DEAR ABBY: My ex-husband and I have been divorced for five years. I have sole custody of our 6-year-old son, “Charlie.” My ex lives five hours away with his current wife and her four children. He makes time to see our son only a few times a year.

DEAR ABBY: My mother has always had a horrible habit of making plans and canceling at the last minute. When I make plans with her, she invariably cancels the day of. Lately she has started making me feel guilty for not coming around more.

DEAR ABBY: I’m a 26-year-old single man. Most of my good friends are getting married, and when they do, they stop speaking to me. I have a hard time not resenting them for it. It makes me feel my company was a placeholder until they got married, and I’m not worth keeping around now that they…

DEAR ABBY: I have a guy friend who goes from girl to girl constantly. People talk about what a player he is and say he doesn’t really like the women he’s dating. He has been called desperate — among other things. None of this ever gets to him. Even though we are just close friends, he has ev…

DEAR ABBY: I am a platonic friend and part-time caregiver of a wealthy gentleman. I now reside in his residence out of necessity. We respect each other, and neither of us intends to be anything more than friends.

DEAR ABBY: I am a gay male. My sister, “Cate,” is in what appears outwardly to be a committed relationship, but I know for a fact it isn’t.

DEAR ABBY: My wife, “Libby’s,” dearest friend of 20 years, “Melanie,” has changed her lifestyle. Melanie and her husband have become “swingers.” Now when Libby meets her socially, all Melanie can talk about is her new lifestyle — complete with photos. Plus Melanie is very interested in meeti…

DEAR ABBY: Just months before our 30th wedding anniversary, my husband told me he doesn’t love me and never wanted to marry me. I am beyond devastated. I feel I have wasted the best years of my life. We have two beautiful daughters who are my everything.

DEAR ABBY: I am a 57-year-old man who has been divorced for eight years. (My ex-wife was the one who filed.) I recently reconnected with my ex-wife’s sister, “Edith,” whom I hadn’t seen in years. We began a friendship, which has evolved into a serious relationship.

DEAR ABBY: My aunt had a stillborn baby 20 years ago. At the time, I was a teenager. Ever since then she has lived a morbid lifestyle — like you’d see in a scary movie. After the first year, she threw a party with a cake for all of us, and wanted us to sing “Happy Birthday” to a baby that ne…

DEAR ABBY: I dated a man several years ago, and we just hooked up again. In the interim he had all of his teeth pulled. His dentures are ill-fitting, and he refuses to get them adjusted. As a result, he goes without any teeth, which I find a whole lot less than sexy. Our love life is sufferi…

DEAR ABBY: I am an attractive woman who has been married for 30 years. I think my husband has been cheating on me for most of them. Through the years I have seen the telltale signs and confronted him many times. But he continually tells me no, he would never do anything.

DEAR ABBY: My husband has always had anger issues. Recently, they have progressed from targeting inanimate objects to targeting me.

DEAR ABBY: My husband and I are expecting a baby in a few months. My father and his wife asked if we would like a large crib/changing table/shelf combination they took a fancy to at an antique store. I politely refused and explained that there is no space in our small apartment. They sent it…

DEAR ABBY: I am very close to my 19-year-old son. He is kind, sweet and big-hearted. He has learning disabilities and the maturity level of probably a 15- or 16-year-old. Naturally, I am protective of him. He had one girlfriend during his senior year, and when they broke up after four months…

DEAR ABBY: Around 12 years ago, I helped out an old friend I’ll call Patty by creating an author website for her. I have maintained it for her ever since. She is grateful and gives me a gift every once in a while to show her appreciation.

DEAR ABBY: I have been dating my boyfriend for two years. He is 10 years older, in his mid-40s. He is wonderful, kind, smart, and treats me well. There is only one issue: He still lives with his ex-girlfriend from 10 years ago.

DEAR ABBY: I was married to my husband for 29 years. We were separated off and on more than 10 of those years. We were both in other relationships but would reconnect for months and sometimes years. Then, because our lifestyles are so different, we would split up again.

DEAR ABBY: I married when I was in my early 20s and stayed married for four years. It has been five years since my divorce. We had no children, and I haven’t had contact with my ex. The problem is, my family won’t stop bringing him up. My sister is being married soon, so they constantly disc…

DEAR ABBY: The music director at our church — I’ll call her Mildred — is an alcoholic. I realized it after I offered my home to her when she said she needed to escape from her alcoholic partner. Mildred is a nighttime drinker and imbibes until probably 2 a.m. She says she can’t get to sleep …

DEAR ABBY: I could use your advice on training my husband. He refuses to enter his work travel schedule on the household calendar. He snapped at me this week when he finally revealed that he was leaving Sunday. It took three more days to get the date he was coming back. It was like pulling t…

DEAR ABBY: My boyfriend and I have been a couple for three years. We live together and have an incredible relationship and an amazing sex life. A while ago, he was approached by a strange woman on social media. Through Hangouts he told her she was beautiful and that he was looking for the ri…

DEAR ABBY: Many years ago, I had a romance with a young girl in a faraway town. After a year, thinking I could do better, I moved on. With the benefit of hindsight, I now realize she stood head and shoulders above all the others, and I had tragically discarded my soul mate.

DEAR ABBY: I am currently dating someone, and although it hasn’t been that long, so far everything has been great. We each have two children from previous relationships. We have discussed the topic of marriage, having a child of our own and have even considered adoption.

DEAR ABBY: My husband and I live in a nice home in the desert Southwest with an in-ground pool and guesthouse. Our friends and relatives from back east have an open invitation to visit whenever they please. We enjoyed these visits until recently. The problem is their ever-present compulsion …

DEAR ABBY: My longtime friend of 30 years, “Charlotte,” lives across the country. I have just learned that her husband, “Harold,” is transgender and is now transitioning to become “Helen.”

DEAR ABBY: I am a senior who is confused by what seems to be a new rule of etiquette that one should never, ever comment on another’s appearance. Does it include complimenting someone on a new hairstyle or a new outfit, for example? Please clarify. — CONFUSED IN CALIFORNIA

DEAR ABBY: I’m getting married in a few months, and with all of the wedding planning, I have realized that in my fiancé’s priorities, I come last, as do my opinions and desires.

DEAR ABBY: I have known “Charlotte” for 17 years. She was a bridesmaid at my wedding, and we talk and text regularly. I consider her one of my best friends.

DEAR ABBY: My mother is 86 and drives everyone in the family crazy when we have to spend time with her. She says things that make people cringe. She’s racist, homophobic, judgmental and critical of everybody and everything.

DEAR ABBY: My mom has never been what you would call a housekeeper. Dad did all the shopping, cooking and cleaning. As a child, I remember our house always being a mess. Mom worked, and I don’t know why she never felt like she needed to clean up after herself. My dad would straighten up afte…

DEAR ABBY: I have been happily married for more than 40 years. Since he retired a couple of years ago, it has come to my attention that he has been getting mail at a separate private mailbox. I don’t see a good reason for this, and it is weighing on me heavily.

DEAR ABBY: My sister “Thea” has distanced herself from the family. I understand why she did. Our parents were mentally, physically and emotionally abusive while we were growing up, with one who instigated the issues and the other taking it out on us kids.

FROM ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION

DEAR ABBY: My husband and I are seniors who look forward to visits from our adult children. The problem is our oldest son. He visits every few months and leaves belongings behind. He uses our guest room, where he has claimed much of the closet, several dresser drawers, the guest bathroom van…

DEAR ABBY: I have a former co-worker whose husband was just released from a psychiatric facility. He had threatened to kill himself and take the entire family with him. I met him before the incident. He did not seem balanced then, and I was uncomfortable being around him.

DEAR ABBY: I’m married to a man 21 years my senior. “Joe” and I have been married six years. I have recently realized I’m gay and have fallen in love with another woman.

DEAR ABBY: My best friend of 40 years has asked me to fly to her son’s wedding in a few months, arrive early to help with everything and not be included in the rehearsal dinner. I explained that I’m not going to spend more than $1,000 to fly out early, stay in a hotel, rent a car and not att…

DEAR ABBY: I am in my mid-20s, and a few years ago my mother divorced my stepfather. They were married for 17 years, and I grew up with him in the house for most of my life. After my sister was born, his behavior toward me changed to the point that in high school I spent most of my free time…

DEAR ABBY: Many years ago, I had an affair with a married man. We eventually married and have had a long, happy life together. It was love at first sight for me. Both of us had children with our former spouses.

DEAR ABBY: My son attends an excellent public high school and has done very well. His class is scheduled to graduate in a few weeks, and “Brent” has been accepted to an excellent university.

DEAR ABBY: I am a licensed acupuncturist. One of my patients (also male) asked me to dinner, and since he seemed like a decent guy, I decided to go. After we finished and the $60 bill arrived, he told me he had forgotten his wallet and I needed to pay, which I did. After dinner he took me ba…

DEAR ABBY: I am a woman who has re-entered the dating pool after a few years of being single. I have gone on some amazing dates with fabulous men.

DEAR ABBY: I am 28 and recently found my biological father through Facebook after more than 20 years of not knowing if he was still alive. Although I am happy that I found him, I’m scared to let my family — my mom, my stepdad and my sisters — know I have reconnected with him.

DEAR ABBY: My 8-year-old daughter is seriously allergic to most animals, including cats and dogs. Even a little fur sets her off. She was recently sent home from school sick after she had borrowed a sweater from a friend who has a cat. We are working with an allergist, but this isn’t somethi…

DEAR ABBY: My wife and I have demanding jobs neither of us is crazy about. I sell insurance; she manages a hairdressing salon for a large company. At day’s end I keep the events of the day — good or bad — to myself. I have heard the saying “Don’t bring your family problems to work, and don’t…

DEAR ABBY: My husband went to his 45th class reunion a state away and hooked up with a classmate. Over the next few months it went from talking and texting to her sending him nude pictures of herself.

DEAR ABBY: My husband is more interested in hanging out with his friends than caring about our 11-year-old daughter who has Asperger’s syndrome. She’s a great kid and smart, but she has challenges and needs help. It falls to me to do everything with and for her.

DEAR ABBY: My boyfriend is incredibly sweet and kind to me, but he’s often mean to strangers and can be very aggressive and angry. Some examples: I’m moving in with him, and we are giving a lot of furniture to the poor. One couple, who had agreed to take a couch, decided not to. He yelled at…

DEAR ABBY: My parents were separated for four years while I was in high school and college. It was an incredibly difficult time, and it strained my relationship with my dad. I was told they had “grown apart” but got back together, although we never discuss the reason for it.