ArcaMax

DEAR HARRIETTE: Now that my siblings and I are "orphans" -- both of our parents have died -- we have only one another left. This is proving to be challenging. All of our old childhood behaviors are coming back, and I feel stuck in the past. My older sister is really pushing my buttons, and I am finding it difficult to interact well with her ...Read more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I own a beachfront timeshare with two bedrooms, each with a full bath attached. When I invite a guest, should I offer them the much larger "owner's suite," or the very-nice-but-smaller guest suite?

Do I take my guidance from the names of these spaces, or should I give my guest the larger space?

GENTLE READER: The reason you ...Read more

Dear Annie: I've been married for over 25 years, and from the outside, it probably looks like we have a stable life. We raised kids together; we pay the bills; we attend family functions. But inside the walls of our home, I feel painfully alone.

My husband and I barely talk anymore unless it's about schedules, errands or something to do with ...Read more

DEAR ABBY: I have been married for 22 years. It was a normal relationship, and I was very happy. However, over the last 12 years, my wife has changed. There is ZERO affection, no hugging, holding hands and nothing sexual. We are like roommates. She blames it on having been molested when she was a child. Our level of intimacy was normal for 10 ...Read more

DEAR HARRIETTE: I recently broke my foot, and as a result, I'm now in a walking boot and on crutches for the next two to three months. It's been a major adjustment; everything from getting dressed to running errands has become a challenge.

I live alone in a major city where I rely heavily on public transportation, which has made things even ...Read more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: Relative to the longstanding tradition of men proposing marriage to women, and in this day of slow (but hopefully inexorable) movement towards gender equity, I wonder if the percent of marriage proposals initiated by women has increased. Should it?

GENTLE READER: Sure, it should. In a sensible world, it would hardly matter ...Read more

Dear Annie: I'm a 66-year-old woman, married to my second husband for nearly 17 years. Like many couples, we've had our share of struggles -- serious enough that we were close to separating. Wanting to save our marriage, I asked him to attend counseling with me, and to his credit, he agreed. We've been doing much better since then and have ...Read more

DEAR ABBY: I have a roommate, "Don," I have lived with for 11 years. At first, we were dating, but we broke up, and Don moved out for a year. We remained friends, and he moved back in to help me with rent and because he missed the cat. Our relationship has been strictly platonic for the last seven years.

What drives me nuts is when we get in a ...Read more

For the first story I ever had published in a paper, I was almost run over by a mail truck. I'll tell you, the driver was none too pleased by a faux reporter jumping in front of his hood for a quote. I don't blame him. But here I am, more than 20 years later, writing for the same paper.

But I should back up. I spent my first year in college at ...Read more

Dear Annie: I've been dating a wonderful man for five years, and for the most part, our relationship is strong and loving. We don't live together, so we typically see each other just a couple of times a week, with more time together when we go on vacation. That time feels precious to me. But lately, I've found myself increasingly frustrated, ...Read more

DEAR ABBY: I have been divorced from my ex-husband, "Cliff," for a year and a half. My nearly adult children live with me. They rarely see their dad. Our divorce was relatively painless, but the custody battle was prolonged, and most of my savings were drained in the process. Cliff pays child support, but I'm still struggling financially to ...Read more

DEAR HARRIETTE: How do I stop settling for emotionally unavailable people just because I'm afraid of being alone? I've noticed a pattern in my dating life. All the men I go out with seem to have a few things in common: They refuse to commit, they're always "too busy" and they rarely put in the effort to truly get to know me or make me feel ...Read more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: A friend and I have a long-standing, semi-joking disagreement, but I do think my behavior bothers her, and I just don't understand why.

We typically meet for dinner. Now, I am not a big dining-out person. I am just not that interested in food. I'm more of an "eat to live" person, if you know what I mean.

My friend gets a lot...Read more

Dear Annie: I've been struggling with my relationship with my older sister for some time now. Unfortunately, I have little time to pursue counseling, and finding an available, competent therapist in my area is difficult.

My older sister hosts the annual holiday dinners, which I used to enjoy and even help out with. But over the last few years...Read more

DEAR ABBY: I have spent 40 years serving the public and my country, putting other people first and feeling guilty if I didn't. However, I am becoming resentful of the demands for my time.

I'm retired, and my husband still works. We have always split the expenses 50-50, even though I make less than 40% of his income. Once I retired, my share of ...Read more