How to avoid being rude to my robot?

Dear Miss Manners: I have a voice-enabled speaker, and for the most part, it is a useful delight throughout the day. But I do have one gripe, to which I cannot find a resolution.

It used to be that when the timer alert went off, I could say “thank you” and hear some variant of “you’re welcome” in return, and then the alert would stop. Now I still hear the “you’re welcome,” but the alert continues.

I have searched for a solution online and found nothing. It feels so much less polite, not to mention less friendly, that I must say “Stop.”

I realize that you are not tech support. But can you please help?

Gentle Reader: While Miss Manners shares your frustration, she remains conflicted about the need to be polite to robots.

But she agrees that when it is one’s constant companion such devices should be treated with civility. She therefore adds her hope that the people in charge of programming these things can find more polite ways for us to converse. And while they’re at it, perhaps they can find a more polite way of getting a device’s attention than yelling “Hey!”

Dear Miss Manners:

A friend asked me to drive her across town to a medical appointment. I did not say no, but told her I really don’t like to drive across town. She got mad and said she would ask a neighbor.

She has held a grudge for months now. The other day, she said, “I won’t ever ask you to do anything again because you told me no.” We had an argument and are no longer speaking. Am I wrong? Do I apologize?

Gentle Reader: It is likely not the fact you said no, but the casual manner with which you effectively said “I don’t feel like it” that your friend found so offensive.

Miss Manners is not encouraging you to lie, only it is unnecessary to disclose the entire insulting truth. She wishes she could persuade her Gentle Readers to stop “just being honest” and to start using the phrase, “I am afraid that I can’t.”