# Looking for a good reply **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 9, 2012, 6:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-good-reply/640459 "2012-11-09T06:47:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![\_Olive](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/_/4af34b/32.png) [@\_Olive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/_Olive)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-good-reply/640459/42 "2012-11-09T19:38:14Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > I would say, “I don’t understand why you think it is OK to ask me that”. > mmm I like this one. Well, I liked a lot of the responses but I think Mean Mr. Mustard’s will work for me. ---
**Author:** ![thirdwarning](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecccb3/32.png) [@thirdwarning](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thirdwarning)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-good-reply/640459/43 "2012-11-09T19:39:53Z")
Not sure of the source here. Might have been Dear Abby or Ann Landers. Could have been Miss Manners, but I don’t think so. Anyway… If you’ll forgive me for not answering that question, I’ll forgive you for asking it. ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-good-reply/640459/44 "2012-11-09T21:30:21Z")
I like the charity thing mentioned above, because it puts her in her place AND pisses her off in return (also guarantees she doesn’t try to bump you off to get her hands on it faster). “Let’s just say I’ll be providing Planned Parenthood with a \*substantial \*bequest.” Then, you wink. But you have to sell the wink, that’s key. ---
**Author:** ![Corcaigh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Corcaigh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Corcaigh)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-good-reply/640459/45 "2012-11-09T21:34:31Z")
> [@\_Olive](#): > > I think I stated in my first post I told her I could’t believe she was asking me that question. > > The last two times I have seen her she also sneaks up to me and puts the sign of the cross on my forehead. I make a joke about that, or pretend to fall on the ground and speak in tongues. > > But the money thing always surprizes me and this time I want something quirky to say. Are you sure she’s meaning your financial worth? Cos she sounds like the granny of a woman I used to know who would ask people odd questions that didn’t make any sense, turned out she was essentially asking them if they’d accepted Jesus as their saviour, or somesuch. Perhaps your SIL wonders what’s to become of you when the Rapture starts? ---
**Author:** ![redtail23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/3e96dc/32.png) [@redtail23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/redtail23)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-good-reply/640459/46 "2012-11-09T21:39:56Z")
I’d have to go with “none of your business”, myself. About the other, the proper response is to start writhing and screaming “It burns, it burns”. ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-good-reply/640459/47 "2012-11-09T21:44:41Z")
“I’m priceless” ---
**Author:** ![\_Olive](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/_/4af34b/32.png) [@\_Olive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/_Olive)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-good-reply/640459/48 "2012-11-09T22:03:37Z")
> [@Corcaigh](#): > > Are you sure she’s meaning your financial worth? Cos she sounds like the granny of a woman I used to know who would ask people odd questions that didn’t make any sense, turned out she was essentially asking them if they’d accepted Jesus as their saviour, or somesuch. > > Perhaps your SIL wonders what’s to become of you when the Rapture starts? Yes, because when I don’t give her an answer she says to atleast tell her what my house is worth. The born again stuff is too much and I think one of the reasons I was able to convinced my husband to move so far away from family. The day before my husband died she told me he was going to hell. Actually it was a conference call with two of his sisters. That conversation should have been our last I suppose. ---
**Author:** ![Lanzy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/74df32/32.png) [@Lanzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lanzy)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-good-reply/640459/49 "2012-11-09T22:25:22Z")
More and more everyday. ---
**Author:** ![Kimmy\_Gibbler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Kimmy\_Gibbler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimmy_Gibbler)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-good-reply/640459/50 "2012-11-09T23:33:47Z")
> [@\_Olive](#): > > I think I stated in my first post I told her I could’t believe she was asking me that question. > > The last two times I have seen her she also sneaks up to me and puts the sign of the cross on my forehead. I make a joke about that, or pretend to fall on the ground and speak in tongues. > > But the money thing always surprizes me and this time I want something quirky to say. What did she say when you said you were a bit taken aback by the question? Forgive my skepticism, but these accounts of rude, neglectful, intrusive, sign-of-the-cross-making (Catholic), born-again (Evangelical) in-laws sound tailor-made for Doper delectation… It’s all a little too pat. And the justification: I subject myself to this because there’s one I like (why not visit him at a different time?), a little too unpersuasive. ---
**Author:** ![Kimmy\_Gibbler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Kimmy\_Gibbler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimmy_Gibbler)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-good-reply/640459/51 "2012-11-09T23:41:08Z")
Post edit window: they told me I was going to hell while my husband was on his deathbed! But I still talk to them. Fine melodrama, but a bit lacking in verisimilitude, don’t you think? ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-good-reply/640459/52 "2012-11-09T23:48:34Z")
“Priceless” “No seriously, I don’t ask or answer questions about how much money people have.” “Because honestly, my business is my own and I like to keep it that way.” ---
**Author:** ![\_Olive](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/_/4af34b/32.png) [@\_Olive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/_Olive)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2012, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-good-reply/640459/53 "2012-11-10T00:43:04Z")
> [@Kimmy\_Gibbler](#): > > Post edit window: they told me I was going to hell while my husband was on his deathbed! But I still talk to them. > > Fine melodrama, but a bit lacking in verisimilitude, don’t you think? You got that part wrong. They told me **he** was going to hell while he was on his deathbed. Except for the one, I didn’t talk to them for almost 28 years. I don’t think talking to them 3 times in almost 5 years for an hour is so awful. Besides its good for them to see people don’t have to be like them to be good people. ---
**Author:** ![Sticks\_and\_Scones](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sticks_and_scones/32/16951_2.png) [@Sticks\_and\_Scones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sticks_and_Scones)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2012, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-good-reply/640459/54 "2012-11-10T01:10:04Z")
For what it’s worth, I think she’s for real and that the religious banter is just another irritation that she has to deal with. And I can understand why she’d visit with him then, too. You go when you’re invited. Since my boyfriend passed away I’ve spent quite a bit of time with his brothers and other family members. While I’m fortunate because they are awesome people I’d probably still come around occasionally even if one or two got on my nerves because, as she said, you can see your loved one in these people. And to me, that’s really something, something that you won’t easily give up. Just my two cents. ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2012, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-good-reply/640459/55 "2012-11-10T01:13:29Z")
Asking her why is going to lead to a conversation you seem to want to avoid, in my opinion. That’s why, “Do not ask again”, is so awesome. I mean, it’s not like this woman is going to take a hint, obviously, as she’s asked you before. ---
**Author:** ![\_Olive](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/_/4af34b/32.png) [@\_Olive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/_Olive)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2012, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-good-reply/640459/56 "2012-11-10T01:37:20Z")
> [@elbows](#): > > Asking her why is going to lead to a conversation you seem to want to avoid, in my opinion. > > That’s why, “Do not ask again”, is so awesome. I mean, it’s not like this woman is going to take a hint, obviously, as she’s asked you before. You are right. Thanks so much. ---
**Author:** ![Kimmy\_Gibbler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Kimmy\_Gibbler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimmy_Gibbler)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2012, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-good-reply/640459/57 "2012-11-10T01:51:36Z")
> [@\_Olive](#): > > You got that part wrong. They told me **he** was going to hell while he was on his deathbed. > > Except for the one, I didn’t talk to them for almost 28 years. You say your husband died 4.5 years ago, so I assume you mean: I didn’t talk to them for nearly thirty years, then one day they called to tell me my terminal husband was going to hell. But it was all just a big misunderstanding and now we all get together for finger sandwiches every other year! Because I do kind of like them, despite going 28 years without talking to them… I mean each new detail has only made the story _less_ probable-sounding. ---
**Author:** ![\_Olive](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/_/4af34b/32.png) [@\_Olive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/_Olive)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2012, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-good-reply/640459/58 "2012-11-10T02:11:24Z")
> [@Kimmy\_Gibbler](#): > > You say your husband died 4.5 years ago, so I assume you mean: I didn’t talk to them for nearly thirty years, then one day they called to tell me my terminal husband was going to hell. But it was all just a big misunderstanding and now we all get together for finger sandwiches every other year! Because I do kind of like them, despite going 28 years without talking to them… > > I mean each new detail has only made the story _less_ probable-sounding. They didn’t call me. They called my husband and I answered his phone. I didn’t say there was a misunderstanding. I also didn’t say I like them. I like my one bro in law. My husband had a relationship with his family. I didn’t except for the one. That one has always been kind to me. He calls me now and then. Which I appreciate. ---
**Author:** ![Corcaigh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Corcaigh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Corcaigh)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2012, 11:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-good-reply/640459/59 "2012-11-10T11:17:09Z")
> [@\_Olive](#): > > Yes, because when I don’t give her an answer she says to atleast tell her what my house is worth. > > The born again stuff is too much and I think one of the reasons I was able to convinced my husband to move so far away from family. > > The day before my husband died she told me he was going to hell. Actually it was a conference call with two of his sisters. That conversation should have been our last I suppose. what a peculiar woman (her, not you) ---
**Author:** ![Idle\_Thoughts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/838e76/32.png) [@Idle\_Thoughts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Idle_Thoughts)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2012, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-good-reply/640459/60 "2012-11-10T17:51:58Z")
> [@Kimmy\_Gibbler](#): > > You say your husband died 4.5 years ago, so I assume you mean: I didn’t talk to them for nearly thirty years, then one day they called to tell me my terminal husband was going to hell. But it was all just a big misunderstanding and now we all get together for finger sandwiches every other year! Because I do kind of like them, despite going 28 years without talking to them… > > I mean each new detail has only made the story _less_ probable-sounding. Okay, you’ve made your point very clear. Stop hijacking with posts of non-belief. If you really have a problem with the OP, you know where to take it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-good-reply/640459.md?page=2)