ArcaMax

DEAR ABBY: My sister is cheap. She's also not good at choosing gifts for people. Often, the things she gives are worse than if she'd done nothing at all. An example: She was just here visiting and brought my 4-year-old a toy car she'd picked up at a garage sale (fine, so far), but one of the wheels was broken off. She had the wheel in her purse ...Read more

DEAR HARRIETTE: I am in a very one-sided friendship. My friend has been out of work for an extended period and is suffering as a result. I have gone out of my way to help by setting up a job search online and monitoring it (he has no computer), by occasionally giving him cash when he needs to buy food and by being as supportive as I can.

The ...Read more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I have an unusual, "made-up" first name. Nowadays it's common for kids to have a uniquely spelled name, but I'm in my 60s, so it wasn't common growing up.

The way I've managed it is: I only correct the pronunciation if I expect to see that person again. This way, I'm not constantly feeling rude by correcting everyone. And the...Read more

Dear Annie: I recently moved into a new townhome, and for the most part, I love it here. It's quiet, cozy and exactly what I wanted for this next chapter of my life. That is, until my new neighbors moved in upstairs.

It's a couple with a dog. The dog is an angel -- never barks, never causes a problem. The issue is the husband. From morning ...Read more

DEAR ABBY: My relationship with my mother-in-law has been rocky for the nine years I've been married to her daughter. She has been very hurtful at times, saying things like, "You're not welcome [in her house]." She has never accepted me.

She was recently unable to stay within the boundaries my wife and I set with her when she visited us. We had...Read more

As her three kids steadily picked through the large orange bowl for all the remaining chocolate, she said she remembered when my husband had started his office. The first Halloween was in a pandemic, but there was a driveway. He dressed up in a fake hazmat suit and real mask to give candy to kids in the backseats whose trick-or-treating had been...Read more

Dear Annie: I returned home from a trip recently to find my world turned upside down. While I was away, my daughter, her husband and my two grandchildren, who live in a camper on my property, broke into my home. They forced their way into my bedroom, the basement where I store my late husband's antiques, my sheds, my grain bin and even cut the...Read more

DEAR ABBY: I have a group of wonderful women friends I have known for decades. We get together monthly for dinner and drinks at a local restaurant. The location is generally left up to whoever has a birthday that month, and usually varies among three choices.

Occasionally, I bow out if they choose a restaurant that caters to a local creep. This...Read more

DEAR HARRIETTE: I've been living in my apartment for over a year, and I really love it: the location, the space, my neighbors and the fact that the rent is so cheap. The only problem is my landlord. Every time I submit a maintenance request, it takes weeks for anything to get fixed. I've had leaky faucets, a broken heater in the middle of winter...Read more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: A cousin and his wife, who are close to me, have an annoying habit of click-clicking on their phones while we are talking.

I am about 20 years older than them. I have a background in the arts and culture, and was once known as a trivia whiz, which I don't publicize. But this couple constantly fact-checks everything I say. And...Read more

Dear Annie: I'm 73, and my wife is 74. We've been married for 53 years and have never spent a night apart due to marital conflict. Admittedly, each of us may have spent a night or two on the couch, but my point here is that I think we're still happily married.

The problem is that we've not been intimate for nearly 10 years. The closest we get...Read more

DEAR ABBY: My neighbor is 80. She's my political opposite. She's known me since I was 13. Her husband died 10 or so years ago. All she does all day is stay inside her house (even when it's sunny) and watch TV news. I try to be nice to her because she's alone and probably depressed, but sometimes I want to curse her to high heaven.

I borrowed $...Read more

DEAR HARRIETTE: My friend's boyfriend and I got into a heated argument at a dinner party. He made a joke about me being a drama queen and gossiping too much. At first, it was funny, but then it felt like he was bringing up situations that I had spoken about with his girlfriend in confidence. Despite his dwelling on this untimely joke, my friend ...Read more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: When my mother passed away some years ago, my brother and his wife placed a stuffed black cat toy in her casket. My mother had owned several black cats.

Months later, I was opening a Christmas gift from my brother. It turned out to be a stuffed black cat. He said, "Do you know where that came from?" Of course I knew! My mouth...Read more

Dear Annie: My husband, "Keith," and I have been married for 12 years. We've always been a team when it comes to parenting our two kids, ages 9 and 6, but lately I've noticed a shift. Keith has become increasingly harsh with them, especially our oldest, "Ben." He'll snap over small things -- like a jacket left on the floor or a missed chore --...Read more

DEAR ABBY: My husband and I discussed our 25th anniversary and mentioned Hawaii as a possibility. He reached out to his brother and sister-in-law for suggestions, since they have visited Hawaii twice and we never have.

My husband mentioned to my sister-in-law (without consulting me) that maybe the four of us should travel together to Hawaii. ...Read more