Q. I have been invited (solo, not with my long-term partner) to a wedding next year. The format appears to be: ceremony, drinks reception, then the main wedding party is dining together before we all get back together for an evening celebration. In the hiatus, guests are encouraged to eat in one of the local restaurants – a list is provided. How do I discreetly find out which of my friends might be attending? I texted a friend who I assumed would be invited, only to get ‘NFI’ as a response. I’m now wary of approaching others.

– Name and address withheld

A. It is quite acceptable to go directly to the bride or groom and ask them to identify any of your friends with whom you might arrange to join up during the hiatus. It will remind them other guests may be floundering without a similar steer.

Q. A new colleague has been given a desk directly behind me and spends most of his time on loud conference calls. This would be irritating enough, but he also, constantly and incorrectly, uses reflexive pronouns (e.g. ‘I will give that to yourself’) along with other peculiar business jargon. My colleagues and I find this overly grandiose terminology grating. Mary, to use our new colleague’s own language, how can we ‘solutionise’ this?

– M.C., by email

A. The solution could be to upgrade him to his own private room. If he feels rejection, explain that his style of delivery is so compelling you are finding it difficult to concentrate. If space does not permit, you might dilute the nuisance by wearing your Apple AirPods Pro switched to Active Noise Cancellation mode. Meanwhile, buy him a subscription to Grammarly, which will check his written output. The tips will take some time to seep into his language but will gradually retrain him.

Q. How can I stop guests from absentmindedly pocketing our phone chargers when they are packing to leave? We have chargers permanently plugged in in both the kitchen and the drawing room and guests who have forgotten their own often use these. We had house parties over Christmas and New Year and both times found the chargers were missing after the guests had driven away.

– Name and address withheld

A. Take a tip from a regular visitor to a certain party-loving Old Rectory. This year she gave as a present a set of spare phone chargers, each with the name of the guest bedroom glued onto its back in heavyweight tapestry form. The hosts have removed the downstairs chargers and it is now impossible for a guest to pack a bedroom charger absentmindedly.