DEAR ABBY: Is there a polite way to refuse giving store clerks personal information? It seems like every time I shop, the clerks demand email, phone number, even birthdate, and they get testy when I say I just want to complete my purchase. I find it so intrusive that I’m tempted to leave the items […]

DEAR ABBY: I’m hoping you can give me some guidance, as I am a huge fan and read your column regularly. I am a 32-year-old woman whose mother and grandmother told me about our proud Native American heritage all my life. Several years ago, I got a large tattoo in our tribe’s language as a […]

DEAR ABBY: I’m a disabled middle-aged woman, married for 15 years. From the beginning, there was never much passion between my husband and me, but we’re friends. I’m now becoming less able to go out and do things, and I will eventually be wheelchair-bound. I want to leave him so he can find someone who […]

DEAR ABBY: My 92-year-old mother lives alone, still drives and manages by herself with a feral cat she took in. She’s dealing with heart failure, but doing well on her meds. I am 70, an only child, married, retired and live six hours away. We go to see her four times a year and stay […]

DEAR ABBY: My wife and I live in a beachfront condo complex with a population of mostly retired people who are friendly and active. Last year a divorced woman moved in and was welcomed into the community. Although she has been invited to social gatherings and outings, she rarely attends. My wife and I went […]

DEAR ABBY: I am a 70-year-old male former teacher and social worker. I stopped dating 30 years ago because the only women I had loved had all dumped me. I felt I was only a temporary convenience to them. Since then, I haven’t been romantically involved with anyone so I would not be dumped again. […]

DEAR ABBY: My daughter and her boyfriend have been together for four years. Despite being almost 30, he is very immature and constantly distracted by either his phone or his video games. Abby, he travels with his PlayStation everywhere he goes. When he comes into our house, he sets up his console in the living […]

DEAR ABBY: We have some friends who take a couple of expensive extended vacations each year. They go to Europe and take cruises. For the past four years, they have never once booked ground transportation from home to the airport and back. Instead, they rely on friends to take them to the airport. They have […]