Dear Mary: How do I shake off charity collectors?

Q. A friend, who I love dearly and who comes to stay a lot, has always been unforthcoming with gifts. I personally don’t resent this. I know his problem is not meanness but a neurosis about spending. He more than makes up for it by being wonderfully entertaining and sympathetic company. Another woman, having seen what a good guest he was at someone else’s house party, has invited him to stay for a week in a house she has rented. I know a bit about this woman, and it will go down very badly if he arrives empty-handed. She is not that nice and will talk about him. Despite our being very close, the ‘spending disorder’ is not a subject he would discuss with me. I have tried in the past to suggest presents for him to bring to hosts, but he clams up and looks miserable and still never brings anything.