31 ways to live with class in 2012

Let's face it.  Some people are born Prince William, and some are born Eliza Doolittle.  Wherever you are on that spectrum, here are a few ways to add class to your life that I've picked up from classy, clever people I admire.

1. Write thank you notes - promptly

2. Make your bed - most days

3. Sneeze into your elbow or handkerchief - not the air that the general populace is breathing

4. Read the newspaper - necessary for making small talk during cocktail hour at weddings

5. Be patient with people - nothing says classy like keeping your temper in check

6. Decide how you like your eggs, or anything else cooked - thank you, Runaway Bride

7. Manage your time well - yes, that includes Facebook and reading, um, blogs

8. Be a gracious guest - hostess gifts, not outstaying your welcome, and being generally pleasant

9. Be the best version of yourself - don't try to be someone else, but know you have room for improvement

10. Give up your seat for people who are older than you

11. Keep the latest gossip to yourself

12. Pick up after yourself - banana peels, candy wrappers, ticket stubs, all these belong in the trash (except maybe the banana, which can be composted)

13. Avoid slurping, munching, crunching, and other eating noises

14. Stay clean, if you can, and if you can't, don't fuss - if a baby spits up on you, freaking out is rude

15. Try new things

16.  Wear the right socks for the occasion

17. Own a current resume with your name on it

18. Know what you believe and be able to express it eloquently

19. Travel, and if you can't travel, read National Geographic

20. Mind your p's and q's - please and thank you are the foundations of courtesy and class

21. Treat people considered "less important" than you with courtesy - wait staff, store clerks, there is no "less important" person

22. Read - poetry, biographies, history, modern fiction, classics, if you don't like reading, get it on tape

23. Own dress clothes

24. Keep in touch with people you love

25. Learn how to listen

26. Cook something - even if you can only cook one thing, that's one thing more than before

27. Smell good

28. Never be too busy to help

29. Keep your priorities straight

30. Eat your vegetables

31. Smile

Much love,

Little Miss Sunshine