Life Advice
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Ask Amy: Single man wonders if it’s time to rekindle
Dear Amy: My friend “Brian” passed away over three years ago. I was friends with Brian and his wife “Marcia” for more than 40 years.
Prior to their relationship and subsequent marriage, Marcia and I were very close friends. We never dated. We just liked each other's company and had fun "hanging out" together. After a while, she wanted ...Read more

Is it ever OK to date your friend's ex? What 'Love Is Blind' gets wrong
Throughout its five American seasons, Netflix's "Love Is Blind" has been packed with dramatic moments — everything from a runaway bride, to one man chucking his fiancée's engagement ring into a hotel pool, to a woman leaving her fiance for another man on the show, and multiple folks second-guessing their engagements after seeing their pod ...Read more
Rude Comments Unwelcome in the Home
Dear Annie: My husband and I have children from previous relationships, and we each have two grandsons. We have shared a plot of land on the river with his son and family, and my grandsons would visit from time to time.
My husband's son's wife doesn't like my grandsons. In fact, she once made a comment in front of one of them asking why he ...Read more

Ask Amy: Israel-Hamas war hits very close to home
Dear Amy: My husband and I are Israeli-American.
We live in the United States and have one child – an infant.
Before children, we agreed on a three-child minimum, but now that we have our baby, I feel very strongly about being a one-child family. My husband still wants to have more children.
We agreed we'd table the discussion for later and...Read more
Ex Keeps Coming Back
Dear Annie: My husband and I were together for nine years. During that time, we were married for 3 1/2 years. He's 76, and I'm 64. When we were first married, I always questioned if he really loved me. I had moved to Florida in part because I felt he lost interest. So, I was shocked when he proposed.
He has been a sober alcoholic for 12 years...Read more

Ask Amy: Holiday in Europe might involve a rental
Dear Amy: Our son's mother and father-in-law, who live in Europe, have repeatedly invited us to stay at their house, including over the upcoming holidays.
We are considering going, and told them so.
Then I got a text from my daughter-in-law with an Airbnb listing where she said we could stay to be "away from the mayhem."
Amy, mayhem is part ...Read more
Missing My Family More and More
Dear Annie: I have a problem and am earnestly seeking your help.
I am a widow and I have three children. Our family has always been a close one. However, I have encountered a dilemma I never thought I would experience. My daughter is a divorced mother of four grown children. In the past, she always made sure she visited. This has changed in ...Read more

Ask Amy: Spouses air (but don’t wash) dirty laundry
Dear Amy: For as long as I have known my wife (20 years), she has been reluctant to do the laundry.
I politely ask her to do it, and she tells me that she will.
However, two days later, dirty clothes are still piling up.
To be fair, she follows through about 20 percent of the time.
She works part-time outside the home, and I work full time ...Read more
Had It With Office's Lack of Hiring
Dear Annie: I've dated a man for five years. He used to work, prior to the pandemic, but he hasn't really actively applied to jobs. My biggest issue is the fact that I'm paying all the expenses for the household we share together, and he doesn't need to do anything to assist me.
At the same time, he's starting to treat me like a servant in my...Read more

Ask Amy: Women may throw a parade for widower
Dear Amy: I am an almost 70-year-old widower (politically liberal and atheist) who wants to meet new people. Especially female people.
Unfortunately, I have almost no experience.
I had a total of two dates in high school, both of which went nowhere.
I became very good friends with my best friend's wife (friend-in-law?), and when they divorced...Read more
Excessive Photographer Making Me Want to Snap
Dear Annie: We have a friend who takes a lot of photos. He carries his digital camera with him all the time. He loves to capture the moment -- 24/7, 365. He takes pictures of everything!
We have become accustomed to all this, but it is still rather annoying and somewhat rude and invasive the way he goes about it. When my mother passed away, ...Read more

Ask Amy: Auto lenders are rethinking the terms
Dear Amy: After a car accident last year, my older brother “Danny” was without a vehicle. (The accident was not his fault, and his car was totaled.)
Danny works full time from home, and so he decided not to replace his car and purchased an e-bike, which he uses for local errands.
My husband and I have two cars, and rarely need the use of ...Read more
Single File: Murky Waters
DEAR SUSAN: I've been seeing a young naval officer for three months. There are many things about him I like, but there's one problem: I don't have his home phone number or address. He is the one who calls me and comes to my house.
When I asked for his number, he evaded the question. And several times he's made reference to never having married....Read more

Tired of swiping? 5 ways to beat dating app fatigue
Deciding to get into the dating pool can be exciting — you’re just setting out and the possibilities are endless. But after perhaps some less-than-ideal first dates, unanswered messages, or the feeling that you’ve already read every dating profile within a 50-mile radius, those feelings can easily transform into frustration and self-doubt....Read more
20-Year Friendship Ends With New Marriage
Dear Annie: I am asking for advice about my 20-year friendship that has ended. My former best friend and I have been through ups and downs, including her two former marriages and health problems.
However, not long ago, I noticed that her texts had become fewer and fewer. When she met her current husband, she was spending most of her free time...Read more

Ask Amy: Friends delay and are now losing cruising
Dear Amy: I was planning to go on a cruise with a good friend, due to leave next month.
I paid a $900 deposit to guarantee the cruise for both of us, nine months in advance.
It was understood that my friend and I would split the total cost of the cruise 50/50.
This includes the deposit and the remaining $2,000 that would be due, plus any ...Read more
Husband Rebrands Cruelty as 'Honesty'
Dear Annie: I have been married for almost 20 years and have five beautiful babies with my husband. The problem is that he tends to say things without thinking. He can hurt people's feelings, and he says he doesn't care because he is just telling the truth.
He has said some hurtful things to me about my weight. I am not a skinny girl and ...Read more

Ask Amy: Violent assault inspires forgiveness questions
Dear Amy: My husband and I have been married for 14 years (his third marriage, my second). We are very happy.
We each have two adult children.
His 42-year-old son, “Tony,” recently divorced with a preschooler, has always had issues.
Last Father’s Day, my husband’s children and grandchildren gathered at our house.
Tony, who has a ...Read more
Friendship Ends Without Explanation
Dear Annie: Earlier this year, my good friend ended our friendship. She told me via text that our friendship has run its course because I continue to cross boundaries, and she asked that I never reach out to her again.
It all started when I asked her if she wanted to go with me to a concert. We had gone to one prior to this one, and we had an...Read more

Ask Amy: Relationship rescue and redo is really risky
Dear Amy: I have been in a relationship for the past eight months with a guy.
Two months in, he lost his job and moved in with me and my daughter.
I took care of him and helped him to get a much better job. I wake up before him, pack his lunches, do his laundry, and cook and clean up after him.
He had a very bad drinking problem that would ...Read more
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