‘Smart casual has become sloppy casual’: Good Weekend letters to the editor, July 8

I totally agree with Terry Durack’s assessment of the lack of dress sense and clothing consideration in the general population – and this is not limited just to restaurants. On the flip side, if restaurants cleaned up their act and reinstated the use of tablecloths or even place mats so crockery and cutlery didn’t clunk on wood or melamine, they might deserve more respect. Even our local Chinese puts fabric place mats on their tables.
Michele Thomas
Mollymook Beach, NSW

Thank you, Terry Durack, for your article on dress code. We regularly go on a cruise, and one of its nicer aspects has been the attention to dress standards in ship dining areas. If you want to be casual, go to the buffet. However, we recently took our first cruise on a line run out of Australia, and on a number of occasions went to its best speciality restaurant. It was disconcerting that, on one night, a guest arrived – and was let in – dressed in his favourite NRL team jumper, footy shorts and thongs! Says it all about how casual we have become.
Chris Smith
Newcastle, NSW

Farewell to a Friend

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I’d like to pass on my gratitude to Cherie Gilmour for this story [June 24]. While I’ve never tuned in to a stranger’s streamed funeral, it was oddly reassuring to know I’m not the only one who is uneasy with their interest in death notices. I, too, tend to linger over the notices of those who have died prematurely, and wonder at the cause. Other than the death of a boyhood friend some 35 years ago, when still too young to properly fathom the loss, I’ve not experienced the tragic loss of family or close friend to offer as an excuse.
Michael Bushell
Canowindra, NSW

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ONLINE COMMENTS:

Silent Casualties: An absolutely stunning piece of work by Dean Yates [July 1]. Having survived in frontline medical practice since 1988, the trauma of the work follows me like a shadow every day. Metaphorically, at least, it reminds me that I am walking in the light. So are you, Dean. The world is a better place with you in it, and your tribute to your fallen colleagues is touching. Nobody could have said it better than you did here. MarkyMark

As the daughter of a Vietnam veteran who suffered from severe post-traumatic stress disorder, I know first hand what this creates within families. The moral injury is sometimes irreparable and haunts until death. Congratulations on walking the hard journey back to yourself, your wife and children. MSM

This hits hard. There are such brutal costs associated with our morning reads. May you find your peace, Dean Yates. J

Prize winner: The winner of the best letter to the editor in our June 24 issue was Janet Theodosi of Hawthorn East, Vic. She won a Moss River towelling bathrobe: polite-society-home.com

Want to chat? We’d love to hear from you. Send your letters to goodweekend@​goodweekend.com.au. Or send us a picture or Instagram one of Good Weekend in your life, using the hashtag #goodweekendmag.

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