Hello.
Just "Hello". Just plain vanilla, run-of-the-mill "Hello". I mean, can a greeting be more innocuous? It’s not flighty, like a "Hola", nor is it frivolous, like a "Hey", nor is it excessively familiar, like a "Hi".
A proper stiff-necked greeting if ever there was one. And sadly enough, I was censured by my colleagues for using it as the opening line in an official e-mail to a customer.
What is this world coming to? Ok, I know that there is something called propriety, etiquette, and a standard template for all this bureaucratic communication.
But can’t one just put in a simple "Hello", just to be nice? It seems border-line rude to start off with "Attached are the reports for blah blah…"
I protest against this. I will be nice. It’s my style, my flair. My way of doing things. I will start official e-mails with a "Hello".
And these oaths of mine are purely academic, since I will also never be allowed to send an official e-mail henceforth.