DEAR MISS MANNERS: On a visit with my niece, I brought a phone charger to plug in, but for some reason it did not function properly. With the hosts’ phones, mine, and those of the other houseguests, there were six phones in the house with only three or four cords, so charging was a “take turns” event.
While things went swimmingly in sharing, what would be the expected priority on who gets the charger? Houseguest, host, adults, children?
It would be nice to know for the next get-together, just in case. That way I could tell them, “Well, Miss Manners said!!!” Just kidding. Miss Manners has taught me not to be so uncouth!
GENTLE READER: Oh, no, you don’t. There isn’t going to be a next time, because you will have learned to check your cord before you leave home.
Decades ago, Miss Manners was plagued with questions about guests who tied up their hosts’ landlines and made expensive calls. Then people acquired cellphones -- but not yet smartphones, tablets and laptops -- and wanted to tie up their hosts’ computers.
Now we have easily portable electronics, and guests are responsible for bringing what they intend to use, just as they bring their own toothbrushes. It would be kind of hosts to provide emergency supplies of either, if they happen to have them.
A guest who has such an emergency should ask apologetically to borrow a cord when it does not inconvenience the family, including the children, and return it quickly. A houseguest, presumably staying longer, should run out to the nearest electronics store.