ArcaMax

DEAR ABBY: My wife's nephew is getting divorced. The process seems to be amicable; there was no cheating or abuse. They have two children. Even though the soon-to-be-ex, "Michelle," has always been welcoming and nice, my wife's family has circled the wagons. They no longer talk to her and have made clear I can't either. I don't think that's ...Read more

DEAR HARRIETTE: My best friend is throwing a retirement party for her mom. My parents were invited, so I thought it would be OK to ask my friend if I could tag along. She responded by telling me how much it hurt her not to be invited to my mom's retirement party a couple of months back. For context, our families have been super close for nearly ...Read more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: Why is it that people see it as mandatory to send a thank-you for a gift? It seems like people give gifts with the sole purpose of being appreciated. This seems contrary to the whole idea of giving a gift.

To explain further, let me tell you how I give gifts. I have a large family that is pretty far-flung. Some years I'm in ...Read more

Dear Annie: I am embarrassed to admit this at my age, but I feel like the kid left out at recess. I am in my late 40s, married with kids, a steady job and a calendar that looks full from the outside. But inside I feel lonely.

I have plenty of "friendly" people in my life. We chat at school pickup, at work, in the neighborhood, and everyone ...Read more

DEAR ABBY: My husband and I (we're both male) have been together since 2007. We moved to Arizona in 2010. Most of our family lives in the Midwest. We have been visiting our families as often as possible, at least every other year. Our son-in-law refuses to let us stay the night in his home when we visit. His excuse is, he doesn't want to have to...Read more

The hot take that floated into my inbox this week was that resolutions are passe. Apparently, thinking about "next year" is outdated. We're in this grind of time and marking it arbitrarily doesn't matter. But, really, we time-travel constantly. It's one of the best things about being human.

We can rehearse future sticky conversations in the ...Read more

DEAR HARRIETTE: A man asked me on a first date to a dive bar. I said no because I already felt like he was trying to see how little effort he could put into planning where we would go. I'm not saying he needed to spend a ton of money on me -- especially for a first date -- but his idea just felt flat-out lazy. In the past, I've been in ...Read more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: It's frigid cold here these days, but that didn't stop a huge turnout for a very popular food truck. The lines were pretty long, both to order and to pick up, but people passed the 15-20 minutes chatting with each other and joking about the cold.

An elderly man (late 70s, maybe?) pulled up in his car with (I assume) his wife ...Read more

DEAR ABBY: A co-worker, "Erin," has been allowed to work from home since the COVID-19 pandemic, while the rest of us came back to the office. We function alongside each other much like a small family. We have no drama, no office politics and an overall great atmosphere. Erin's absence has caused a strain on our team and has fueled resentment. ...Read more

DEAR HARRIETTE: I carpool with my friend to work. I pick her up every day because she's on the way and doesn't drive. We've been late a few times, and our job has a protocol for lateness. My supervisor doesn't keep close tabs on our team's timestamps, so she hardly realized when I was late. My friend's supervisor, however, happened to notice her...Read more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: My parents invited my family over for New Year's Day to celebrate. As I like to cook, I prepared two entrees to be reheated when we got there. I put in time and effort to prepare a meal they would enjoy. My parents were going to make some pasta and also picked up bread.

Upon our arrival at their house, my mother took out some...Read more

Dear Annie: Now that my husband and I are in our 70s, it feels as if our social world has shrunk to the size of a postage stamp. Friends have moved away to be near their children, others are dealing with health issues, and a few have simply drifted off. We used to host dinners, take short trips and enjoy a lively circle. Now the phone barely ...Read more

DEAR ABBY: My husband and I have been together 23 years, married for almost nine. We are in our 60s. It's the second marriage for both of us. I retired due to having to move to another state for his job. I make friends wherever I go and get involved in community activities.

My husband has NO friends. Seriously. ZERO! He goes to work and comes ...Read more