly cracked it and now want to bring more family.
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Dear LFTP: the retired couple and the widow's dinner
- Is it rude to decline a neighbor's dinner invitation, and is there a more polite way than an excuse?
Mike reads a Dear LFTP letter from a retired couple befriended by a widowed neighbor: invited to dinner with her sister and brother-in-law, the wife, an introvert with anxiety, does not want to go and considers blaming her husband as an excuse.
From No. 539 · Birdcage
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Dear LFTP: the squawky bird at the dinner table
- How should I address my sister keeping a squawky bird at the dinner table after she ignored my feedback?
Mike reads a Dear LFTP letter from someone whose sister keeps a squawky bird at the dinner table and, after being asked to move it, pulled the cage even closer.
From No. 539 · Birdcage
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Dear LFTP: friends burned by the church
- How do I approach friends who have been burned by the church?
Mike reads a listener question: multiple friends were burned by the church — how do you approach them about coming back?
From No. 507 · What’s in a Name
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Bear Grylls' church critique, prayer, and discipleship
- Is Bear Grylls right that Jesus would struggle with 99% of churches, and would you stay if the production were stripped away?
- How do you practice real one-on-one discipleship instead of relying on church programs?
The hosts discuss Bear Grylls' Christian Post interview: he is unabashedly open about his faith but says Jesus would struggle with 99% of churches today, urging people to stay…
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Dear LFTP: declining dinner invitations from snippy neighbors
- Should I accept dinner invitations from neighbors I dislike and expect to be awful?
A second Dear LFTP letter describes two former classmates who bought houses next door; one neighbor, 'Evie,' is a snippy know-it-all with a sugar-daddy boyfriend who yells over the fence and keeps inviting the couple to dinner and happy hour.
From No. 484 · The Idol Tannenbaums
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Dear LFTP: the coworker's unruly party dogs
- What would have been the polite way to ask my coworker to put the dogs in their kennels while guests were eating?
The first Dear LFTP letter: a listener attended a coworker's party for about 15 guests where two inside dogs barked, jumped on people, and hovered for food, with no attempt to control them, despite visible kennels.
From No. 479 · Solving All Your Money Problems
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Dear LFTP: the holiday leftovers and Tupperware etiquette wars
- What's the hosts' take on holiday leftovers etiquette with Tupperware-carrying guests?
A listener describes hosting a holiday dinner where guests arrived carrying empty Tupperware and left her with only dirty dishes, then refused her a take-home plate for her sick husband at their own dinner.
From No. 463 · Getting Kids to Stick With Jesus
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Dear LFTP: a Passover cake for Jewish neighbors
- Should I bake a Passover cake for my Jewish neighbors, ask first, or just send a greeting?
Retirees ask whether to bake a Passover cake for their nice Jewish neighbors, just send a card, or ask first.
From No. 462 · Jesus and the Metaverse
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Dear LFTP: the perfectionist party-planner husband
- Am I unreasonable for refusing formal, perfectionist dinner parties?
A listener in a second marriage says her husband Alec plans formal dinner events, stresses over perfection, and stays irritated through them, while she prefers casual potlucks.
From No. 459 · Things We Don’t Want to Talk About
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Dear LFTP: the takeout Thanksgiving friend
- Was I out of line telling my friend I am sick of her takeout Chinese and pizza dinners?
Mike reads a letter from someone whose friend serves only takeout Chinese or delivered pizza, even for Thanksgiving dinner.
From No. 457 · House Church Trouble in Olympic China
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Dear LFTP: friend who takes 'stay anytime' literally
- Am I wrong to be annoyed that my friend takes my 'stay anytime' offer literally and leaves a mess?
A listener asks if he is wrong to be annoyed that a friend, told he could stay over anytime, now visits constantly, never goes out with the host, leaves piles of clothes and used tissues and face masks around the living room.
From No. 456 · Just Do It
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Dear LFTP: twenty-year marriage, in-laws visiting, and the divorce threat
- How do I get over my anxiety about my husband's family staying over?
A 58-year-old introvert writes that her husband's family stays over three to four days every year, she would rather they motel it, and he threatened divorce over it.
From No. 454 · Read, Protect, and Complain About Your Husband
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Dear LFTP: the aging parent nobody wants to house
- What should I do about aging and housing when my family does not want me to live with them?
A healthy writer in their mid-sixties with grandchildren asks what to do when family members eye-roll at the idea of housing them someday.
From No. 451 · Mississippi Don’t Push
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Dear LFTP: the thermostat wars
- How do I talk to my roommate about the thermostat without coming off as controlling?
A roommate wants the house at 77-78 while the roommates crank it to 72-73 ('you could hang meat in here'), and asks how to raise it without sounding controlling.
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Dear LFTP: the husband's best friend who won't leave
- My husband's best friend moved in with us after a divorce, works part-time fast food with no degree or car, and shows no ambition to leave — how can I improve this situation?
A Dear LFTP letter from a woman supporting all three people in her household: her husband's best friend moved in after a bad divorce, works part-time fast food with no degree or car, aspires to nothing more, and may never leave.
From No. 410 · Robert E. Lee Stained Glass & Freeloaders
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Dear LFTP: unruly kids at restaurant lunches
- Should I tell a young couple their kids are unruly at restaurants, or make excuses to avoid lunch invitations?
Dear LFTP: a listener is invited to lunch every few months by a young couple whose kids run wild in restaurants and wonders whether to confront them or make excuses.
From No. 403 · Little Things and Greeting Cards to Jesus
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Dear LFTP: the company party dress code
- For a company party, shouldn't 'anything goes' be assumed unless a dress code is specified?
Mike reads a letter from a man baffled that guests keep asking about the dress code for his company party, assuming 'anything goes' unless specified.
From No. 402 · It’s OK to Stay Home