Miss Manners: I know it’s a compliment when my friends say ‘I make them sick,’ but ....

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I have skills and interests that are rather unusual in modern times. I enjoy these hobbies immensely, though I make a point of not bringing them up with new acquaintances, since they are not likely to make a two-way conversation flow.

When I meet a friend of a friend, however, my interests are invariably a part of the introduction, usually followed by a comment like, “She’s so good at everything, it makes me sick!”

I am certainly not good at everything. There are plenty of things I am just terrible at! Perhaps there is talent in what I do well, beyond the learning of a skill, but I have worked hard to develop that talent -- not to show off, but just because it fascinates me.

I would be absolutely thrilled to teach anyone who wanted to learn, since I hate to think of these skills becoming extinct. Really, anybody who wanted to learn could.

I realize that my friends mean to express admiration for skills they do not possess and do not care to gain, but being told I “make them sick” is very off-putting to me, and I have no idea how I am supposed to respond.

GENTLE READER: “Oh, I’m so sorry! I never dreamed my little interests would upset you. Are you going to be all right?”

***

DEAR MISS MANNERS: My hair is so thin on top you can see my scalp. I am going to an upscale evening wedding. Would it be a social error to wear a hat?

GENTLE READER: Aren’t weddings what hats are for? Well, enhancing heads, too.

Perhaps you are concerned because it is an evening wedding. But in that case, you wear what is aptly called a fascinator -- something whimsical but without a brim, strategically placed.

***

(Please send your questions to Miss Manners at her website, www.missmanners.com; to her email, dearmissmanners@gmail.com; or through postal mail to Miss Manners, Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.)