MISS MANNERS by Judith Martin, Nicholas Ivor Martin and Jacobina Martin

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I have asked my friends to help me swap an engine on my pickup truck, and they have generously agreed.

Mechanic etiquette says that if your friends are helping you on a car project, you provide drinks while they work. A worker is worthy of their wages. However, I am unsure how many beers I should give them for their assistance.

If my friends are helping me replace my engine over the course of an evening, should I get a six-pack or a dozen beers for each of them? I have heard of splitting a 30-pack, but I don’t believe we are alcoholic enough to manage that.

While I want to be generous, I also don’t want to inebriate them and possibly cause injury or sloppy work. Other than perhaps asking if they

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