ArcaMax

DEAR HARRIETTE: My brother-in-law got caught cheating on his wife, and my husband is defending his brother's actions. This has made me question my husband's values. If he is defending his brother for cheating on his wife, what's stopping him from cheating on me and thinking that there is nothing wrong with that? I understand that this is his ...Read more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: The wife of a close friend and college roommate from many years ago started an elite travel agency. They are not hurting for money, as he earns a very good living as a medical professional and they own two impressive homes.

A mutual friend confided in me that she, her husband and friends planned a vacation through their ...Read more

Dear Annie: My girlfriend, "Lucy," and I started dating three years ago, during our senior year of college. After graduating, we both got jobs in the same city where we had gone to school, and we ended up moving in together to save money. Living together was surprisingly easy, as we're both pretty low-maintenance people. Anyway, Lucy is a good ...Read more

DEAR ABBY: A friend's wife's elderly biological father was killed in a one-car auto accident recently. She had been estranged from him for as long as I can remember (more than 30 years?) and told me over the years how much she hated him. She adored her stepfather, who died a few years back.

My friend is now upset with me because I failed to ...Read more

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