ArcaMax

DEAR ABBY: I was divorced four years ago after a 27-year marriage. Unbeknownst to me, my ex-husband hadn't paid taxes for 17 years. We were always pretty strapped as a couple and the parents of four. Money was a constant worry, and I foolishly let him handle it all.

I am now on my own and pay everything on time, but my credit is still poor. I ...Read more

DEAR ABBY: I am the mother and stepmother of eight wonderful children. I love them all very much. The problem is my two oldest stepdaughters. Both are in their 20s with kids of their own. Unless their dad and I constantly give them money, we don't get to see our grandkids. Anytime we refuse, we don't get to see them for months at a time.

These ...Read more

DEAR ABBY: My dad is the breadwinner in our family. A few years ago, he got fired for looking at "inappropriate" material at work. When he told us what happened, he described it as a raunchy comedy special. So, being a good son and thinking Dad was wrongfully terminated, I started calling law firms to see if he had a case. That's when the truth ...Read more

DEAR ABBY: I applied to be a supervisor at the company where I work. Unfortunately, I didn't get the job. One of my co-workers, who held the same position I did (though with significantly fewer years of experience at the company), was given the job instead. Initially, I tried to shrug it off and continued working as usual. Unfortunately, I find ...Read more

DEAR ABBY: My 23-year-old daughter, "Chloe," lives with me and refuses to acknowledge her grandmother's emails and letters, which are delivered to our home. It has been four years since my mother has even seen Chloe. My mother is growing increasingly disappointed and is grieved by Chloe's apparent distancing. (We live 20 miles apart.)

Over the ...Read more

DEAR ABBY: When our son went to college years ago, he traveled all summer with a school-sponsored ministry singing group. The members were all smart, attractive, talented young men and women -- a group of four.

I stopped going to his concerts because my husband became attracted to one of the young women. She was very outgoing and annoying, so I...Read more

DEAR ABBY: My mother-in-law is a heavy smoker. She lives two hours away from us, so when she visits, she likes to stay for one or two nights. My husband and I have a 3-year-old son, and my MIL's smoking is a huge concern for me.

Every two hours, she smokes outside on our back patio. She seems to think this is her right. She closes the sliding ...Read more

DEAR ABBY: I am 36, still single and depressed about it. I recently met someone who seemed perfect. He has his own place with laundry facilities, and his job is the kind where he doesn't have a bunch of other people in his life. So when he asked me over, I went.

I thought because our friends and family were similar, his values would be, too. I ...Read more

DEAR ABBY: I have seriously thought about giving my husband an ultimatum and moving out for a while. Living with him is no longer tolerable. His children support me 100%. He's an alcoholic and can be a bully when he's drinking. His bad behavior comes and goes. I never know who he'll be when he puts the can down. We have been married 30 years. He...Read more

DEAR ABBY: I love to travel, yet I loathe traveling with my husband. He gets anxious and extremely mean on the days leading up to the trip and especially while en route. I do all the planning and pay for everything, and I regard it as not only ungrateful and rude, but unnecessary. Is it wrong for me to not want him to come on the next big trip I...Read more

DEAR ABBY: My husband and I are expecting our first child this year. I moved to the United States a few years ago to be with him. His family is mostly absent from our lives. I have tried to make an effort with my in-laws, but it's always met with failure. They make excuses, so we have come to accept that we see them only during holidays. It has ...Read more

DEAR ABBY: My son's former wife was difficult -- manipulative, spoiled and possessive. I tried to get along with her, but no matter what I did, she gave me no respect and turned my son against me. They have been divorced for six years. He began dating a few years ago, and each woman is a carbon copy of the ex-wife. He falls right back into the ...Read more

DEAR ABBY: My fiance and I went to his co-worker "Tina's" house on a Friday night to socialize and play trivia games. We had been at her place before, for a Christmas party. Tina wore a short skirt, and when she sat down you could see all the way up to her black lace panties. During our "heads-up" game she sat right across from my fiance. While ...Read more

DEAR ABBY: Would it be wrong to reach out to my biological mother for financial help? I was adopted when I was just 2 months old. I was lucky to have wonderful parents, but they are in poor health, and it's affecting both of them physically. I'm going into debt helping them out financially. They are on a fixed income that barely covers their ...Read more

DEAR ABBY: I have lived in my apartment for nine years. When I moved in, I met a woman who moved in about the same time. We became friendly, and I enjoyed talking to her at the pool and mailbox -- until I got to know her better. She has alienated all the other neighbors and kids in the complex with her attitude. She butts into conversations and ...Read more

DEAR ABBY: I'm scheduled to go on a vacation with my mother and sister. It seemed like a fun idea during the planning, but as the date approaches, I realize it might not be possible for my sister and me to get along and remain civil during the trip.

We are in our mid-to-late 20s now, and I was hoping we had matured enough to handle our ...Read more

DEAR ABBY: My sister likes a childhood friend of ours and is hiding the fact that they are together, even though everyone in the family already knows they are living together. She clearly doesn't want me to know, and always finds a way to not be truthful with me.

This guy and I were friends, but whatever my sister said to him made him cut our ...Read more

DEAR ABBY: I've been married for 34 years. During most of them, I was unfaithful. I never felt like I was truly married because my husband never gave me the time of day, but I liked my marital status because, I guess, we were companions. As soon as my kids married and the nest was empty, I left. I didn't feel I needed to stay and be unhappy, so ...Read more

DEAR ABBY: I'm a recovering alcoholic who has been sober for more than 12 years. My road to sobriety has been long and dark, but I am proud of turning my life around and staying sober. My problem is how my mother treats me about it. She keeps reminding me of all the mistakes I made and the people I hurt when I was still drinking.

I also ...Read more

DEAR ABBY: I'm 26 and not currently in a relationship. I don't have many friends. I'd like to have more, and I try. I wasn't popular in middle and high school, either. I have been in and out of college, so I haven't been able to make friends there. I have worked at my job for three years and it's the same story.

People say I'm "sweet, nice and ...Read more