social etiquette
Dear Mary: At a smart dinner party, is it wrong to ask for the wifi code?
Q. My husband and I are excited to have been invited to dinner by our most important neighbour. However our…
Dear Mary
Q. What is the etiquette of hospital visiting? A friend in his fifties is about to spend six weeks in…
Dear Mary
Q. A well-known television mogul,whom I had met only once, came to dinner at my house. I was on good…
Dear Mary: My doctor keeps asking me for advice on selling furniture
Q. I know it’s a gaffe to ask a doctor for medical advice at a party, but what is the…
Dear Mary: How can I angle for a wedding invitation?
Q. How does one go about getting invited to a wedding? Two friends of mine from university, who I have…
Dear Mary: My husband leaves all cupboards and drawers open
Q. Re. your letter from F.C. about the boyfriend leaving lids off (20 February), I have a similar problem. My husband…
Dear Mary: new neighbours want me to provide a ready-made social scene
Q. Former colleagues, with whom I got on very well in the context of the office, are buying a house…
Dear Mary: How can I teach my boyfriend to put the lids back on?
Q. I love my boyfriend but he has a terrible habit I was unaware of before he moved in. If…
Dear Mary: Our granddaughters are giving money away to a cause we do not support. Should we cut off their funding?
Q. We have two granddaughters working hard and happily at university. It is our pleasure to give them some cash…
Dear Mary: What do you do when too many people accept a party invitation?
Q. What can be done when more people than you can cater for accept an invitation? We are giving a…
Dear Mary: On a troublesome festive invitation
I have been alone in the country this festive season as my adult children and most of my friends are…
Dear Mary: How to stop someone from giving my tiny children expensive clothes that they never wear?
Q. Is there a tactful way to deter certain people from buying clothing for one’s tiny children as Christmas presents?…