DEAR MISS MANNERS: My car is a plug-in hybrid, which means it runs on electricity for about 20 or 30 miles, then switches to run on gas. Gas is needed on long trips, but since electric driving makes fewer emissions, we try to drive on electricity as many miles as we possibly can.

If I stop to visit a friend at the limit of (or beyond) my electric-only range, what does etiquette say about asking if I can plug in the car for a bit of a charge? It's not like I'm desperate to plug in, because I can always run on gas if the battery is empty, but a charged-up car is better for the planet.

I'm sure no host would mind a guest charging a phone, but charging a car taxes a home's circuits a bit more. Still, the cost is nominal. In our area, plugging into a standard home outlet costs less than 20 cents an hour. I would gladly offer to reimburse a host for the electricity, but this seems petty.

GENTLE READER: If there is a criticism lurking behind your question ("How could anyone be so petty as to refuse 20 cents to save the planet?"), Miss Manners appreciates that it was at least partially hidden.

As you propose to ask a favor -- the use of their power from someone already entertaining you as a host -- let us see if we can get it entirely out of sight: "Would you mind if I plugged in the car while we are here? That sounds scary, I know, but it draws less power than a toaster oven."

Miss Manners avoids discussing money because it implies that your friend's hospitality is conditional on the cost. As to the toaster oven, she has no idea how much power it draws, so she needs you to find your own accurate example.

DEAR MISS MANNERS: When I talk with customer service representatives on the phone, they seem to say "Mr. (My Name)" at the beginning or end of every sentence. This drives me absolutely nuts. It feels like fingernails scraping on a chalkboard.

Did someone tell them to do this? I guess they are trying to be super-polite to keep people from yelling at them, but what should I say to get them to stop? I don't want to be rude, but I really doubt that they talk this way in normal conversations.

GENTLE READER: The constant repetition of a client's name is a gimmick that some self-styled management expert convinced the world is the best way to make customers feel valued, whatever that means.

But there is enough to fear these days when we engage with oddly taught strangers. Miss Manners already objects to addresses that are too familiar ("Suzy, you're going to love this ..."), too cheeky ("Young lady," when used with those who no longer count themselves young) or too personal ("Hey, beautiful"). Were she to also ban proper forms of address, there would not be much left.

(Please send your questions to Miss Manners at her website, www.missmanners.com; to her email, dearmissmanners@gmail.com; or through postal mail to Miss Manners, Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.)

DEAR MISS MANNERS: As a widow on a fixed income, I'm finding my wedding expenses getting steep. A younger friend of my fiance told him that the woman pays for the wedding.

Is that true, even if you're both older? My fiance is 70 and I'm 66. Neither of us has children.

GENTLE READER: If your fiance is using this argument, Miss Manners advises you to make sure that a lawyer ties up your assets before you marry.

Also, he is older than he claims: That notion is a perversion of the 19th-century custom of having the parents of a young bride, who was presumed to have no financial resources or prospects of her own, give the wedding -- on the understanding that it was the bridegroom's responsibility to pay all costs for her upkeep from then on. Is that the deal he wishes to make?

DEAR MISS MANNERS: My fiancee's extended family has an "adults" table and a "kids" table, and always seats us at the kids table.

She is their youngest daughter, but not the youngest in the family by a long shot: There are actual children under the age of 10 at this table. I am a college graduate and we are getting married this summer.

I feel it is insulting not to be allowed at the adult table. Do I bring this up?

GENTLE READER: No, you just make the children's table more fun than the adults' table. When the adults hear the raucous laughter you elicit from the small ones, whom you have cautioned not to tell why, Miss Manners trusts that there will soon be another seating arrangement.

DEAR MISS MANNERS: Is it rude to drop off a gift on the doorstep? I dropped off a present and never received a thank-you, so now I'm wondering if the recipient thought it was rude to just drop it off.

GENTLE READER: Or if some passerby found it a generous gesture?

Not being rude does not mean it is a good idea, and Miss Manners advises you to check whether it was received.

DEAR MISS MANNERS: For many years, I have noticed that invitations -- both print and electronic -- include the ZIP code along with the venue's street address, city and state. This could be useful when writing a thank-you note after the party, but is it correct to include on the invitation? It is especially odd to see it when the event is not at the host's home.

GENTLE READER: The general rule is to omit cluttering invitations with information that anyone of sense would already know. An example is that the year is omitted, because one would not issue an invitation for a year in advance; whether it is for morning or evening is likewise omitted, because parties do not normally begin between midnight and 6 in the morning.

But Miss Manners does not know your crowd; perhaps their parties do, in which case the distinction would be necessary.

She sees your point about the ZIP code. It is a bit unsubtle for those who issue invitations to appear super-aware of directing where presents should be sent. They could nevertheless handle that by putting the ZIP code on the envelope, where it belongs.

(Please send your questions to Miss Manners at her website, www.missmanners.com; to her email, dearmissmanners@gmail.com; or through postal mail to Miss Manners, Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.)

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I love candid photographs. I also appreciate posed, portrait-like photos. I believe the subjects of these photographs, whether candid or posed, should be given the opportunity to share the images -- or not -- at their sole, unquestioned discretion.

Apparently, however, my version of photography etiquette is not shared by many people.

Due to the plethora of cellphones with cameras, almost every social function is now plagued by celebrants insisting on group photos. Stop everything, huddle, and freeze a smile while someone takes a wide-angle photo of you looking terrible that they can share with the world through social media.

I have made every polite effort to avoid being in these pictures. I quietly leave the room; I drop my napkin and duck below the table; I step behind a taller person (difficult because I am also tall).

These tactics often fail. At my wits' end, lately I have resorted to honesty. I regret to tell you that even brutal candor is ineffective on relentless photo-takers insistent on ghastly pictures.

This concept may be difficult for our "selfie society" to grasp, but there are people who do not want to be in every photo. We do not enjoy seeing ourselves caught in a blink or a sneeze, frozen in a picture that is then posted online and seen by every person we ever met -- including old boyfriends and archrivals from high school.

Please tell these people that "no" means "no" for a photo, just as it does for a plate of anaphylactic shock-inducing catfish.

GENTLE READER: The ubiquitous photographer is one of the great nuisances of our time. Being pressured to pose is indeed a violation of etiquette, even among friends and relatives. So is being photographed unaware and having one's likeness posted without permission.

For that matter, it is also tedious to feel obliged to admire countless photographs that one is sent or shown, whether or not the subject is of any interest.

"No" should mean "no" under any circumstances, trivial as well as serious. Miss Manners has always declared it rude to bully people into doing something they clearly don't want to do, under the insulting presumption that they are just being coy.

Here is a new use for a mask: Turned sideways, it can be used to cover your identifying features.

DEAR MISS MANNERS: Suppose I'm planning to serve wine to my dinner guests, but I know that some of them are nondrinkers. When I set the table, should each place be set exactly the same, with wineglasses? Or should I omit the wineglass and provide a water glass at some of the places? I generally have a pitcher of cold water available on the table.

GENTLE READER: You set each place with a water glass and a wineglass, and let your guests who want wine pour it for themselves. Miss Manners promises you that if you set each place for each person's exact habits, some will change -- either habits or places.

(Please send your questions to Miss Manners at her website, www.missmanners.com; to her email, dearmissmanners@gmail.com; or through postal mail to Miss Manners, Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.)