Columns

Unhappy Wife Wants Out of Marriage to a Good Man

DEAR ABBY: I’m 54 and afraid to tell my spouse I want a divorce even though I’m in an unhappy marriage. I told him years ago that I no longer loved him and didn’t want to be married anymore. His reply, “I have enough love for both of us.” This year will be our 15th together. I am spouse No. 3. I think he thinks that if there isn’t another person I’m in love with that we can continue like this. I feel it’s just time for me, and I’m tired of always being somebody’s something. I have thought of moving out, but money is an issue, and I have nowhere to go. I hate ...

VIRUS DIARY: Always Learning From ‘Happy Little Accidents’

PHOENIX (AP) — I'm not alone in confessing that I have always enjoyed those Bob Ross instructional painting programs that ran on PBS for many years. Perhaps it was his soothing voice as a tree appeared like magic on a lake with the flick of his wrist. Maybe it was his Mr. Rogers-like ...

Surgery Is Standard Treatment For Penile Cancer

DEAR DR. ROACH: What can you tell me about cancer of the penis? I can’t seem to find information. — S.S. ANSWER: Cancer of the penis is quite rare in industrialized nations, accounting for less than 1% of all cancers in men. By contrast, it is quite common in parts of Africa, Asia and South America, where it can account for 10% to 20% of all cancers. One risk factor is phimosis, an inability to retract the foreskin. Circumcision decreases risk of penile cancer, but careful lifelong hygiene (thus avoiding phimosis) reduces the risk of penile cancer to the same level as seen in ...

Man’s Internet Addiction Makes Woman a Social Media Widow

DEAR ABBY: I realize that social media is a big part of today’s world, and I have no problem with someone using it to stay in contact with family and friends. But at what point is it deemed an addiction? My significant other spends hours every day scrolling through his Facebook and Twitter pages. I have tried discussing it with him, but it becomes an argument. Now I just sit in the same room with him, silent and waiting until it’s my turn for his attention. How can I get him to realize how isolated from him it makes me feel and that my presence doesn’t seem to be needed? Should ...

Thrifty Cooking Ideas

Dear Heloise: I am thrifty in the kitchen. I rarely discard cooking water from any vegetables and even save pasta and potato water. In the fall, I make tasty vegetarian soup from all these liquids; add tomatoes, vegetables, beans and or grains/pasta. When my carrots got a little too old, I cooked them in enough water to cover, drained and pureed them in a blender, using the cooking liquid to get consistency. I froze the carrot puree in ice cube trays. I added several cubes to soup, stews, sauces, etc. Other things to freeze in ice cube trays: pesto, pimentos in their liquid, mashed ...

Researching Family History Exposes Old Murder Charges

DEAR ABBY: While researching my family, I discovered that my now-elderly mother was charged with the murder of a toddler 40 years ago, before I was born. She was never convicted and never mentioned it. However, after reading her testimony and things she’s said after the incident, I have no doubt she is guilty. This has me reeling because she has always been a great and loving mother. When she heard I was researching our family, she mentioned that I would find something unsavory and asked me to please not look into it because it’s in the past and she didn’t want it to tarnish my ...