Category: Advice

Dear Eric: I need you to smack me upside the head. I’m married with two young kids. For some reason, I’ve developed a huge crush on a guy who works at my local supermarket. This is eating me alive! I hate that I feel this way. I think about him all the time, he’s popped up in my dreams, and I find myself looking for him when I go to the market. I know that logically this is so irrational and irresponsible, but I can’t seem to shake these emotions. I want it to end. Do I stop shopping at this place until I can get my act together? How do I make these feelings go away?

Dear Eric: Where should I look for a marriage-minded young woman willing to accept the age difference?

Dear Eric: My spouse’s last living parent died, and the estate needed to be divided equally between all of the siblings. Sister loaded up her car with many valuable items before making her way back home after the funeral. That annoyed the other siblings, as these items should have been part of the estate accounting to be divided, but they didn’t confront her.

Dear Eric: I work in the public sector in a job that makes me well known in my field of work and well known in the community where I work, but not where I live which is a few towns away. I was recently demoted. My colleagues are stumped as to the real reason why, as am I. This has been a hot topic in my field and the outpouring of outrage and kindness has been overwhelming.

Dear Eric: I’ve always been a sociable person and I’m missing that so much, but I have no idea how or where to start. Any ideas?

Dear Eric: I love my kitchen, but my husband thought it needed a lot of major changes. I said I liked it just the way it was. He started these projects months ago. The kitchen is now a mess and he’s always too tired to work on it. There are other projects, large and small, that never get done.

Dear Readers: On March 16, I shared a letter from “Mother of Three,” who lost her daughter five years ago and felt unsure about how to respond when people ask, “how many children do you have?” A number of readers wrote in with thoughtful and empathetic suggestions. I’d like to share four with you today.

Dear Eric: I am hurt and bewildered since they were at our home only a few months ago and they speak to my husband weekly.

Dear Eric: In two months, there will be a memorial service for this woman. Her daughter has written to me, asking if I could be one of the eulogizers. To be honest, I truly had no intention of even attending the event.

Dear Eric: I am a 62-year-old woman engaged to a 59-year-old man. He is my best friend. The problem? His 25- and 29-year-old daughters do not work or contribute to the household at all. They stay up all night and play games and sleep all day. Thankfully, I have my own home. I refuse to marry him until these “lumps” move out.