The syndicated Dear Abby column this week answered two readers who wrote about very different domestic disputes: one about an acerbic neighbor who has made repeated, unwelcome comments during morning walks, and another about a wife in her 70s seeking a solution after her husband refuses to leave their multi‑story home despite her mobility problems.
In the first letter, a reader who identified herself as "Avoiding in California" said she and her husband walk around a local lake three times a week and had met another couple there. She wrote that the man initially offered the name of his doctor so she could "Get that ‘thing’ removed," referring to a beauty mark next to her smile, and that the comments escalated in subsequent encounters. She quoted him as asking, "What’s going on with your hands?" and remarking, "What are those, socks?" The reader said the man’s behavior amused him while making her uncomfortable, and that she has begun to walk past the couple while smiling and wishing them a pleasant day. When her husband stopped to talk recently, the man called out, "Stop!" and the reader said she now fears the situation could escalate and would prefer to avoid trouble.
Abby responded that the reader is not obliged to interact with anyone who makes her uncomfortable and that if her husband wants to socialize, he should do so when she is not present. Abby called the man "a little off" and suggested the reader either keep walking or find another route if her husband cannot recognize how she feels.
The second letter came from a reader who signed "End of my Rope in Michigan". She and her husband are in their 70s, and she described increasing hip and knee pain after hip replacements that make climbing the stairs in their large home difficult. She said she has begun bringing clothes downstairs in a bag to avoid repeated climbs and that her husband scoffs at suggestions to move to senior living, telling her, "I will leave this house only feet first." The reader said she has been an equal breadwinner and that the home and her husband’s social life were largely her doing; she asked for advice, saying she had considered divorce.
Abby recommended the couple look into stair chair lifts or small residential elevators, noting the cost would likely be less than a divorce. The columnist advised the reader to present that practical comparison to her husband as a way to address the mobility issue without forcing an immediate move.
Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren, the pen name of Jeanne Phillips, and the column was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips. The syndicated advice feature regularly handles domestic and interpersonal disputes, offering short, pragmatic suggestions and referrals for readers seeking further help. Readers can contact the column through DearAbby.com or by mail to the syndicate’s listed address.