Mother seeks cure for daughter's affluenza
Dear Ball Catcher: Calling the police because children are playing is an extreme overreaction. The best and most neighborly approach would be to walk across the street, introduce yourself to these children and their parents and ask them not to play on your lawn. Ask the parents if they would be willing to exchange phone numbers, in case there is a problem. Obviously, chasing a ball into (or lying) in the street is extremely unsafe; tell them that cars won't always be able to see them.
Children don't recognize boundaries the way adults do, and so you'll have to teach them that they should confine their play to their own lawn. Some people conduct this "education" by keeping all balls that land in their yard. This is punitive and unkind, but I assume it does the trick.
Dear Amy: "Devoted" was a "perennially disappointed" mother, who could not accept that her son is a "depressed alcoholic."
Thank you for suggesting Al-anon as a first stop for her! Attending Al-anon meetings basically saved my life 12 years ago.
-- Survivor
Dear Survivor: Al-anon (Al-anon.org) has saved many lives, and definitely improved my own.
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(You can contact Amy Dickinson via email: askamy@amydickinson.com. Readers may send postal mail to Ask Amy, P.O. Box 194, Freeville, NY 13068. You can also follow her on Twitter @askingamy or "like" her on Facebook.)
