Dear Queenie,
I’m planning on asking my girlfriend to marry me and she wants to design her own engagement ring.
Queenie, should I still give her a ring when I actually propose to her or just wait for her to come up with her own?—Her boyfriend
Dear Boyfriend,
There are no rules about how to propose marriage, and giving a ring with the proposal is not necessary. The engagement begins when the woman accepts, not when she starts wearing an engagement ring. All you need to do is ask her to marry you, and then cooperate with her on designing (or selecting) a ring.
Dear Queenie,
I’m a teenage girl, but I haven’t developed a figure yet (flat breasts, slim hips) and my hair is short, so sometimes people think I’m a boy and this bothers me a lot.
Queenie, what’s a polite way to correct them?—She, not he
Dear She, Not He,
Just smile and say (in a polite tone of voice), “I’m a girl.”
Dear Queenie,
Some friends of ours keep their cats’ litter box in the bathroom next to the toilet. Sometimes when we have to use the toilet the litter box is not clean and smells awful.
Queenie, should we say something to them about it?—Offended friend
Dear Friend,
Yes. Tell them you love to visit them, but it makes you uncomfortable to see (and smell) the litter box next to the toilet, and you do not want to offend them but you thought they would want to know.
Dear Queenie,
Some friends of ours keep their cats’ litter box in the bathroom next to the toilet. Sometimes when we have to use the toilet the litter box is not clean and smells awful.
Queenie, should we say something to them about it?—Offended friend
Dear Friend,
Yes. Tell them you love to visit them, but it makes you uncomfortable to see (and smell) the litter box next to the toilet, and you do not want to offend them but you thought they would want to know.
Dear Queenie,
A long time ago there was a woman I used to pay to have sex with. Recently this woman got a job at the place where I work. We get along alright but it’s difficult when we see each other alone somewhere, like in an elevator or an otherwise empty hallway.
Queenie, should I find a way to let her know I have never said anything to anyone about what we used to do?—Worried
Dear Worried,
Just leave the past in the past. If she is worried about what you might say about her, eventually she will understand that you have not talked about your past with her and will not do so, and she will stop worrying.
