Dear Eric: When my mother passed away, her trust was split mostly between me and my sister, with a small percentage to my sister’s two kids. My mother and my sister lived together. My mother put the down payment on their house, and they split the mortgage and utilities. My sister covered most of the mortgage.
Dear Eric: My son has recently started using some slang terms that have me scratching my head – namely “gyat,” “skibidi,” and “sigma.”
Dear Eric: My husband and I have been married for more than 50 years and we have recently retired. I was looking forward to the free time to do more of the things we had talked about doing together. We have always been friends as well as spouses.
Dear Eric: My son and my niece had been friends since childhood but had a falling out about a decade ago. She confessed to him that she was cheating on her husband and thinking of leaving him and their 6-year-old daughter. My son suggested she talk to a professional before making a rash decision. She then badmouthed him to everyone else in the family and stopped talking to him for years.
Dear Eric: I frequently have gatherings at my house, most recently debate-watch parties. Close friends gather, have cocktails and eat snacks. This time, I decided to go for the cozy vibe and have a debate-watch pajama party. I just invited ladies.
Dear Eric: Two years ago, a group of 11 women on my husband’s side, including his mother, sisters and aunts, went on a beach house girls’ trip. The group also included the daughters-in-law of his aunts. I was left out and wasn’t even told about this trip until after they came back.
Dear Eric: I am newly in love and engaged. My fiancé and I are both in our early 70s. Quite a few of my friends (not my close friends but others) have responded to the news with: how cute! Somehow the fact that we have fallen in love and plan to marry is “cute.”
Dear Readers: On Sept. 23, I published two letters from older adults struggling to find a connection (“Still Grieving” and “Wants a Connection”). I asked those of you who have successfully found friendship and romantic partnership at a later stage in life to write in.
Dear Eric: Before her wedding, she told me that it was going to be a small ceremony with only about 30 friends and family. It would be at a restaurant. They planned on paying for everyone and 30 was their limit. I was shocked and hurt when she told me there was no room for me. I always thought we were close.
Not to be too blunt but I’m confused about what you’re getting out of this relationship, writes R. Eric Thomas.