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I’m 34, my wife is 33. We’ve been together for four years and have been going through a really tricky patch starting nine months ago when my wife changed her mind about wanting children, and she also decided she no longer wanted to have a monogamous relationship. I’m not comfortable with either of those things – it seems as if our marriage might be ending. It started while I was in recovery from a chronic illness that I had been sick with for almost a year. I know the period of my being sick was very hard for her; I didn’t have a lot of time or energy for her, and I…

When my husband, Jack, and I brought our 8-month-old daughter to Jack’s home state to introduce the baby to extended family and friends, Jack’s brother, who lives a three-hour drive from where we would be staying, invited Jack (and only Jack) to come see him instead of driving in to see us. Jack turned down the invite because it would take up an entire day of our visit for him to drive there and back (alone). Plus, the whole reason we flew out there was so everyone could meet the new baby in person. We were only in town for a short amount of time and his brother knew months in advance…

I have an issue with my mother that is damaging our relationship to the point that I dread being around her. I recently moved back to the town where she lives to run my own business, and now I see her much more often than I did before. She has always been fairly bossy and controlling, but now she is constantly suggesting a “better” way (i.e. her way) to do things. She comments on everything from what I should/should not wear, how to run my business, what I should say to my customers, where I should live, what to buy, etc. I would consider what she said if it was valid or…

It’s time again for Shortcuts. For every question, I’ll give my advice in just a few sentences because sometimes the answer to a person’s question is so obvious and the need to hear it so great that being as clear and frank as possible is simply the best way to go. I’ve been in a relationship for six months and was just told a secret: my boyfriend is a brony. I really don’t mind. He doesn’t do weird stuff really. He doesn’t look up horrible things on the Internet, or dress like a pony and go to conventions, but he wants me to watch it. I’ve tried, but I can’t watch it…

I’m a 16-year-old girl in Colorado with a 16-year-old boyfriend in Tennessee. We have been dating for four months and we Skype all the time; we are in love. I won’t let him go and he won’t let me go, but we really want to see each other in person. I tried asking my parents if we could move to a new place, but they said no; they don’t know about my boyfriend. On the other hand, my boo asked his mom if they could visit or move here and she said no because of money, because she doesn’t like the cold, and because her son and I don’t love each other….

It’s time again for Shortcuts. For every question, I’ll give my advice in just a few sentences because sometimes the answer to a person’s question is so obvious and the need to hear it so great that being as clear and frank as possible is simply the best way to go. I am 57 and my boyfriend, “Fred,” is 55. I left my husband of twenty years to be with this man. About five years ago, Fred bought me five or six things for Christmas, including perfume, makeup, and things like that. I found out that he gave his massage therapist the exact same gifts. I was furious. He still sees her…