ArcaMax

DEAR HARRIETTE: I had surgery to remove a bunion from my foot a week ago, and my boss already wants me to come back into work. I work an office job that can be done from home easily, so I thought that while I recovered, it would be better to work remotely for about a month. I live in New York City, and commuting to work on the subway with ...Read more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: My partner and I are working on our plan to handle gifts gracefully. We're fortunate to have everything we need, and lean strongly toward not mentioning gifts at all in our pre-wedding communications. When guests inquire about gifts directly, we reply with a simple, "We're just looking forward to celebrating with you."

But we...Read more

Dear Annie: A close friend, "Jenna," has a mental illness: She hoards. Her house would be condemned if the health administration were to go there.

I can start tracing this behavior back to when she first became a mother and discovered that raising children requires more than just buying them new clothes and getting pictures taken. She worked ...Read more

DEAR ABBY: Our 24-year-old daughter, "Becca," and her 26-year-old boyfriend, "Jason," (the father of our 7-year-old granddaughter) recently bought a home. Jason works only part time -- if he works at all -- and has no interest in a full-time job.

One issue, however, really weighs heavily on our minds. Whenever we pick up our granddaughter (...Read more

DEAR HARRIETTE: Someone recently made assumptions about my race, and I lost my cool. This happens all too often for me, and that was the straw that broke this camel's back. On a date, I showed a photo of my parents while we were discussing something totally unrelated, and his only comment was, "I didn't realize that you were these two races." He...Read more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: We have a close neighbor who has now berated my husband and me several times for comments she found offensive.

The first time, her 6-year-old child was close to harming our infant daughter, and my husband asked him to back off -- not unkindly, and only after giving the neighbor a chance to intercede first. The neighbor ...Read more

Dear Annie: My wife and I have been together for 20 years and married for four. We have three kids. In the beginning of our relationship, it was bad -- and the bad all came from me. I cheated on her and hurt her. She stayed by my side, and that's when I realized that I have a wonderful woman. I got my act together and ended up marrying her.

...Read more

DEAR ABBY: I helped plan a 12-guy bachelor party in Boston. The best man's initial email outlined the itinerary -- two nights away and a Bruins game -- and included a link to the Airbnb. Everyone RSVP'd with an enthusiastic "yes." With headcounts locked, we booked the lodging and group-rate tickets. The total came to $565 per person (including ...Read more

Catapulted into young widowhood with a small son to raise, I was totally unprepared to be a single parent. During my eight-year marriage, I had been a cheerleader, on the sidelines applauding my young husband. It was his role to make all the big decisions. After all, he was head of our family, right? Hmm. So when I found myself on my own, a ...Read more

DEAR HARRIETTE: My mom always shares our family gossip with the church, and I just don't understand why. She seems to believe that another member of the congregation is flirting with my dad. This woman will often ask my dad for help with errands or call him at unappreciated hours for advice about her children, but she never makes an effort to ...Read more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I have a young child with a severe and visible disability. He is under the care of a well-trained team of professionals.

My husband and I often receive well-meaning but unwanted advice. When we receive unsolicited information, it is helpful to remember these people are usually sharing it out of a place of love because they ...Read more

Dear Annie: I need your advice. My very musically gifted high school senior appears to want to go to college and major in music performance. But he is refusing to visit colleges. He won't discuss why; he just gets very belligerent when the subject comes up and won't expand on any reasons. Should I let it be or make the contacts for him and force...Read more

DEAR ABBY: I have been married to my husband for many years. We are both over 60. About eight years ago, I was diagnosed with, had surgery for and rehabbed from a benign brain tumor. It left me with considerable facial paralysis that I had further surgery to repair -- all in all, 10 facial surgeries.

Since my initial tumor surgery, my husband ...Read more