ArcaMax

Dear Annie: I have been with my husband for more than 25 years. During that period, he has cheated countless times, left me for other women and developed a crack habit. I have tried to stick it out because I believe marriage is for better or worse.

Right now is definitely "worse." He will not admit that he has a problem. He hangs out with some ...Read more

Dear Annie: When I married my husband, I suddenly became a full-time stepmother to his three young children, all under age 5. Their mother would pop up when it was convenient for her. She rarely called on their birthdays and often left them waiting for scheduled visits. I raised those children, and they called me "Mommy."

Now, after 10 years, ...Read more

Dear Annie: My daughter will soon be 16. Her father and I were never married, and we had broken up by the time she was born. When my ex discovered I was pregnant, he threatened to take the baby away and never let me see her. So I left him when I was six months along. Due to some complications during delivery, my mother filled out the birth ...Read more

Dear Annie: Adults are supposed to set a good example, but I literally can't go anywhere without seeing adults smoking. That is not surprising because in West Virginia alone, more than one in four adults smoke. It is no wonder that across the country more than 3,500 kids will try their first cigarette today.

Thankfully, states across the U.S., ...Read more

Dear Annie: Two years ago, my younger sister learned that her grown daughter had been molested as a child by our then-teenage brother. I believe her, but was totally unaware of the situation, as I moved away nearly 25 years ago.

Her daughter had a friend who was also molested. Both girls were under age 6 when this happened, and the molestation ...Read more

Dear Annie: I am 57 and single. I truly regret leaving my husband of only three years, but he never wanted to spend time with me, did not communicate, drank beer all the time and spent every day in the garage working on ship models.

My life was easy with him. I didn't have to do anything but show him affection. I loved him and still do, but I ...Read more

Dear Annie: My husband, "Ken," has been self-employed for 25 years. He owns two large trailers and has always parked them in our driveway. However, in the past two months, we've had visits from the police department nearly every night. A neighbor we have never met keeps reporting us. He complains that when my husband gets home from work, he ...Read more

Dear Annie: A year ago, I fell in love with "Bobby" over the internet. Two months later, he said he loved me. I was stunned. But a little later, he told me he was in a relationship and the girl was suicidal. He was afraid that if he broke it off, she'd kill herself. I've had suicidal thoughts myself and understood.

Bobby sent me wonderful ...Read more

Dear Annie: My sister owns seven cats, three dogs, two turtles and a lizard. They are overrunning her house. There are random bits of garbage all over the floor, along with used dishes -- both human and pet. When the dogs do their business in the house, she lets it stay there for hours while she gets other work done. The last time I was there, I...Read more

Dear Annie: My husband and I own a small business. We both work at other full-time jobs, and we also have three children, so life is hectic and busy.

I am uncomfortable with the intensity of a relationship he is having with one of our employees. "Molly" is a single woman with children. She is a terrific employee, and a large part of our ...Read more

Dear Annie: I'm 60, divorced and currently seeing "Don." He's five years my junior and extremely attentive.

Don has a background of violence (one incident landed him in jail), but he now manages his anger. However, he still refuses to stand down to anyone who threatens him. He brags about being a Marine and that he has skills to make people ...Read more

Dear Annie: I am a 56-year-old stepfather to two wonderful young women, ages 20 and 17. My wife of five years did a wonderful job raising the girls after their father died. Our relationship is open and trusting. I never call them stepdaughters. I view them as my own. And they tell me they love me.

My problem? Lately, the title of "stepfather" ...Read more

Dear Annie: My husband's parents live on the farm where he grew up, which is about an hour away from my folks' house. When we go home to visit, I prefer to stay with my parents.

I have no problem visiting the farm and spending time with my husband's family, but the accommodations at my parents' house are more comfortable. We have an entire ...Read more

Dear Annie: Bob and I are both divorced from our previous spouses. His ex-wife was unfaithful, and so was my ex-husband. We fell in love even though we live miles apart. I recently visited him for the second time to talk about our future plans. He wanted me to meet his friends, and I happily agreed.

"Tina" is a longtime family friend. Bob is ...Read more

Dear Annie: My 85-year-old uncle, a widower, spends several days a week at casinos. This is no penny-ante stuff. He gambled away everything he ever owned and had to move into subsidized housing.

He is somewhat fatalistic at this point, figuring he won't live much longer and so he wants to have fun. While we recognize his right to spend his ...Read more

Dear Annie: The facts about tobacco use are startling. Every day, nearly 4,000 kids under the age of 18 try their first cigarette, and another 1,000 become regular smokers. To hook kids, tobacco companies spend billions of dollars each year targeting kids like me with advertising near schools and malls, and they even alter these deadly products ...Read more

Dear Annie: I am 24 and have four small children under age 10. My mother was in a car accident last fall that left her paralyzed from the chest down, and she now lives with us. With hardly any help from my older sister, I struggle every day trying to take care of everyone's needs.

Mom screams at me and makes the smallest of things seem like the...Read more

Dear Annie: This past year has been hell in my marriage. My husband has gone out of his way to mistreat me. It has been eight years since we have had sex. He claims it's due to a physical problem, but that's not true. I once spotted him fondling a female guest during a dinner prayer and getting excited.

He told me I repulse him and that's why ...Read more

Dear Annie: I have been married to "Ellen" for seven years, and we recently moved back to her hometown. Apparently, she left behind an old boyfriend. They were teenagers "in love." Ellen was repeatedly unfaithful, and the boyfriend tried to break things off. But Ellen always manipulated him into saying he would love her forever. At some point, ...Read more

Dear Annie: I read the letter from "Upstate New York Where It's 20 Degrees Outside." He said his wife has hot flashes and wants to set the thermostat down, but he likes it at 74 so he can run around in his underwear. She's ready to move out. He thinks she's being selfish.

We also are from upstate New York, and I think he is the selfish one. He ...Read more