Dear Queenie,
My cousin used to come here and stay with me for a week or two every summer. She wasn’t able to come for a while because of the pandemic, but now that she can travel again she is starting to talk about coming here and staying in “her” room as though she has rights to it.
Meanwhile, I want to have other visitors and the way she is talking, I’m not sure I want her to ever stay with me again.
Queenie, how do I make her understand?—Reluctant hostess
Dear Hostess,
You need to explain things to your cousin straight out. Do not be rude, but tell her in plain, simple words that you are planning to have other guests and cannot accommodate her this year, but maybe sometime again (which, who knows, could be a long time coming) – and repeat as necessary.
