IRRITATED BY MR RIGHT’S NOISY EATING

Dear Coleen

I’ve just started dating a great guy. Everything is perfection on paper – he’s handsome with a good job, funny and outgoing.

But – and I know this might sound daft – he has terrible table manners which I find embarrassing. He gulps his food down, chews with his mouth open and is a noisy eater.

I took him over to my parents’ house for dinner a few nights ago and cringed the whole way through it. Even my step-brother, who’s only 11, commented on his bad manners.

Is this a silly reason to dump the perfect man? I feel bad and snobbish for thinking this way, but I’m just not OK with it.

Coleen says

Well, if he’s perfect in every other way then, rather than dump him, I think you should tell him and give him a chance to rein it in. He is probably unaware he’s doing it. I think it is possible to tell him without him getting embarrassed or upset, and ending up defensive.

Next time you’re having a meal, say, jokingly, something like, ‘Hey, there’s no rush. This is supposed to be a romantic meal not fast food. Didn’t your mum ever tell you to eat nicely?’

But if this turns out to be a big issue for you, then he’s not Mr Perfect. It could get on your nerves for years and even be a catalyst for divorce.

It’s often the small things that send people over the edge.