Dear Grandparent: Not every neighbor needs to be your friend. But since you have a relationship with the kids and with their mom, you might talk to your friend about the new arrangement and ask her how you can best be supportive.
Dear Eric: There is a part of me that feels it is the wife’s duty to make dinner, just as it is the husband’s duty to mow the lawn and take out the trash and that she is staying on this diet because it absolves her from having to plan meals and fix dinner.
Dear Picture: If you don’t move on, you’re going to be actively inviting the kind of chaos and unhappiness into your life that you sought to escape by leaving your marriage.
Dear Eric: My sister-in-law continues to address cards to me as “Mary Jones.” She has to know that is not my name, I include my “Smith” name on the return address of every card I send.
Dear Eric: We worry about this woman’s motives. He has been sending her money. One friend cautioned that she may be looking to marry him as a way to come to the United States.
Do you actually like this couple? This behavior is tough at best, unacceptable at worst, writes R. Eric Thomas.
Dear Eric: I’m a 78-year-old widow, who has been without a cat for one year now; first time in my life. Is it fair to adopt a cat if I most likely only have one and a half to two and a half more years to live? I do travel as well. I do not have any family, so who would get the cat remains unknown. Maybe back to the adoption group? Is this fair to the cat? I feel I’m being selfish, or is a little time “at home” for a cat better than none? Please advise.
Dear Eric: A lady I know does shopping for Instacart, and occasionally she will post on Facebook photos of homes she has delivered to, adding comments like “look at this cool home I delivered groceries to today!” Isn’t that a huge breach of privacy?
Dear Eric: I have tried a couple times after my daughter passed away to start writing thank-you cards to those who sent flowers, did food dropoffs and visited. But I end up hysterical and simply put it aside for another day. I have given a few cards to her best friends and thanked others via personal messages on social media.
Dear Eric: I’m a guy in my mid-60s, in relatively good health, but I’m fighting the whole getting older thing on a daily basis. I still want to hit the ball 250 yards every time and sexually knock it out of the park each time I get the chance (divorced and dating here). So, is this an OK “rage against the dying of the light” thing, or is this an older guy who refuses to accept aging gracefully and looks positively foolish to the rest of the world?