Marilyn wrote to me saying, “I miss our conversations!”
DEAR HARRIETTE: My 19-year-old daughter is insecure about how she looks. She cries all the time and blames me for her appearance. I have no clue how to help her because every time I say that she is beautiful, she says I’m only saying that because I’m her mother. She is surrounded by social media images, unrealistic beauty standards and constant comparisons, and I fear that these influences have shaped how she sees herself way more than I ever could.
Axios calls Congress “The worst good-paying job in America.” The Atlantic headlines, “House Republicans Aren’t Having Any Fun.” And USA Today reports: “Why quitting is all the rage in DC.”
• Student Senate Officers at Clinton Middle School attended a Student Senate convention in Enid which was held at the Mark Price Arena. The 1995-1996 CMS officers who attended the convention were Walker Moore, president; Ryan Kelley and Landon Littke, recycling coordinators; Sondra Hutcheson, secretary; Julie Smith and Brittney Catlett, parliamentarians; and Amy Klein, vice president. Sponsor for the organization was Lana McKinsey.
DEAR HARRIETTE: A man asked me on a first date to a dive bar. I said no because I already felt like he was trying to see how little effort he could put into planning where we would go. I’m not saying he needed to spend a ton of money on me – especially for a first date – but his idea just felt flat-out lazy. In the past, I’ve been in relationships where my boyfriend would see how little effort he could put into me and see if he could get away with it. Saying no felt like an act of self-respect, but it also left me secondguessing myself. I don’t want to come across as high-maintenance or unfair, but I also don’t want to settle for less than I deserve. How do I balance being open-minded with setting standards for effort and intention early on, and how can I communicate what I want without scaring someone off or feeling like I’m asking for too much? – The Art of Dating DEAR THE ART OF DATING: The first date I went on with my husband was to grab takeout and go to a park.
In 1777, Revolutionary forces under the command of George Washington defeated the British at Princeton, New Jersey.
Dear Doctors: Is it OK to go without shoes? I’ve heard conflicting information. I wear supportive shoes for exercise and in public, but I prefer bare feet at home. I stand about six hours a day, and I just find it much more comfortable without shoes. I am 65 and healthy, with no history of foot problems.
Hello, dear readers! Welcome to our monthly letters column. We’ve had some interesting mail, so we’ll get right to it.
DEAR HARRIETTE: My son rarely calls me or reaches out to me, and it makes me question whether I did something wrong raising him. He is now a sophomore at a college halfway across the country. I was sad to see him go away, but I assumed he would call me first sometimes. I thought wrong; if I want to hear from him, I need to call him. What hurts me the most is that when we do call, our conversations feel rushed, as if I’m interrupting his life rather than being a part of it. I try not to sound like a needy parent, but I can’t shake the feeling that I care about him way more than he cares about me.
In 1862, Abraham Lincoln signed a bill admitting West Virginia into the United States.