ArcaMax

Dear Annie: I had my high school graduation party at a local restaurant (because our house is too small). My father claimed he was unable to pay for it, and insisted I cover the bill, close to $1,100, saying he will pay me back later.

I realize that my parents' business sometimes goes through hard times, but Dad still manages to eat out ...Read more

Dear Annie: Whenever I'm at my parents' house and they have guests, they expect me to "perform." I don't mean playing the piano or tap dancing. I mean they insist I "tell them that story you told me." Any story they select.

I feel I'm being treated as some kind of circus freak. This makes me very uncomfortable, and they know it because I've ...Read more

Dear Annie: My wife and I have been married for seven years. She has a son from a previous marriage who got into drugs as a teen. Four years ago, my wife put her son in rehab, but he had a relapse and briefly ended up in prison. The effect it had on my wife was devastating and she began to drink. My dislike for her son increased exponentially.

...Read more

Dear Annie: I am 30 and my wife is 27, and we are completely in love. My wife is a very spiritual woman and wanted to wait until we were married to have sex. I respected her choice and we were engaged for almost two years. No problem.

Then comes the wedding. BIG problem. We simply do not fit physically. I am more endowed than my very petite ...Read more

Dear Annie: My sister, "Helen," and her first husband never had children. He died eight years ago. Helen has since remarried a wonderful man, a widower with two sons, a daughter and several grandchildren. He wants my sister to be a real grandmother to them.

Helen is an extremely buttoned-up person. The daughter recently phoned to say she was ...Read more

Dear Annie: My father has been a bully for as long as I can remember. He has unending excuses for his behavior, but the bottom line is, he thinks nothing of browbeating people to get what he wants, sometimes to the point of being cruel. He never sees it as wrong. It is always someone else's fault.

It doesn't matter whether it's as simple as ...Read more

Dear Annie: Our daughter recently became engaged and we couldn't be happier. She is our only child and is marrying a great guy. While we are excited about all of the planning for the big event, it appears that the groom's mother, "Dolores," is trying to take control.

For nearly every detail that my daughter and I agree upon, Dolores steps in ...Read more

Dear Annie: Yesterday, I had an argument with my 85-year-old mother. She said I must be a lesbian because of my recent Facebook posts in support of all my gay friends and the Supreme Court decision upholding gay marriage. Specifically, I changed my photo so it was colored in beautiful rainbow shades.

My mother was appalled that I was supporting...Read more

Dear Annie: My wife and I were married in a double wedding with her sister. Two years later, my new brother-in-law began boasting to me of his philandering. He rationalized it by claiming that as long as his wife knew nothing about it, he wasn't hurting her. I told this to my wife and asked whether we should tell her sister, but she said not to....Read more

Dear Annie: My daughter is getting married in two weeks. My 80-year-old mother-in-law is unable to attend, but she called us with a request. Her daughter, "Donna," the bride's aunt, will be flying across the country with her two young children to attend the wedding. She asked whether Donna's two children could have a role in the celebration ...Read more

Dear Annie: How do you cope with a friendship where the person stays connected just enough to continually remind you of how unimportant you are?

I have a friend with whom I was once quite close. We exercised and ran errands together, and when she was seriously ill, I spent countless hours visiting, reading to her and just being there. I donated...Read more

Dear Annie: Last year, my husband told me that he was having an affair. I was shocked. All I knew was that he had been drinking excessively and I was concerned.

He told me that the Other Woman "gets him" and that he is in love with her. She makes him feel young again. He was certain that I would let him go, but I refused to throw away 27 years ...Read more

Dear Annie: I have a problem with my oldest daughter. She has always been a selfish child. For years, we did not get along, and many times, we stopped speaking.

She popped back into my life last October through a Facebook chat. She was separated from her husband and had left her teenage children. She blamed everything on him and I believed her....Read more

Dear Annie: I am 62 years old and have been married to "Clyde" for 12 years. We do not have a sexual relationship. He prefers to sleep on the sofa and always has, saying it's more comfortable.

Clyde had a horrible childhood. He told me that his mother had sex with various men in his presence. On the weekends, he would stay with his paternal ...Read more

Dear Annie: I am running out of advice for my daughter, "Katie." She lives with her fiance. Last year, his middle-aged, disabled father moved in with them. A month ago, his sister, her fiance and their two toddlers also moved in. The children wreak havoc on her clean, organized home. Neither the sister nor the father will clean up after ...Read more

Dear Annie: I am a divorced male in my mid-50s. A couple of years ago, I met a divorced woman through a mutual friend. We share a common hobby, which led to us spending hours of time together, often just the two of us.

I asked my lady friend early on if she was interested in dating. She told me she had recently been through a bad breakup with ...Read more

Dear Annie: When is it OK for a child not to want to be touched by anyone, including his parents? My 10-year-old grandson doesn't want to hug anyone, nor does he like people putting their hands on his back, shoulder or head. Should this just be accepted?

Should we use behavior modification so he will let us be affectionate, or are we just ...Read more

Dear Annie: My wife and I are lucky to live near the friendliest, most helpful neighbors we could ask for. They are a middle-aged European couple who moved to the States two years ago.

Here's the problem. They have a swimming pool in their backyard, and when they use it, they do not wear swimsuits. I assume they are just doing what is normal in...Read more

Dear Annie: I have been married for 20 years. When I met my husband, he already had a grown daughter from his first marriage who was living independently in another state. "Beth" and I have never been particularly close.

Seven years ago, Beth married a man who ran off within six months, and she has no clue where he is. He doesn't pay child ...Read more

Dear Annie: I made contact with my birth mother several years ago, but we are not close. Recently, I found out from my sister that my birth mother has been reposting photographs of my children from other friends' pages. I have set privacy guidelines for posting photos of my children and she has totally disregarded them.

I have tried to be civil...Read more