ArcaMax

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I have developmental prosopagnosia, or face-blindness, and cannot recognize any human faces. I work remotely in a profession that does not require me to interact directly with others. My husband watches TV and movies with me in case I confuse the characters, and goes to parties with me to help me know who I'm talking with.

I ...Read more

Dear Annie: I'm a mom to a wonderful adult daughter, and we've always had a close bond. We live in the same neighborhood, and our grandkids can walk over to our house anytime. We spend a lot of time together as a family, and I cherish being a regular part of their lives.

My daughter's mother-in-law used to live out of state and only visited a...Read more

DEAR ABBY: My oldest sister has it in her head that since she's home all week, she needs to go out every Sunday. She started calling me every Saturday to invite me to accompany her, which I did a few times. In doing so, I realized she has mobility issues and the beginnings of dementia. She wants to go to these certain places where we would ...Read more

Starting at about second grade, when the novelty of reading about a family of bears started to wear off, I inhaled ghost stories. One of my favorites was "Wait Till Helen Comes" by Mary Downing Hahn. It was about dead kids, dead parents, and, the cherry on top of a trauma sundae, navigating a blended family.

I was lucky as a child. I didn't ...Read more

Dear Readers: Mother's Day arrives each year draped in flowers, breakfast trays and hand-drawn cards, but beneath the surface it carries so much more. It is a day of celebration, yes, but also one of reflection, gratitude and sometimes quiet ache.

To the mothers who are in the thick of it, wiping tears, packing lunches, offering hugs with one...Read more

DEAR ABBY: When my first wife and I were in our early 20s, she left me for another man. It was difficult, but I worked through it, learned to trust again and remarried a few years later.

This may be hard to believe, but 46 years later, my ex-wife thought it would be a good idea to try to connect through social media. I knew how to find her if I...Read more

DEAR HARRIETTE: I'm a newish mom. My daughter is approaching her first birthday, but I still feel like a newbie. Learning all the tricks of motherhood has been a whirlwind, but something I didn't expect to be so hard is the shift I've been feeling in so many of my adult relationships. I am the only one from my immediate friend group who is a ...Read more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: What is a polite way to refuse a hug with friends or strangers? What to do when my proffered handshake is batted away and a hug pursued instead?

Some men, especially, seem to want to hug me because of my large chest, and it seems more like sexual assault than a friendly gesture. And there are certain women (whom I do not ...Read more

Dear Annie: I'm an avid gardener in a suburban neighborhood, and in turn, I meet lots of neighbors. There's one lady who keeps stopping by with questions about her yard, which I'm happy to help answer. She even asked if I would go with her to the local nursery to help her select new plants for her garden bed, to which I agreed.

She canceled ...Read more

DEAR ABBY: I'm engaged to a delightful woman from a foreign country. She's a divorcee, and her 19-year-old son is doing well in college. She essentially raised him herself. Because of some spectrum disorder and ADHD symptoms, her son was apparently a handful. I am healthy, have multiple advanced degrees (including an M.D. and a Ph.D.), and have ...Read more

DEAR HARIETTE: My boyfriend and I have been dating for about two months now, and while things started off really strong, there's something that's been bothering me more and more: He refuses to show me where he lives. It feels intentional and calculated. Every time I've brought it up, he dodges the question or gives a vague excuse. The first time...Read more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I was taught by my mother and grandmother, who practiced what they preached, that condolence letters are to be acknowledged.

Their practice was to answer every condolence letter with a return letter. It could be long or short, but at the very least it should express gratitude for the sender's thoughtfulness.

I have followed ...Read more

Dear Annie: My younger sister "Kayla" recently moved in with me while she finishes school. I offered because she was struggling financially and I have the space. At first, it felt good to help her out, but now I'm regretting the offer. She leaves dishes in the sink, stays up late watching TV loudly and has her friends over without asking. I've...Read more

DEAR ABBY: My cousin (more like a sister) has made some extremely rash and concerning choices over the last year. After she had her second baby, she left her husband and started seeing a series of borderline-abusive men. She's now in the process of signing full custody of the children over to her ex-husband and impulsively buying a house out of ...Read more

DEAR HARRIETTE: One of my best friends came to town. We've known each other since college and have seen each other through a lot of chapters. I don't feel like I'm in the best season of my life right now. I think I'm on my way to something great, but the detour has been filled with a lot of challenges, losses, hardships and so much more. My ...Read more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: My fiance and I have chosen not to register for gifts. Not only do we wish to do what is proper, but we already live together in a tiny apartment and have neither the need nor the space for additional housekeeping items.

Nor do we wish to crassly solicit money from our guests. And since the wedding is in my fiance's small, ...Read more