ArcaMax

It was a meeting-heavy week. They were mostly one-on-one, which I like best, but those tend to take the most effort. The morning of day three, bracing for more meetings and sitting outside a cafe with the creeping heat starting, I watched a mother and son walk past me into the shop. Cute, I thought. Then, a continuation: Even though those two ...Read more

Dear Annie: I am 16 and met a girl while visiting relatives over summer break. We spent almost every day together, and I felt closer to her than I have ever felt to anyone. By the end of the summer, we both admitted that we had fallen in love.

The problem is that she lives on the opposite coast. Since coming home, we text constantly and talk ...Read more

DEAR ABBY: I suggested to my husband that he invite his nephew "Ryan" (age 26) to stay with us. Ryan definitely needed some male direction. He was homeless, jobless and didn't even know how to apply for a job. Ryan is not mentally challenged. He simply was never taught anything until he was thrown out on the street with no skills.

Once Ryan ...Read more

DEAR HARRIETTE: I went to Ariana Grande's concert at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. I had an amazing time at the concert, especially since she's my favorite singer of all time. As a result of my excitement, I felt the need to purchase a $50 T-shirt. When leaving the concert, I made it all the way out of the arena before realizing I left the ...Read more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I'm 62 and have been divorced for 26 years. I've been dating the love of my life for 15 years -- we are obviously not in a hurry to tie the knot, though I did give her a beautiful engagement ring last summer.

My problem is my past history. A couple of times, in conversations with other people while my fiancee is present, I ...Read more

Dear Annie: I'm 37 and the oldest of four siblings. We lost our mother to cancer 15 months ago, and then about a month ago, our father died very unexpectedly at 60. We never expected to be orphans this young, and the whole thing has been a shock for us.

But we were in for an even bigger shock. After Mom died, Dad apparently rewrote their will...Read more

DEAR ABBY: I have a chronic illness and have been on a long-term leave of absence from my job for two years now. I have always surrounded myself with good people and have been blessed with great friends and family. When I was diagnosed, everyone was supportive. There were many platitudes, not the least of which was the ole standby, "Let me know ...Read more

DEAR HARRIETTE: My brother and his wife came up to stay with me to celebrate my sister-in-law's birthday. My family and I mapped out a fun itinerary covering everything they mentioned wanting to see. It's safe to say some money was spent in the making of this production. Unfortunately, though, at home, we found ourselves in disagreement on a few...Read more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: Our family is fortunate to have a beach house. The last couple years, we have allowed our boys, ages 15 and 13, to invite friends for a week to 10 days.

The first year, we didn't expect or ask for money to cover any of the friends' expenses. In one case, the family sent the child with no spending money whatsoever. We covered ...Read more

Dear Annie: My sister, who is also my roommate, started a new job that is keeping her super busy. She doesn't come home from the office before 10 p.m. most nights, and she's gone again early in the morning. Her last job was remote, as is mine, so I'm used to having her around all the time. Now I can't even get her to respond to a text.

I know...Read more

DEAR ABBY: My husband and I have been living with my mom for a little over a year. Our 4-year-old lives here also. Mom has guardianship of her because of our past. A month ago, my husband decided he was leaving. I didn't leave with him because of my daughter. Now he acts like everything that was wrong in our marriage is my fault.

We are ...Read more

DEAR HARRIETTE: I'm struggling with a friendship that used to mean a lot to me but now feels increasingly one-sided. This person was once one of my closest friends, but over the past several months, I've felt more neglected than valued. We live less than 10 minutes apart, yet we've seen each other only twice in nearly eight months -- and both ...Read more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: My husband met a very nice, like-minded neighbor during a walk, and we invited him and his wife over for dinner. Almost from the very beginning of the evening, his wife was very critical and rude and insisted on commenting on our home.

She claimed we had too much clutter, too many gallery walls, that our home was a mess, and ...Read more

Dear Annie: I'm 58, never married, no kids, no siblings, no nieces or nephews. A neighbor of mine is very ill and in a nursing home. She has a daughter, but the daughter barely even bothers to visit her, and it breaks my heart. I call my neighbor often to try to lift her spirits.

At the same time, I've been dealing with some depression myself...Read more

DEAR ABBY: Four years ago, my cousin "Roy" introduced me to his friends, who, once a month, have a party at the home of one of the couples. We would eat and then play a form of dominoes. It was raucous and fun. The second time I went, a couple in the group told me that now I was "part of the family." I always had fun and laughed a lot, which I ...Read more