DEAR MISS MANNERS: I work in a 5-star establishment. On a particular day, a customer became flatulent, which caused us both to be embarrassed. Nobody else was around.

We had a good rapport prior to this, and when this happened, I said “Oops!” (partly due to surprise and embarrassment). The customer just shrugged his shoulders. I then said, “If that had been me, I would say ‘excuse me.’”

The customer then said, “Sorry, didn’t mean to ruin your day.” I assured him he hadn’t, at which point his friends showed up, and one said to him, “What did you do NOW?” They all left.

What should I have done? How should I have handled this? What would YOU have done?

GENTLE READER: Ignored it. You see, Miss Manners also considers herself a 5-star establishment, and it is largely because unless specifically solicited, she does not chastise people in public for their unintended noises. The inadvertent “Oops!” was quite enough.

Schooling the gentleman on how he could have handled it better was embarrassing and unnecessary. Even if he is used to that kind of behavior from his friends.

Please send your questions to Miss Manners at her website, www.missmanners.com; to her email, [email protected]; or through postal mail to Miss Manners, Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.