steveintoronto
Superstar
As very poor immigrants from the UK in the late fifties (the straw that broke the camel's back to emigrate was my folks not having the money to buy my older sister a uniform for school, it was hard times with many in the nation still recovering from the War, I remember my mother's tears to this day)...anyway, not only was it forbidden to talk out of turn at the dinner table, you were expected to eat everything on your plate. We were astounded at the North Am habit of 'leftovers'.Well, first of all, MisterF, lets set the record straight. I didn't say I resent the person. I resent the act. Huge difference in what I said and what you interpreted. Why do I feel that way? Well, the way I was raised, the dinner table was a place for family discussion. How can you talk to people if you cannot see their faces because they are hiding behind a hat? You may think its old fashion, but if you attended a classy dinner table, the wearing of a hat is considered a complete violation of proper table etiquette...it makes one look like a classless hick. The wearing of a hat inside is generally considered an etiquette no no.
http://www.advancedetiquette.com/2010/04/hat-etiquette/
I also think families who sit in front of the tv with their food on their laps are missing a golden opportunity to connect with their family...especially the children. As a child of the 60's, my family spent a great deal of time around the kitchen table talking. My parents took interest in our lives and no subject was taboo...politics, school, life, neighbourhood events, news and current events. That is only possible when your family interests are focussed on each other and not the fantasy of tv shows. Its a great way of letting your kids know that there is a place in the world for them instead of having your kids or the adults buried in their electronic devices at the table.
Wear a hat at the table? Whoa...my folks were died in the wool atheists, but still, decorum was tantamount at the table. As time went on, the rigid habits softened, and my younger brothers were allowed freedoms we never even dreamed of.
In the event, my family moved back to the UK some forty years ago, they never got over talking of "back home". As the brash North American, I stayed.