ArcaMax

Dear Annie: My mom's husband molested my sister more than 25 years ago. I was a teenager at the time, and because I lived with my dad, I didn't know all that went on. I do know that the case went to court, thanks to my dad, who always stuck out his neck for us. (I'm glad I wasn't living with my mom, because who knows what would have happened ...Read more

Dear Annie: My boyfriend and I are in love, and we've been together for five years and have lived together for the past three years. He moved in with me after his divorce. Now, from that divorce, his credit was horrible. So, since living together, I pay all of the household bills and occasionally help him with his bills because he is "trying ...Read more

Dear Readers: Wishing you all a very happy, healthy and joyous Thanksgiving. As we gather around the table, it is a good time to reflect on all the things that we can be thankful for. It is a time to appreciate what you have and treasure the very moments that you are spending with friends or family. Below are some of my favorite poems about ...Read more

Dear Readers: As we prepare our tables and tummies for tomorrow's Thanksgiving celebration, I find myself reflecting on the countless things I am grateful for. From good health to loving friends and family to our wonderful community of readers and letter writers, there are so many things, big and small, to appreciate.

Here are some of my ...Read more

Dear Annie: My husband and I have been married for a couple of years; we each have children from previous relationships and no children together. Individually, we both make good incomes. He is in real estate, and I am a software programmer.

Before getting married, I (alone) purchased the home we currently reside in. I invested a large amount ...Read more

Dear Annie: With reference to a recent column in which the reader said she had lost her home to a reverse mortgage, there are two primary ways this can happen, and I want to explain how to avoid this so that it never happens to any other reader.

In a reverse mortgage, the money paid by the lender to the homeowner in reverse does NOT include ...Read more

Dear Annie: Back in the '90s, before cellphones, I discovered that my husband was having an affair with the manager of a store he owned. It had been going on for seven years, and everyone knew about it, including their mothers and all the employees -- everyone but me.

I did have my suspicions, though. He'd come home late from work, and I ...Read more

Dear Annie: On July 12, 2022, my son and his wife gave birth to identical twin boys. A week prior, my son said nobody could come to the hospital due to COVID-19. The day the boys were born, my son mentioned that his wife's parents were there at the hospital with them. I didn't say anything.

A week after they arrived home, I was on the phone ...Read more

Dear Annie: I am struggling with the fact that I will be coming face to face with family members after a year estranged. I drew a line in the sand last year when my niece assaulted another guest in my home. "Lynnie" is nearly 40 and has always been the life of the party. However, her drinking has gotten out of control. She had a DUI three ...Read more

Dear Annie: My live-in girlfriend of 15 years, who is 12 years older, never wants to hang out with me and any of my friends. Even when I found friends closer to her age, she still does not want to do anything. When we first met, it was no problem, but throughout the years, she just wants to hang out with her father and me.

I would love to do ...Read more

Dear Annie: I lost my beloved father to suicide on Oct. 23, 1997, making me a suicide survivor, which means someone who has lost a loved one to suicide. My father was on his second bout of depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, and he didn't leave a note. Most do not. I was desperate for guidance after he died and found much assistance...Read more

Dear Annie: My grandson is in first grade and was being bullied by a classmate. The first time, the bully threw him to the ground and started punching him in the face. In the second incident, the classmate pushed my grandson to the ground and began kicking him in the stomach.

The boy's mother, my daughter-in-law, went to his school and told ...Read more

Dear Annie: I was surprised at your response to the letter writer regarding the Rational Recovery book, offered as an alternative to Alcoholics Anonymous. I am not an alcoholic myself, but I have adjacent relationships, including a dear departed uncle who met the love of his life at AA. I have no objection or ax to grind with AA. You are ...Read more

Dear Annie: Approximately seven years ago, my husband was unfaithful. I filed divorce papers, but he asked that we not go through with it, and he made promises that things would change. But since then, nothing has changed.

I asked him for a divorce again at the end of 2021, but finding an inexpensive lawyer was very difficult, so I did not ...Read more

Dear Annie: My husband and I have been together for nearly 30 years, but we have been growing apart over the past seven or eight, despite marriage counseling that didn't seem to help. About six years ago, he was diagnosed with an illness that he is on the mend from now. Although I craved divorce, I couldn't bring myself to leave him while he ...Read more

Dear Annie: On Veterans Day, it is very important to honor all veterans, not just the ones that served in a war of society's approval. I am a Vietnam veteran, and the reception we got on returning to "the world" after our tour of duty was shameful, disgraceful and disrespectful. Those of us that served did not have a political agenda or ...Read more

Dear Annie: My two sisters and I were out running errands one day when my youngest sister announced that we as a family should no longer exchange Christmas gifts because it's too hard to figure out what to buy everyone. She said that we all either have what we want, or what we need, at our ages.

We celebrate Christmas at her house because she...Read more

Dear Annie: Our family is very close, but there is one thing that keeps happening that is driving me crazy. It seems that every time I try to have a conversation, I get interrupted by one individual. I have asked him not to do this, as it is belittling and hurts my feelings. Recently, after he interrupted me, this came to a boiling point. I ...Read more

Dear Annie: I'm in my second -- and final -- marriage, and I have a 15-year-old son and a 5-year-old son. I have struggled for years with the disconnected relationship between my older son and his little brother.

I met my wife when the older one was 4. Everything was great, and my wife and the boy bonded at the time. At age 5, my wife and son...Read more

Dear Annie: Three weeks ago, my oldest sister passed away. Her passing was not expected.

Her children told me she had a fall several months ago. She fractured a disc in her back and had been in a great deal of pain. A week before she passed away, she woke up very confused and was not making sense. They called an ambulance and took her to the ...Read more