Terminal disease is greeted with shrugging response
If you were feeling particularly cynical, you might respond: "Well, how about we trade. I'll take the thing you're dying of and you can have the thing I'm dying of."
A less cynical response to this comment is: "That strikes me as a strange thing to say to me."
Dear Amy: I suspect that my dad is cheating on my stepmom. I was looking on his iPad (with his permission), when a few messages from someone I'll call "Shelly" popped up.
I have seen my dad text back and forth with her before, but I never saw what they said. I simply assumed she was a consultant of some kind.
However, she sent my dad an emoji that clearly expressed affection and called my dad "babe."
I was, to say the least, shocked and concerned. Am I being too paranoid, or should I mention this to my stepmom? I don't have all the facts and would hate to bring up false information. However, if this were true, my stepmom would be crushed. Is it even my place to bring this up? Help!
-- Crushed Daughter
Dear Crushed: People who are cheating don't normally lend out their devices freely -- because they know that evidence would be visible to anyone using it. That's why one red flag of cheating is when a person suddenly becomes secretive and possessive of their various communication devices.
All the same, it is not appropriate for a friend or colleague to send flirtatious emojis, or to address a married person as "Babe."
Your father is the person to address regarding what you've seen. Be honest. Say a version of: "Dad, what the heck...?"
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