True story. Almost 25 years ago, when my now-husband and I were planning our wedding, we thought it would be good if our parents met ahead of time. We invited them to come to our home for dinner.

I knew my parents and my future in-laws well. The men would do whatever their wives told them to do — but the women had very different ideas about punctuality. So I told my mother to come at 6:30 p.m., and I told my future mother-in-law to come at 4:30 p.m.

Everyone arrived, as expected, at 5:30 on the dot.