Dear Queenie,
My wife is usually on the quiet side, but when we go to a party or some such social event she sometimes drinks too much and gets too loud – cheerful, but still drunk.
Queenie, is there anything I can do about it?—Disgusted husband
Dear Husband,
When your wife goes to her doctor for a checkup you can discuss your concerns with her doctor. You could also record her behaviour on your cell phone and show it to her when she is sober so she can “see herself as others see her” – and hope it helps.
Dear Queenie,
We like to have family and friends visit us, but my husband is allergic to a lot of things, including animal dander, so we ask them not to bring their pets with them, but some of them still do it and sometimes the effects last a long time after they are gone.
Queenie, how do we make them understand?—Concerned wife
Dear Wife,
I hope you have an enclosed yard or some place outside your home where the pets can stay while their owners are visiting. If not, try to arrange for such. Otherwise, you will have to strictly enforce your “no pets” rule, even if it means seeming inhospitable at times.
Dear Queenie,
I watch a lot of movies on TV and I have always wondered how those sexy actors and actresses control themselves during love scenes.
Queenie, or do they?—Movie fan
Dear Movie fan,
There are some exceptions, but in most cases everything that happens in these love scenes has been planned (and sometimes practised) in advance. That is why it is called “acting”. And remember, when these scenes are filmed there is a whole crew of as many as 20 or 30 people working along with the actors.
Dear Queenie,
When our baby was born a few weeks early my family and my husband’s were very supportive all the time we were in the hospital, but some of them thought it was rude of us to not want any visitors the first day we got home and some of them won’t have anything to do with us now.
Queenie, we have tried to get them to understand but they are still vexed. What more can we do?—New parents
Dear New parents,
I think your relatives are not very considerate, wanting you to entertain visitors on your first day home from the hospital. Explain to them (again!) that you needed time to settle down and adjust to your new circumstances, and that now they are welcome to visit if they still wish to do so – and if they can do so in a manner that will be pleasant for you and your child.
Dear Queenie,
My very old mother and several of her very old friends still live in their own homes but they don’t drive any more. They could keep in touch by phone, but they don’t for some reason. Maybe they don’t have old-fashioned land lines and don’t know how to use modern cell phones.
Queenie, how can I help my mother?—Concerned daughter
Dear Daughter,
You can help your mother and her friends by making sure they have contact with and transportation to a senior citizens centre and/or a senior citizens help organisation. And be sure she has regular medical check-ups (and her friends too).
